Page 20 of A Touch Charmed

“What do you want to do then?” I was open to pretty much anything.

“I think we should go up to the cave tomorrow and draw out the curse.”

Anything but that.

“Nope. Absolutely not.” I hadn’t been able to get the image of her on the forest floor with that snake out of my mind. I’d been too slow and too fucking useless to reach her before it attacked. There was no way I’d risk losing her like that again.

“We have to. It’s the only way I’ll be able to understand the limits of my power.”

“And what if you find that limit? What then?”

I could feel myself getting frustrated and backed it down. In all the years we were together, I’d never fought with Thora. Until the last day we were together. Even then, I’d walked away before it got to the point where she’d say she didn’t need me anymore. But it didn’t matter in the end. She eventually got there on her own.

“We don’t have a choice,” she said.

“The curse is aiming to kill, and you better believe it would love nothing more than to take out our healer. Do you just expect me to stand by while it goes after you?”

When I pinched my lips and turned away, she grabbed my face, forcing my eyes to meet hers. “If my healing powers don’t hold up, if it can kill me, then we’re already lost. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

I understood. Didn’t mean I had to like it.

“We go first thing in the morning. The second it starts to get ugly, I’m pulling you out of there, don’t fight me on that.” I held her gaze, pushing the seriousness of my request into her with my magic. “If something happens to me, you run.”

We’d have to face the curse again eventually. It had set its sights on us, or more specifically, Thora. We could sit here and wait for it to take another shot at us, or we could go out and meet it on our terms. It was the difference between courage and fear, and in a battle, I already knew which side I wanted to be on.

So much for avoiding drama.

This was the kind of shit I got into by falling for an Aries.

Chapter 7

Thora

“Weshouldheadoutearly before the sun gets too hot.” Finn set a mug of coffee on the nightstand and walked out of the bedroom.

Going up to the cave could end up being a stupid idea, but I had to see what I was up against. And truth be told, I also wanted to get a look at the stones. I understood that we weren’t supposed to trap our magic in them again, but the why of it all bothered me. Why did the curse want us to trap it? How did that benefit it?

Finn would not be thrilled if I told him that part, though. There was not one part of him that wanted to go up to the cave, but he’d do it anyway. Because I’d asked him to.

We’d taken some steps forward yesterday. Not enough for me to let my guard down, but I trusted that he cared about me and wanted to keep me safe. That had to be enough for now.

I got showered and dressed in shorts, a light tank top, and sturdy hiking boots. It would be warm today. The forest offered plenty of shade, but it was still a long walk. By the time I stepped out of the bedroom, Finn had packed up bottled water and trail mix for energy.

Under the thick canopy of the forest, the temperature cooled several degrees. In high school, before I started dating Finn, I used to go up to the cave with my sketchbook and pencils. The dead zone reminded me of my house. I liked that there were other places that only pretended to be alive, it oddly made me feel less alone. I’d sit with my back to the cave and draw pictures of a handsome man with black eyes and a forked tongue.

Finn remained tense and quiet as we hiked toward the center of the island. Maybe he was just conserving energy. More than likely he was annoyed with me for asking him to do this in the first place, but I wasn’t sorry. I needed to know what I’d be up against. Despite the many holes in the legend, the order of the attacks appeared to be right. They would continue to escalate.

This way in didn’t have clearly marked trails the way the forest did closer to town, so it took a little more work on our end not to get turned around. Green-tinted light filtered through the trees. Full bushes bursting with brightly colored berries and sweet-scented wildflowers made up most of the landscape. It was wild and gorgeous, and, unsurprisingly, I’d always been drawn to it. Especially on this quiet side, where it felt like getting lost was part of the promise.

A mile in, I tapped Finn on the shoulder and pointed to a small group of fallen logs to take a break. I took a seat and breathed in the scent of wet earth and citronella. While the trees offered some shade, it was still summer, and this side of the island was only meant for experienced hikers. He handed me a bottle of water.

I took a long swallow and stared at him. He wouldn’t meet my gaze. “Are you going to be silent and grouchy the whole way up to the cave?”

“I’m not grouchy.” A muscle ticked in his jaw.

“Sure you’re not.” Finn would never admit when he was in a bad mood. He’d just push it down or ignore it so he could be the fun, lovable guy everyone adored. I uncapped my water and splashed him in the face. “What about now? Are you grouchy now?”

I bit the inside of my cheek to hold back my smile as he swept one hand down his face and shook it out, sending water droplets flying. Calmly, he reached into his backpack, pulled out a water bottle, uncapped it. And dumped the whole thing over my head.

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