Willow caught the scent of something sweet on the breeze. She had smelled it yesterday as well when she first entered Shondravar and then again when Caleb had entered the kitchen bare chested before supper. She inhaled deeply, letting the scent fill her lungs. It was him, musky and lightly sweet and earthy. “What is it, Caleb? It smells wonderful.”
“You’ll see.”
“And what does amen mean?”
“It means so be it. Let it be done.” He looked at her and smiled.
They were a few steps from the crest of the hill, and just when she thought she could go no further, for the sun beat down mercilessly on them making her lungs ache and her head feel light, Caleb broke away from her sprinted the rest of the way. Willow looked up breathlessly, but she wasn’t sure if she grew weak because of the heat, or because of the sight of the beautiful warrior above her, gazing out at something over the hill while a gentle breeze swept his hair off his broad, strong shoulders.
Still indulging in the sight of him, Willow finally reached the crest. Just as she did, a gentle gust of wind blew from the north and brought with it the full glorious scent that was now so familiar. She turned away from Caleb’s carved profile and looked out over the other side of the hill.
“Caleb.” She could only whisper, for her voice failed her as her eyes opened wide at the breathtaking sight before her.
The fields he spoke of stretched out for leagues below her and were covered in a thick blanket of deep beautiful green stalks that swayed ever so slightly in the breeze. The absolute beauty of it, and the sweet fragrance that caressed her enveloped Willow’s senses. “It’s the only green thing thriving in Predaria,” she breathed. “What is it?”
“Wheat,” Caleb said beside her. “It’s wheat, Willow. It’s in the last stage before it will be ready for harvesting and it all turns gold.”
At the sound of his voice, the verdant reeds bent toward him in the breeze. Willow tore her eyes away and when she looked at Caleb again, she saw his very soul pouring out like rain, nourishing the precious crops before him.
“You did this?” Her voice broke on a quiver at the sheer magnificence of it all.
“Yes. Let’s go down,” he said without taking his eyes off his fields painted in color.
Looking at him, Willow knew now that this was his true love, or at least the beginning of it. She couldn’t be jealous of his love or his passion for the land, for it was unselfish and too vast and infinite to ever hope to compete with. And why would she compete at all? He did this not for himself but for others; the water tanks, the fire blowers…everything. One man against the full and brutal force of nature. But he wasn’t alone. His God was with him, and it wasn’t truly nature that had caused Predaria’s death, but her father. And while Willow’s heart rejoiced for Caleb, it sank as well for her father because the passionate Warrior and his God would seek justice and he would win. She knew in that moment that Predaria would be whole again.
As they grew closer, the rich greens and subtle yellows danced before her eyes like fingers beckoning them closer. Caleb took her hand again and stepped into the fields. His legs disappeared in the lush, tall stalks that enveloped him like a lover’s embrace.
Willow knew she loved him. She watched him become part of this land around her. He was the strength of the earth and the brilliance of the sun. He swept his palms over the feathery tips that surrounded him, and Willow wondered how Predaria’s savior would ever allow its destroyer to live.
“This is food, Willow,” he said, the sound of his deep, rich voice dashing her haunting thoughts on the slight breeze and carrying them away. “It’s flour for baking and cooking, food for the horses, and even straw to make hats for shade from the sun. It’s as precious as the name of its color once was. This is the beginning of it all. It’s what I dream about for Predaria. Life…fertility… The land is alive here. Can you feel it?” His smile was radiant, and his eyes so filled with sunlit blues and greens that even the emerald fields around him paled in comparison.