Page 19 of Spirit Rites
I hurry to continue. “Can I use that long knife?”
I hear the slightest rustling, and then I hear his voice again. “Hold out your hand.” He places the pommel in my hand. Just having the weapon in hand brings me comfort.
I take a step backwards. “Thank you. Sleep well.” I head back to the fire and try to get comfortable. I have a knife in each hand, and I feel as ready as I’m going to be. The night hours drag, and every single sound makes me nervous. I find myself wishing Farrah and Harper were here. The last time I was stuck in the woods; at least it was with them. I absently wonder how they’re doing. I’m not really sure how long Kaldar sleeps. I would guess it’s less than three hours, but it feels like ten. The darkness finally starts to recede, and I get excited about the sun coming up. Maybe there will be a sunrise. Of course, we probably won’t be able to see it with all these trees around; but it still makes me happy. It means we made it through the night. “We made it through the night.” I’m careful to keep my voice quiet. “We had good food for dinner. I slept a few hours.”
“Kinsley?” I turn at the sound of Kaldar’s voice and am not surprised to see him standing only a few feet from me. I’m starting to get used to his stealth. “Are you okay?” he asks cautiously.
“Yes. Why?”
“You’re talking to yourself.”
I wave off his concern. “I’m just making my daily gratitude list. It helps me stay grounded and look for the good. Otherwise, I have a tendency to get anxious and worry a lot.”
I expect that to be it, but he surprises me. “What’s on your list for today?”
I can’t help my smile. “The fish we ate last night, and the fact I didn’t drown. I need to add that detail to my list. We made it through the night, and the sun is coming up.” When he doesn’t say anything, I turn to him. He has an expression on his facethat I can’t read, but I don’t think its annoyance.I hope it’s not annoyance. “What’s the plan for today? Are we staying here or do we keep moving?”
He’s quick to answer. “Keep moving. The tests seem to get worse the more settled you are.” He grimaces. “I learned that the hard way.”
“What happened?” I ask out of curiosity.
“You don’t want to know.”
I look over at him. “I do.” I wait a moment, waiting for him to just tell me. He doesn’t disappoint.
“I had a spot like this that I stayed at for two days. When I came back one night to crash, snakes had invaded it and destroyed everything.”
I feel my face pale. “Snakes?” I whisper.
He looks over at me and grimaces. “I shouldn't have told you that.”
“I asked,” I insist. I really wish I wouldn’t have, though; but now that’s all I can think of. A shudder runs down my spine.I really hate snakes.
“Hey, it’s okay. I’ll make sure the snakes stay away.” I nod and try to think of anything else but snakes slithering their way into our camp. “Kinsley. Hey.” A warm hand closes around my bicep. “There are no snakes. Don’t think about it.”
I look up at him, way up. “Telling somebody not to think of something is the best way to get them to think about it.”
“Let’s keep moving.” We’re walking a few minutes later. “How long have you been bonded to Veyra?” His words bring an instant smile to my face.
“All of about a few hours before you brought me here.”
“I didn’t bring you here,” he mutters under his breath, but I can still hear it. For some reason, it makes me smile. “Only a few hours?”
“Yep.” I’m careful to watch each and every step I take, so I don’t step on any snakes. I help Kaldar cut down areas that get too thick to get through.
“How much do you know about jaguars then?”
“Next to nothing, but I want to learn. I mean I know a little from the trials but not much.”
“What do you want to know?” he asks.
“Everything you can tell me about them.”
“Jaguars have a fierce bite; their jaws are incredibly strong. They love water and are excellent swimmers. They protect their young fiercely. They hunt pretty much anything and hunt both during the day and at night. They like to stalk their meals, often from the tops of the trees.” There’s a smirk on his face when he says this. “They’re obviously incredibly fast.” He’s quiet a moment, like he’s thinking. “They use their tongue to clean themselves, but they have healing properties in their tongues that they use to clean an injury with.”
“That’s fascinating.”
He nods. “They’re amazing creatures. I haven’t really had a chance to be around Veyra, but if she’s half as incredible as Jespar, she’ll be amazing.”
