by Alice Wilde
We all sit in silence for a long moment, and I try to contemplate what this means.
“But, how would Damien even know where we were?” I ask.
“That I don’t know,” Li says. “Perhaps he guessed it from the direction we were traveling, or he found something out when he attacked Louis’ camp.”
“There are so many uncertainties,” I say, trying not to let myself think about Louis.
“Yes, but we have to consider all the possibilities and how this might affect our future plans,” Li says.
“Thor’s hammer, you’ll never let me finish telling my story, will you?” Ero says.
We all shut our mouths instantly, almost sheepishly waiting for Ero to continue telling us what he saw.
“As I was saying, I went back to take a look around. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it certainly wasn’t what I saw,” Ero says. “There were absolutely no signs of damage. People were continuing about their lives as if nothing had happened. Well, almost as if nothing had happened.”
Roan makes a sound as though he’s about to say something but stops when Li holds his hand up toward him.
“Go on, Ero,” Li says. “What was different?”
Ero glances toward Roan, and for a moment, I think I see a small smile play at the corner of Ero’s mouth.
“There’s talk of a traitorous deserter,” Ero says slowly and deliberately, “the one and only son and heir to Clan Artair.”
Roan jumps to his feet, the movement nearly sending me flying off the stone we’ve been sharing.
“I’m no deserter!”
“I didn’t say you were.”
“You were practically gloating!”
“I didn’t say it wasn’t entertaining to hear,” Ero says with an impish grin. “Besides, you are now…at least according to your own kinsmen.”
Roan glares at Ero, but then turns and storms off in the direction we’d come from earlier that day.
“Li—” I say.
“On it,” Li says as he stands and quickly follows in Roan’s wake before I can finish my sentence.
I watch them disappear as I wonder what we’re going to do now.
Two
Annalise
Ero and I sit alone in silence, the sunlight slowly fading around us as he picks apart a blade of grass in his hands. Roan and Li have been gone for a while now, and all I can do is hope Li has managed to calm Roan down.
There’s a slight chill in the air, and I can’t help but wish Roan hadn’t left my side…or at the very least that his body heat hadn’t. Ever since our wedding night, Roan hasn’t let Li or Ero get within arm’s reach of me, and this is the first time he’s left me alone for more than a few minutes. I’ll admit, part of me revels in how protective he is of me, but the rest of me wants to scream at how much it’s changed the dynamic of our group. Not that Ero or Li have ever been particularly chatty, but at least they all seemed to be working together before.
A shiver runs down my spine as a cool breeze rustles through the leaves and across my skin. Ero doesn’t seem to be bothered by the evening’s temperature drop, but all three of them have remarkably warm bodies.
I’d light a fire if I could, but I hadn’t paid much attention when any of them built them before. Ero is lounging lazily in the grass, his white-blond hair catching the dying rays of light in a halo around him and making him look like a Norse god. I can’t help but want to curl up next to him…and not just for warmth. My face burns at the thought. I’m not supposed to have these kinds of feelings, at least not now, and not for Ero.
“What are you thinking?”
I start at the sound of Ero’s voice, deep and velvety from his resting place.
“What do you mean?” I ask as innocently as possible.
“Your face is a red as a drunken sailor, princess,” Ero says without a hitch. “Don’t pretend you weren’t thinking something you oughtn’t.”
I bite my lip. I hadn’t realized he was watching.
“It’s nothing. I’m just a little cold,” I answer, a half-truth.
“Uh-huh,” Ero says, propping himself up on his elbows so he can get a better look at me and cocking his head to the side. “So, what are you going to do about it?”
I blink, my mind reeling, caught off-guard by the bluntness of the question.
Ero grins roguishly at me before patting the ground next to him.
“Plenty of space next to me,” he says. “Unless you think you’d get in trouble for getting too close without your husband’s permission.”
“Ugh!” I stand up in a huff and stomp my foot at him before I catch myself. A childish tantrum isn’t exactly the kind of behavior I want to become a habit.
“You know you want to,” Ero says.
I do my best to glare at him and then spin on my heel, heading away from him and out into the surrounding forest.
“Where are you going?” Ero asks lazily, still sprawled out in the grass.
“To gather firewood,” I say. “At least one of us should try to be useful.”
I gasp as I suddenly feel Ero’s hands on my shoulders. I don’t know how he managed to get up and over to me so quickly.
“Without asking me to help?” Ero whispers in my ear.
“I don’t need your help. I’m perfectly capable of doing this on my own, thank you very much.”
“Oh, really? And when have you ever helped us build a fire before?”
I ignore his question and shake myself from his hold as I start picking up random sticks and twigs from the ground.
Ero doesn’t move to help me, instead choosing to watch as he leans casually up against a nearby tree. I don’t look at him to confirm this, but I can feel his eyes on me.
“Are you just going to watch or were you planning to help?”
“I didn’t realize I was allowed to help you. Thank you for granting me permission, princess.”
“Stop that.”
“Stop what?”
“Stop calling me princess. It’s not cute,” I snap.
“I think it is.”
“No, you just like being annoying and pissing everyone off.”
Ero doesn’t respond but instead begins picking up sticks, shoving them under his arm in a way that would have certainly injured any normal man. I feel guilty for snapping at him. I haven’t actually figured out why this pet name bothers me so much. I am a princess, after all. Or was. I’m a queen now that my father is dead and I am legally married to Damien.
“Do you really feel that way about me?”
I pause, my hand outstretched toward a piece of wood. I turn to look at him. His arms are full of branches, far more than I’ve managed to collect in the same amount of time. The long, soft locks of his hair fall over his face as he watches me with his piercingly blue eyes. Even in the fading light, it’s impossible not to see how gorgeous he is. I swallow.
“The words came out harsher than I meant them, but you really could try harder not to rub everyone the wrong way.”
“I just say what’s on my mind. How people interpret my words is up to them.”
“You could try to keep some things to yourself,” I say. “Sometimes it’s better to choose your battles than turn everything into one.”
“It’s not my fault that Roan is so easy to rile,” Ero says with a wry smile.
“It is your fault. Whether you like it or not, you are one of the few people in this world who really knows how to get under his skin.”
“Fitting that you’d take your husband’s side.”
“Excuse me,” I say with indignation. “That’s not fair. I didn’t take Damien’s side just because he married me. And I certainly wouldn’t take Roan’s side if he were in the wrong.”
Ero rolls his eyes at me. “Oh, please. Then how come you have barely gotten within arm’s length of me or Li since you two married? This might be the longest conversation you and I have ever had alone.”
I’m about to respond when it dawns on me what Ero might be
trying to say but can’t. It almost seems as though he’s jealous of Roan’s relationship with me…if Ero is capable of being jealous.
“Ero,” I start slowly, “are you jealous of Roan?”
“Jealous?” Ero scoffs, quickly turning toward our makeshift camp, but not before I can see a slight tinge of pink flush his cheeks.
I hurry to follow him back to our little camp. Ero dumps the wood he’s carrying on the ground and starts prepping a place for the fire.
“Ero—”
“I don’t want to talk about Roan.”
“I was just going to ask if you could show me how to make a fire,” I say.
“Oh,” Ero says. “Yes, of course. Come here.”
He looks at me and pats the ground beside him.
“So, the first thing you’ll need to do is find a good place to start a fire, an empty area kind of like this,” Ero says, gesturing around us. “Even a small flyaway ember can have devastating consequences.”
I nod. This isn’t exactly new knowledge, but I don’t want to say anything that might keep him from trying to teach me more.
“It would have been better if we could have found a pre-existing firepit, but I think this is a rarely traveled area.”
Ero grabs a large handful of grass and tears it out of the ground, tossing it to the side. I watch as he continues to tear up grass until there’s a circle of exposed dirt.
“And now, we need rocks.”
I remain kneeling on the ground for a moment longer until I realize Ero is looking at me intently and actually means for me to collect them.
“Aren’t you going to help?”
“No, this is all you.”
I don’t know why, but being told to do a task on my own sends a thrill down my spine. Rising to my feet, I scour the area for all the stones I can find, eventually building a decent pile by Ero’s side. He doesn’t say anything as I work, watching me as before, but his face is expressionless. Finally, I drop down next to him, satisfied with my work.
“Done.”
Ero carefully picks through the rocks, tossing most of them aside before placing the remainder around the dirt pit he’d created earlier.
“Why didn’t you use those?” I ask, pointing to the discarded rocks.
“Most of the rocks you found were sitting in puddles or wet earth, were they not?” Ero asks.
“Yes, but I don’t see why it matters if they’re dirty or not.”
“It matters if they’re damp,” Ero says. “If you surround a fire with wet rocks, they can spit hot water or even fracture from the high temperature.”
“Oh, I didn’t know,” I say, my face growing hot with embarrassment.
“I know, princess,” Ero says with a wink at me.
My mouth falls open. I realize why his pet name bothers me as much as it does. It’s his way of reminding me of my place in life. Reminding me that I was born a princess and know little of the ways of the real world, or at least that’s what he probably thinks.
“Why didn’t you tell me instead of letting me waste my time?” I ask, trying to keep my tone from revealing the anger rising in me.
“You didn’t ask,” Ero says.
I stare at him blankly for a long moment, unsure of how to respond.
“How was I supposed to know to ask if there was a certain kind of rock?” I finally respond.
“You weren’t.”
Ero continues to watch me in silence as I contemplate what he’s said.
“I don’t understand,” I say. “Were you trying to embarrass me?”
“Not at all, princess,” Ero says. “I just wanted to let you try things out on your own first. How can you do that if everyone just tells you what to do all the time?”
“But it would have saved us time.”
“Perhaps. But aren’t you more likely to remember which rocks to use now than if I had just told you?”
I look down at my dirty hands, mulling over his words. Ero might be on to something, but it’s an unusual concept for me to try to accept.
I’d spent most of my life having people do everything for me or telling me exactly what to do. As a princess, there was little room for error and mistakes were frowned upon. Even now, having made such a small mistake, I feel angry and frustrated with myself instead of just accepting and learning from it.
My chest tightens as my eyes begin to burn. I don’t know why my reaction to doing something incorrectly is bothering me so much, but it is.
“What’s wrong?” Ero asks, tucking a finger beneath my chin so that he can raise my face toward his own and sending tingles down my spine. “This isn’t something to cry over. Anyone could have made that mistake.”
“I know,” I say, my words coming out in a choked whisper. “I just…I can’t afford to make errors. I’m supposed to be a queen…to save my people, but look at me. I can’t even start a fire on my own!”
Ero raises an eyebrow, his face twitching as he tries not to laugh.
“You’re going to make mistakes, princess. There’s no use getting worked up over it, especially over making a fire,” Ero says.
“You’re no comfort at all.”
“I know. Now, how about we finish building the fire?”
I nod and quickly wipe away the single tear that’s managed to find its way down my cheek, refocusing on the task at hand.
It doesn’t take long for Ero to finish building the fire, and I listen carefully as he explains each step along the way.
“See, it’s not that hard,” Ero says as he leans back from the hot flames.
I keep my mouth shut. Ero made it look simple, and he is a surprisingly good teacher, but I’m positive I’ll do something wrong if I ever have to start a fire on my own. Staring into the flames, I wonder how I’ll ever succeed as a queen and I shiver at the thought.
“Come here,” Ero says.
I look over my shoulder at him but don’t move.
“I won’t bite…unless you want me to,” he says with a smirk.
I throw a twig at him, but he easily swats it away and then reaches for me.
“Hands off!”
Ero pauses mid-movement, but then he grabs me and pulls me to his side, pressing me against him. I want to be mad at him for not listening to me, but then the warmth of his body washes over me, chasing the chill of the evening air away in the space of a moment and I sink into him instead.
“You need to learn when to accept help,” Ero says. “Being a leader doesn’t mean doing everything yourself, and it certainly doesn’t mean you have to be perfect.”
“You sound like Li.”
“You’re right. He’s said the same thing to me a thousand times over, and I still don’t pay attention to his advice. But even I can admit when Li is right…sometimes,” Ero says. “Warmer?”
“Yes.”
Ero wraps his arms tightly around me, but even as close as our bodies are, it still feels as though we are worlds apart.
We sit for a long time, watching the fire in silence. I think over what Ero has said and all that has happened over the past few weeks. The sky has grown dark and the stars have started to make their appearance, a soft summery-scented breeze brushing over me, and I find myself suddenly aware of Roan’s absence once again.
“Why does it irritate you that Roan and I spend so much time together?”
I can feel Ero’s body stiffen slightly at the inquiry and immediately worry he’ll pull away from me. Instead, Ero just remains silent for several minutes.
“I’m worried something will happen.”
“You don’t trust him?”
“I don’t trust you.”
I look up at him as best I can from my position pinned against his side, my face full of confusion.
“You don’t understand the ways of the world, or men, princess. How am I supposed to trust you?”
“I haven’t done anything wrong!”
“I never said you did.”
“Then what is there not to trust?”
“You don’t see the way Roan looks at you, like a puppy waiting to do his master’s bidding.”
“You are jealous.”
“I’m concerned, that’s all,” Ero says calmly. “The more time he spends alone with you, the less safe we all are.”
His words bother me, but I don’t want to believe him. Roan and I have grown very fond of each other, but Ero’s description of our relationship is absurd. How would Roan have been able to leave without me earlier this evening if he wasn’t capable of being apart from me?
I open my mouth to give Ero a piece of my mind when he suddenly rolls over on top of me, nearly crushing me under his weight.
“What are you—”
My heart freezes as Ero’s lips press against mine just as there’s a deafening roar from somewhere nearby. The next second, Ero’s body is torn from my own in a blur of fur, fangs, and claws.
“Ero,” I scream as I scramble to my feet, but a hand grabs my shoulder to keep me still.
I look up into Li’s face.
“Let them fight; it’s better this way.”
It’s only now that I realize Ero was attacked by Roan, not some wild animal. I take a deep breath in relief as my legs give out beneath me. But instead of collapsing to the ground, Li catches me and places me gently down on the grass.
“How about something to eat?” Li says, trying to distract me from the fight, but failing.
They’ve both shifted into their leopards and from what I can tell, they are fighting to the death. Large tufts of fur are floating in the air and I can smell the scent of blood.
“Li, you have to stop them. They’ll kill each other!”
“It’ll be over soon.”
“Not before one of them is dead!”
“Patience, Annalise. Trust me.”
I want to pull my hair out in frustration, but as soon as I have decided that they’re all useless, the fighting stops. Roan and Li’s leopards pant and snarl at each other, both sweaty and bleeding, but they are no longer in the heat of battle.
Roan growls fiercely at Ero before lumbering off into the woods. I half expect Ero to follow after him, but instead, he shifts back into his human form and I am left staring at his completely naked body as he walks back toward me to collect his clothes. I’ve never seen this much of any of them…not even Roan.