Page 15 of The Witch’s Shifter (Season of the Witch #3)

Rowan

EVEN IN THE DARKNESS, I can see the blue of his eyes, the almost unnatural glow of them from the depths of the cave.

“It’s me,” I say. “Rowan.”

As soon as my name leaves my lips, Faolan growls, the sound low and rumbling. He readjusts again, pushing himself up into a seated position, and now I can tell that he’s in his human form. That, at least, puts me somewhat at ease.

“What are you doing here, little knight?” Each word is sharp, edged in scorn. Not that I can blame him.

“I’ve been looking for you.”

There’s a tense beat of silence.

“Why?”

“To bring you back.”

His blue eyes narrow. For a moment, he regards me, perhaps trying to discern if I’m lying to him.

“You made your feelings very clear.” His voice is low, and if I’m not mistaken, it sounds tired. “But now you seek me out?”

I sigh. My cloak, heavy with rainwater, drips onto my boots. Outside, the storm continues to rage.

“Before, I behaved . . . emotionally. I was worried.”

“Because I am a shifter,” he says. “You thought I was a danger to her.”

And to my unborn child—and I still do. What I don’t tell him is that I was jealous as well, not willing to share Aurora with him. That part I still need to figure out on my own.

Tersely, I say, “Yes.”

Faolan makes a low sound, a huff of what could be annoyance, or perhaps disinterest. He leans his head back against the stone and draws his knees into his chest. Though I can’t see his skin clearly from this distance, what I can see is him flinch as he moves.

He’s indeed wounded—only time will tell how badly.

“I understand,” he says finally. His voice is slowly losing its sharp edge. He must be exhausted. “But I won’t hurt the witch.”

There’s a long pause. I shift my boots on the rock, and tiny stones scratch beneath them.

I don’t know if I believe him, but I trust Aurora, and she trusts him. Now that I’ve taken some time to reflect on my recent behavior, I realize I can’t let my desire to protect her outweigh my respect for her and her own decisions.

Though the words want to get stuck in my throat, I force them out. “Then we’d like you to come back.”

Faolan chuckles, then winces. “ We? Are you sure about that?” The cold blue of his eyes challenges me.

“No. But Aurora wants you back, and I want Aurora to be happy.”

“So, you came all the way out here just to find me?”

I nod once, sending a wet strand of red hair swinging in front of my eyes.

“Noble of you.”

That comment I choose not to honor with a response. Instead, I take a step closer, trying to get a better look at him. “How badly are you injured?”

Faolan angles himself slightly away from me, as if to hide the wound I already know is on his shoulder. “I’m fine.”

“The blood spatter I followed would suggest otherwise.”

His only reply is a low growl.

“Aurora sent bandages.”

“I don’t need bandages.”

Goddess, he’s a difficult one.

I pull my pack off my back and settle it onto the ground with a soft thump, followed by my scabbard—it doesn’t seem I’ll need it after all, and I can’t say I’m not relieved. “How about something to eat, then?”

At this, Faolan looks up from the scabbard and meets my eyes once more. Given the weariness in his voice and the fact he hasn’t even stood up yet, I imagine he hasn’t been able to hunt or forage for himself. He must be hungry.

Kneeling, I loosen the mouth of the pack and pull it open. Thankfully, the thick material kept everything inside nice and dry despite the rain. I search through the items carefully, then remove one of the bundles of food Aurora sent along with me.

“Here.” I toss the bundle, and Faolan catches it easily despite the limited light slipping into the cave from outside. “Aurora made them. And take this.” The canteen is the next thing I send his way, and this, too, he catches without trouble.

While Faolan drinks deeply from the canteen and then opens his bundle, I pull out one for myself.

Inside the neatly wrapped cloth are two pieces of bread stuffed with cheese, herbs, and sun-dried tomatoes straight from the garden.

It smells amazing—and not just because I’m starving from my long hike to get here.

My body sags as I settle against the cave wall. I’ve just taken one bite of the meal when I look up to find Faolan has already finished his and is licking his fingers clean.

“Are there any more?” he asks.

I look down at my food. It tastes so good, and I’m so hungry... but he clearly needs it more than I do. And in this situation, I know Aurora would be the first to offer up her portion to help someone in need. Funny the effect she has on me even when she’s so many miles away.

“Take mine.” I tie the bundle back up and throw it to him.

Catching it with one hand, he gives me a guarded look.

“I’m not so bad as you think,” I mumble. “I’m usually quite... chivalrous.”

This earns me a sharp humorless laugh. It echoes off the walls of the cave.

Faolan devours my food just as quickly as he devoured his. I suppose it’ll be a hungry night for me, then.

As we lapse into silence, a flash of lightning illuminates the mouth of the cave, and the rain intensifies.

We sit like that for some time, listening to the storm as it lashes the land outside and the thunder as it rolls far overhead.

Darkness is already falling by the time the rain finally lets up.

There’s no way we’ll be able to make it back to the cottage tonight; I wouldn’t be able to find my way through the unfamiliar terrain in the dark, and Faolan is in no condition to be struggling through the rain-soaked woods.

Resigned to my fate, I stand up and stretch my arms over my head, then strip out of my wet cloak. It’ll just make me cold.

“Well, seems we won’t be going anywhere tonight,” I say.

I’d start a fire, but with everything soaked, I don’t imagine it’d be easy to find any dry kindling or wood—and besides, it’s so dark out there, given the moon and stars are still hidden behind a blanket of clouds, that I might not find my way back if I were to get turned around.

Faolan doesn’t say anything as I reach once more into the pack in search of the bedroll, and my fingers brush the soft clothing Aurora sent along for him: a cloak, another pair of Alden’s trousers, a tunic, and a pair of socks.

Feeling them, I remember the concern in her eyes when she handed them to me, and I’m overcome with relief.

She’ll be so happy I was able to find him.

I’ve just got to get him back to the cottage now.

“These are for you too.” Instead of throwing the clothes and bedroll his way, I stand and walk them over to him.

It’s so dark, I can barely see him still leaning against the cave wall, but his blue eyes are clear and cold as he looks up at me.

It’s uncanny, the way they catch even the most limited amount of light.

“Try not to ruin them this time—we already owe Alden one pair of trousers.”

Slowly, Faolan reaches out and takes the soft bundle from my hands. I retreat from him quickly after that, returning to my pack and rearranging it and my cloak so I’ll have something to rest my head on.

It won’t be an easy night, and my stomach is still pinching with hunger, but I comfort myself with the thought of returning to Aurora with Faolan in tow. I told her I’d make this right, and I’m sticking to my word.

There’s a rustle of fabric as Faolan dresses, and he sighs as he lies down on the bedroll. Outside, the wind blows, but we’re protected in the cave.

After a short while, I think he’s fallen asleep, but then his low voice says, “When will the child arrive?”

Knowing it was Aurora’s pregnancy that drove him to throw his body through a window, I’m hesitant to give him details, but he’s exhausted and full, and I don’t imagine he’ll fly into a rage again. So, softly, I say, “Sometime early next year. Likely before the snow melts.”

He pauses for a long moment. “Did you mean to do it?”

“Get her pregnant?”

His only response is a rumbling grunt.

“No.” Shifting on the cold stone, I stare up at the impenetrable darkness overhead. “It was a surprise to us both. A trick played by the goddess on Beltane.”

Once again, there’s a pause. This one is longer than the last, like he’s working through each detail I give him before asking a new question.

“And you plan to stay? To raise the child?”

My answer comes out immediately. “Of course.” I’m surprised he’d ask such a thing, but maybe things are different where he’s from. Or maybe he knows all about absent fathers. That’s something Aurora is much too familiar with.

Faolan lets out a sigh, and without being able to see him, I think it sounds... resigned.

“Very noble,” he whispers, but this time, the word sounds less like a jab and more like a... a compliment, I suppose.

He doesn’t ask any more questions after that, and I’m still awake when his breathing deepens and he begins to snore softly.

And for some reason, I almost smile.