Page 128 of Beneath a Shattered Sky
It lacks the rope and ribbons of the shrines we’ve seen so far; in fact, the few offerings beneath it are a handful of bone carvings and even tiny stone cairns.
I’ve just murmured the blessing when a telltale cackle echoes from above. Turning quickly, my gut clenching with anticipation of whatever Lore is up to now, I take a step back as I try to locate him, almost entirely missing the transformation of the statue from ice into beautiful, marbled amethyst.
Before I can discover the source of the laughter, a snowball the size of a small pony lands on Caed’s head from above. Then another and another.
Jaro’s shield comes around me as more of them rain down from the sky, smashing down like boulders onto the heads of the rest of my Guard. Drystan blasts his with fire, melting the first, but missing the second that Lore launches at him from behind. Gryffin dives on Prae in an attempt to save her, but in the process, he ends up launching them into a snowdrift, muchto her fury. Bree raises a single wing in defence, and unwittingly diverts his projectile… straight into Drystan’s furious face.
“LORCAN!” Drystan roars.
He’s entirely engulfed in flame, his body radiating so much heat that I can discern it even through the thick bubble of Jaro’s shield and my own furs. The snow around him has melted entirely, exposing a perfectly clear circle of rock.
“Whoops.” Lore blinks into the bubble beside me, putting my body between him and the angry dullahan. “Hey, pet, how about you calm down the raging fire demon, and I’ll make it up to you with orgasms?”
Drystan is advancing upon us like a living, breathing, snarling volcano. I duck my head into my hands, trying my hardest to smother a chuckle, but of course it escapes, anyway.
Soon, I’m giggling so hard I can barely breathe. Drystan’s fire flickers, then dies, leaving a steaming, glowering fae in its place.
A muffled cry for help echoes from beneath the snow pile on his right, but Drystan simply scoffs, leaving Caed to dig his own way free of his frozen tomb.
The Lord of the Wild Hunt heads for me instead, hand extended.
“Come on. We need to continue if we’re to make it to the next village before nightfall.”
He stares down Jaro’s shield until the wolf shifter lets it dissipate, then drags me away from the redcap with a stony glare.
“I’ll have to up my game,” Lore mutters behind us as I’m lifted back into the saddle. “Not even one death threat. I’m losing my touch.”
“Leave us out of it,” Gryffin grumbles, only to be hit in the back of the head by another snowball—this time courtesy of Prae.
“The trail gets steeper from here,” Drystan says, ignoring him and the shivering blue limbs currently trying to dig their way free of the heaps of snow. “We’ll continue through the hills until we reach the valley of Winter’s Fork. There’s a town there where we can buy the correct gear for the ascent up the mountain.”
“I thought we already have those.” I run my hand over the fur at my wrists, then glance guiltily at Caed again.
He looks miserable, and my chest pangs in sympathy.
Drystan shakes his head, drawing my attention back to him. “No. There are additional charms and enchantments we’ll need to complete the more dangerous parts of the route. The Temple there provides them to travellers for a small donation, on the condition that they’re returned to any other temple in the foothills once used.”
That seems awfully charitable for the fae, but before I can say as much, Jaro rides up beside us.
“Calimnel quietly subsidises the cost. It’s hard to make money from visitors if no one can reach your ice city without falling off a cliff or freezing to death.”
The mention of freezing to death draws my attention back to Caed again, and I straighten my spine as I come to a decision.
My cloak is probably too small for him, but it’s better than nothing. I undo the clasp before Drystan can stop me and hand the fabric bundle to Titania, summoning her and making her solid with a thought.
“Give this to him.”
“Rhoswyn.” Oh, I can practically hear him grinding his teeth together behind me. “The Fomorian?—”
“Gave me a cloak when I was naked, even when we were enemies,” I counter, before he can interrupt. “I’m just returning the favour.”
“Don’t,” Caed says, brushing snow from his shoulders. “It wasn’t some noble gesture. It was just that I didn’t want anyoneelse seeing you like that. At the time, I put it down to some stupid territorial fae bullshit.”
Something low in my gut trembles and withers, sadness clogging my throat as I look away.
“Be that as it may.” I’m proud of how steady my voice is. “I still don’t want you to be cold.”
Titania holds out the cloak, but Caed doesn’t take it. The standoff lasts for several awkward seconds before Jaro growls under his breath and reaches into a saddlebag.
