Page 84 of A Legacy of the Light

“Yes, they’ll be fine.”

I follow Tavish through the trees and he helps me over large logs and boulders. I thank him each time he does, and ignore the way my body reacts whenever our skin comes into contact.

We walk through the undergrowth, the forest feeling even bigger now that I’m on my own feet and not riding Mabel.

Tavish asks if I’m doing okay for the fourth time before I retort, “I might be human, Tavish, but I’m not completely useless.”

That’s when the small rock covered in moss catches me off guard and sends me tumbling over my own feet, straight into Tavish. I grab onto his shirt to stop myself falling flat on my face and his chuckle vibrates through me where my hands are resting on his back.

“You were saying?” He throws my words from the stables back at me and looks over his shoulder, a brow lifted in amusement.

“Fuck you,” I tell him, righting myself. “That was a rock. Not me.”

He laughs again and slows his pace. I’ve seen snails move faster than he is right now. Before I can tell him to hurry his ass up, he stops by a huge cliff face on our left that has patches of ivy hanging from it at random intervals.

“We’re here,” he tells me with a wide grin on his face.

“The cliff?”

He nods and pulls back some of the ivy nearest to him to reveal the entrance to a pitch-black tunnel.

I hesitate. “I’m not going in there.”

“Why not?” he teases, his smile turning into a smirk. “The bad-arse rider scared of the dark?”

“One,” I hold up my fingers to list items off. “Thank you for acknowledging my bad-assery. Yes, that’s a word,” I challenge when he gives me a look. “Two: I have no clue what is in there and I can’t see a damn thing. Three: I’m not afraid to kick you if you continue to mock me.” I pop my hip as I finish.

“Trust me. Nothing is in there and I’ll be with you the whole time.” He offers me his hand again. I hesitate before I grip it firmly.

He turns and leads me through the tunnel, making sure the ivy falls behind us before moving further into the dark. I hold his hand tightly and use my other hand to grab his forearm. A small amount of light drips in through the ivy curtain and I can barely make out Tavish’s shape in front of me.

“This way,” he whispers and leads me into the passage. The further we move in, the darker it gets. As we round a bend, at least I think there’s a bend, what little light came through the entrance disappears. My grip on Tavish tightens.

“How much farther?” I ask in a hushed tone, scared I’ll wake something.

“Only another minute. You’ll get some light soon.”

“Can you see right now?”

“Yes, I can. Your scared face is cute,” he teases.

“I warned you,” I tell him before kicking him. Except it’s not him, it’s the stone wall, and I angled my foot weird and bounced my little toe off it. I curse and hop in place for a second while Tavish laughs.

“Serves you right for trying to kick me. Violence isn’t the answer, Elsie,” he admonishes me mockingly.

“Screw you,” I whisper under my breath as the smallest amount of light appears in front of us. I quicken my pace toward it, desperate to get out of the darkness.

Tavish leads me through another curtain of ivy and into a meadow completely surrounded by the stone we just came through. It’s about half the size of a football field, trees gathered at one side, and soft grass on the other. Down the middle is a deep stream about four feet wide that leads to a pool at the opposite end of the clearing. The top is open to the elements and the sun peeks out from behind the clouds, casting a wave of warmth through the meadow.

I release Tavish’s hand and step forward.

“Wow.”

“Amazing, isn’t it?”

“Yes.” I turn in a circle and spot trees growing on the top of the rock, giving this place complete privacy. “How did you find it?”

“By accident. I was riding through the forest and stopped to rest on the other side of the rock to where we came in. I spotted the stream running through a small opening and wondered if it led somewhere. I circled the rock and found the gap we just came through and followed it through to here.”