Page 52 of A Spark So Bright
"Even for that, fair lady." He smiled at her. She smiled at him.
Something broke open inside him. It was as if some ice had cracked around his heart and that fissure leaked throughout his entire body.
Because this woman was so brave. She had endured so much at the hands of so many, and here she was, across the fire from him in the middle of the forest, lying down on the moss like she had done this countless times in her life.
He wouldn't blame her in the slightest if what she had suffered broke her. Any other person would have shattered into a million pieces, and putting themselves back together might have very well been an impossible task. But her? She was finding all those pieces. One by one. Holding them together as much as she could. He could only hope that his presence provided some kind of glue.
She drifted to sleep, and he stayed wide awake, watching her and their surroundings carefully. Nothing was going to happen to her on his watch. Not a single thing.
And when night came around again, Magnus exited his tent with his arms stretching overhead and that annoying yawn about to break through the silence that had allowed Rose to sleep. Gunnar reached for the knife at his waist and let it fly.
It stuck in the trunk of the tree right past Magnus's head, and the troll prince froze. When their gazes met, Gunnar pressed a finger to his lips and pointed to the still sleeping woman who was resting near the fire he'd kept going all day. Soon enough, the cold night would chill her when he doused it before they left.
"Ah," Magnus murmured, his voice actually quiet for once in his life. "Right. She's still asleep. And why are we not waking her?"
"She has bags under her eyes."
"As we all do from traveling through this forest at a blistering speed," Magnus muttered, before taking a seat on one of the nearby logs. "You care for her quite a bit."
"She has suffered."
"I could tell." The prince let his stupid charade drop. Instead of looking arrogant and completely out of place, Magnus looked just as exhausted. He hunched forward a bit, his pretty back curving as he stared down at his claws. "I have seen a lot in my life, Gunnar. And I've seen women who flinch like her."
"She is delicate."
"She's a lot stronger than you're giving her credit for. I know you want to coddle her, to pamper that part of her that is broken, but you have to know when to push her. When to pull back. When to recognize that you maybe pushed a little too hard and now you have to fix what you might have crumbled. It's a hard dance." Magnus swallowed. "I tried it when I was younger. It didn't end well."
"Like you said, you have to learn to fix what you broke." Gunnar took a deep breath, his thoughts flickering over all the times he had touched her and had to see that wounded expression on her face for days afterward. "We do the best we can with what we have. And then we keep moving forward. That's what we're good at."
"I suppose so. But some things cannot be mended." Magnus nodded at her. "Wake her. We have to go."
Gunnar did just that. They were close enough to the mountain that he knew they'd be there within a few hours. So even though she had tossed and turned all day, she had always woken to find him right where he was, keeping her safe. And maybe that had given her a few more hours of sleep than she might have had otherwise.
They moved swiftly to the base of the mountain, heading through a fairly well known pass that was often used at this point. Lanterns bobbed ahead of them, trolls making their way home and bringing back massive stags that were meant to feed the people for a feast.
Apparently, the king already knew they were coming.
Gunnar twisted through those who were ahead of them, ignoring the shocked gasps and whispered words. But he noticed that a few of those trolls raced ahead of them. Disappearing into the darkness beyond, likely to warn others that they had arrived.
Cursing under his breath, he diverted their path toward one that would take them to the great tree in the center of Trollveggen faster.
He wasn't quick enough. A mob of trolls approached them, all begging for the attention of their prince. They hadn't seen him since he’d been a boy. It made sense that they were pleased and wanted their time with him.
But Rose was here too, and he could see her eyes go wide. Normally, she would just disappear. He'd watch her soul floataway and then he could get her somewhere quieter. He couldn't do that right now.
So he had to watch her slip her hood over her head and then breathe faster and faster. She reeked of fear, flinching away from everyone who was near her and trying to get closer to him without touching him. Because even the brush of his shoulder against hers made her whimper in fear.
Magnus glanced down at her, and then at him. "Go," he ordered. "I know the way to the castle on my own."
"The king?—”
"I will deal with my father," Magnus replied, his tone harsh as more trolls approached. His features seemed to sharpen, slipping into the position of prince so easily. "Go on, Gunnar. Get her somewhere safe."
Gunnar grabbed a fistful of Rose’s cloak, making sure not to touch her, and tugged her into the trees beyond.
Twenty-One
Rose
