Stellan choked out a sob. He looked up at her, tears streaming from his eyes. “Clarysa, help me.”
“Anything. What do you need?”
His face twisted in anguish. “What am I going to tell her mother?”
The strain in his voice betrayed the depth of his sorrow. Clarysa opened her arms. Stellan dove forward and let her cradle him. He wrapped his arms tightly around her waist and buried his face in her lap. His whole body shook.
She stroked her fingers tenderly through his hair. “Tell her the truth–she was a brave and beautiful warrior who was loyal to her prince until the end.”
She gazed at Patrulha’s shrouded form, willing herself to hold back tears. He needed her to be strong. Stellan shuddered with the force of a monsoon as he emptied his grief. It felt as though he would never release her.
“Clarysa, forgive me,” he said, his voice muffled. “I know I’ve ignored you. That was cruel of me. It’s just…I didn’t expect to lose her so suddenly. I always assumed she would die in battle someday, but not this, not so soon.”
“I know how much she meant to you,” she whispered. A tear rolled down her cheek. “It’s all my fault. I’m so sorry.”
He raised his head. “No,” he said forcefully. “That’s not true.”
“But she was protecting me–us–so we could be together. If I hadn’t been in the shop, distracting her, the battle might have ended differently. She might have lived.”
His cool hand cupped her cheek. “Don’t torture yourself. Patrulha knew the stakes. The choice to help us was hers, and hers alone.”
“But, Stellan, she was in love with you. Her eyes…her eyes followed you everywhere.” Hot, salty tears burned her cheeks. “But my presence made it difficult for her to declare her feelings. I knew how she felt, and I said nothing!” Clarysa choked back a sob. “I was so selfish!”
Stellan lifted her chin. Though wrought with exhaustion, his expression was tender. “Clarysa,” he began, “a love between Patrulha and I would have been nothing more than shared misery. That’s all.” His lips grazed hers. His warm breath filled her mouth as he spoke. “But with you I feel as if I can actually find happiness, true happiness. It means so much you’ve accepted me for who I am–especially considering I wasn’t my true self for a time. Few women, if any, would have stood by me as you did.”
“That’s because I want to spend the rest of my life with you no matter what your appearance.”
“That’s a relief.” He pulled her into his embrace. “And guess what?”
“What?”
“I like that you’re silly.”
Despite her tears, Clarysa grinned at the unexpected compliment.
His hands tightened around her waist. “And I love how you’re so…uninhibited.”
As Stellan pressed his lips to hers, she surrendered to his urgent, demanding kiss. Arousal flared in her core, though she dare not display any kind of wanton behavior in the presence of their companions. She molded her body to his, reveling in his heat and maleness. Oh, how she had missed him! If only she could stop the hands of time to preserve this one moment.
But Pestilence still threatened the Five Lands. Until they defeated that menace, there would be no happiness for them anywhere.
Chapter 37
The darkening sky echoed Clarysa’s somber mood as she and the others prepared to travel through the Snowflake Kingdom. Despite the recent fight, the real battle had yet to begin.
In near silence, they donned heavy shirts, cloaks and scarves in preparation for the pending climate change. As Clarysa rode with the group into the outlying plain, the weather greeted her with long, frigid fingers. The icy wind blew fresh snow into her face. The abrupt change in temperature once again tested her mettle.
The sky opened up and the snow fell in buckets. A blinding snowstorm unleashed its fury, slowing their procession to a crawl.
Stellan looked to the sky, then turned back, his face filled with ominous portent. “I’ve seen dangerous weather here, but never like this,” he shouted. “It cannot be a good sign. Stay close together!”
He signaled to Hunter. The two men dismounted. Using coils of rope from the saddlebags, they linked all of the riders together. Stellan took the lead. Clarysa was in the middle, preceded by Lionel. Would Stellan be able to lead them safely through, or would the storm overwhelm even his expert tracking abilities?
They rode for hours. Periodically, Stellan would stop and reach out a hand. Ethereal fire came from it in spurts. It must have been some kind of magickal compass, for he altered direction each time he used it. Once, Clarysa caught sight of his haggard expression. The exertion was taking its toll.
Hours later, the storm weakened, having spent the entirety of its might. As the sheets of snow retreated, Stellan led the group behind an outcropping of boulders near Vandeborg’s perimeter. They could now discern the enemy encampment. It stretched, snakelike, around the stone fortress.
Hunter removed the linked ropes while Stellan, Clarysa and Lionel studied the scene.
“Edward is responsible for this, isn’t he?” Clarysa whispered.
Lionel nodded. “He’s consumed with bringing Stellan to his knees. I see the reinforcements have arrived. Expect him to attempt a breach of the castle at any moment.”
Hunter joined them. “What are your orders, Stellan? I’m ready to smash some sense into their heads, but the men could use some rest after the journey.”
Stellan nodded in tacit agreement. He pointed to an outlying stretch of rocks near the northeast wall. “See that? It conceals an entrance I discovered by accident one day. Never thought I’d have to use it.”
Hunter’s eyes widened at the revelation. “An emergency exit is more likely, but it’ll serve our purposes all the same.”
Clarysa cast a worried glance toward the Aldebaran troops. “But how are we going to slip past them?”
Stellan’s deep
