The King's Cursed Bride

Destroying the Nephesh: Part 4

Leaves and twigs crunched loudly, and Carissa glanced down in time to see Mera stomping towards the road.

"Where are you going?"

Mera didn't even slow. "Back to the caravan. I'm not going to just lay around and wait for nightfall."

Elon knelt next to Carissa and picked up her forearm, examining a wound. "Mera, the caravan is miles away by now. We won't be able to catch up on foot until they stop for the night."

Mera came to a screeching halt. "So you're saying we're going to have to stay the night in the forest?"

"Well—"

"Without food? Or shelter? And with yare wolves lurking about?" She shook her head. "That's a foolish plan, and I refuse to go along with it."

When Mera resumed her march through the forest, Elon and Carissa said nothing. Perhaps she should have, but she was too tired to care about the spoiled girl at the moment.

Elon unhooked a flask from his belt and dribbled some water on her arm before caressing her wound. "The wolves got you good, didn't they?"

Carissa meant to laugh, but the sound that came from her lips was a pathetic wheeze. She was so exhausted that she was trembling, and the pain in her wounds intensified with each passing second.

As Elon healed her, the pain ebbed, leaving warm tingles in its wake. Once he was done, he lifted the flask to her lips and let her drink the remaining water.

He settled beside her. "We can rest for an hour or two, but then we should start moving towards the caravan. They'll break camp at night, giving us an opportunity to catch up to them."

Carissa snuggled against Elon's side, which was a good deal more comfortable than the tree trunk. "And what about Mera?"

His chuckled rumbled in his chest, vibrating against her ear. "I don't think she'll last very long on her own. Likely she'll return to us by the time we're ready to start traveling."

***

"I literally can't believe the two of you are still here—and napping."

The whine of Mera's voice stung Carissa's ears. Couldn't the girl have wandered the forest for a few more hours? Or perhaps become eternally lost in it? The latter possibility certainly sounded appealing at the moment.

Elon's lips brushed Carissa's forehead. "Come, Carissa. It's time we pursue the caravan."

Her sigh stirred the loose strands of hair falling across her forehead. With Elon's assistance, she rose.

Her eyelids swept upward, revealing a very cross Mera. It seemed that was Mera's default mood.

The girl plunked her hands on her hips. "I've been combing through the forest for at least an hour, and what have you two done aside from fondling each other?"

Carissa's temper flared, and words flew past her lips before she could stop them, "At least I only fondle my husband."

Mera's lips thinned, and she placed a protective hand over her stomach—which was flat but would surely swell soon. "How dare you? Especially in light of the fact that I'm the one who's been doing all the work."

Carissa clenched her jaw so hard that her teeth ached.

Elon ran a hand along Carissa's back, though it didn't alleviate the tension bunching her muscles. "Carissa needed rest, Mera."

"Perhaps if Carissa were more adept at fighting, she wouldn't have run out of stamina."

Anger vibrated through her, shaking her core. "Perhaps if you had been capable of defending yourself," Carissa snapped, "I wouldn't have needed to fight."