Page 53 of Apples Dipped in Gold

I ignored the low rumble that escaped Lore’s mouth as I walked ahead of him, following the fox across the terrace, down the palace steps and the spiraling bridge as it descended through the boughs of other oaks, ash, and yew.

None of us spoke, not even as we left Larkspur and entered the Enchanted Forest.

“Where exactly are we going?” I asked Fox, trying to keep pace with him.

“We must continue through the forest and over the river until we find the witch of the wood,” he said. “She has eyes everywhere and can tell us where the wishing tree will be.”

“A witch?” I asked. “Are you certain a witch can be trusted?”

“It is not about trust, wild one,” said the fox. “It is about the trade.”

We continued, but I soon found it too difficult to keep up with Fox and fell behind, walking beside Lore. Our hands brushed, and I pulled mine away, blushing fiercely, though I wasn’t sure why. I was frustrated with his closeness and how I couldn’t stopfeelinghim. I knew he could walk faster than me and wondered why he wasn’t.

“Did you mean what you said?” he asked.

I glanced at him. “What do you mean?”

“You told my brother you would consider his offer of a warm bed.”

The crunch of our footsteps filled the silence as we passed over fallen limbs and scattered acorns.

“Does it matter?” I asked.

“Yes, it matters,” he said.

“I don’t know if I meant it,” I said. “But I appreciated the offer nevertheless.”

“You know it wasn’t out of kindness that he offered,” said Lore. “He did it to fuck with me.”

“I do not need a reminder that I am being used,” I said, stopping to glare at him. “I understand perfectly well I am a pawn in everyone’s game.”

“That is not what I meant,” he said.

“I don’t care what you meant,” I said. “You talkabout your brother as if you are somehow different, but you are both the same.”

Lore’s features hardened. “Did I do something wrong?” He paused and then seemed to come to a realization. “What did Cardic tell you?”

“Nothing,” I snapped, storming away.

“Samara!” Lore called after me, but I didn’t stop. I continued forward, disappearing into the trees after the fox.

I had every intention of proceeding with my rampage, except that as I broke through the curtain of foliage, I couldn’t move, and I found that the fox hadn’t either. He sat, staring in horror at the same thing I was—dead animals dangling from the trees.

There were rabbits and deer, coyotes and boars, even foxes.

This was the work of my brothers.

“Samara, I—” Lore fell silent behind me. “What thefuck.”

Panic erupted inside me in seconds, and all at once, the world was closing in on me. Everything blurred together, and I lost my ability to breathe, though I tried desperately. I nearly collapsed, but then Lore was in front of me, his hand on my face.

“Look at me,” he said. “Look at me and breathe.”

I couldn’t.

My chest felt paralyzed, my throat swollen.

“Samara,” Lore said. Dropping his hand to my forearm, he rested his forehead against mine as he had done in the meadow beneath the elfin hill. “You are safe,” he whispered.

---