Page 47 of Hunted

From there, we would have to figure out the rest.

How do we get to the castle? Where do we find the crone? What does Arcadia even look like, now? How much time has passed there since we left?Shit. I hadn’t even considered the passage of time. Days had already passed here, and it would be a few days more until we made it to Arcadia. What if months had gone by between my leaving and my return?

What if it’s years?

That thought, and all the thoughts that came with it, chilled me in a way that no fire or blanket could warm. I was shivering. Lost in thought and shivering. I felt something fall around my shoulders, and when I looked around, I found Valerian laying one of his blankets across my back.

I appreciated the gesture, but it didn’t help fight away what I was feeling.

“I can put another log on the fire,” he said. “If you’re cold.”

“This place is an ice box,” I said. “It should be perfectly comfortable for me.”

“I feel like the cold on Earth is more unforgiving than the cold in Arcadia. This weather isn’t infused with the magic of our realm… it simplyis, and it is hostile.”

“Hostile is a good word for it.” I blinked hard. Yawned. “I have no way of knowing the passage of time, but my stomach tells me I should eat.”

“I was thinking the same.” Valerian smiled, his eyes slipping off to one side. I followed them to find Tallin curled up on a furry blanket in front of the fireplace, his chest gently rising and falling. “He seems comfortable.”

“The most comfortable,” I said.

Valerian stood, stretched, and walked around the couch we had been sitting on. I got up and joined him in the kitchen. Pepper had left treats for us in the pantry; delicious, glazed cinnamon rolls. I took one out of the tray they were all in and took a deep bite of it. Somehow, it was still slightly warm. The cinnamon danced on my tongue, the glaze was deliciously sweet, and the dough was so soft, and inviting.

I could’ve eaten the entire tray, but I settled for two.

Valerian finished the one he had picked up and washed his hands. “Dessert before dinner,” he said, “Pepper would be disappointed.”

“Pepper isn’t here right now,” I said, “And these things are delicious. Besides, what are we going to cook here?”

“The kitchen seems fully stocked. I could make us something to eat.”

My eyebrows arched. “You?”

Valerian frowned. “Did you think I couldn’t cook?”

“I… guess I didn’t. We’ve never talked about it.”

“And I’ve never had to. Not since we’ve been here, anyway.”

My eyes narrowed. “Can you really cook? Or are you just trying to impress me?”

“Would it be so bad if I was?”

My cheeks flushed warm and red. “I mean, it would be pretty bad if your food turned out to be terrible.”

A subtle grin spread across Valerian’s mouth. “Alright,” he said, “I’m going to cook for you.”

I paused. “Are you going to tell me what you’re going to cook?”

“No, but you can watch, if you like. In fact, I’m going to show you a trick.”

“A trick?”

Valerian walked over to the ice box, opened it, and pulled out what looked like a packet of frozen, minced beef. He set it down on the counter and started pulling spices and seasoning out of the pantry. He then picked up the utensils he would need, a chopping board, a knife.

“That meat is rock solid,” I said. “How are we going to eat that?”

“That’s the trick,” he said, and he let his hand rest on top of the meat. “Remember what I did with the pipes?”