Page 88 of Brambles and Bellflowers
“Come on?” Did he mean to walk in there straight through the dark?
“Just trust me.” He turned, holding his hand out to me. “Okay?”
My heart raced at the expectant look on his face, even as the blackness loomed behind him like a threat. How was he supposed to know I was terrified of small, enclosed spaces?
Still, Julian had said I needed to learn to trust them, and this was a perfect opportunity to do so.
I swallowed, my throat dry and still sore, and placed my hand in his. “Okay.”
16
Julian POV
My blade slippedthrough my suddenly numb fingers. My attention snapped forward as my senses tingled with the distant echo of roaring waves in my head.
“What’s wrong now?” Damen, ever the invader of privacy, asked as he rifled through Miles’s food bag. “You know, you need to stop freaking out every time Bianca’s out of your sight. Do you need some pointers for relaxation? I picked up a few new techniques—”
“Something’s off,” I muttered, picking up my blade and forcing a calm I didn’t feel. Damen had been getting on my last nerve this whole trip, but I usually could ignore him. However, the uneasy sensation gnawing at my gut was harder to dismiss.
Damen looked up, a smirk fading as he noted my expression. “It’s not like Miles is going to hurt her.”
“She might hurt him, though,” Titus piped up, half-joking as he leaned in, interested in the turn of conversation.
“How?” I countered, trying not to let my worry bleed through too much. Bianca was gentle at her core and only dreamed ofhurting others when absolutely necessary. “Bianca isn’t violent,” I stated more firmly than I intended, meeting their bemused looks with a frown. “She’s not.”
I looked in the direction where Miles and Bianca had vanished and continued to fight back my rising anxiety.
“Fine.” Damen sighed. “Have it your way. We’ll check on them, but you can deal with Miles’s complaining. I’m not taking the blame.”
“Meh,” I scoffed and wiped my thighs. “He can’t do anything to me.” I touched my elbows, brushing my fingertips over the latch to release the blades strapped against the inside of my forearms.
The witch was my Controller, but for now, he was harmless enough. This suited me perfectly fine for the moment.
However, protecting Bianca was my priority. I had things to do before she could see the real me. I cherished our bond, yet hiding my darker self was becoming more challenging.
As we neared the river,Titus broke into a sprint, his urgency mirroring my unease. I followed quickly, my instincts sharpening as possible scenarios flashed through my mind.
We emerged onto an empty riverbank.
“Bianca?” Damen’s shout echoed over the area. He circled the bank like a hawk while Titus made a beeline for the water’s edge.
“Do you hear them?” I asked, following the dragon. His intense gaze didn’t waver as he examined the mud-caked roots and fallen branches.
“This was recently moved,” he said, his expression sharp. His nostrils flared as he strolled along the waterline, approachingthe fallen trunk, barely held between two large boulders. My heart sank as he pushed lightly at it with his foot, and the tree wobbled precariously.
“They were both on here,” he said.
“On that?” Damen asked, joining us at last. “Why?”
“Who knows? I’m sure they had a good reason.” I pursed my lips, glancing toward the other side of the water. The branches barely touched the opposite shore. “They might have gone the whole way across.”
“Or they could have fallen in,” Damen added.
My chest tightened as I took in the roaring rapids. They would be seriously hurt then—or even dragged down below. Bianca couldn’t swim well, and Miles wasn’t strong enough to protect them. I stepped further into the river, letting the cool water swirl around my ankles, then my knees. I closed my eyes and extended my senses into the water’s depths, reaching for any trace of them.
The river responded to my presence, currents whispering against my skin. I sensed a subtle disturbance, a shift in the water’s flow. Miles had tried to use his abilities to forge a path.
But, of course, he’d failed.
