over the years. Both generals in Myr’s army, they were delegates at Havenfall before I was born. They’re highly decorated and Brekken looks up to them. I had never given them much thought before now, but seeing Brekken with his mother fills me with a sense of longing that feels like a gut punch.
What would Mom do if I hugged her like that? Our visits are no-contact, so I don’t know for sure, but I can’t imagine any other response but her just standing there, stone-still, her arms limp at her sides.
Still, when Brekken turns toward me with a smile, I do my best to return it. He beckons me forward, and I step out of the courtyard gate. Graylin is a few steps behind me.
Deeper into Fiordenkill.
Even though I only move a few feet, it seems to me that the cold gets more intense. And I start to feel the stirrings of pain deep in my bones, in my veins. My body tells me to go back to the doorway, back to safety. But I trust that the gauntlet on my arm will keep me safe. It has to. Just for a few days, I tell myself.
“Mother,” Brekken says with a smile as I get close, looking between the copper-haired woman and me. “This is Maddie. The girl I told you about.”
I can feel my eyes widen a little at those words. What has he told her about me? But I keep my cool as best I can, smiling and extending a hand. She ignores it and goes in for a hug, her slender arms wrapping around me tightly.
“Madeline,” she says warmly, pulling back so she can look at me the same way she did with Brekken. “I am so pleased to finally meet you. I’m Ilya.”
“I’m glad to meet you too,” I say, blushing, hoping it doesn’t show too much under the scarf.
Ilya’s face is uncovered, of course. She’s as unbothered as all Fiordens are by the cold. Sprays of fine lines fan out from the corners of her eyes and mouth, but otherwise she could be thirty.
“Brekken told me how well you held the inn together this summer while your uncle was ill.”
Surprise and warmth fill my chest. Brekken thinks I did a good job? And he told his parents? Well, his mom, at least. I recall he once told me that his father traveled for months at a time, chasing rare elk on commission from the royal family.
Ilya lets me go, still smiling. “Well, we can catch up later,” she says, her Fiorden accent making each word distinct and elegant. “Now, let’s focus on getting you people somewhere safe.” Ilya separates from me and goes to greet Graylin.
Brekken squeezes my hand briefly—I startle at the pressure of his fingers over my mittens—and draws me to the side of the sleigh.
I follow, intensely aware of the presence of the ice wolves. Instinct makes me keep my head down, not to let my gaze meet those dark, intelligent eyes. They seem happy enough, though, panting slightly and shifting their massive weight. Brekken pats their flanks as we pass, just like his mother. Part of me wants to touch them, too, but I don’t dare.
At the sleigh, Brekken opens a door in the side, revealing a comfortably appointed interior with four front-facing carved seats heaped with furs and a sleek bone-colored railing to keep riders in.
“Stay awake during the ride if you can,” he says. “I’d like you to see Fiordenkill.”
My face tingles as I imagine sitting up there in the cold. But at the same time, something in my chest ignites at Brekken’s words.
Brekken busies himself with our supplies, sliding the stuff we’ve brought—Fiorden bags and Earth duffel bags full of clothes, money, food, weapons—between the benches. Graylin and I thought we should travel as light as possible to avoid notice, but Marcus and Brekken share a Boy Scout’s mentality of never ever getting caught unprepared.
Brekken’s mom climbs into the driver’s seat up front, and Graylin hops into the middle row, making it look as easy as climbing a single stair. The treads of the sleigh go up to my thighs; the railing is three feet above the top of my head. I catch my reflection in the polished black wood, looking around in vain for a ladder or steps.
“Uh …” I look pleadingly at Brekken.
He grins, steps forward, and grabs my waist, lifting me until Graylin can grasp my forearms. Graylin pulls me up, and I clamber