Page 27

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The water was frigid, and the current much stronger than Farah had anticipated. She hadn’t gotten far before the rushing river knocked her feet out from under her. She gripped the rope tightly in response. It was the only thing that kept her from being dragged away.

The rope burned her palms as she frantically attempted to put her feet down. The more she tried, the more the rope dug into her hands and irritated the scrapes already there. She couldn’t go forward, and she couldn’t turn around. Nor could she let go. Her arms were weakening. Worse , her hands were beginning to slip. She looked up and saw red running down the outside of her hand. She called to her magic and watched green wrap around the rope to hold her.

“ Farah !”

She looked over and saw Rohan entering the river again. He was too far away. Her magic wouldn’t be able to hold out for that long. All she could think about was the information she had that wouldn’t get to Durga .

“ Don’t you dare let go!” Rohan bellowed.

Farah looked at her hands. One had already begun to slip off, only her fingers gripping the rope. The other hand was starting to slide. She was a decent swimmer but not nearly good enough to survive the current or the rapids. Death by drowning. She supposed it was better than being tortured at Mortham .

“ Look at me, godsdammit!”

Rohan was somehow standing before her. Her eyes burned with tears. He had come back for her.

His light green gaze held hers, refusing to let her look away. “ Wrap your legs around my waist. Do it. Now !”

She tried to lift her legs, but it put too much pressure on her hands. Her magic faded, and one hand slipped off before she could call for more. Her heart hammered wildly, fear turning her blood to ice. Rohan’s arm snaked out and grabbed her leg, hauling her against him. She instantly wrapped her legs and her free arm around him. He held her firmly as she buried her head against his neck, but she hadn’t released the rope completely.

“ You have to let go,” he told her.

She couldn’t imagine how difficult it was for him to stay standing with just one hand on the rope. The longer she held on, the worse it would be for both of them. She peeled her fingers off the rope and wound that arm around him, too.

“ I have to let go of you now,” he said.

Her limbs tightened. Then he had both hands on the rope. He didn’t turn as she had thought he might. Instead , he walked backward. She locked her gaze on the shore as he methodically—and carefully—placed his feet on the rocky riverbed. She felt his muscles straining as he struggled to remain upright.

“ Three more steps,” she said as he neared the shore.

And then, they were out. He released the rope, wrapped his arms around her, and carried her to the boulder. He dropped to one knee, but she couldn’t seem to make herself release him. He didn’t rush her. Finally , she unhooked her ankles and lowered her legs to the ground. Then she loosened her arms. He guided her to sit.

“ Bloody hell,” he murmured as he grabbed her wrists and looked at the state of her palms. “ Where are the herbs?”

She lifted her right hip and leaned back. “ In the waistband of my pants.”

He said nothing as he lifted her tunic and pulled the bottle from her waist. She missed his warmth the moment he moved away. She began to shiver and pulled her arms and legs against herself, careful to keep her palms up so they wouldn’t touch anything. She watched Rohan retrieve his flask.

“ How much of the herbs do I add?” he asked.

“ A pinch should be fine.”

His pinch was big, and then he added a little more before swishing it around in the flask and handing it to her.

Farah gripped it with her wrists and brought it to her lips. She hadn’t thought she was thirsty until the water touched her tongue. She ended up drinking what remained, then held it out to him.

“ Rest . I’m going to have a look around.”

He was gone before she could reply. Farah scooted back against the boulder. The spray of the river continued to hit her, adding to her misery. Her wet clothes stuck to her and made her colder. There was an itchy strand of hair stuck to her face. She unsuccessfully tried to move it with her shoulder.

First , the near hit with the arrow, then the fall, where Rohan had caught her. She hadn’t used her magic, hoping to stay hidden, but that had been a bad decision. Then the fight with the Wood Elf , which had been intense. Farah had gotten in a lucky strike. It had knocked the elf to the side, causing her to hit her head at an odd angle. The sound of the bone breaking had been loud. Then came the river. And they still had much more ground to cover before they reached Rannora .

Rohan jumped from above and landed beside her. He squatted and grabbed his bag. “ I found us a place to rest.”

“ We need to keep going.”

“ Neither of us is in any condition for that after that crossing. If we keep going, we’re more likely to make mistakes.”

She reluctantly nodded.

He took her arm and helped her to her feet. “ It isn’t far.”

She leaned close when she felt his heat. It was like she had bathed in solid ice. He hadn’t lied about it being close. The alcove of rocks was on the other side of the boulder. The problem was that they had to step into the river to get to it. Rohan never let go of her. He stayed with her, moving farther into the river, but she was glad to have him holding her.

He guided her to the back of the recess. An overhang of rock above her shielded them from the elements. He lowered her to the ground and dropped his bag beside her, then hooked his fingers into her bag’s strap and lifted it over her hand and arm. He tossed it to the side with his. She gasped when she heard a clink. The vial was in there. If it broke…

“ The bag. Open it,” she said urgently. “ Please ,” she added when he hesitated.

He leaned over and cautiously set it before her.

“ There’s a small vial I stuffed between some clothes. It’s no bigger than your pinkie,” she explained.

He dug into the pack for several moments as she held her breath. Finally , he lifted it, holding it between his thumb and middle finger. “ This ?”

“ Aye .” She sighed with relief.

He studied it as he set it in his palm. “ What is it?”

Farah huddled against the rock, wishing the clothes in the bag were dry so she could change.

“ Can we chance a fire?” Rohan asked.

She shook her head. “ I’ll warm up eventually.”

He held up the vial again and raised a brow, waiting for an explanation.

“ It’s magic in liquid form. Well , a kind of magic,” she said. “ There are several different ones. It allows the person who drinks it to change their appearance.”

His brows snapped together as he glanced at the liquid. “ How ?”

“ Some would change me from a Wood Elf to a Sea Elf —any kind of elf, actually.”

“ How is that possible?”

She brought her legs closer to her center, resting the backs of her hands on her knees. “ With magic and science. If a human drank it, it would change them into an elf.”

He went utterly still. “ You want me to change into an elf?”

“ That doesn’t hold the brew for an elf. It changes one to a human.”

His gaze slid to the vial of pale yellow liquid before he looked at her again. “ If it will disguise you, then why haven’t you taken it?”

“ Because it only lasts for a few hours. I need it for when we reach the city.”

“ Won’t those looking for you suspect that you’ve used this?” he asked, holding it up.

She began to feel the magical herbs working to repair her palms. “ That isn’t something just anyone can purchase—or it isn’t supposed to be. I heard whispers at Mortham that it was being sold at Shaldorn .”

“ Shaldorn ?”

“ It was a secret stronghold in the mountains where the depraved and corrupt went to play. A lot of horrendous things happened there, but that changed recently. Based on the rumors I heard while at Mortham , I believe the DIA had something to do with it.”

He grunted. “ I’m not sure it hurt the Masters as much as you might think.”

“ That much is obvious.”

“ You never considered going to the DIA to hide you,” he pointed out.

She blew out a long breath. “ Someone leaked my information to you. If you have it, then others will. I can’t trust them.”

“ But you’re returning to hand over information?”

“ I am. I trust Durga . She wouldn’t betray me. Not after what she did to get me inside Mortham .”

“ Is that why you joined the organization? To take down the Masters ?”

Farah leaned her head back and closed her eyes for a heartbeat. “ Something like that. My sister was abducted seven years ago. I went undercover to find her.”