Shadow Fire (30 page)

I nod in response and concentrate on my footing. There's no railing on the bridge so I make sure to stay in the middle of the planks. Every so often, the bridge sways a bit on the water, and I feel myself begin to teeter. Taranis always manages to keep me from losing my balance.

The dank, malodorous reek of the swamp is nauseating, though I'm loath to breathe through my mouth for fear I'll taste it. Shudders wrack my body at the thought, not helped one bit when a long slender form slithers by just underneath the water.
Don't fall in
becomes an all-consuming mantra.

As we continue trudging over the floating bridges, my energy begins to wane. My eyes blink closed a couple of times, and I snap them back open with a vicious shake of my head. What a time for exhaustion to settle in, when any misstep will result in a swim in repulsive swamp water. Goddess only knows what manner of creatures live in the murky depths, if the massive snake was any indication. When I start to fall again, Taranis rights me then stops Zane.

"Yo, mighty leader, your luscious lady seems intent on taking a swim in the muck," Taranis announces. Zane stops and turns around.

"Are you okay, Love?" he asks, pulling me into a gentle embrace.

"Yeah. I'm just… just really tired," I sigh into his shoulder. "I don't know how many times I've stumbled. I'd be drowning or swamp monster food by now if it weren't for Taranis."

"Why didn't you say something?" he asks.

Leaning into him, I nuzzle his neck while he strokes my hair. I think I could fall asleep standing in his embrace.

"Too tired..."

My knees buckle and I find myself cradled in Zane's arms. I start to protest, to insist I can still walk, but my voice fails when I open my mouth to speak. Zane turns around and continues walking. My arms wind around his neck, and I snuggle against his chest, releasing a relieved sigh. At least I don't have to worry about falling into the marsh anymore.

****

Something tickling my nose wakes me from my nap. When I open my eyes, there's a curtain of red blocking my vision. It seems I'm being cradled in Taranis's arms now. I release my hold on his neck for a second to brush his silky hair from my face. When I place my arm back around his neck he smiles down at me.

"Finally awake?" he asks in a whisper.

I glance around for Zane, relaxing when I see him in front of us. Cuddling back up against Taranis, I close my eyes and sigh.

"Why am I so tired?"

When a gentle hand caresses my face, my eyes fly open. Zane is running his calloused fingers across my cheek.

"You didn't get much sleep last night," Taranis replies.

"I also think you may have overdone it with the magic this morning. Perhaps you shouldn't have chased the poor pirate all over the ship shooting light daggers at him," he says, his smile betraying his real feelings about my antics. "That combined with alcohol and lack of sleep is causing your fatigue."

He leans forward, brushing his lips against mine. I wind my arms around his neck, my lips parting beneath his with a breathless moan.

"Stop!" Taranis barks. "I'm not going to hold her while you ravage her. Not unless I get to participate."

Zane pulls away, staring at Taranis with a brash grin. My breath catches in my throat, and I bury my face in the rogue's shoulder to hide my blush.

"You think you can walk for a while?" Taranis asks. When I nod, he lowers my legs to the ground.

"We're almost to the bridge," Zane announces. "I can already see it in the distance."

Shadow worms his way around us and takes off running for the bridge. I guess he's tired of walking through the swamp.

"We'll camp on the other side of the bridge," Zane adds before he turns and walks away.

The nap was rejuvenating. I'm able to keep my balance much better now. When we reach the bridge, I jog across, desperate to escape the revolting marshlands. A prairie stretches out before us with a small trail winding through it. The trail isn't big enough for a wagon so it must not be a merchant trail. We follow Zane another half mile or so until he stops, throwing the packs he's carrying to the side of the trail.

"This spot will do," he says, glancing around the area. "If I remember correctly, there's a river about fifty yards over there," he adds pointing east. "We need to clear away some of this grass so I can make a fire. It's going to be cold tonight."

"I got it." Taranis says, slicing at the grass with his sword.

Zane unbuckles his shoulder armor, tossing it to the ground before hoisting his pack over his shoulder and heading off to the east. I grab my pack and chase after him, anxious to wash up in the river.

"Zane, wait up." I yell. He stops and turns to wait for me. When I catch up he takes my hand, gazing down at me with pensive eyes.

"You should be back at camp resting," he says, brushing his lips across my knuckles.

"I need to bathe. I haven't had a decent bath since Palma." I say, grimacing at the thought.

Nodding, he takes my pack, slinging it over his shoulder. Taking my hand again, he leads me through the tall grass. Soon the sound of the rushing river and the clean smell of fresh water fill the air around us. When we reach the bank of the river, Zane hands my pack to me and sits down.

"Can I have a little privacy?" I ask, embarrassed by the warm flush spreading throughout my entire body.

"I'm not leaving you alone out here, but I'll keep my back turned," he replies, turning away from the river.

With a quick glance at him, I peel out of my clothes and wade out into the river. The water isn't just cold; it's downright frigid! I can't keep from letting out a startled squeal. My eyes fly to Zane on the riverbank.

"Are you okay out there?" he asks without turning.

"Yeah, it's just really c-cold," I reply through chattering teeth.

Using the small bar of soap from my bag, I lather my hair as best I can. Wading back to the riverbank, I place the soap down on my pack before swimming back out and rinsing off. It feels good to wash the grime from the road off. I only wish the water was warmer so I could spend more time swimming around. Once my hair is free of soap, I walk out of the river into the chilled evening air.

There's nothing to dry off with so I just put on my spare clothes over my wet body. The cursed green set again. Hanna was kind enough to mend them on the voyage, though how she managed to get the bloodstains out is beyond me. When I finish dressing, I shove my dirty clothes in my pack without bothering to wash them in the frigid water.

"All done," I announce, plopping down on Zane's lap.

"Your hair is drenched," he says laughing. Grabbing my hair in his hands, he wrings out more of the water onto the ground.

"Well it's not like I have a towel."

He places me on the ground and then stands. When he starts removing his clothes I avert my eyes. While he bathes in the stream, I comb my fingers through my wet hair, trying to pretend there isn't a nude male only feet away. A loud splashing noise captures my attention, and I turn toward the river. Zane's standing in hip deep water, his hair wet, water dripping from his sculpted chest down over the ridges of his abdomen before returning to the river. I don't realize I'm staring until I hear a deep chuckle.

"You aren't very good at the whole, keeping your back turned thing, are you?" he asks through hearty laughter. I turn away to hide the grin stealing across my face. "I never said you couldn't watch," he teases.

I know better than to take the bait, though part of my mind is screaming at me to peek anyway. While staring at the ground, I work at the tangles in my hair. When I hear him walk out of the river, I pretend my hair is the most fascinating thing I've ever seen.

"You need help with your hair?" I ask when he kneels in front of me.

He nods and sits down. I comb my fingers through his wet hair, smoothing out the tangles. He's wearing his royal blue shirt again, the same one he was wearing when we first met all those weeks ago. When I finish with his hair, he rises and helps me up. He picks up both packs, slinging them over his shoulders. When we arrive back at camp, Taranis has cleared a patch of grass for the fire. He also collected enough rocks to make a complete circle to enclose the blaze.

"I'm gonna go wash up in the river," Taranis says, his lips curving into a mischievous grin. "No peeking now, vivacious vixen!"

"Yeah, I think you're safe, Taranis," I call out to his retreating form. His merry laughter floats back on the cool breeze. It's contagious; I end up biting at my lower lip to keep from laughing at the rogue's amusing antics.

Zane uses some sticks he found near the river and the dried grass Taranis cut to start the fire. After the fire is blazing, I creep in as close as I can get to it without being burned. My hair is still soaking wet and the cool evening breeze is sending shivers through me. Zane sits down behind me then wraps his cloak around us both. I stare at the dancing flames, mesmerized by their beauty. My mind roams while I continue to gaze unblinking at the fire. Memories flood me, moving so fast they become nothing but a blur, until I shake my head, severing the hypnotic hold of the flames.

"I wonder if I can use a combination of fire and wind to dry my hair," I say, breaking the long silence.

"I wouldn't recommend trying it," Zane says snorting. He leans forward, resting his chin on my shoulder. "We should reach the ruins late tomorrow. The jungle they're in isn't far from here."

"I'm scared," I confess in a whisper.

"I know," he replies, nuzzling my neck. "You have Taranis and me with you. We'll protect you with our lives."

"That doesn't make me feel better," I reply, trying not to cry, "only worse." Turning in Zane's embrace, I wrap my arms around his neck, snuggling into his warmth. "I just don't want you or Taranis putting yourselves in harm's way to protect me. I don't want either of you to die."

"Well, I for one have no intention of dying," Taranis says with a playful snort.

He plops down in front of the fire next to us. His hair is soaked and stuck to his head in clumps. He pulls a comb out of his pack and starts working on the tangles.

"What's for dinner tonight?" he asks, gazing at me.

"What do I look like, your personal servant?" I snap at him. Zane's arms tighten around me.

"Whoa, I did not mean that the way you decided to interpret it," he says, putting his hands up in mock surrender. When I meet his eyes, they're filled with worry.

"I'm sorry for snapping at you," I whisper. Zane grabs his pack and tosses it to Taranis.

"Have whatever you want," he tells the pirate, and then snuggles back against my neck. "You need to eat tonight. It's important to keep up your strength, especially now."

Taranis places one of Hanna's buttery biscuits under my nose. When I ignore the bread, he hits me in the nose with it.

"I'm not above letting the pirate force feed you, Love," Zane whispers in my ear.

Scowling, I grab the biscuit from Taranis and make a show of eating it. As soon as I finish the bread, the pirate places some jerky in my hands. I eat one strip then feed one to Zane. When it's gone, he licks at my fingers with languid strokes of his tongue. Small tremors course through my body from the sensual sensations. His sultry eyes gaze into mine as he brushes a plump raspberry across my lips. I open my mouth, taking the berry, and sucking on Zane's fingertips. When he presses another berry to my lips, Taranis releases a loud sigh.

"Now'd be a really good time to change your bandage, Freya," Taranis says to the griffin. She watches him pull an herbal healing potion and bandages from his pack. "You promise to be good? I'd like to keep all my limbs if that's okay with you."

Freya makes a strange snorting sound and raises her wing so he can reach the wound. Taranis unbinds the old bandages and spreads the potion over the healing gash. Freya stands and allows him to rebind the injury.

"There, it looks much better now, my beastly beauty," Taranis coos to Freya.

"We need to get some rest," Zane says through a groan. "Do you want first or second watch, Taranis?" When Shadow stands and stares at Zane, he sighs. "It's not that I don't trust you, Shadow. Delistaire's tower is only about a half day from here. We can't let our guard down."

"Perhaps that's what he wants. What he expects," I say in a quiet whisper. When both men stare at me, I continue. "If you two only sleep for half the night, you'll be far less alert tomorrow. Can we really afford that?"

"True," Zane says, his brow furrowed in thought. "Come on. Let's all go to sleep. I suppose Freya's and Shadow's senses are heightened enough to wake us should anything happen."

I stand, moving aside to watch in silence as Zane lays his cloak down on the ground. He takes my cloak out of my pack and motions for me to lie down. When he settles down next to me, I curl up on his chest. He arranges my cloak over us, making sure my trembling body is covered. Shadow pads over and curls up on Zane's other side. Taranis douses the fire with a quick water spell then glances at us.

"It's going to be cold tonight, Taranis. Lie down next to Ashlyn," Zane suggests.

The rogue gathers his cloak around him and stretches out beside me. Freya settles down on his other side. Closing my eyes, I release a tiny sigh. I feel safe cuddled between these two powerful men. When my shivering refuses to die down, Taranis rolls over, spooning against my back. The tremors subside, allowing my body to finally relax.

Chapter Twenty-Five

The Forbidden Jungle

It's a warm, pleasant morning, not a cloud in sight to mar the perfect azure sky. Any other day I'd revel in the sunshine. Today though, a gloomy sky would be more appropriate to match my morose mood. Zane's sure we'll reach the ruins by nightfall. That is, if we don't run into any snags in the jungle surrounding them. When I asked him earlier what he meant by snags, he mumbled something about quicksand and poisonous monsters. It all sounds just delightful.

I wonder how many of the prior Chosen even made it this far. If they did, they probably fell into quicksand after being bitten by a poisonous monster to die a slow agonizing death. What a wonderful thought for my sullen mood.