Champion of Fire & Ice - Megan Derr Page 0,17

be the one granting royal authority to speak for him.

Ballior would laugh if he was still here and tell him to do it. He was such a good, loyal friend he'd probably find reasons that Davrin should have always been the first choice, right from the start. Ballior always had possessed more faith and confidence—in himself and others—than anyone Davrin had ever met.

Thinking of Ballior brought a sharp pang. If he were still alive, Davrin would have made him Consort's Champion in a moment. They'd have been a good team, working alongside the princess—queen—and her champion.

Which of course brought his mind to Cimar. If he married Korena, he would have to forsake any feeble hope of speaking to Cimar of his feelings once and for all. But then, given their respective roles, it was not like they could have been lovers anyway. Would Cimar want to be a royal champion? It would suit him, if he did not want to return to his archives.

He'd never ached more for a real friend, someone he could speak with in confidence about this. All the overwhelming possibilities, good and bad, that would come if he agreed to marry Korena.

When he's finished his meal and brandy, Davrin stoked the fire, hung his robe up, and climbed into bed. The sheets were chilly but warmed quickly as he pulled the curtains and encased himself in a cocoon of wool and linen.

It was a couple of hours early for bed yet, but he was too cold and exhausted to do much else, and it was too dark anyway. Burrowing into the bedding, finding a comfortable position, he closed his eyes and tried to rest. Unfortunately, it was some time before he was able to, mind spinning between worries over Cimar and struggling to decide if he wanted to marry a future queen.

CHAPTER FOUR

"Holy tits, it's cold out here," Lee said. He held out his arm, covered in the special leather bracer, and Valor landed with one of her piercing cries. Lee drew her in close, pulling his cloak up to keep her protected from the brutal weather.

"I'm surprised you can still feel anything after all the hours we spent flying." Cimar rolled his shoulders and stretched his aching muscles, which weren't happy with him after all the flying, shifting, and bitter cold.

All around them was snow and ice, so deep and crusted over they could walk on it and pass the tops of some trees. Heavens forbid they go through it. The world was white, from top to bottom, and the wind carried a relentless wind that sapped warmth and will to live. "Let's get somewhere warm. You said you saw something from the sky?"

"This way," Lee said, testing his snowshoes before settling his pack and heading off. He had a sense of direction like Cimar had never seen before.

Pulling up his face cover, Cimar followed, and onward they trudged for what felt like hours but was probably only a half hour at most. Throughout, the sky grew steadily darker, until he feared they'd either be digging into the snow for shelter or trudging by moonlight. Neither option was pleasant, though hiding in the snow would at least be warmer than the trudging.

They came to a stop right as the weak sunlight was surrendering its last rays to the dark, in front of a derelict cabin that barely deserved the word. When the door wouldn't give, Cimar removed his snowshoes and gave it a solid kick, which thankfully did the trick.

Inside, the cabin smelled of disuse but mercifully nothing worse. A handful of rodent skeletons littered the floor; Lee made quick work of them while Cimar set to building a fire. Valor flew to perch on the back of a chair, seemingly content to preen her ruffled feathers while watching them.

When the fire was going, Cimar stripped off his heavy gloves and got his hands warmed so he could make dinner without fumbling and dropping everything.

Lee, in his usual brisk, efficient way, set to work stowing their things for the night, cleaning the floor enough to be workable, and getting their bedrolls set up. He also got Valor fed, laughing as she nibbled on his fingers in thanks.

Though Cimar was still far from pleased about the unfair quest, he was grateful he'd been able to fly them here. Otherwise, the horses would be a burden, and they probably would have been forced to turn them back or abandon them. Valor had flown alongside them most of