Page 6 of A Kingdom of Shadows

I whirl to find Tibith toddling out of the bushes, holding bright red berries in his palm.

"Don't eat that." Darius shakes Tibith's paw to rid him of the fruit. "We can't trust anything in these forests, much less those berries." He huffs a breath, glancing around. "We should camp here, then figure out the rest in the morning."

For once, I can't argue with that idea. "Agreed." I nod. "Which one of us should stay alert throughout the first half of the night?"

"I will," Darius says. "I imagine you're more volatile if you've had no sleep."

Hilarious.

A forced smile touches my lips as I saunter up to him. "The opposite, actually." And walk past, hearing that deep chuckle of his from behind.

* * *

I glance over Darius's shoulder at the makeshift bed he's made from piles of leaves and let loose a soft chuckle. "Looks almost as good as the made-up bed in your cottage," I say as he turns to the sound of my voice. Back then, he'd laid me to rest on a pile of clothes and cured me.

His gaze darts down at the leaves, then me before resting his forearm against the tree. "Beds are overrated, besides I haven't slept in one for over 20 years."

I frown at the strange admission, a hidden pain of sorts. "You haven’t?" I ask. "Is that a shifter thing?"

He chuckles, pushing himself off the tree. "I suppose."

Short and succinct. That is not an answer I usually expect from Darius.

I give him a commiserating look, seeing as that is likely what he doesn't want, but regardless I can't help doing so. My lips part in an attempt to ask him if he would like to talk about it when loud snores interrupt us instead. Looking to my right, Tibith lies flat on the grass, his fur belly rising and falling as he breathes in and out of deep sleep.

A smile blooms on my lips, and I find myself asking something else, "How did you meet him?"

"Is that still part of your five questions for me?"

I arch a brow as I look over at the cocky grin on his lips. No, if anything, I will always have a question for him, despite what I'd won playing the Liars Dice.

He watches my reaction never falter before giving in with a soft sigh and nodding as he stares at Tibith. "I was thirteen when I found him being pushed around by a few people. I ended up confronting them, and since then, Tibith started following me wherever I went." He chuckles at the memory, looking down at the ground. "The first time we robbed a place together was a bakery which is why he took a liking to bread so much."

A silence charges through the night breeze of the Screaming Forests that no one would think it is infested with deadly creatures. I let a small smile take over my face at the imagery of everything they must have done together since they met. "And then you taught him how to speak," I say quietly, not holding back the admiration in my voice.

"Wasn't easy, but I managed just fine."

"Well, I don't think I've ever seen anyone take time to teach a creature to speak or care for them how one should do in Emberwell."

When he doesn't respond, I tilt my head up at him. His gaze branding into my own as a smile lingers on the corner of his lips. "Is that a compliment, Goldie?"

"You wish," I grumble.

"I don't need to," he says, mischief and youth glinting in his eyes. "If anything, I already know you secretly have a thing for me."

And there he goes annoying me beyond words. "You know, every time I think we are having a decent conversation, you ruin it."

He hums with a lazy smile, crossing his arms over his chest. "You are the one that lets that happen, Goldie."

My previous irritation surfaces again, twisting and tilting inside my stomach like a whirlpool. "You're the worst person to be stuck with for this journey." My confession sounds earnest, but the drag of my words shows my tiresome thoughts on this.

"I'm not particularly thrilled either," he drawls, far too amused. "But what option do I have?"

"Maybe the option of shutting up right now." I flick a brow up before leaning into his face and pointing my index finger at him. "And don't you think about doing anything weird while I sleep!"

"Weird?" His lip quirks as if he's trying not to laugh.

"You know what I mean, placing bugs on me, scaring me awake—which, by the way, I don't scare easily, so you can scrap that idea—"