“I found a home with Edra. The moment I heard that she had fought the Coven and won, I knew I needed to be with her. Edra and her husband, Radnar, set up a sanctuary for witches hiding from the Coven. Soon, it became a haven for anyone needing a home. Each of us had skills we used. Mine was that I could communicate with animals. Frida has been my companion for many years,” she said and motioned to the owl.
Brom glanced at the bird and could’ve sworn the damn thing smiled.
“I also read people,” she said, gaining his attention once more. “I’m able to draw the things I see, and I gift it by marking it on a person’s body.”
He frowned as he got to his feet. There was something about her words that pulled at a distant memory.
“I wondered if you would remember,” she said in a soft voice.
Brom shook his head as he met her eyes. “Remember what?”
“We met once. Long, long ago. In a dream.”
“That’s impossible,” he scoffed.
She gave him a flat look. “Brom, how do you think you’re here?”
He thought about the voice from his dream. It had been a female’s, he knew that much. But he’d thought it was from someone older. The more he tried to recall it, the deeper his frown became.
“You have the ability to listen to the Varroki. With a special spell, I can speak with certain people as they sleep. It’s how I met you when you were very young, when I had just come to this land. It’s how I told you to look for Runa the other night.”
Brom wanted to deny all of it, but the more she talked, the clearer his memory became of that long-ago dream. He searched it, trying to remember her name. The information was elusive, just out of his grasp each time he thought he’d found it. Then, finally, he had it. “Asa.”
A smile lit up her face. “There you are.”
“Why did you want me to find Runa when you found her?”
Her gaze dropped to the snow. “I thought I was here to battle the Coven. However, my path is taking me elsewhere. It’s up to you to help Runa.”
“Help her with what?”
Asa swallowed and lifted her eyes to his. “I’ve seen your path. I’ve seen her path. They converge. For a time.”
“What does that mean?”
“You are the answer.”
“The answer to what?” he demanded.
Asa’s smile was sad, her eyes filled with sorrow. “There are two paths. Everyone has two paths. We each have to choose the one to walk upon.”
“You want me to stop her.”
“I honestly don’t have an answer for you. All I know is that you need to be here.”
He nodded slowly. “Did you tell her any of this?”
“Of course, not,” Asa said with a chuckle. “She wouldn’t believe me.”
“Then talk to her in dreams as you did with me.”
Asa’s lips twisted. “I can’t. I can tell you where the Varroki are.”
He stilled. “You know of them?”
“I do. The closer you are to them, the stronger your magic will become.”
“Is that how it works with all Varroki?”
She smiled as she shook her head. “Just you. You’re unique in many ways.”
“Where are they?”
Asa took a deep breath and slowly released it. “I can tell you where the Varroki are. Or, I can tell you where Runa is. You must choose.”
5
Nothing turned out like it was supposed to. Runa still wasn’t sure what to make of her encounter with the witch. Everything Asa had told her left her feeling more lost than ever before. The more Runa learned, the more it seemed as if she were pulling herself out of quicksand that continued to suck her down quicker and deeper. At this rate, she’d be swallowed in a matter of hours, not days.
Runa hadn’t hesitated to leave the witch behind. Not because she had a bad feeling about Asa. In fact, she liked the witch. No, it was more because the longer she was around Asa, the more she sensed she would learn things she was better off not knowing. And that went against her general rule, which was that knowledge is power.
However, two separate people had told her similar stories about Asrail and Synne. Runa was glad because it meant she didn’t have to hunt down the Gira from a few days ago again.
“You’re going to be pulled in two different directions. You’ll have to choose a side.”
Asa’s cryptic words rang in her head like a bell. She had asked the witch to give her more, but Asa had simply smiled. Runa couldn’t imagine what she would have to pick a side for. She was merely trying to find her sister and save her grandmother.
Each time she thought of Asrail, pain, sharp and searing, cut through her. Why hadn’t her grandmother come to visit her? Why had she stayed away and instead chosen to seek out Synne? What was it about her sister that made her better than Runa? And what of her sister? Why hadn’t Synne sought Runa out? Some might argue that Synne had been running from the Coven, but she still could’ve tried to look for her sibling.
The more Runa’s thoughts churned, the angrier she got. She might have been saved from the Gira as a child, but she had also been discarded by her family as if she meant nothing. She remembered nothing of her parents or her sister—or the day her parents were killed and Morea secreted her away.
She halted and took in a steadying breath. Her mind had to be clear if she wanted to sneak up on the Gira and the Coven. The past didn’t matter. She needed to concentrate on what was happening now.
Runa shoved everything out of her mind. She had discerned the Giras’ location. They were situated deep in the Cairngorm Mountains. The Rothiemurchus Forest was vast, holding ancient pines and countless places to hide. Runa knew of two Witch’s Groves there. No doubt that’s exactly where Sybbyl was holed up with the Coven while the Gira hid amongst the trees.
If the weather held, it was still two days’ walk for Runa to get to the forest. She eyed the sky and the clouds, unable to see where the sun was. Another storm would most likely hit, prolonging her journey.
With a sigh, she continued walking. To her surprise, her mind drifted back to Brom. She wasn’t sure why she kept thinking about the man. Sure, he had surprised her, and he was incredibly handsome, but they had shared few words. What was it about him that kept bringing him to mind?
But she knew.
It had been the way he looked at her. As if he couldn’t tear his gaze away if he tried.
Coupled with the fact that he hadn’t dismissed her as some frivolous female or someone in need of saving, it made him even more intriguing. Though she usually went out of her way to avoid others, she had wanted to stay and continue talking with him. To discover who he was and find out why it seemed he’d recognized her face.
But that wasn’t the only reason she wanted to be around him more. There had been something between them. She had felt the unquestionable attraction, the enticement of pleasure that swirled around them like the wild flurries of a snowfall. And, oh, how she wanted to give in to it. She just knew his sensual mouth would feel amazing against her lips. Certainly, that intense look of his would translate to heated kisses.
It became difficult to swallow when she thought about his large hands on her body. Runa came to a halt as her stomach fluttered in excitement, and her sex clenched in need. She didn’t turn away from the emotions, but neither did she embrace them. She let them float through her until they were gone.