laugh airily. A sane person would likely begrudge the animal, but I’m actually slightly amused. “How long have you been watching me? You’re cheeky, aren’t you? Did you know long before I did who I was?”
He tilts his head in the other direction. Maybe it’s a yes.
“Do you know the way out of here?” I’ve lost my mind. I’m talking to a wolf. “You can get to the edge of the deep wood, right? Where it meets the temple grounds? That’s where we met last time; I want to go back there.”
The wolf continues to stare at me for several more seconds. With a sigh, I pull myself onto my feet. Wolf guide? A little too much to hope for.
“Well, anyway, thanks for not eating me, again.” I hold out my hand in a low wave goodbye.
The wolf moves. His legs are just as powerful as I imagined because before I can blink he’s crossed the gap between us and pressed his head into my palm. I stare in wonder as my fingers sink into the rough, dense fur. Even though he looks like he’s born of the Fade’s mist, he’s solid. Then, he backs away slowly, holding my gaze.
He turns, and disappears into the darkness.
“That was…” I start to say, but am cut off by a flash of gold. I can barely make out the wolf’s body from the curling mist. But I can see its glowing eyes. He looks almost expectant. “Do you want me to follow?”
The wolf begins to trudge ahead. I dash over to keep up. I’m likely following it to its favorite tree to pee on. I don’t even know if this animal does pee. Is it an animal at all? Or a beast made of shadow, like the horse Eldas rode to Capton on?
Doesn’t matter. He’s the best chance I have of getting out of this place. We walk through the dark woods for what must be another hour before I let out a groan of frustration.
“Thanks for nothing,” I mutter. “I’m going to go this way now. It seems just as good as any other direction we’ve gone in.”
A bark and a growl stop me mid-step.
“What?”
Another low growl.
“Fine, I’ll follow a little longer.” I throw my hands in the air, resigned.
We walk until the trees give way to a mossy clearing. A circle of stones rings a larger tablet in the center of a small rise. It almost looks like a tombstone and I shudder.
“This isn’t the temple grounds,” I scold. The wolf huffs and walks over to the large, vertical memorial. He lies down next to it. “Is this your favorite place, though?”
He tilts his head and raises his eyebrows at me, as if to say, Isn’t this where you wanted to go?
“No, it’s not where I wanted to go,” I mutter as I approach the large rock.
There’s writing on it, faded with time. It hides behind a cloak of the same green moss that grows out from its base. There’s something distinctly temple-like about this place. It reminds me of the old shrines that dot the pathways that wander forgotten in the deep woods.
“What does it say?” I whisper, reaching forward to wipe the moss from the etchings.
“Nothing you can read.” Eldas’s voice breaks the still silence, and I don’t even bother suppressing a groan.
Chapter 15
“Are you surprised to see me?” he asks with gravel weighing down his voice.
I turn to face him and can’t decide if he’s more like a wraith, or an agent of the Forgotten Gods. The darkness of his hair is teased by the mist of the Fade. The gray pallor of his skin is like cut stone, unnatural and ethereal in this world of living night. If it were possible, he looks even more powerful than he did in the throne room. And several times more severe. I fold my arms to protect myself from his judgment.
“I suppose I shouldn’t be.”
“No, you shouldn’t be.” Eldas scowls. “What were you thinking?”
“I sat on your throne; I brought about spring. You clearly don’t want or need me here anymore and I am little more than a burden to you. I was going home.”
He blinks slowly and shakes his head. “You…you think you were a burden?”
“Given how you’ve treated me, what else was I supposed to think?”
“I have made an effort to be civil to you.”
“You have not,” I snap without thinking. He takes a step back, as if he’s taken aback someone would speak to him in such