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Arianna glanced toward the sun. “I wanted to be back before nightfall.”

“I see.” He looked to the village and back. “I have a few more things to take care of here, but we’ll join you soon. I’ll send a few of my warriors to escort you.” She nodded and turned away, desperate to escape his scrutiny.

“Do our efforts not please you?”

“No,” she answered quietly. “They do.”

Niall pushed his horse closer and lowered his voice. “I’m sorry if what I said today upset you.” Arianna didn’t answer. “I had to tell them something.”

“But you believe it too, right?”

“That your bond isn’t real? Absolutely, but it’s not my place to intervene. You’ll discover it on your own with time.”

She clenched the reins. “Is that really what today was about? Did you bring me here hoping to speed things along?” Her temper rose. “Did you think showing me how bad he really was would change something in the bond?”

Niall’s eyes filled with sorrow. “I won’t lie and tell you no, but my main motive was to show you the effort we’ve put forth toward healing those who were displaced. I can’t help that he was part of almost every effort in tearing their lives apart.” She didn’t respond and Niall dipped his head. “I am sorry for the pain this caused you.” He lingered a moment longer, but when she kept her head down, Niall turned his horse back to the village and trotted away.

Arianna bit the inside of her cheek hard. She wouldn’t cry. Not here.

Right now, all she wanted was a hot bath and to think about something else entirely. But Arianna knew she wouldn’t. The pain from that one village would haunt her for weeks. They were a broken people and she couldn’t right the wrongs that had been inflicted. All she could do was listen. Listen and drown in the grief they suffered day in and day out, all the while knowing it was her mate who had put it there.

Chapter Forty-seven

Arianna

The horses kept a brisk pace, seeming just as eager to return home as she was. They moved faster without the wagons, but the light was fading quickly. Rion would be a pacing, worried mess by the time they entered the city.

Arianna sighed and noted the way Talon seemed to be watching her every move. He’d witnessed Rion’s merciless wrath first hand and she hadn’t considered the full weight of that until now. Her friend’s struggles suddenly made more sense. Did the villager’s opinions reflect his own? Did he believe Rion could change, or was he also waiting for The Demon to reappear just as Niall and the council seemed to be?

Dusk fell, then light faded from the land, leaving them to walk the last few miles shrouded in darkness.

Arianna hated every second of it. She had studied the sides of the road, searching for any unnatural lumps in the grass. And when they passed a small hill, her heart had nearly beat out of her chest as she craned her neck to watch for any possible assailants.

Something howled in the distance, causing the hairs on the back of her neck to rise, but it was too far away to cause them worry.

Arianna chewed her lip when she spotted the copse of trees ahead.

In the dark, the trees were woven together as one, individual trunks almost indiscernible even with her Fae eyes. Her heart quickened and even Talon palmed a knife, ready to strike any who dared attempt an ambush.

She prayed she wouldn’t have to draw the twin blades strapped to her back.

They kept moving, all eyes watching the tree line as the horses trotted past. She held her breath, listening. Waiting.

Almost. Just a few more feet and the trees would fade behind them and she’d laugh about her fear in the morning. Just a few—

A twig snapped, her mare’s ears swiveled, and Arianna cursed beneath her breath. Then an arrow buried itself in the shoulder of the male riding just ahead of her.

He cried out and the horse next to his bucked, sending its rider to the ground with a hard thud. The female quickly righted herself and drew her weapons.

Talon leapt from his horse and grabbed Arianna’s arm, ripping her from the saddle. He pressed her against the creature’s side, shielding her body as more arrows flew from the darkness. Talon knocked two away with his magic, but the sudden outburst had the horses rearing before they took off into the night. She’d never grown accustomed to the squealing noise horses made when they were injured.

Arianna yanked her magic from the air, surrounding herself and Talon in icy crystals. Even if she couldn’t see the arrows clearly, the shards might throw a few off their target.

Her heart thundered and she struggled to hear beyond the racing pulse in her ears.

The guards from both Ruadhán and Móirín formed a tight circle around her, caging her from the chaos and acting as living shields. She might have balked against the action if it weren’t for their magic. Even the one with an arrow protruding from his shoulder stood close, his weapon raised. But Arianna could see the way his hands trembled from the pain.

Silence engulfed the area. None moved. They waited an entire agonizing minute, then more bow strings snapped.