A human seer and an elven prince have one thing in common: a missing sister.
Seraiah's dreams have a habit of coming true, but when all her dreams turn into nightmares, she fears for her sister's life. Each nightmare is a little different, but they...
Such a waste, Seraiah couldn't help thinking, wiping the back of her hand across her mouth. The first apple she had eaten in years, and it hadn't even stayed in her stomach.
"Here," Kestrel said, shoving a water bag in front of her face.
Seraiah accepted it with thanks. She took a sip, and swished it around in her mouth, before spitting it out to clear the foul taste from her mouth.
"Maybe next time you will believe me when I tell you not to look."
"Maybe," Seraiah echoed faintly, the image of the mangled arm flashing through her mind again.
She hoped there wouldn't be a next time. Her stomach roiled, and she closed her eyes, willing herself not to heave again. When the wave of nausea passed, Seraiah handed the water bag back to Kestrel, who was still standing next to her, her arms crossed over her chest.
"What kind of creature could do that?" Seraiah asked, looking up at Kestrel.
She frowned and glanced back in the direction of the arm, but didn't answer.
"A bear?" Seraiah suggested. She knew they were fairly common in these woods.
Kestrel snorted. "We could only be so lucky."
Seraiah scrutinized the surrounding trees. Was it out there right now, watching them?
"Let's get back to the horses. Kai should be done shortly, and we need to move on." She didn't have to add 'before the creature comes back for its meal.' Kestrel took off toward the clearing, not checking to see if Seraiah was following.
Seraiah hastened to her feet and scrambled after the other woman.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
When Kai returned to the clearing, he exchanged a look with Kestrel, some sort of wordless communication passing between them. The moment slipped away before Seraiah could ask about it, and Kai motioned her over to his horse.
"You'll ride with me now, so Kestrel's horse can have a break," he informed her.
She didn't care to ride with him, but she let him help her mount before he took his place in front of her. They set off, with Kestrel falling in behind them.
Kai's horse was taller than Kestrel's, and Seraiah couldn't help but notice how much farther it was to the ground. Unconsciously, she tightened her arms around Kai as she looked down at the snow passing underneath the horse's hooves. It felt like their pace had picked up since their gruesome discovery, even though the horses were still only able to walk.
Maybe it was her wishful thinking.
"Think you could loosen your hold? It's getting hard to breathe," Kai said, sounding more amused than annoyed.
"Sorry," Seraiah mumbled, forcing her arms to relax.
To distract herself, Seraiah tried to recall everything she could about her step-mother and Sterling's arrival in her life.
