Page 174 of Dare
Another knight surged toward him. I growled and flew in their direction, swiping my machete across the soldier’s legs before he planted a weapon in the prince’s back. Then another blade hurled toward me, and Jeryn belted out a murderous growl, flinging me behind him and slicing through the person’s stomach.
A flash of steel arched our way—and split under the force of a staff. A whipcord form blew from the shrubs, a pair of arms windmilling the rod and cracking the enemy’s skull.
Poet.
The jester hissed, his green eyes flaring, visible for an instant. He slipped into the shadows again, twisting and spinning while bodies toppled around him.
Aire moved like a tornado. Briar’s thorn quills intercepted flying stars from the Winter soldiers. Jeryn’s deadly precision took his opponents down too fast for them to register the attack, his aim focused on arteries and vital organs. And I moved like a member of the fauna, quick and sure.
A woman shouted. Glancing back, I spotted a flash of white hair and split complexion of pale and gray, like that of a half-moon. Upon hearing the female, Jeryn faltered. In the castle, that knight had worked under his command, and she’d been the one monitoring me shortly before I’d escaped.
The female gained on my jaguar, who tore into one of her brethren. Darting the animal’s way, I snatched a vine from a branch and threw myself to the ground. Sliding on my hip between the feline and the woman, I flung out my leg to trip her. The Winter bitch landed face-first, a crossbow slipping from her fingers and her armored shoulder popping like a bubble.
I snared the vine around her limbs and yanked it in place. With the knot wound so tightly, she wasn’t going anywhere. For all this knight knew, a log had felled her, and an errant creeper had done the rest.
Pitching to my feet, I whirled and caught up to our clan, who’d stopped to search for me. “Sorry!” I said while jetting past everyone.
We cut a retreat, the troops having misidentified us as creatures. The echoes of pandemonium faded once we reached one of the underground caves, which deposited us at the ruins. We had sworn not to lead anyone here, but for some reason Jeryn had forced us in this direction.
Barreling up the front steps and staggering to a halt inside the vestibule, Aire bent forward to catch his breath. “They do not suspect us. The legend and its fauna will dissuade them.”
Regardless, Poet hauled Briar against him and spat, “Jeryn, what the fuck?”
“We can’t stay here,” the princess agreed. “The ruins—”
I shook my head at them, indicating that we weren’t actually staying here. Then I looked up at Jeryn, who clasped my face and raked his eyes over me, checking for wounds. His expression confirmed this hadn’t been impulsive, because he rarely did anything that way.
With reluctance, he released me and snapped to everyone, “Wait here.”
Then he strode down one of the halls. Unable to stay still, I raced after him, hastening up a stairway and into our adjoining chambers. In the doorway, I watched Jeryn shove every stitch of my clothing into our satchels, then add my sheathed dagger and my collection of nets to the pile.
Hitching the straps over his shoulder, the prince stalked back to me and took my hand. Without a word, he led us down the steps. In the medical chamber, he collected bundles of herbs and florals, shoving them into the bags as well, along with our old canteen filled with water and fruits from the dining hall. After that, we reunited with the clan.
Poet, Briar, and Aire took one look at the satchels. A conclusion pulled their features taut, but only the princess let her emotions betray her. She peeked my way, compassion glossing her gray eyes.
Trepidation sank to the pit of my stomach. We vacated the ruins, fled down another tunnel, and emerged at the southeast cove where Jeryn and I had moored our newly constructed tidefarer. Next to that, bobbed the skiff our clan had used to sail here.
All seemed peaceful except for the swaying waves. I couldn’t say the same for my insides, which twisted into knots.
After exchanging words with the jester and princess, Aire inclined his head. “Make haste,” he advised before striding to the skiff.
My brow furrowed as the knight sailed on his own, shrinking to a dot on the horizon. “Where is he going?”
“To the wharf,” Poet answered, guessing my question more than reading it. “He’ll make certain it’s vacated by the time we get there.”
But why hadn’t Poet and Briar gone with Aire? Jeryn and I would be fine on the tidefarer. If we caught a current, we could journey farther east with our pursuers none the wiser.
And then …
Then what? We had no plan for this. Leaving wasn’t supposed to happen this way.
Grief clogged my throat. This couldn’t be the end. We hadn’t had a chance to say farewell to the rainforest or my pack.
“Take this,” Jeryn instructed, handing the satchels to Poet and Briar.
The pair tossed us grave looks before carrying the items to the tidewater. Far too late, the harrowing thought occurred to me. Jeryn had packed my clothing and weapon—but not his. I’d missed a detail, something he wasn’t spitting out.
Jeryn stared past me, to where Poet and Briar had boarded the tidefarer. His eyes sent a message across the divide, and I sensed them receiving it. The jester and princess busied themselves, loading the deck and pretending not to witness this moment between us.