Chapter 37

Like a candle burned too low, the brightness of her hair flickered for a moment and then was swallowed by the darkness. Gair cursed the night and the trees as he urged his horse to go faster. The animal tossed its head, reluctant to travel quickly over unfamiliar ground that it couldn’t clearly see. “Easy, Cazador, just a wee bit faster,” he urged. He didn’t want the animal to be hurt, but he wanted to get to the bush before his wife disappeared completely. When the horse came to a stop, refusing to step even a single hoof into the bush, Gair dismounted. His feet snapped on some twigs when he swung to the ground at the edge of the brambles and someone not far inside the bush cried out in fear.

It was not his wife’s scream.

He slipped into the bush and headed in the direction of the scream as quickly as he was able, unsheathing his dagger as he went. With no further noise to direct him, Gair stopped, waiting for some indication of where to go. Either from the person who had screamed