Chapter 18

EIRWYN SLOWLY AWOKEto a jostling, rhythmic movement. She blinked her eyes, but all she saw was brown. She lifted her head. Grass and shrubs passed in front of her, and her jaw dropped open in surprise.

She was thrown over the side of a horse, her face in its side with her hands tied behind her back. The pommel of the saddle dug into her ribs and the rest of her was pressed against the body of her captor.

She began to struggle, but the fiend spanked her.

"Quiet. The forest is dangerous, especially at night. It would bring you a swift death, but I need you alive."

The voice was the woman"s from the gazebo and somehow familiar. Eirwyn"s memories came slamming back at the voice, and she turned to hiss, "Scarlet, is that you? What are you doing? Let me go."

The woman leaned down, her hood still obscuring her face. "Sorry, I can"t do that. We have to get to Grandma"s house."

"Let me ride like normal, and it"ll go faster," Eirwyn"s words were rushed as the sense of impending doom and dread welled within her.

A howl echoed in the distance, and the horse skittered on the well-worn path.

"Shit," the woman said, regaining control of the horse. Eirwyn felt something on her wrists, then the bindings fell free. Scarlet shoved her, and Eirwyn went sprawling back into the dirt. She landed on her backside with a grunt.

"What the—"

"Listen, we need to get out of here. The Growlers are coming, and it won"t be pretty if they catch us. It"s mating season." The woman held a hand down to her, and Eirwyn hesitated.

Another howl sent her into motion. She grabbed her hand and put her boot in the stirrup. She swung up awkwardly behind Scarlet, still in her wedding finery and red cloak.

Before she"d gotten settled, the woman kicked the horses sides. They lurched forward, and Eirwyn grabbed her waist. Her teeth jarred, and she bit into her own lip at the bruising pace. The metallic taste of blood made her wince. The air grew colder as the night went on.

It might"ve been hours later, Eirwyn wasn"t sure, but eventually they slowed. It was the wee hours of the morning and the sun would be rising soon. She could feel it in her bones.

The woman stopped the horse at a small stream to drink. Eirwyn slid from the back of the horse, falling to her knees and taking a drink herself. The water was refreshing, but her body still felt the jostling motion of the bruising ride.

She looked up at the woman . She"d been so wrapped up with escaping the cloying responsibilities of court that she"d gotten herself kidnapped. As much as she listened and flirted with everyone, why hadn"t she heard anything about her brother wanting to kill her before now?

"Are you going to kill me?" Eirwyn asked as she scooped more water to drink.

"No, I"m not going to kill you."

Eirwyn looked around. "Then why are we here? Why your grandma"s house? Olive"s house, right? Is that where we"re going?"

The woman stared down at her. Eirwyn couldn"t see her eyes, but she felt the weight of the stare bore into her. Then Scarlet pulled a knife from her belt. It gleamed off the light of the half-moon.

"Because she"ll help us think up a solution."

"A solution to what problem?"

Scarlet sighed and waved the knife. "The king demands your heart."

Eirwyn gasped, scrambling back and falling into the water. The cold jump started her into action, and she quickly got to her feet.

"But why does he want my heart? He just married Bella? I"m no threat to him."

The woman shrugged and threw the dagger at the ground. It stuck, point up and gleaming in the light of the moon. "Apparently he thinks you are. That"s not for me to decide. I"m giving you my dagger to show I"m not going to hurt you, alright? I"m just taking you to Grandma and Knox."

"Knox?" Eirwyn gasped.

"Yes, Knox. You"re the only woman he"s ever wanted, and if I let anything happen to you, he"d have my head."

Eirwyn"s heart raced for a different reason now. She"d thought of him for the past two weeks so much, had dreamed of him every night. What was it about that giant, growling lumberjack that made her want to rip his hood off and ride him into oblivion?

Another howl echoed, and they both froze. Scarlet whispered, "They"re never this far north. Shit, shit, shit."

She glanced at Eirwyn and back toward the howl. Then she pushed off her hood to reveal a red head with a massive curly messy bun on top of her head.

"Grab the dagger and let"s go. Hurry."

Another howl echoed, nearer this time. Scarlet swung the horse around and offered her hand.

"Look, I promise not to kill you tonight, alright? But if we stay here, we"ll both be dead."

Eirwyn ran, grabbed the dagger, and reached for Scarlet"s hand. She put her foot in the stirrup and hiked her dress up to sit astride on the horse, then tucked the dagger into her boot.

Scarlet kicked the horse into another gallop. They raced further into the woods, and eventually Eirwyn fell asleep on Scarlet"s back.

****

When Eirwyn awoke,it was to arguing voices. The biting hunger that clawed at her made her stomach growl. She licked her lips, the faint taste of dust making her yawn.

If you"re hungry, get up and eat something. You"re not in the castle anymore, princess. If you"re going to be at the tavern so much, go get your own food.

Bella"s voice echoed in her head, and she felt tears threaten. Her friend was married to a monster who had tried to have her killed. And that monster was her own brother.

Eirwyn"s heart raced. Why was her brother so evil? Tears pricked her eyes, but she refused to just lay there.

She had to get up and figure this problem out. She opened her eyes slightly, just enough to see into the barn. At the end of the aisle was the woman who had dusted her earlier. Was that Scarlet? She blinked, the memories of the previous night flooding her. Fear licked her spine, making goosebumps dance on her skin.

Scarlet argued with a giant of a man.

Knox.

Her heart leaped, but her body wouldn"t respond. She just laid there, staring at them in the aisle of the barn as her body slowly came awake.

She felt the shadows gather around her as her magic flared to protect her.

It was fully dark outside the open barn door and a storm brewed outside. She could see the faint light of the cottage, the back door nestled beside the tree. Only a lone lantern by the barn door illuminated Scarlet and Knox.

Eirwyn finally could sit up, the shadows now hiding her movements. Scarlet threw her hands up and stomped outside. Knox followed her, and Eirwyn stumbled to her feet.

She crouched along the wall of the stalls to the lantern and pushed with her hand, making the shadows and wind blow it out when she got close enough. Then she peered into the darkness outside the barn.

Their voices carried now, brought to her on the wind.

"I can"t believe you did this, Red. You"ve put us all in danger."

Scarlet shook her head, her cloak closed at the neck and her hair askew as the wind blew harder. She stared up at the man.

"I had no choice. When the king summons you, you go."

He straightened and glared. "Why you? How am I supposed to protect you if you"re taking such high-profile contracts?"

She shrugged. "I stopped needing you to protect me a long time ago, Knox. As for why he picked me? That"s easy. He wanted the best Hunter."

Eirwyn"s jaw dropped. She was a Hunter? How had she not known that? She"d assumed she just worked with Knox in the forest.

"Is he mad? Last week he wanted her rescued from the forest. This week, he wants her dead."

Scarlet crossed her arms and cocked a hip. "He said that"s why I was the perfect person for the job. I"m supposed to make it look like she ran off into the woods, and I just went to fetch her again. Only this time, I wasn"t able to find her and escort her safely back to the palace."

He jerked his thumb toward the barn. "Are you going to go through with it? Because I can"t let you do that."

Eirwyn"s stomach twisted at his words. She was both excited that he would keep her safe, and afraid of what her brother would do now.

Oh hells, her brother was trying to kill her. Panic clawed her throat, and she breathed shallowly.

"Of course I"m not going to go through with it. I know what she means to you, Knox, which is another reason I took the job and why I brought her here."

Wait, what did Eirwyn mean to Knox? They"d only met twice. How could she mean anything to him? What had Scarlet said last night about it?

Knox rubbed his head. "Alright, we"ll come up with a plan to see you both safe from the king. The rumors were already flying around the tavern. He had the place searched for her, probably to help shake suspicion off himself."

"He seemed cold and calculating when I talked to him. Face to face with the king, Knox. Can you believe it? He said he didn"t want any witnesses and didn"t want her body turning up in town."

Eirwyn was cold, but she barely felt it. Rage and hurt boiled in her chest at his treachery. How could he order his own sister"s death?

The back door of the cottage opened, and Olive pointed to the sky.

"Alright, we can figure this out." Knox asked.

Scarlet turned and waved to Olive, then glared at him. "It better, otherwise I"ll be next on his kill list. I"m hoping Grandma will have an idea. Bring Eirwyn inside when she wakes, will you?"

She spun on her heels to go to the cottage.

Knox watched her walk away as thunder boomed, rubbing his temples under his hood. Scarlet was almost to the cottage when the man turned back to the barn and walked to the door.