Page 31 of Heir of the Autumn Queen

“Only with strangers who try to convince me to trust them with my life,” I fire back.

“I doubt that,” he says under his breath.

“I didn’t ask for this!” I stop in my tracks, temper flaring.“You’rethe one that wanted to travel together. If you don’t like the way I do things, you can leave.”

“But then I wouldn’t get to watch you kick ass whenever someone crosses you.” He smiles smugly.

“Some might sayyou’recrossing me,” I warn.

“Is that a threat, Trouble?” Finn asks, that sly smile never faltering.

I narrow my eyes at him for effect.“What do you think?”

“I think you’re afraid of flying.” He winks at me.

“You’re an ass.” I huff and continue walking.

Finn only laughs.

∞∞∞

At midday, we stop to eat the food I bought on our way out of town, and I’m pleasantly surprised to see that Finn also has food with him in a satchel I didn’t even realize he was carrying. We share the food, sitting against a large sycamore tree on the side of the road as Shadow grazes nearby.

We eat silently, enjoying the crisp fall day, and I can’t helpbut want to know more about my new companion. I just don’t know how to find out more about him without him wanting to know more about me, which would undoubtedly lead to having to lie about several things. I learned from a young age that the ‘best’ way to lie—thank you, Briar—is to stick as close to the truth as possible, but even with omissions and half-truths, lines can still get crossed, and it can be a lot to keep track of. Therefore, it’s probably easiest to just keep my mouth shut as much as possible, unless prompted. But maybe Finn is someone that I could learn to trust, someone that I could eventually share my real identity with. And the best way to determine that is to get to know him.

Before I can think of a question to ask him, he beats me to the punch.“You never did say where you were from.”

A war wages internally in my mind as I debate telling him the truth. Given the fact that he clearly is well-traveled, he might ask for more specifics if I lie about being from one of the other kingdoms, which I wouldn’t be able to provide. I try to dodge the question one more time.“You probably wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

“Try me.” He winks.

I decide to be honest, but as ambiguously as possible without raising suspicion.“Staghorn Forest,” I say, bracing for his reaction.

To my surprise, he only nods thoughtfully.“You came through the Nevoa Pass.” I think he meant it as a question, but it sounds more like a statement.“Huh.”

“What?” I ask, readying myself for the snide comment that I’m sure is coming.

“I thought only ugly old witches and mountain trolls lived inStaghorn Forest.”

His comment surprises me, so much so that a laugh bubbles out of me. I haven’ttrulylaughed since I parted ways with Briar and Killian, and it feels good.“Well, we do have witches, but no trolls, so I’m sorry to disappoint.”

“You could never disappoint,” Finn says, the warmth of his words traveling straight to my heart.“And clearly, if everyone in Staghorn Forest looks like you, it must be a village full of beautiful people.”

I roll my eyes to try to quell the flush in my cheeks.“You’re a shameless flirt, you know that?”

“Only with you.” He flutters his eyelashes.

“I highly doubt that,” I counter, standing up and brushing the dust off my pants.

“I’ll just have to prove it to you, then.” Finn follows me up from the ground.

“Mmm, I’ll pass.”

“We’ll see about that.”

“You’re insufferable.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

---