Page 31 of On Burning Paths

From somewhere ahead of us, Thorian makes a sound that isn't quite a word. Fenric, who has been half listening while he forages, glances back at us with an expression he doesn't entirely manage to make neutral.

Talon notices both of them and looks pleased about it.

"Tell me about the balls your family hosted," he says, turning back to me as though the other two aren't there at all. "I want to hear everything."

So, I start talking, and I can’t seem to stop. Talon laughs, teases, and adds to the conversation like a master wordsmith. It’s impossible not to be pulled into his charm. And when I realize how much time has passed, and how long we’ve been talking, I stop.

I barely know Talon. Why am I talking to him like I’ve known him my whole life?

Above us, the sky has flushed into soft pastels, lavender and pink, clouds strewn across it like pulled sugar. We're on an incline now, the path winding upward in long switchbacks, the air growing colder with every turn.

Thorian stops.

Fenric wanders further off the path toward a cluster of bushes. Thorian scowls up at the fading light and says, "We should have faced a trial by now."

“Perhaps the gods got too drunk and forgot,” Talon mutters, “much like my father did with birthday parties.”

“Oh!” Fenric says, emerging onto the path with a handful of nuts. “I didn’t know vampires had fathers.”

Talon rolls his eyes. “So what do you figure, immaculate conception?”

Fenric frowns, as though considering it for the first time, and Talon shakes his head, pointing his dagger at Fenric. “A father and a sire are two different things.”

“What is a sire, then?”

“A sire creates a vampire through a deliberate–”

“That’s enough of vampire 101,” Thorian says, turning and stalking back toward us. “It’s getting late. If we haven’t faced a trial by now…”

“Then?” Fenric pushes.

Letting out another sigh, Thorian says, “Then, we need to settle in for the night. Preferably somewhere that doesn’t leave us exposed. I don’t like how close Magnus got today. We let our guard down. We can’t do that again.”

Talon shrugs and Fenric munches on some berries while offering his handfuls around. I take some. They’re a bit bitter, but they’re good.

For the next hour, as the sun sinks closer and closer to the horizon, we search for a spot, until we eventually find another little cave, tucked away in some trees. I didn’t even realize it was there, but Talon discovered it. Lucky vampire senses.

“Fenric,” Thorian says, gesturing to a rock on the far side of the outcropping, “help me roll that over to conceal the entrance even further from view.”

"I'll get firewood," Talon says. "To show my team spirit."

"I'll help," I say, stepping forward. "We're losing light and we'll need enough to last the night."

"Come hunt with me," Thorian says, the words coming out less like an invitation and more like an instruction. His eyes cut briefly to Talon. "You can help flush out game."

"You know you’re a good hunter without me," I tell him.

His jaw works, because he does know it.

"Come forage with me, then," Fenric offers, already holding a small cluster of something he's pulled from a bush. "Berries, nuts, whatever we can find before dark."

"I'm fine," I say. "I'll help Talon."

Neither of them looks fine with this. Thorian turns away first, and Fenric watches me for a beat longer than necessary before heading deeper into the brush.

Talon, for his part, looks entirely delighted.

"Women do love to work alongside me," he says, falling into step next to me.