“That’s exactly what I want.”
A dark intensity burned in Archer’s eyes. Something had changed in him at the sight of Lord Larke. It made Briar nervous, but it drew her in too. She recognized that intensity, that rage. It sang in time with the destruction crackling in her fingertips.
“We’re too close to the stronghold,” Lew said. “It would be suicide to attack outright.”
“I’m not expecting to win,” Archer said. “But Esteban can handle whatever Narrowmar spits out. Quickly. We have to ambush them right now, or it’ll be too late.”
“It’s already too late,” Jemma said. “Ambushes take planning. We can’t just run down to the road and start—”
“Mae doesn’t have any time left,” Archer interrupted.
“We have to be smart about this, Archer,” Lew said, raising his hands as if approaching a rabid animal. “Even with Esteban’s skill—”
“We swore to do this no matter what it takes,” Archer said. “Jemma, Nat, and Briar can get Mae to safety. Take her into the wilds if you have to. Just don’t let her fall back into Larke’s hands. Lew and Esteban, you’re with me.”
Jemma’s face was white, her lips as bloodless as a corpse’s. “Archer—”
“This isn’t a discussion,” Archer snapped.
The others looked stunned by his vehemence, but they moved, hands tightening on weapons, jaws setting with determination. Their easygoing leader was gone. Briar sensed the pull, the vision, that had made them follow him. Archer was no longer a thief working a job. He was a man on a life-or-death mission, and he would see it done no matter what.
Jemma was the only one who still hadn’t moved. “Archer, if you die attacking his stupid carriage—”
“Then so be it. I won’t let him get away with this, Jem.”
They faced each other for a moment, and it was as if a shining tether connected them, a link Briar didn’t understand. After a long, taut silence, Jemma nodded.
Suddenly, Archer whirled to face Briar, that dark fire still burning in his eyes.
“You have to succeed,” he said hoarsely.
Briar swallowed. “I will.”
“Good.” He nodded sharply. “Good.” Then he took two quick strides forward and swept her into his arms.
The rest of the team and the woods and the world faded away as Archer kissed her. It was a whirlwind and a churning river and a collapsing house and a blazing fire. She wrapped her arms around his neck and dug her fingers into his shock of blond hair. There was urgency to his mouth on hers, his arms lifting her right off her feet. When he set her down, Briar clutched the sleeves of his indigo coat to keep from stumbling, too hazy to think straight.
“It’s about time,” Lew muttered. “Now, can we get on with our suicide mission, please?”
“Let’s do this.” Archer stepped back from Briar and slung his bow across his shoulders at a jaunty angle. “Summon all the luck you have to spare, friends. It’s time we got this rescue underway.”
“For the reward and the challenge and the open road!” Nat said.
“For Lady Mae,” Archer said, “and for everyone else Lord Larke thinks he owns.”
Briar regained her senses enough to dig into her saddlebags and grab one last thing she had been working on.
“Take these.” She handed out bundles of carefully wrapped stones. “They’ll make little explosions if you throw them against something and make your enemies think there are more of you. Be careful.” She reached Archer last and closed his fist around the sack of curses, trying to communicate a riot of emotion through the pressure of her hands. She didn’t know what had prompted him to kiss her after he’d held back for so long, but she would make sure it wasn’t the last time. “And don’t die.”
She released him and turned to Jemma and Nat. “Shall we begin?”
They left Sheriff to guard the horses, and Jemma led the way through the trees to the eastern side of the mountain, where Briar would carve a tunnel into Lady Mae’s prison. As she and Nat followed Jemma up the slope, Briar strained to hear what was happening behind them, listening for Esteban to make his move.
The air smelled of pinesap, moss, and sun-warmed earth. The afternoon sun had dipped behind the peak, and the shadowy forest offered plenty of cover, making it a simple matter to hide from patrols. The stronghold’s defenders would focus on the ravine and the entrance, especially with Lord Larke’s carriage approaching.
Briar explained the risks they were about to undertake as they picked their way up the steep incline. “I don’t know the interior composition of this mountain. There could be soft places where the rocks might collapse on top of us. Smaller curses would give us a better chance of getting through safely, but they’ll take longer. I might need to try some bigger curses.”
“Can you reinforce the ceiling?” Jemma asked.
“I’ve added something to the design for that,” Briar said. “It’s my own invention. When miners employ curse painters to make their tunnels, they brace them with wooden beams. It takes time and manpower and makes noise. There’s no way we could carve that sort of tunnel into this fortress without getting caught, especially with such a small team.”
“And your invention will help?”
Briar hesitated. “That’s the idea. I’ll displace the stone as carefully as possible, but my modifications might not work. If you want to stay outside until I’m through with the riskiest part, I completely understand.”
“You’ll need me to navigate once we’re in the stronghold,” Jemma said, “but I think Nat should stay outside to guard the tunnel.”
“I agree,” Briar said. “We can’t have anyone coming in after us.”
“Wait a minute.” Nat stopped short, looking at Briar for the first time since Archer kissed her. “Don’t leave me out.”
“You won’t miss anything,” Briar said.
Color rose in Nat’s cheeks, making him look very young. “We’re supposed to be in this together,” he mumbled.
Briar sighed. She’d hoped the mission would take his mind off his thwarted crush. “You can
