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“Quiet now,” she beckoned on a yawn. “Sleep, my king.”
For once, someone was giving me orders. Because it was her, I happily obeyed.
Chapter 36
GOLL
Later that afternoon,we dressed to go find food.
“I can smell some tasty meal that Ogalvet’s cooking outside,” she said, smiling brightly as I helped her into her cloak, slipping her wings through the flaps.
“He is,” I smiled down at her. “I asked him to make a hearty soup for you.”
“Yum.” She pushed past me and outside the tent flap.
I followed. “Meck.” I nodded to him. He hadn’t left the tent since I’d brought her back.
“Sire.” His face flushed with relief when he saw Una. “So good to see you’re awake, Mizrah.”
“Thank you, Meck,” she said with a smile.
Then we walked arm-in-arm toward the nearest campfire.
“Rain soon?” she asked, looking up at the gray clouds covering the sky.
“Snow, I think,” I answered as we stopped where Soryn, Pullo, and Hava sat with a few other fae.
A few of the Culled were out hunting, but most milled about our encampment that was situated partway between Belladum and Vanglosa.
“Una!” shouted Hava, hopping up from where she sat quite close to Keffa on a log they’d rolled near the fire. Then she literally flew over to greet her, landing clumsily and too close.
“Easy, Hava,” I snapped.
“Sorry!” She stopped herself, seeming about to launch into Una’s arms as she always did, and then gripped her hand instead, worry on her face. “Are you well?”
“I’m very well.” She beamed, a rosy flush in her cheeks.
She was indeed fine after what I’d thought had brought her near death. I glanced around, looking for Dalya. I needed to apologize for all my growling at her through the night and into today. I’d even accused her of not doing enough to wake her.
“I feel rather glorious actually,” said Una with another bright smile.
“Ogalvet!” I called over to him. He stood cooking underneath the open tent.
He nodded, not needing to hear what I wanted, and stooped over his cauldron with a bowl.
“Good to see that you’re all right,” said Keffa, now standing in our small circle, Soryn beside him. “Your mate was beginning to worry.”
“Was he?” Una asked with a shy smile tilting her mouth.
“He even—” Keffa stopped mid-sentence.
I smelled it, too. “What is that?” I turned toward what had caught my, Soryn, and Keffa’s attention. Other wraith fae also turned their heads toward the smell and sound.
Suddenly, a shout and another rose into the air from the outer edge of the encampment. We were at the center. Without a word, Keffa, Soryn, and I unsheathed our blades.
“Get behind me!” I shouted to Una. “Hava!”
She knew what I wanted and flapped her bat-like wings to shoot straight up above us. She looked beyond the tents from her height above us where we couldn’t see. There was raucous yelling, snarling, and growling, and cries of fae.
