Page 6 of Break Her Heart
I couldn’t see their face, only the outline of their body—a woman—and the wild black curls peeking beneath the hood. Not August.
The figure raised both hands slowly. “I’m not here to hurt you.”
Still, neither of us moved. My fingers itched at the hilt of my blade. With a cautious motion, the figure pulled the hood back.
“Talia,” Adar whispered with disbelief as his arms fell away from me.
I scanned the woods around her. No one could be trusted.
“I’m alone.”
“What are you doing here?” I stepped forward. “Is there a bounty on our heads now? Have you come to slay the witches? Because I promise you that this won’t end well for you.”
She frowned at me. “I would never hurt the two of you.”
“Then what do you want?”
“I came for the horses.”
I froze, unsure if I’d heard her right. My pulse stuttered, lungs locking. “What… what about them?”
She paused, watching me carefully. The silence stretched too long, and my stomach twisted into knots. My grip on my blade tightened.
“My father came home from Market and told me what happened. He questioned me about you, asking if I knew.” She hesitated, twisting the edge of her cloak between her fingers. “Then he told me that he and several other men were going to your home to see if that was where you fled.”
Her eyes flickered with guilt. “I followed and watched from the woods as they broke into your home. And when they couldn’t find you, they torched it. Then they headed for the barn. I could hear the horses in there, pounding the ground, snorting as if they knew what was coming. I’d hoped my father was better than leaving innocent animals to die… but I was wrong.”
I felt the bile rise to my throat.
“After they didn’t see you inside, they set it ablaze. I waited until they left and then ran in. The fire had already climbed the walls, the hay fueling the flames even faster. I went to Shadow first and then continued down the line. The last one bolted so quickly that he knocked me into the wall, and I burned myself.”
She raised the sleeve of her cloak to show us the blistered skin underneath. Adar and I both stared in silence for a breath too long.
“Why… why are you here now?” Adar asked cautiously.
“I’ve come every day since. Just in case the horses found their way back.”
My heart twisted. “You’ve been waiting?”
Talia nodded slowly. “They scattered when I got them out. I wasn’t sure if they’d survive the cold—or if they’d remember how to find their way home. But I couldn’t leave it to chance.”
Shadow might be alone in the woods, but there was still hope. He could be safe.
I studied her face, waiting for the catch—the lie. “Then why didn’t you run when you saw us here?”
She met my eyes without flinching. “Because I don’t care what you are. What anyone says you are. You’re still Bronwen. And Adar is still Adar. That’s enough for me.”
Adar exhaled slowly, tension leaking from his posture, but I couldn’t find the words. My throat felt too tight. I turned to look at Adar, to see if he trusted her.
His eyes weren’t on me—they were on her. There was a softness there, one I hadn’t seen in so long it almost startled me. A longing that ran deep and unspoken. I knew that look. Because I knew him.
He still loved her.
Maybe he always had.
He had let her go once, saying it was to protect her. That being with a witch would only put her in danger. But she still came back. She still risked herself to save what was ours.
They weren’t together anymore, but the ache in his eyes said he never stopped thinking about her.
