TWENTY-FIVE

- sedona -

"Seriously, why do I have to carry this stuff?" Krissy grumbles, heaving under the weight of the furry knapsack on her shoulders. "I didn't sign up to be a pack mule for some frozen alien safari."

Renata shoots her a glare. "Quit whining, Krissy. You're literally carrying like twenty pounds. Chill."

"We all have to carry our own weight. You're not special," Meghan adds with a roll of her eyes. Meghan and Renata walk next to each other, several paces ahead of the rest of us, close to Enikk and Amari who are leading our group.

"Yeah, well, some of us have more weight on their shoulders than others," Krissy retorts, shooting a pointed look in my direction.

I roll my eyes, choosing to ignore her jabs. Not much I could say anyway, I am one of two people in the group carrying nothing. When it came time to divide weight, I'd packed my bag with every intention to carry it. But, Kuvier being him was adamant about me not carrying anything, insisting that I "focus on staying warm and saving energy for the journey ahead." Thankfully, Enikk made the same choice for Amari, so I'm not alone.

"We're headed to a village full of swinging dicks. If you're that upset, get your own goat dude," Samra butts in with a matter-of-fact tone, referencing the fact that Kuvier had already explained his clan's lack of women his age.

I fight the grin threatening to split my face. Samra's come to be one of my favorite people. Her no bullshit attitude and willingness to tell the truth above all else makes her someone I enjoy being around. I love not having to guess her thoughts.

Her statement shuts Krissy up, a respite I know won't last long. If there's one thing that girl can do, it's complain and talk. She'd told us all (very haughtily, I might add) that she was a big shot lawyer on Earth. So, I guess her never ending arguing makes some sense.

The landscape stretches out before us, a vast expanse of snow-covered terrain that seems both daunting and exhilarating. As we walk, the crunch of snow beneath our shoes fills the air, punctuated by occasional murmurs of conversation. We've been on the move for several hours. The walk is slow but consistent, and we haven't stopped once.

"How long do you think we will walk today?" I ask Kuvier, squinting up at him through the three suns at his back.

"Many more paces. We will want to reach the cache before the second eye closes."

The further into the mountains we walk, the more the path begins to narrow. Now in an alleyway created by mountainous rock, the wind and snow become even more treacherous, howling around us like a living entity. It's definitely colder up here too, the kind of chill that seeps into your bones and makes you ache.

"How are you?" Kuvier asks after we've walked for a while without another stop. We're down to only two suns in the sky and his voice is barely audible over the wind.

"I'm okay," I reply, squeezing his hand reassuringly. He continues staring at me, not believing me. He always seems to know when something is up. "Well, I'm just a bit cold."

He pulls us to a stop, but says nothing to the group. "We will catch up quickly enough. It is a straight path ahead," he says when he sees my look of concern. He rearranges the things he carries and with his arms now free, he holds them out to me.

"Kuvier, you can't carry me," I protest, staying where I am. I don't feel like dealing with extra comments from Krissy or any good-natured, but still annoying, ribbing from the others.

"And why can I not?" He reaches forward, snagging me by the wrist. He pulls me closer, his body heat offering some relief from the biting chill. "Are you not my mate?"

"Yes, but—"

"So then it is for me to determine how to care for you." I bat halfheartedly at his chest.

"Yes, but the other girls don't get carried."

"My Sedona, with all respect," he levels me with a stare, "I do not care about other females. One day, they may have a male such as I to carry them. Maybe not. It matters very little. Now come."

With those final words, Kuvier pulls his cloak over my head and hefts me into his arms. I'm clinging to him like a koala, buried underneath the weight of his cloak that now wraps around us both. Despite my reservations, I can't help but burrow deeper into the warmth. Between the cloak and his body heat, I feel better already.

"Hold tight." That's the only warning I get before Kuvier takes off at a jog up the mountain path.

The sudden movement startles me, but I quickly adjust, wrapping my arms around Kuvier's neck and holding on tight. The world around us blurs as he maneuvers through the rocky terrain with impressive agility, his strides sure and strong despite the icy ground.

I steal a glance ahead of us and see that we've already caught up with the rest of the group. In fact, we are squarely in the middle of the group now, and Kuvier is keeping pace easily. Krissy catches my eye and scowls. My ears heat and I duck my head back into Kuvier's neck, choosing to ignore the world around us, otherwise I'll die of embarrassment.

Kuvier keeps us moving, and for a some time I ride along in silence. A while later, Enikk pulls the group to a stop. I would never admit it, but I'm glad for the break. My feet are killing me, but I refuse to join Krissy in complaining, especially with me having it easier than everybody else. All of us gather around Enikk to listen. I lean my body against Kuvier, using his body to take the load off of mine. He rests an arm on my shoulder as his tail wraps possessively around my waist.

"‘We are about to enter the deepest parts of the Blood Mountains,'" Xiomara says, repeating Enikk's words to us in English. He rumbles on a bit longer before she speaks again. "He says we are about halfway to the cave that we will rest at tonight. He says that going forward, we have to keep our eye out for anything unusual."

"Define unusual," Meghan quips back, earning a smirk from Renata.

"Anything that looks like it wants to eat us," Renata replies dryly, scanning the surroundings with a wary eye.

Krissy scoffs, shifting the weight of her pack. "Great, just what I wanted to hear."

Xiomara relays back to Enikk and Kuvier what is being said. Enikk chuckles, a sound that carries warmth despite the chill in the air. "Enikk says that you'll be fine, Krissy. Just stick close and watch your step."

We all take a moment to eat some of the leftover dried meat and drink some water. Enikk continues ahead of us, leaving Amari with me, to scope out the cave. Kuvier tells me it's to make sure it is empty and safe.

When he's ready, Kuvier rounds us all up and we are back to walking. His hand finds mine as we walk and our fingers interlace.