Chapter 17

M ateo's eyes remained fixed past the fire and on the cave's mouth. Without blinking, he gripped his spear. Those damned foxes were never getting past him again. He should have never let himself get drawn into Avalynn like that. He'd said too much—exposed himself like never before. And never would again. Especially not with her. A highborn. A Stromm. She withheld vital information about the Shadowblood. She could have gotten them all killed.

What else was she hiding?

His grip tightened around the spear's rough wood. Do not let her get in the way. Who cared if Stormshroud had a thing for her? Or that she smelled so good? Or that she was stunning?

Finnian sat next to him on one side. Avalynn sat on the other side. In front of them, the fire burned but not like before. Eiric and Selene tended it the best they could with the brush and branches they had gathered earlier. Yet their supply dwindled.

The fire's flames peaked low. The ember's orange glow faded. Mateo prayed to the Sun, Moon, and Stars they had enough kindling to make it to sunrise. He placed his hand on his pocket, on the cross nestled there, and prayed to his father's God too.

Selene tossed a handful of leaves onto the smoldering fire and scrunched her face. "I am so tired of this hunt business." Her complaining had started hours earlier. At first, Eiric appeased her. Now, even he ignored her. She had proven herself unworthy as a hunter and a fae. She should have never been included.

Mateo kept his stare fixed on the darkness beyond the cave's mouth. He shifted his weight, then noticed a silvery haze. Faint at first, it grew bigger and brighter. A bird chirped, followed by another. A rabbit scampered nearby. Finally, daylight had arrived.

Avalynn exhaled as if relieved. "Thank the Stars, we made it."

"The Stars?" Pfft. They did nothing. "We fought to make it through the night." Mateo knew the foxes were still out there, planning another attack. He rose, his legs tingling and stiff. "Now we need to make it through today." That could be the challenge of a lifetime. Selene was worthless, Eiric was injured, and Avalynn had her own designs. Maybe Finnian had some worth.

With a grunt, Finnian got up and stretched his legs. "So…we resume the hunt as normal, then?"

In a flash, Eiric and Selene darted from the cave's mouth. Avalynn tumbled to the ground from a push. "Hey!"

Mateo helped her up. What fools. "Forget them. They will not last an hour out there." He dusted her off. "Let them go, they will–"

"Ahhhh!" A holler echoed from the trees.

Avalynn shot Mateo a wide-eyed look. "Selene. "

They raced from the cave's mouth with weapons out. A few paces into the trees, they found Eiric, face down and lifeless, one of the spears through his neck. Selene hovered over him. Her hands shook, and tears streamed down her face. "This hunt is cursed!"

Avalynn moved closer to Selene and rested her hand on her shoulder. "This was an accident. Nothing more."

Studying the scene, Mateo could tell ‘the accident' was more foolishness than curse. In a mad rush to get ahead of him and the others, Eiric tripped and impaled himself on his own defense barrier. His blundering deprived him of an honorable death. He got what he deserved.

"Do not just stand there!" Selene pleaded. "Do something!"

With Finnian's help, Mateo flipped over Eirics's body. His crooked mouth hung open, and he looked pained. His fixed eyes appeared hollow, like an empty nest. Blood drained from his neck wound down his tunic. He was gone. No one spoke for a few long seconds.

"We need to prepare him for the Passing Place," Selene said between tears.

Prepare him? With the foxes afoot, Mateo saw the danger. "No. There's no time and it's too risky." Eiric did nothing to deserve either a preparation or a ceremony. "Let him be taken the way he is."

Selene's voice hardened. "You say that because you are a lowborn with human blood." She spat toward Mateo. "You have no respect for our customs."

" Our customs?" Mateo's blood boiled. "Like I am not one of you!" He was sick of Selene. "I know the customs, and I care for them." He stabbed his finger toward Eiric's body. "But someone like him…" He stepped closer to Selene. "And someone like you, for that matter, commands no respect."

"Stop. Both of you." Avalynn sidled between them. "We will do it fast, and then we'll figure out our next move."

"We? Do you have a maidservant in your pocket?" Mateo crossed his arms. He didn't care one way or the other that Eiric died or what happened to his body. "I want no part of Eiric Lind of Cuesta and his end-of-life send-off."

"Why you—" Selene muttered with pursed lips.

Avalynn raised her hand toward Selene but kept her softened blue eyes on Mateo. "Will you at least keep watch then?" Her brows lifted, and Stormshroud's followed. "While we prepare our fallen hunter?"

Really? His wolf supported the effort? "Fine. But hurry. Foxes do hunt us, remember?"

Spear in hand, Mateo walked the perimeter. He kept one eye on the tree line and the other on Avalynn. Stormshroud joined him and matched his stride. He glared at the wolf and muttered under his breath, "Now you want to be with me?" Stormshroud's ears lay flat, and her head lowered. "You should feel bad. I am the one who saved you as a pup, not her." She sat back on her haunches. Great. Now he was the one feeling bad. He sighed. "Come on, girl."

With Stormy back in her regular position at his heels, they kept watch while Avalynn, Selene, and Finnian prepared Eiric for his afterlife journey.

Finnian removed the spear from his neck with slow, easy tugs. He wiped the blood off on the grass and set the long stick next to Eiric's body. Then he scooped up a pinch of dirt and packed it into the circular wound. Another scoop of soil and the opening was sealed.

Avalynn worked on his clothing. She started with his tunic. She smoothed out the fabric and fixed his sleeves, whisking away any wrinkles with her hands. The blood would have to stay, though. Next, she moved to his pant legs, straightening them and then dusting them off.

The last part came from Selene. She closed Eiric's eyelids, one at a time. With a gentle-looking touch, she closed his mouth, then fidgeted with his lips until they looked the way she wanted. Next, she took the cloth from her bag and wiped the blood from his neck, taking care not to disturb the packed dirt in the wound. She then cleaned his chin, cheeks, nose, and forehead. When she'd cleaned as much as she could, she threaded her finger through his long silver hair, making sure each strand was in place.

When Eiric appeared as if he were merely sleeping, the three went to a nearby Mountain Laurel shrub. They picked white clusters of flowers from the broad green leaves. The clusters smelled of sweet honey, and they came back and placed the blooms around his body.

Mateo eyed the mountain paths. The Enbarr transported the dead to the Passing Place for a new life. Would his and Avalynn's Enbarr come and take Eiric? Or maybe a different one would do the job? Of course, he preferred any Enbarr other than theirs.

When the last flower was placed, Selene kissed Eiric's lips, rose, and then wiped the tears from her cheeks. Avalynn and Finnian moved behind her. This was it. Selene would deliver the last words. It would be difficult for her to invent an honorable or good death for Eiric. What would she say?

Mateo moved closer and clasped his hands behind his back. The Enbarrs and the Passing Place commanded his respect. Nothing more.

Instead of facing the fallen Eiric to deliver her farewell, Selene turned and faced them. She pushed her long flaming red hair out of her face and held her head high. "I am leaving this forsaken hunt."

What? Stunned silence filled the air. She was abandoning the hunt? "Has this ever happened before? Is it allowed?" He couldn't believe it. He looked to Avalynn for answers. Her frozen features told him this was new to her too.

"But Selene." Avalynn stepped toward her. "You cannot. My father, he will…"

Selene threw her head back and laughed. "He will do nothing to me or my house. He needs us to do his bidding and his dirty work." She squinted, and her brow furrowed. "And we are very good at it. But the bargain I struck with him is now void. So, my work here is done."

Mateo approached Avalynn, his mind racing in a million different directions. Her furrowed brow told him hers was doing the same.

Avalynn finally spoke. "What bargain? With whom?"

Selene smirked, "Finally asking the right questions." Her hands on her hips, Selene laid bare the undercurrent that caused a riptide. "You were promised to Eiric in a deal struck with the Linds years ago." She stared into the distance. "But Eiric and I had our own plans. So, my father asked your father for reconsideration. He said he would agree if I accepted a bargain."

Avalynn shook her head. "Oh no, Selene. You bargained with my father?"

"I did. In exchange for an arrangement with Eiric, I agreed to enter this hunt, not to win, but to ensure the lowborn came in last."

Avalynn sucked in a quick breath of air. "What?"

Mateo's head spun. Time slowed down. He closed his eyes. Of course, the High King put Selene in the hunt to sabotage him. No highborn could beat him fair and square. The High King knew that and resorted to maneuvering. Underhanded. Lowdown and dirty—the Stromm way.

Selene secured her satchel and scoffed. "With Eiric gone, the bargain is null and void." She picked up two spears. "And now I am leaving this chuffing hunt and taking my chances that the foxes will keep their attention on you all while I escape this horrid forest. I'd wish you all luck, but I don't really care."

After one last mournful look at Eiric, she took off into the woods.

Mateo turned away from Eiric's body. The highborns played games and targeted him, not the foxes or each other. He slammed his spear across his knee and cracked it in half. His arms shook like a reed in a fast current. What else were the highborns keeping from him? Likely enough to cause his decimation.

With the jagged edges of his spear ready, he spun and faced Finnian and Avalynn. "Who else is working against me?"

Stormshroud growled. She planted herself between him and Avalynn and bared her fangs. The sight of his wolf turning on him sent a boulder through his chest and crushed his soul.

Avalynn's palms shot up. "Stop. Please, Mateo. There are only three of us left. We need to work together to make it out of here alive."

He slammed one half of the spear into the ground. "You think me a fool? You two will sabotage me. I will come in last, and then my life will be wasted." He dipped his chin and spoke directly to Avalynn. "You know my people need me to win. And you know why. "

Finnian inched closer. "I assure you that I am not here to sabotage you." He held out his spear. "I provide my weapon to you to prove it."

Whatever. Finnian's offer meant nothing to Mateo. It changed nothing. Yip . His head swung in the sound's direction. He snatched Finnian's spear. If they were against him, then he needed to distance himself from them and get his prey. "The hunt is on, and I am winning."