breath,
“Oh yeah, we know.” Trice smirked down at me knowing what I was referring to, before we all set off down the street. I had to say it looked slightly different now that I wasn't running for my life wringing wet and covered in mud. Of course, it also helped that it was no longer raining but this didn't help the cobbled street from being covered it puddles, one of which was considered more a pool of water and after a quick glance around, I didn’t see any other way to negotiate it other than getting wet. But then, before I had chance to dip my foot in, I swiftly found myself being swept up into a pair of strong arms as I was shrieking out from the loss of stance.
“What are you doing?”
“I wid say tis obvious, unless ye fancied spending th' rest o' th' journey soaking wet fae th' knees down,” Trice said sloshing through the water, that thankfully only came up to just above his ankles. As for me, I was kept from being soaked thanks to his thick leather boots and his strong hold on me. But after this I didn't know what to say, so decided to keep my mouth shut and ignore that cocky handsome smirk of his. One, I had to say, was not even affected by the scar on his handsome face, as it most certainly didn't detract but only enhanced his rugged beauty. I would have been tempted to ask what happened and how he'd received that scar, but I refrained, as I didn’t want to give him the wrong impression by asking personal questions.
Although, on a purely irrational front, I had to confess being this close to him made me want to reach out and touch it, tracing the line with part of my fingertip. Trice, along with his brothers, most certainly had that lovable rogue thing going on. Something all three of them definitely worked to their advantage.
This theory was confirmed when Vern looked back over his shoulder and winked at me. I would have rolled my eyes if it hadn't been for the fact that these three were yet again here not only to save my life, but to deliver me safely back to Lucius.
Something that was beginning to look like a full-time job of theirs, making me wonder if they were looking forward to getting back to their usual jobs of hunting people for a bounty, instead of human Fae-sitting. But it also had me wondering if they would claim their souls back from Lucius like they had bargained for, and if they did, then what? I knew it was strange seeing as they hadn't been in my life for very long, but I had to admit that once this was all over, I would most certainly miss the McBain brothers.
Even Trice.
Speaking of the broody Scottish Hero, the second my legs were released from Trice’s hold was when I was jarred out of my thoughts of the future. Because we were now on the outskirts of the town and seeing as there wasn't a River in sight, I knew it must have been on the other side from where I had pretty much broken in and legged it through the muddy streets.
The whole town was surrounded by a wall, so it wasn't surprising to see a guarded entrance as we approached. Which, thankfully, was one that didn't have the same enraged gatekeeper that had chased me only hours ago with the intent of killing me.
No, instead the guards positioned either side of the colossal double doors simply nodded to both the portal keeper and the three shifter Warriors. Three guys that admittedly looked far more imposing than I did when first turning up at the gates looking like a drowned rat. It just goes to show what a lot of muscle and weaponry can do when you need intimidation to get you into places.
When we walked through the gates, I found a rudimentary path that led into a forest area, one that was covered either side by only one type of tree. It was what I was soon informed to be named the crooked forest, and for good reason. Because this didn't really surprise me, considering all the tree trunks sprouted from the ground and curled in S shapes before leaning to the right. The strange forest floor was also covered in dead pale leaves, telling me that the unusual shaped tree trunks and their eerie thin