Page 41 of Winter's Fate

Milla’s lips curved into a thin smile. She reached forward and patted Laena on the cheek. “Maybe there are multiple people after you. Ever think of that?”

“Not these days, no.”

Dane snorted. “There’s big plans for you, Princess,” he said. “Big plans.”

Milla rose, crossing the room with a quickness Laena would not have predicted, even knowing about the tithe. The woman hauled Dane out of his chair by his shirt collar, giving the big man a shake. “Shut up,” she hissed. “Don’t tell her anything.”

Her strength seemed unnatural as she had no trouble lifting the man off the ground, despite her slight stature.

“Youtold her a thing.” Dane’s voice was strangled, his fear obvious. He should have been able to swipe her aside with a single hit, but he didn’t even try. Like a kitten caught by a hawk.

“I’mnot an imbecile.” Milla dropped him, and he missed the chair, falling in a heap on the ground.

“We didn’t get her far enough, Mil,” the other man said. “What’re we gonna do? The King’s Guard are sure to come along the road.”

Milla paced to the wall. “I’ll think of something.”

“But you killed?—”

“Shut up, Penn,” Milla interrupted. “I can do this alone.”

Penn wasn’t quite as frightened of Milla as Dane appeared to be. Either that or he hid it better. He put a hand on her arm, lowering his voice to a whisper that Laena couldn’t make out. Comforting her.

Clearly, Milla had needed to kill, not merely hurt, something—or someone—she loved to work this level of magic. Laena didn’t know enough about heart-tithing to guess how much magic that would have given her, or how long it would last. But the way the woman was still moving with that quickness, that unnatural strength, she guessed there was still a trickle of power left.

Perhaps she’d used the majority of it creating that storm. Perhaps she’d drained the rest of the reserves whisking them here to this cabin, leaving her with only the dregs of power.

Silently, cautiously, Laena probed at her own power.

It stretched in response, unfurling against her touch. There was an eagerness there, but also weakness. Her throat throbbed, and she understood: she was too parched to fully access her magic. Ice needed humidity to form, after all.

So Laena started to cough.

Milla whipped around, obviously ready to snap at her, butPenn rose. “She just needs a drink, Mil.” He spoke softly, but Laena noticed the care he took in his movements. As if one sharp word from Milla would send him back to his chair.

When she didn’t protest, he brought his glass over to Laena, bending to hold it to her lips.

Laena drank then coughed again, spasming so hard that she knocked the glass from his hands.

“Stupid girl,” Milla hissed.

Enough.

Laena called for her power and it responded, freezing the ropes around her wrists into brittle, breakable things. Laena snapped them, slashing at her ankles with the icy blades that formed in her hands, then pushed Penn back with a blast of cold air before he could lunge for her, before he even understood what was happening.

It was easy now, the magic flowing as if from an infinite well. A rush of delicious cold.

And then she was on her feet, blades spinning in her hands as if she’d used them all her life. The magic broke free at last, filling the room with the sharp smell of snow.

CHAPTER 17

The would-be bandits, it turned out, were far more helpful than Callum had initially anticipated. He’d hoped for strength in numbers, intimidation, whether or not the thieves were good fighters. He’d hoped for backup, covered entrances, and extra pairs of eyes. Even if these particular eyes were not especially well trained.

Instead, their leader—whose name was Maynard—appeared to take the job quite seriously. Thieving he could stomach, while kidnapping was an abhorrence. Or so he declared. Callum couldn’t tell if the man was protesting too much and intended to ransom them both at the first opportunity, or if he simply wanted to ingratiate himself with his temporary employer.

It could most definitely be a little bit of both.

Most importantly, Maynard had told Callum of the abandoned cabin they’d passed while scouting for a location to hold up the next passing carriage. “If I needed a place out here to hold a captive,” he said, “that’s where I’d hold her.”

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