Page 112 of Wingless Crow: Part 1

Voron was right. There had been some nice moments in the short past I could remember. I couldn’t give that up. I wished to keep those memories even if that meant I had to hold on to all the bad ones, too.

I bit into the juicy berry. The taste was so similar to the tart filling, it nearly made me cry.

“The stem is edible, too,” Voron said.

He tore off the leaves from the thick, grassy stem, then handed it back to me.

“Try it.”

Its taste was a milder version of the berry flavor, without any sweetness at all, filling and refreshing.

“The head chef of Elaros uses them in salads,” Voron said, leading the horse along the narrow path back toward the palace.

“But you’re not a chef. How do you know so much about berries and mushrooms?”

“It helps to know what is safe to eat if you’re stranded in a forest for days or even weeks.”

“Have you been stranded?”

He flinched. “A few times.”

“During the wars?”

He nodded but didn’t elaborate.

I wished he would talk more. I wanted to learn everything about his past. But it wasn’t my goal at the moment. What I had to do right now was to find a way to escape him and for that, I needed to know more about our surroundings.

“These are huge leaves.” I pointed at the large, flat plants under the horse’s hooves. “Are they edible?”

“These? They aren’t toxic, but they don’t taste very good. They’re better for something else. Look.” He ripped one off and lifted it for me to see. “They’re thin but very sturdy. And their juice is sticky like glue. If you rip the edge off, like this.” He tore off a thin strip all around the leaf, then folded the leaf in half, pressing on the edges. “The seam is waterproof, too.” He tied the stem into a loop. “And now we have a water container. It’ll only last for a day or two until the leaf dries. But it’s good if one has no water bag.”

I marveled at the ingenuity of this and filed away that information as well.

“Speaking of water. Would you happen to have some on you?” I asked. “The food made me thirsty.”

He took a water bag from his well-stocked saddle pouch and gave it to me.

“There is a creek that way,” I waved in the direction we were going since I’d passed this way already while running away from the palace. “We can refill it there.”

He nodded, the silver strands of his hair falling across his forehead. When I returned the water bag to him, he tripped, grabbing onto the saddle.

“Are you okay?” I gripped his hand instinctively, as if I could stop him from falling this way.

“I’m fine.” He took a drink too before putting away the water bag. “Just tired.”

Only now I noticed the slight shadows under his eyes. His eyelids appeared heavy as he blinked, like it was an effort to lift them again once he’d closed them.

Dove told me Voron was gone for the night. To catch up with me today, he must’ve followed me all morning without stopping. Like me, he hadn’t slept for over twenty-four hours now.

“We should take a nap,” I suggested.

He glanced up at me, arching an eyebrow.

“What?” I spread my arms but then quickly grabbed onto the horse’s neck, afraid to fall. “You’re tired. I’m so exhausted, I risk falling from this horse and not just because I’m a lousy rider.”

He gave me a knowing look. “You’re stalling again.”

“But can you blame me? I’m honestly not in a rush to get back to Elaros. What difference would a few hours make, anyway? Did the queen give you a deadline?”

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