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I squeezed my sister’s waist and clung to the pommel when Isa began to make a slow descent, dipping beneath the low clouds and then emerging over a wooded area. I shivered as cold air blew back my hair. Though I heard distant waves and smelled pungent ocean air, I couldn’t see it. It was hard to see with a dense layer of fog that had settled over the area.
I gave a start when a towering fortress loomed in the distance, like a phantom edifice, its massive torches glowing behind the fog. I wondered if they were trying to keep monsters out or in the walls that were taller than the surrounding pines. Isa had told us this was Itarian, the centaur stronghold.
Shiri rested the back of her head on my shoulder. That reminds me of the shifter stronghold, Ulula. Let’s hope the centaurs are nicer than the shifters.
Remember Father saying they were difficult to trade with? I asked as I recalled our father coming home weary and frustrated after nearly a month away. He’d been delayed at the centaur stronghold and had not come away with good trades. That was the winter we didn’t have butter for our stale bread.
Shiri stiffened. I do.
It was barely nightfall by the time we landed in a nearby field, the earth shuddering beneath us when we landed. There was a slight chill to the air, indicating we were getting closer to the imposing Periculian Mountains, which always seemed to radiate cold weather.
“Are we staying here, or are we seeking shelter in Itarian?” I asked Helian as he helped me dismount.
Radnor had already taken to the sky, his tail drooping between his legs like our old mongrel whenever our mother sent him outside.
I thanked Helian with a kiss as he set me on the ground. I stretched my sore muscles, and then Helian rubbed warmth into my arms. I smiled at my sister as Blaze swept her from Isa and he and Drae warmed her with hands that glowed like lit coals.
Isa heaved a steamy sigh, resting her chin on her paws. I’m growing ever tired of you Fae fawning all over each other.
I released Helian and stroked her snout, fanning my face when she steamed me. I wanted to tell her that she and Radnor could be fawning over one another if she’d let go of her dragon-sized grudge, but I decided I preferred my head on my shoulders.
Bea landed beside us with a squawk, and Ash jumped from her back with the dexterity of a cat springing from a tree limb.
“I should go on ahead and speak with the Centaurian king,” he said, motioning toward the ridge behind us. “The centaurs are a bit—” He paused, looking as if he were searching for the right word. “Standoffish.”
Shiri and I shared a look.
I knew from our father’s stories they were more than ‘a bit standoffish,’ and I suspected we might be better off making camp in the woods.
“And you have experience dealing with them?” Blaze asked.
Ash nodded. “The Lupine shifters traded with them often. My fathers used to take us with them during negotiations.”
“Hopefully they’re not as bad as the shifters in Ulula,” Shiri said.
Ash’s eyes flared. “You’re speaking about my kin.”
Shiri jutted her hands on her hips. “They tried to take the girls from us.”
“Oh.” He scratched the back of his neck, flashing a wolfish grin. “Sorry about them.”
Helian focused on Drae. “Did you fight them?”
Drae’s face turned as red as a dragon’s pecker. “I wasn’t there for that.”
I shot Shiri a look, and she crooked a smile. This was probably during the time when Drae was behaving like a troll’s behind.
“I used my siren,” Shiri answered, then she elbowed Blaze. “Though Blaze and Nikkos were prepared to burn the place to the ground.”
Ash splayed a hand across his heart, bowing toward Blaze and Shiri. “I appreciate you defending our girls.”
Shiri stiffened, glaring at him through hooded eyes. “You don’t need to thank me. I love those children.”
Her voice broke, and she turned away, but not before I saw the moisture reflecting in her eyes. I’d been so consumed in my own selfish sorrows, I hadn’t thought about how much she missed the girls. After all, she’d been their mother for the past four years.
Ash cleared his throat. “I’d rather you didn’t use your siren on the centaurs, Shiri. They easily hold grudges.”
Shiri nodded but didn’t speak as she buried her face against Blaze’s chest. I didn’t want to interrupt their tender moment, though it pained me to watch her shoulders shake while Blaze held her, whispering soothing words in her ear. I made a note to speak to Shiri about her depression later, and hopefully console her without making everything worse.
