Page 40 of Blood Weaver
I chuckled as I went over to a bureau and pulled out a dry flare. “Here. I always have them here to notify Selene.”
He snatched it from my hand with a smile. “Perfect! Hopefully my clan will be able to find us.”
“If not, they can always go to Selene. She knows how to get here,” I said.
Ronan nodded, then slowly looked around the space. “Do you have anything to eat here?”
“No. We’ll have to go hunting for some food, but I—”
“Don’t worry about it,” Ronan cut me off. “You managed to make the long journey here while being injured, so for now I need you to rest. I’ll find us something to eat.” He gripped my uninjured shoulder and gently nudged me toward the small bed in the corner of the room. “Rest. You must be exhausted. I’ll be back soon.” Without looking back, Ronan left the cabin with the flare in hand.
An hour later,Ronan returned with two dead squirrels. After raising them in the air victoriously, earning a small smile from me, he stepped back outside to start a cooking fire. Once the squirrels were roasted and crispy, he brought them back inside just as my stomach growled.
I took my first bite and swallowed. Squirrel had never tasted so good. “Did you send out the flare?”
Ronan nodded and started to eat. “Silas will come looking for us soon.”
“I told Henry to go tell Selene if I didn’t return by this morning, so she’ll be here soon as well.”
“Good.” Ronan took another bite and chewed thoughtfully. “Leila, have you thought about the aftermath?”
I raised a brow. “The aftermath? What do you mean?”
“Well, Caelan probably thinks you’re dead, which means you won’t be able to return to Lomewood easily.”
I scoffed. “I’m not hiding, Ronan. I have a life in Lomewood … agoodlife. He’s not going to take that away from me.”
Ronan watched me carefully before placing a bone down on the scarred dining table that I also used for sorting and grinding herbs. “I’m sure you know this already, but just to clarify, youmustknow that Caelan was only able to bring the Valorian army through neutral territory with the governor’s permission … which means the governor is in his pocket. Living in Lomewood after this won’t be easy.”
I couldn’t argue with his logic. Unfortunately, he was right. There was no other way for Caelan to have done what he did unless the governor was a willing participant. And no matterhow popular I was as a healer within the Central Plains, the governor would choose royalty with deep pockets over me.
Ronan cleared his throat. “Come with me to the Grasslands,” he proposed. “I can keep you safe there.”
My attention snapped to his face. “What?”
“Once Silas arrives, we can make plans for our return to the Grasslands. We might have to cut through Eldwain and Ellyndor, but we’ll get there before—”
“No!” I cut him off and shot to my feet. “Was this your plan all along?”
Ronan stood and shook his head. “No, Leila, it wasn’t. But the Central Plains are dangerous now. You can’tpossiblystay here! I can provide safety, and I promise not to tell anyone who you are. You can go with us as a healer and—”
I waved off his words. “I would just be placing myself into my enemies’ hands. If staying in the Central Plains is dangerous, then going to the Grasslands is even worse.” I sighed and shook my head, wincing from the movement. “I won’t let Caelan run me out of my home.”
Ronan stared at me for a moment before he nodded and sat back down. Running a hand through his long dark hair still tangled from our hasty swim in the river, he finished eating his dinner. It seemed he didn’t have the energy to argue with me.
That night,Ronan slept on a pallet of blankets beside my bed. The tension between us was as tangible as the chilly air that seeped through the cabin’s wooden frames. We didn’t know how to behave around each other after the close quarters we’d employed the night before.
I handed him a pillow and pointed to the sleeping pallet I made. “Uh … you can sleep here. I hope that’s okay.”
“Yeah, it’s no problem.” He laid down and made himself comfortable, then sent a mischievous smirk my way. “Unless you need a little warmth tonight as well?”
I rolled my eyes. “In your dreams.”
Ronan’s laughter filled the space, a jarring contrast to the tension that had silently built between us. “I don’t have to dream. Last night, you quite literally got me out of my clothes, you were so cold! I thought you were going to squeeze me to death!” he joked.
Heat crawled up my neck and the crimson hues of embarrassment painted my features. Fortunately, he couldn’t see me from where I lay on my bed. The flickering flame of a single candle cast an intimate glow from the bedside table, but it wasn’t enough to dispel the lingering shadows of the small cabin. Our proximity, though not as close as last night, bred an awkwardness that made the confined space we shared feel even smaller.
I pulled my quilts up to my chin and peered down at him, surprised to catch him watching me with a serious expression.
