Chapter 36

Callum

“Aren’t you supposed to be home with the new baby?” I ask Sigurd, who’s still on leave from royal duties.

“Stasi said I ought to help. Before the two of you kill each other,” he says, rubbing his beard thoughtfully.

“That was before we knew Etienne was organizing a search party.” This comment comes from Torben, who rounds the bend in the trail, followed closely behind by Hailey, Etienne, Kala, Jakob, and Josephine.

Everyone is here.

“I can’t sit still while my sister is out there, in danger,” says Hailey.

“Neither could I. I’ve known that girl since we were small. I hate the thought of her being alone and scared out there somewhere,” says Kala. Etienne squeezes her shoulder and plants a kiss to her temple.

“She welcomed me into this family without hesitation. I have to do my part to help her,” Jakob says.

“And she’s partially responsible for Jakob and I staying together,” says Josephine, looking up at her husband.

Another person has entered the search party, but I can’t see who it is. I only hear, “And I owe her my entire career.”

Sable steps forward in head-to-toe black and white haute couture camouflage.

Uther eats up the distance between them. “No. Go home.”

Sable presses a single index finger against the man’s sternum. “You can’t tell me what to do. She’s my best friend.”

Uther growls.

A growl of my own that I’ve been biting back for many long minutes bubbles to the surface, and everyone turns to stare at me. “Are we going to start holding hands and singing camp songs now, or are we going to look for my girlfriend?”

Sigurd freezes for a moment, studying me. “Girlfriend?”

I cross my arms over my chest and stare right back at him. “Yeah.”

Murmurs erupt among the onlookers.

“Are you serious? How…how long has this been going on?” asks my best friend.

“Since we were about 16.”

“Years! I thought maybe it was months,” he chokes out.

Everyone is staring at me.

I don’t have time for this. I shoot a severe look at Sigurd. “Are we going to go, or are we going to go?”

He nods. “Let’s go. But we’re going to have a talk about this later.”

“Fine. This way.”

“Wait, where are you going?” Sigurd asks.

“We can’t march into the monastery, guns blazing. We have to find another way.”

“And where might that be?”

“To the caves behind Radiant Falls.”

“Bloody hell,” Torben mutters.

The party begins the long march toward the stream and up the path toward the waterfall at the head of the caves.

Along the way, Etienne slaps a hand on his forehead in a sudden realization. “Oh my gods. You’re the reason my sister’s been disappearing into the woods every other day?”

“Etienne,” Kala warns gently as we walk through the tall grass along the low stone wall that separates the woods from the monastery grounds.

“It’s a reasonable question,” I say. “Yes. Flora and I have been sneaking off together since we were kids. It was only about playing and exploring at first. And then, when we were older, we fell in love.”

Sigurd snorts. But I know that sound. He’s on his way to accepting it because he knows he can do nothing about it.

By the time we reach Flora, he’ll already be over it, and we can finally get on with our lives together.

I hasten my steps; every minute that passes with her whereabouts unknown is a minute shaved off my life.