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“So, you think they’ll come after us?” Her eyes go wide, and her face drains of blood.

“I know they will. They will come after me. I would suggest that we go our separate ways to draw them away from you, but I doubt you would get very far without magic. Since it’s erratic, we can’t rely on it. That means that we run together. They will come, and they won’t stop.”

She shakes her head. “You truly must be someone important.”

She has no idea.

“Sticking together is our only option at this point.” She says it like she hates the idea, which doesn’t sit well with me. I’m not sure why. “I’m sorry about my magical ability being so…bad.” She looks downtrodden.

“Nothing to be sorry about. We can’t rely on my magic at all. Good thing I’m good with a sword, that I know these lands.” I look around us. “Speaking of which, I think we should head for that forest and find somewhere to shelter.” I point in the direction of the thick clump of trees.

“Aren’t there creatures in the forest? Creatures that would like nothing better than to make a meal out of us?”

“Yes, but they mainly hunt at night. We’ll stick to the open at night, but we need to hide come nightlift, or we will be recaptured. It’ll take the better part of a week to get to Witch Mountain.”

“Maybe more.” She sounds wistful, and I don’t blame her. I wish I could go home, too. My home no longer exists…not really.

McColl yawns. “I’m looking forward to getting some sleep.”

“I’m looking forward to a meal.”

She gasps, touching her saddlebag. “We have food?”

I smile. “We do, indeed. Both food and water.” I look down at the waterskin that is still tied to the opposite side of my saddle.

She groans, and the sound shoots straight to my groin, which is a shock, given our circumstances.

“I can’t wait.” She smiles.

I try to smile back, but I’m sure it’s tight while I try to get my body back under control. I take deep breaths, looking away.

Am I attracted to the witch? Surely not. Then again, it has been a long time since I last lay with a woman…years.

But her?

Now?

No matter, it isn’t something I will ever act on. There are more important things to worry about right now.

We ride in silence for a while, entering the forest. I’m sure it was once magnificent. Not anymore. All the life has been sucked from the lands outside of the fae Courts. It’s all Snow’s doing. It’s sickening. Most of the trees are dead. The few still living have twisted limbs with hardly any leaves. Lichen and moss cover everything. They’re the only things that seem to thrive out here.

As we ride deeper into the forest, the silence is heavy around us. The only sounds are the soft thudding of our horses’ hooves on the forest floor and the occasional rustle of leaves in the light breeze. McColl looks around, her eyes wide as she takes in the desolate surroundings.

I scan the area, looking for a suitable spot to make camp. After riding for a while longer, we come across a small clearing nestled between a cluster of trees.

“That looks like a good place to stop for the night,” McColl says.

“Looks good to me,” I tell her, and we dismount.

I have a thought, so I put my tongue on the roof of my mouth and look at McColl sideways.

“What is it? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I was just wondering…”

“Yes?” she prompts when I don’t go on.

“The spell you cast on that guard who wanted to hurt you…”