Page 53 of When Wishes Bleed

“Of course,” the cameraman answered. Tauren deftly took the microphone from John and walked with me a few paces away.

“Are you okay?” he asked. “You seem shaken.”

“I’m nervous about being telecast.”

He smiled warmly. “This is just you and me.”

“And everyone else in the Kingdom…” I groaned.

He looked all around us. “No one else is here.”

“They are.” I motioned to the guards, the crew, and Brecan.

“Then we’ll ask them to step back. They can film from a distance.”

“That would be better,” I said, relaxing a little. It would also likely be safer for them. I had no idea what I was doing, and wasn’t likely to be an archery prodigy.

He raised the microphone. “Can I put this on you?”

I nodded, waiting for him to move.

“Before I do. Last night. Why didn’t you open your door? I wanted to speak with you about something.”

“I think it’s best we don’t,” I said abruptly. “I have to leave here soon, Tauren. Your life with your future wife is about to begin, and I don’t want to tarnish it in any way. What you do with the other invitees, of course, is your business.”

His brows kissed. “What do you mean, ‘what I do with the other invitees’?”

“Highness?” John called out. “We really need to hurry. The telecast will be live in two minutes.”

Two minutes?

Tauren gently clipped the microphone to my vest and clicked a small button on the box. “Your mic is on,” he warned. “Tuck this into a pocket, or clip it somewhere.”

I nodded and clipped it to the waistband of my pants.

“Just shoot with me,” he whispered. His soft, golden eyes wandered over my hair, my face, and traced the shape of my lips. Tauren had more magic in his person that I had learned in all my years. He was like an undine, luring me into troubled waters and coaxing me to take his hand, only to drag me into the depths, never aware that I was slowly drowning, never caring if I ever tasted the air I desperately needed again.

“I don’t know how.”

He pursed his lips. “Then let me show you.” He held out his hand for me.

I took it for John and his crew, for the witches in Thirteen, and for Bay and Ethne who elected to give me the chance to come here. And… I took it for me.

John announced that we would go live in five, four, three… he mouthed the two and one.

Tauren’s fingers closed around mine and he gently tugged me forward to a spot where a metal cylinder had been driven into the earth. It was filled with arrows, their multi-colored feathers fanning out from around the end of the shafts.

“So, you’ve never shot a bow and arrow?” Tauren asked conversationally, letting my hand go as we parted, each taking up a bow that had been laid on the ground for us.

“Never.”

The bow was extraordinary. Almost as tall as I, it was carved from cherry wood and polished to a glistening shine. I could see every vein and striation in the glossy arc. The bow string was taut, but easy for me to pull back when I tested it.

“Looks easy, doesn’t it?” he asked.

“I’m sure it’s harder than it seems,” I answered warily.

“Grab an arrow. Let’s see how well you can shoot.”

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