CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

Even though I've seen the beautifully and differently colored purple rowan trees for days, there's something different about the Skular Woods. It takes me a moment to realize it's that there are no other trees. We've been walking for a while, and there hasn't been a single pine tree.

The ferns look the same, but there's a lot more of another kind of plant I don't know. About a foot tall, a flat circular shape made of leaves tops each stem like daisy made of big dark-green petals. They spread across the ground, each plant growing just close enough to the next that their leaves overlap like a sea of umbrellas seen from above.

"What are these? They're cute." I stop by a group of them and point.

Krivoth glances down. "They're called mayapples. And they're not cute. They're poisonous."

I snatch my hand back. "To touch?"

"No, to eat."

"Good to know." My nose wrinkles. "So why call them apples?"

"They make a fruit that looks something like a little apple."

"So the fruit's edible?"

"Not really." Instead of looking at me, he glares into the trees that surround us, his eyes constantly roving. "We should get moving."

"Right, sorry. I'd just never seen these before."

I head off again, moving in the direction we've been going.

After a few more minutes, Krivoth's hand lands on my shoulder, pulling me to a halt. "Here, let me go first."

"Sure," I say to his wide back as he moves away.

I thought I'd been making pretty good time, since I'm able to duck under most of the lowest branches, but of course I'm not as good in the woods as he is. Kinda silly to expect I would be. All of my previous adventuring happened with my butt parked in a comfy gaming chair, not out here in real nature.

He's not even using his magic, and he's tall enough that the tree branches get in his way, but the big orc still moves faster than me, his long legs eating up the ground.

I swivel my head as I walk, trying to take everything in, but nothing's showing berries of any kind, let alone purple ones. "Come on, Taylor," I whisper. "Purple's your thing." A muffled snort escapes as I take another step and one of my purple Chuck Taylors flashes into view. It had always been a little in joke I had with myself—sure the high-tops came back into fashion, especially with the kinda hip, geeky crowd—but the fact that they shared my name only made me love them more.

I get so caught up in ducking under branches and paying attention to where I put my feet so roots don't trip me up that by the time I look up again, he's out of sight.

"Krivoth, I can't keep up."

"I'll be right there. I'm still looking." His voice answers from somewhere up ahead, sounding kinda distant.

Hurrying after him, I push between two closely set trees to come out into a small clearing with the ground completely covered by a little umbrella forest of mayapples. Dammit! There's still no violet trifolia anywhere.

I stop. What I'm doing isn't working, and clearly Krivoth's not finding anything either. If this was a game, I'd assume the writers hid the loot. I'd start looking in less obvious places. My head tips backward. Could the plant grow in the branches of the trees like mistletoe or Spanish moss? God, how would you find anything purple in all that purple? It's the perfect hiding spot. I sure can't see anything from down here. Maybe when Krivoth comes back, he can boost me up so I can take a look. I'm not exactly much of a tree climber.

But if I can't go up, I can go down. Being short's totally in my skill set. I squat down and check between the clumps of ferns at my feet, getting so close to the ground the smell of the forest floor fills my nose with a rich, earthy scent. It's kinda nice. But no violet trifolia.

Next, I push aside a few mayapple leaves. Still nothing. Staying in a crouch, I shuffle deeper into the patch. You never make things super obvious for a player—that would be boring—and I'm not the type to give up easily. No real gamer is.

Moss and dried purple leaves and—

A flash of brighter purple catches my eye.

"Yes." I lean forward, pushing an umbrella leaf out of the way.

A patch of ground-hugging dark-green leaves sits in the shade of several mayapples, a cluster of three purple berries right in the very center, forming a triangle.

Excitement zips through me. I did it!

"Krivoth!" I yell. There's no one I want to share this with more than him.

His voice comes from far away. "Taylor?"

I yell louder. "I think I found it!"

"Stay there! I'm coming to you!" Branches crash in the distance, the sound growing ever louder. It's almost funny considering what his stealth magic can do, but I'm glad for it. I like hearing him coming back to me.

The purple leaves on the trees in his direction shiver, and Krivoth breaks from between them, huge and strong and so handsome he takes my breath away.

Something rustles above me, but I ignore it. It's gotta be a bird or a squirrel.

Besides, all of my attention is on Krivoth. I watch his face carefully, not wanting to miss a single second of his expression as it changes to joy and triumph. I know how much this quest means to him.

I push the mayapples farther out of the way so he'll be able to see from his angle. "See! I found the violet trifolia!"

He doesn't smile.

He stares at me with horror filling his eyes.