Mist's Edge (The Broken Lands #2) - T.A. White Page 0,25
camp and looking for Eamon and Buck was as good an excuse as any. More so because it was true.
It felt wrong to leave them behind without at least trying to look for them, even if she had little hope of finding them.
“You’re not going back into the mist.” The words were an order, an implacable will behind them, letting her know that he wasn’t going to even consider that option.
Her eyes rose to his in surprise. He didn’t look expressionless now, his face filled with anger and a stubbornness that would outlast even hers. The part that caught her and made her unable to respond in a manner she normally would have was the glimpse of fear behind it all. A fear that reached out and struck her in the chest, leaving her with an inescapable feeling of doom.
“I didn’t plan to,” she said honestly. If they were in the mist, there wasn’t anything she could do for them. She was close with Eamon and Buck, but they didn’t have the depth of connection that she had with Fallon. There would be no following that connection to them.
His shoulders loosened and relaxed, as if a great weight had been removed from them. Her hand covered his. She knew he had a problem with the idea of her in danger. It was the biggest source of disagreement in their relationship and one they had made no headway in solving, since neither of them were willing to bend or compromise. A small part of Shea feared what would happen if they didn’t find a middle ground.
“If that’s not the case, why stay behind? You’ve already said that we came out of the mist in a different part of the forest. They could have as well.”
That was true. It didn’t stop her from worrying though. It was a feeling that would stick with her until she had proof they’d survived and made it out of the mist. She went back to petting the horse.
He waited a moment before asking, “Were they able to keep hold of their horses?”
She nodded. Yes, Eamon had gotten the last one on the lead before the mist descended.
“If they came out of it, they would head straight to camp knowing that they would have difficulty finding us out here.”
He didn’t say anything else, just leaving it at that.
Shea felt an irrational sense of annoyance. He was so certain that she would come to the conclusion he wanted. The worst part was that he was right. If she was truly worried about Eamon, Buck and the others, the best thing she could do would be to head to camp. She knew Eamon. If he’d managed to come out, he would have ordered his people home so they could warn others and put together a large search party if Fallon and Shea failed to make it back.
“Fine,” she gritted out.
Fallon’s lips moved just the slightest bit, enough to let Shea know he was fighting a smile at her expense. She reached over, pinching his side in retaliation. His hand covered hers and pressed it into his side, the thumb caressing the inside of her wrist. Tingles shot down her arm.
“Ride with me?”
She stepped closer and laid her head on his bicep. “I still want to walk back.”
“Of course you do, but I haven’t seen you in several months.”
She lifted her head and glared at him.
“You don’t fight fair.”
Amusement was alive in his eyes as he released her hand.
“Of course not. I am a warlord after all.”
Shea’s sigh was heavy and loud. “You’re not going to win every battle.”
He swung onto the horse before reaching down to help Shea swing up in front of him. He whispered into her ear in a husky voice, “Is that a challenge?”
She fought against a smile, losing the battle as he kicked the horse to set it into motion. Those with horses followed him as he took the lead. The rest would make their way at a slower pace until mounts could be sent back to them.
CHAPTER FIVE
THEY RODE into camp with little fanfare, moving at a fast pace past the outer perimeter and onto the lanes formed by the military lines the Trateri had arranged the tents by. The path was a little more jagged given the obstacles of the soul trees, but they were as straight as possible. Fallon didn’t stop until he was in front of his tent, a structure easily twice the size of anything near it.