Page 31 of The Anointed's Paladin

15

Nidori, the enferni rider

Talon

Nidori woke up early, and I turned over to find her crouched on the ground, palm pressed into the dirt by the firepit. I felt a rush of guilt as I looked at her and thought about last night. I was supposed to be rescuing Nidori from Kaine’s clutches, not getting trapped in them myself. I swallowed as I remembered his body above mine, how I had just sat there when I should have pushed him off. How I’d kissed him. My cheeks burned. That had been stupid. He’d pulled a knife on me, for Mirilith’s sake.

I took a breath. Moving forward, no more chats. No more drinks. And definitely no more touching. I turned back to Nidori. She hadn’t moved.

Her eyes were closed, and she was concentrating. I groaned internally. It was still light out, and I had not slept well last night.

“Greenmother’s piss,” she muttered to herself.

“Everything all right?” I asked, choking backa laugh.

“Yes. No. Maybe?” She bit her lip. “I think we should go. I can feel something following us.”

I frowned, dragging my brain from its sleepy fog. This was, unfortunately, not something I could ignore.

“Then let’s go,” I said, standing up.

“No! We can’t leave Kaine. He’s trapped until the sun goes down.”

Good.

“Staying could mean danger.” I wanted to grab her and run, but she seemed really attached to Kaine, and I didn’t want to come on too strong. If she kicked me out, she’d be at his mercy.

“I’m not leaving him,” she said stubbornly, jutting her chin out.

“Fine. But I can pack us all up, so we’re ready to leave right at sunset.”

She nodded but still looked concerned.

It was tense, waiting for the sun to set. I took the opportunity to repack my bag. And Nidori’s bag. And my bag again.

Nidori roused Kaine as the last few rays of sun retreated from the forest canopy. I stared at my pack as I heard him yawn. My eyes flicked up to him, and he gave me a smile, showing glints of his sharp fangs.

“Kaine, there’s something tracking us,” Nidori said.

He went stiff, his attention turned to her. “Do you know what it is? How many?”

“I don’t know. But I felt the same thing yesterday too. They’re definitely following us.”

“Fuck. Let’s move, then,” he said, climbing out of the tree and hurriedly changing. “Nidori, can you cover our tracks?” he asked, beckoning us to start moving forward.

“I have been.” She wrung her hands. “I even left some vines and thorns behind us. But it didn’t deter them at all.”

Kaine fell silent, setting a much faster pace than before.

-

We had been walking all night, and Nidori was struggling to keep up. She looked exhausted, sweat covering her brow. She refused to complain, though. I had kept my lights off, not wanting to attract any further attention.

My eyes were good in the dark, and I was relieved to finally make out parts of the mountains here and there through the rare gaps in the trees. The trees themselves were starting to get smaller again as we reached what I assumed was another edge of the forest.

Nidori kept going long after I thought she would need to rest. She stubbornly insisted she was fine when I asked if we should stop. I glanced at Kaine, worried.

“My feet need a break.” Kaine plopped down on a log. “Hand me the water, would you?”

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