Page 26 of Love & Monsters
“Mina,” he breathed my name, wrapping a hand around the back of my neck and pulling me into his heady warmth. “I will tell you what’s going on, but right now, we need to move. We’re going to rest and then we have more walking ahead of us. Right now, it’s important that you trust me and listen to me so we can make it through this.”
“I don’t like not knowing what’s going on. My entire life I’ve lived based on a careful schedule. Every aspect of my life and my days were planned, and now I’m just taking each step blindly.” It felt good to talk to him and let out the problems in my mind.
“Planning out every second of your life sounds exhausting, but I can understand how you’re feeling. It’s alright to fear the unknown, Mina, but I’m going to protect you.” He looked down at me, and despite the horns, yellow eyes, and sharp teeth, I trusted him to deliver on that promise.
“Alright,” I finally said after several moments of staring into each other’s eyes. “Let’s get walking then.”
“Good. We’re going this way.” Vadric pulled away, nodding into the trees behind me. He tightened his grip on the bag over his shoulder and I fell into step behind him.
“Where are we going to rest? Is it going to be all night?” I asked rapid fire as I followed the path Vadric cleared.
He glanced at me over his shoulder for a second, long enough for me to catch the brief smirk on his lips. “So many questions from such a little thing. You’ll see when we get there.”
I didn’t enjoy traipsing through the woods in a dress with no underwear and ill-fitting boots. I also didn’t like surprises, but I had no choice but to follow behind the remarkably tall blue demon into the darkened forest.
Fifteen
“I didn’t think we’d be walking this long, Vadric.” My feet were killing me. “When I went hiking and jogging in my world, I wore shoes that were made for this type of thing.”
“We’re almost there.” He chuckled back, continuing with his long strides through the thick trees. Vadric wasn’t out of breath or lagging at all.
“You’re also really hard to keep up with. Your legs are as long as the trees!” Since he was several paces ahead of me, I openly complained. I could already feel blisters forming on my feet.
“Oh, come here.” Before I could react, Vadric stopped and swept me up into his arms.
I yelped at the shock of being suddenly cradled to his chest. “Vadric!”
“Is that better, little one?” His tone teased, low in a way that made me blush. And now we were touching again, reigniting the recent memories of what happened in the wagon.
“You can’t carry me the rest of the way.” Yet I rested my head against his chest, listening to the steady thumping of his heart.
“Hm, I can,” he replied, and I could hear the smile in his voice. “You’re lighter than a feather. We’re already moving a lot faster now. I should have carried you this whole time.”
Vadric was nearly flying over the ground, and he wasn’t even running. Just the length of his legs was enough to propel us forward at a rapid pace. Perhaps he should have carried me this whole time, I mused to myself.
I listened to the stomp of his boots on the forest floor, the crunching of leaves and twigs and the swishing of the branches overhead from the gentle breeze. It gave me the opportunity to observe the forest and admire the strangely dark beauty of this world I found myself in. Red light from the sky drifted down from breaks in the foliage, and occasionally I spotted one of those two moons in the sky.
“Is it always dark here in Nadirn?” I asked, breaking up the comfortable silence.
“Yes.”
“How do you tell day from night, then?” In the dungeon, I could correlate night to the decreasing temperature. That didn’t seem to be the case so far up here with the steady warmth.
“By the moon’s location in the sky and intensity of the aurora lights. It’s late in the day now, almost nighttime. The moons will dip below the horizon and the lights will dim. When the moons come back and the light returns, we know it’s morning.” Vadric explained without breaking his pace.
“Oh, that’s almost like earth. Except we have one moon and a sun that brightens the sky during the day.” I sighed. “I miss blue skies, and the colors of the sunset.”
“Blue skies sound interesting. It’s only ever red or black here.” He didn’t say it, yet I could almost hear the ‘I’m sorry’ in his tone. It wasn’t pity, but he was sorry for my circumstance.
“Will you teach me more about your world? Like how to tell the time of day?” He’d already taught me a lot in our hours talking while imprisoned together. Though I knew there was so much more.
“Of course, little one. Anything you want to know.” I’d take the offer. If I was going to be stuck in a world of monsters, I needed to know everything.
“Oh, we’re here. Hold on.” Vadric paused, gingerly setting me back on my feet. “Stay here and stay quiet. I’m going to sweep the area to ensure it’s clear.”
Vadric dropped the bag at my feet with a thump on the ground. He pressed his fingers to his lips, holding eye contact for a moment where I admired the glimmer in his yellow iris. Then, without another word, he positioned into a predatory crouch and vanished into the foliage ahead.
Those moments waiting for him in the eerie silence were torture. All the noises of living creatures in the underbrush were nonexistent when Vadric was at my side. Now I heard them like a symphony of unknown little beasts and creatures chittering and chirping in the shadows. It made my skin crawl.
