Page 25 of Silverbow
The mare snorted indignantly and Enya let out a hiccup that might have been a laugh. The sound eased something in Liam’s chest. It was a passable attempt at a horse’s head, he thought. It was far better than the first few things he made.
“Why?”
He shrugged, his nonchalance feigned. “You’ve been so busy with your suitors lately, I needed something to do.”
Enya wiped at her face with her hands. “Liam…”
He bumped his knee against hers in a show of support. He hoped his own voice would not betray him. “Here I was declared a giftless goat, and you had to go and ruin the fun.”
He realized that was the wrong thing to say when she let out another hiccup, this one sounding dangerously close to a sob.
“I didn’t mean it, En,” he said frantically. “In truth, I’m glad you have a gift.”
“You are?”
Liam reached over and gave the end of her braid a tug. “I mean, it’s a little embarrassing to always be bested by agirl. But a goddess...a goddess I’m alright with.”
She punched his arm. “I’d still beat you any day, Liam Marsh.”
“Mayhaps. But we’ll never know for sure, will we?”
“Are you sure the rod was not hot?” She asked again.
He glanced at the bandage Mistress Ashill wound around her hand and shook his head. “It felt as it always has, En.”
She swallowed. “What am I going to do, Liam?”
The despair in her voice made his chest tighten. “They didn’t notice. And you only have to hold the rod once more.”
Elling Coblegh suddenly flashed through his thoughts and Liam suppressed a shudder. For weeks, he had felt like he was losing her to the suitors. Now, he swallowed thickly. Now he might lose her to a silver collar. He suddenly found it too difficult to speak, so he turned his knife back to carve more lines in the horse’s mane.
“It’s that or turn myself in, I suppose.”
Liam’s hands stilled. “You can’t.”
Pure terror, raw and vicious rose in his chest.She couldn’t.
“Well I can’t run. They would punish the whole house.”
“We have a year before they come back, En. We can figure something out.” Liam didn’t know what, but he would not lose her. Not like that. “Don’t turn yourself in. Take your chances with the rod, at least. Promise me you won’t do something rash?”
A slow smile spread across her face. “When have I ever done anything rash?”
Liam gave her a long, level look. Arawelo huffed. For once, the mare seemed to be on his side. He reached across the space to her unburned hand and closed her fingers around the horse head carving. “Keep it, for good luck.”
She turned it over in her palm and held it up to the light. “And if they take me, Liam?”
“I’ll find you,” he vowed.
“What if you can’t?” She asked. “They always move the Recruits somewhere else.”
Liam shrugged, hoping she did not see through his feigned confidence. “You’ll light me a beacon fire.”
Enya huffed another laugh and got to her feet. She brushed straw from her britches and tucked the carving into her pocket. He sat staring down Arawelo for a while and it wasn’t until the sound of Enya’s boots faded that he sagged against the stall wall.
“What are we going to do Welo?”
The mare only huffed.
