I reach my branch and take a seat, one hand clutching at the tree above me. Sweat begins to drip into my eyes, and I lean my face down, wiping my forehead on my arm.
This part of my plan seemed a lot easier in my head.
I pull most of the rope off my other arm and shuffle out along the branch until there’s nothing between me and the canopy. Then I begin to swing the rope like a lasso. All I need is for it to hook onto the canopy, and the rest will be easy.
I miss.
And then I miss again.
And again.
More explosions sound from the west—a warning. If I don’t hurry this up, the Dokhalls will likely realize Urox is just a distraction and head this way. Or they’ll find and kill him.
Stay cool. Panic will get you killed.
I hadn’t thought about how hard it would be—not just the physical part, but the smell of the smoke beginning to drift into my nostrils, the crackle of fire in the distance. Memories crawl toward me, tugging at my concentration and urging me to pay attention to them.
I force myself to focus, to stay in the here and now, and to try again.
I get closer to the canopy this time, but it takes me a while to gather the rope again as it falls. I’ll try once more, and then I need to move to plan B.
There is no plan B!
I let go of the branch above my head, wobbling dangerously as I tense the muscles in my stomach and use them to balance. I throw the rope, and this time I manage to get it inches from the canopy above my head before it falls, the weight of it unbalancing me.
I slam my free hand into the side of the tree as the ground spins below me.
That was close.
“What,” a low voice growls, “do you think you’re doing?”
I turn my head so fast I almost get whiplash. Below me, standing next to my tree, the commander glowers up at me, his teeth bared.
“Korzyn?” I hiss. “What the hell are you doing here? How are you even on your feet?”
He ignores that. “Move.”
“What?”
My eyes are glued to his body as he begins his climb. The strain shows on his face, but he makes it close to me, jerking his head in a clear order for me to get out of his way.
Another explosion, this one closer, and I flinch, handing my makeshift rope to Korzyn as he climbs onto a branch higher than mine.
I hold my breath, certain the branch will snap beneath his weight, but he doesn’t look concerned.
“Get down on the ground,” he says, and I roll my eyes but start climbing down. Someone’s still grumpy about being drugged and left in that cave. Such a drama queen.
Hope flutters in my chest as he swings the rope, hooking the end of it in the canopy on his first try.
Show-off.
He’s obviously on the same page as me with this plan because he nestles the other end of the rope into a crack between his branch and the tree.
He climbs down until he’s eye level with the end of the rope, pulls a coil from his pocket, and holds it against the rope.
I begin moving faster until I can jump down from the tree. I close my eyes at the feel of the ground beneath my feet before opening them at the thud of boots next to me.
Korzyn’s face is a mask of cold rage. I open my mouth, but he reaches out, his hand fast as a whip as he buries it in my hair, pulling me to him.
His mouth crashes down on mine, and I go instantly hot all over. His arms surround me, his mouth hard and dominating, and for the first time since I left him in that cave, I feel…safe.
He pulls away, his expression still full of wrath, but his eyes are burning with promise.
“Get on the mishua.” He jerks his head behind me, and the moment is gone.
“Urox is in trouble. I’m not done yet.”
I reach into the wide pocket of my dress and pull out a pod the size of a small coconut. Korzyn closes his eyes briefly, as if reaching for patience, before opening them and immediately surveying our surroundings. Above us, the canopy catches fire, the crackling sound making me flinch, and Korzyn growls.
“Who’s Urox?”
“My contact.”
He struggles with that for a moment. “Where?”
“East of here. We need to give him a chance to get away.”
“Fine. Get on the mishua.”
I don’t argue. Korzyn stumbles once on his way to the mishua, and I reach out a hand to steady him before pulling it away as he glowers at me.
He’s still weak.
He probably feels like shit.
But he came for me.
Chapter Ten
Korzyn
I allow Sarissa to get off the mishua long enough to throw her pod. Despite myself, I smile at the savage grin that spreads across her face as it explodes.
Dokhalls are sprinting in all directions. One of them comes close, and I swing my sword, beheading him before he sees me.
“Nice,” Sarissa says, and I grab her hand, pulling her up on the mishua in front of me.
“We leave now.”
“I need to go to our meeting point.”
I frown. “Who exactly is this contact?”
“Urox is a friend’s brother. He put a lot on the line to help us, Korzyn.”
I grind my teeth but follow her directions. We wait for a few minutes, and I open my mouth to tell the hellion the male is likely dead.
A half-breed Braxian steps through the trees.
“Thought you weren’t going to make that last explosion.” He grins at Sarissa, and she grins back.
Their own little private moment. Delightful.
She jerks her head. “Urox, meet Korzyn—the commander. He’s the one who threw the rope in the end. Turns out
