“The animals, of course.” When she turned around and came back to him, he saw from the intent look on her face that she was serious. “That’s why we haven’t been following a path or a road.”
From the animals. He decided to humor her. “And what have you learned so far?”
She eyed him, her expression so disappointed that he wondered if she could read his mind. “I’ve learned that we need to go back to the palace and start there. The animals saw the same person you did. Even worse, he’s been here again since then. He killed several rabbits and left their carcasses to rot. They saw a man, tall and fair with light-colored eyes. They sensed something dark inside him.”
“Perfect. Now all we need to do is find him.”
“That’s easier said than done,” she finished glumly. “Unfortunately that description fits every single man in the SouthWard kingdom. EastWard, too.”
He refused to be cowed. “Maybe so, but I’d recognize him if I saw him again.”
“So would they.” She gave a tired sigh. “It’s just a matter of bringing him around them. Which, of course, would be impossible without knowing who he is.”
“Let’s go back.” Holding out his arm, he told himself it was because he wanted to be gallant, not because he’d relish her touch. And when she took it and that same wild longing swept through him, he resolutely ignored it.
Chapter 10
The kiss she’d shared with Ruben changed everything. Since Willow had never kissed anyone before, she didn’t know if it was always like this. So intense. So powerful.
And when she’d felt his body swell with desire, her womanly parts had come alive. She’d wanted him, in a gut-wrenching, visceral way.
Apparently he hadn’t felt the same.
The sense of loss that had come over her when he’d turned away had been shattering. Used to hiding her inner pain, she gathered her shredded dignity around her like a cloak, glad she was able to look calm and relatively normal when he’d finally turned back to her.
She’d let the peace of the woods surround her. As usual, the sounds and scents of the forest were calming, balm upon her troubled soul. The bold scree of the crow, the richness of damp earth and pine and maple, the way the dappled sunlight made shadows dance on the carpet of fallen leaves.
But her sense of tranquility was only fleeting as she forced herself to remember why they were here. Into this beauty, a killer had gone. Shaking her head, she tried to reconcile herself with the notion.
He’d been here only a short while ago, according to the wolves. His evil had left a taint and a blight upon the balance of the earth.
She wondered why she hadn’t sensed it. No matter, because she knew it was true. The animals did not lie. The concept was foreign to them. They’d told her of the man who only minutes before had butchered small creatures for sport, leaving their carcasses to rot in the humid day. His actions had been more than cruel, they’d been insulted. He’d dishonored their lives.
The predatory ones, hawk and wolf and fox, who would not touch meat already dead, had skirted the area nervously. Finally, the carrion birds had come, big and black and awkward, their tattered feathers scattering as they fought over their spoils.
The perfect balance of life had been ruined. Evil had come to her woods. Jaw set, Willow sensed the evil putting tendrils of darkness through her forest. As they came upon the spot, the birds warned her. They didn’t actually have to—the scent of death still hung acrid in the air.
“Shadows of Darkness,” Willow muttered faintly. The edges of her vision faded to gray, as though she might pass out. Resolutely, she sucked in great gulps of air, steadying herself. She stopped and closed her eyes, unable to bear the bloody sight.
“What kind of man does such a thing?” Ruben asked, his tone hoarse as he surveyed the bloodbath—a churned up mess of bones and fur and blood. “Hunger or the need for a warm pelt, that makes sense. But to kill for no reason, other than taking cruel pleasure in the act of killing?”
Absurdly, she found herself thinking of her chores. Distraction, grounding her to normalcy. There were a hundred small duties she needed to be doing, back at the palace. Briefly, they crossed her mind, like a small, annoying dog nipping at her heels. She pushed them away, grounded once