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They had been traveling for hours, dodging two small groups of the Others. Fortunately, Cillian knew the route to Stone Haven and the lay of the mountain better than the Others. Evading them had been easier than she had thought it was going to be.
Eva scanned the area, the glare off the snow hurting her eyes, but her heart hammered in her chest as the seconds ticked by and Cillian still hadn’t returned.
He was injured from the fall in Everwood, and carrying her on his back wasn’t helping his pain. He tried to hide it from her, but she could see the strain crease his brow and the tightness in his jaw. He was hurting. He had insisted the gate into Stone Haven was just up ahead and that she should stay hidden until he scouted the entrance and guards.She wanted to trust Cillian, wanted to believe he was still the man she had come to know, but the revelation that he was the son of her enemy twisted her gut.
Eva couldn’t help but be distrustful of Cillian. He was from the settlement she had villainized for years, but if she had to work with him to save Everwood, then that’s what she was going to do.
As she was deep in thought, a shadow appeared on the horizon—a moving figure headed in her direction. Her hand instinctively went to reach for her knife. She swallowed hard, realizing it was gone. Like everything else she cared about.
She needed her mind to stay clear, so she shook her head of the thought. The future of her settlement rested on her shoulders—she had to stay alive for them.
As the moving shadow drew closer, Eva let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding. It was Cillian.
Not wanting to waste another second, she moved around the tree. Her ankle throbbed with the movement, but it was feeling a little better today. It most likely was only sprained. The wrap Cillian had provided the night before kept the swelling at a minimum.
Cillian came to a stop before her, his cheeks red from the wind’s biting cold. He reached out a hand to her, and his rich pine scent sent her heart racing for a whole different reason than fear.She accepted his help, leaning on him as she stepped around the shrubbery covered in snow.
“Okay, there are two guards on duty, I know them. We shouldn’t have any problem getting home.”
“Stone Haven isn’t my home.” She spit the words at him. They left her lips before she could stop them.
He studied her a moment, then nodded. “I meant inside, Angel.”
Cillian turned his back and bent his knees, lowering himself to her level. “Shall we?”
She hesitated. She was about to enter Stone Haven, the place she dreamed about destroying for the last seven years. Now, they were her only hope to save Everwood. What a fickle bitch fate was.
With her goal in focus, she took hold of his shoulders and jumped on her good foot, then wrapped her legs around his hips. He tried to suppress a grunt as he took hold of the back of her thighs and adjusted her weight, but she heard it.
“Maybe I should try to walk—”
“Don’t even think it,” he growled.
The corner of her lip turned up as she laced her hands just below his neck, and her head bobbed next to his as his feet crunched through the snow.
He lifted his hand and pointed. “It’s just over this ridge.”
He gripped her thighs tighter as he moved up the incline. The warmth from his hands seeped into her, causing her insides to squeeze. Being this close to him, reminded her of the night of the full moon—she shook her head to rid her mind of the thought.
When he came to a stop at the top, she squinted against the sunlight, lifting her hand to shield her eyes. A hundred yards from them were stone pillars and a wooden gate. A tower rose above the gate, with two figures standing at the rail. The mountain peak stood tall in the distance, looming over the settlement protectively. She let out a sigh. They had made it.
With no warning, Cillian crouched low, and her weight fell forward before he dropped her onto the snow-covered ground. She wasn’t sure what he was doing until a gun blast ricocheting off the terrain met her ears and she heard men yelling and the sound of snow crunching as men raced toward them from the tree line. The Others had found them.
As more shots were fired, the snow kicked up as the bullets embedded into the banks. Cillian jerked her arm, pulling her to her feet. She almost cried out as pain seared her ankle, but she stopped herself when he yelled, “I need you to run, Eva, now.”
Adrenaline filled her veins as they raced over the fluffy snow. Cillian had her arm tight in his hold, and when he turned to look over his shoulder, he yelled “Get down!” just as a bullet whizzed by her ear.
The air rushed by her face, the chill causing her gooseflesh to rise as her body flattened against the ground.
She tried to turn around, but Cillian was in front of her, yanking on her arm and drawing her to her feet once more. Her ankle screamed for her to stop, the adrenaline only numbing so much of the pain.
Then they were running again, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw a man. He was close. Too close.When he aimed his gun, everything seemed to slow down. She held her breath as he pressed the trigger.
The snap of the trigger met her ears, but no bullet left the pistol. Confused, he slowed and examined the gun. He was out of bullets.
They quickened their steps, and at last, the gate came into full view.
“Open the gate! I am Cillian Beck, and I command you to open the gate!”
