Page 58 of A Shard of Ice

It’s on the tip of my tongue to ask Xander outright, but I can’t bring myself to do it. I don’t think he’ll tell me, anyway.

I sigh. “We first have to get him back. I’m not sure how we’re going to get that right.”

“First, we find out exactly what we’re dealing with, then, we come up with a plan.”

“You make it sound so easy.”

“It will be anything but easy.” Xander smiles as he says it.

We are interrupted by the sound of a horse approaching at a steady jog. Thesha waves as soon as we look her way. She rides the rest of the way, a smile on her face. She leans in, and she and Xander share a kiss that is far more intimate than I would like.I look away, heat rising in my cheeks. I wish they wouldn’t be quite so openly affectionate. I guess I’m not used to it.

“Did you find them?” Xander finally asks after what feels like a long time.

“Yes, of course, I did,” Thesha says with confidence. “There are fifteen fae, including two wounded and the Primus. Damon is with them. He looks well enough.”

“Fifteen,” I whisper. It may as well be a hundred. “There are only three of us.”

“Two. You’re not helping us with the rescue,” Thesha tells me.

I don’t argue; there’s no use, I can tell. It irks me that I can’t lend a hand. They need all the help they can get.

“I’m sure you don’t plan on ambushing them?” I say.

“No.” Xander shakes his head. “There are too many of them. We will rely on stealth.”

“I have a plan,” Thesha says. “We will have to wait until they are sleeping.”

“With such a high bounty on Damon’s head, they’re going to expect an attack,” Xander says.

Thesha nods. “That’s why we need to be smart about this. I’ve scouted the area and found an animal trail that leads directly to their camp. We can take them by surprise if we move quickly and quietly.”

“They’ll have guards on him. There will be several patrolling the camp.”

“We’ll have to kill them quickly and quietly.”

“I wish I could use my powers. It would be really helpful,” Xander mutters more to himself.

“Why can’t you?” I ask.

“Snow can track fae through their magic.”

“I’ve never heard of that before.” My eyes go wide.

“You haven’t spent time getting to know the fae before, either,” Thesha says. “How would you know?”

I nod. “That’s very true.”

“We’ll clear the way, grab Damon, and sneak from camp. No one will know we were even there until guard change.”

“What if things go pear-shaped?” Xander lifts his brows.

“They won’t.” Thesha folds her arms.

“What if they do? It’s always better to have a fallback plan.”

“There is no fallback plan.” Thesha shrugs. “Maybe Kyrie can create a diversion. I don’t know… We can’t get caught, that’s all.”

“I hate to tell you, love, but that isn’t much of a plan.” Xander smiles at his wife, love shining in his eyes.

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