Resistance (Ilyon Chronicles Book 1) (53 page)

“What?”

Kyrin shook her head and snapped to her senses. “Nothing, it’s just…this is the first time I’ve seen you smile.”

Jace’s eyes dropped to the ground, and he shrugged. “I guess I haven’t had much to smile about these days.”

“Well,” she said gently, “I hope that changes.” That smile had been one of the most wonderful things she’d witnessed since arriving here. It thrilled her inside.

Jace said nothing, but reached down to offer her a hand. She gripped it, and he pulled her up out of the ferns. As she brushed herself off, he scanned the area. “I suppose we’ll have lunch here.”

“Since I scared all the game away?” She gave him a wry grin.

“The pheasant took care of that. It’s too bad we didn’t realize he was there sooner. They’re good eating.”

He led her to a fallen log nearby. They sat down, and Kyrin pulled food from her pouch.

“I take it you’ve encountered quite a few of these rock pheasants,” she said as she split the lunch between them. “I didn’t notice you react.”

Now that he’d done it once, a smile came more easily to Jace as if the cage of despair trapping his joy finally unlocked. “Yes, they’re pretty common, but they only shriek like that when they’re startled.”

Kyrin let out another amused laugh. “I think I was the one who was startled. I can’t believe I didn’t see him.”

“They’re well-camouflaged. I didn’t see him either, or I would’ve warned you.”

Kyrin just smiled with delight that he so easily talked with her now—not at all like their first hunting trip. His friendship meant so much to her after these few short days. She’d set out hoping to help yet another victim of cruelty and bullying, but he was so much more than that, filling a little of the hole left in the separation from Kaden. Through Jace, Elôm taught her how to let go of the familiar security of her brother and open up to others.

She chuckled quietly to herself. Jace would be astounded by such thoughts.

He gave her a questioning look, and she shook her head. “I was just thinking about my brother and how strange life is.” She gazed around at the summer beauty surrounding them. Longing squeezed her chest. As much as Jace had enriched her days, she still ached for Kaden to be a part of it too. “I can’t wait until Kaden can see all this. I’m not sure where he got the idea, but he’s always talked about living off in the forest.” She returned her attention to Jace. “I look forward to you meeting him.”

A shadow crossed his face, flight instincts glinting in his eyes, but Kyrin was quick to reassure him. “He won’t be like the others. He might be a little wary at first, but that’s just because he’s very protective of me. He’d be that way with anyone.”

She offered a comforting smile. Once Kaden did arrive, and she held strongly to the belief he would, she was certain he would treat Jace as he deserved.

The hesitation slowly drained from Jace’s expression. “He sounds like a good brother.”

Kyrin gave a hearty nod, but her smile faded, and she dropped her voice to a more serious tone. “Do you know if you have any siblings?”

Jace met her eyes for only a brief moment, but it was long enough to reveal the empty hole in his heart. He gave a tiny shake of his head. “No.”

He bit off a piece of his roll, and Kyrin read it as the end of their conversation. She focused on her own lunch, and for a long time they didn’t say anything, but then Jace spoke again.

“My earliest memories are of working as a slave. I worked and slept with the other slave children until I was strong enough for harder labor. I don’t even know who cared for me as a baby. No one told me where I came from, just that I was half ryrik…an animal.”

Kyrin drew a quick breath, her eyes stinging because it was clear he still believed it. People were so horribly cruel. How could anyone look at Jace and see an animal? She couldn’t help but hate the people who had done this to him, warping his perception of himself for all this time, and she prayed for calm and the ability to help him. The anger dissipated into more encouraging thoughts. “But then Elôm brought Rayad along to rescue you.”

Jace hung his head.

“You don’t believe that?”

He stared at his hands and murmured, “I don’t know if it was for me.”

“Oh, Jace, of course it was.” She almost reached out to touch his arm, but held back.

He shook his head and fell silent again. She studied him and the doubt etched in every curve of his face.
Elôm, I want to help him so much, but how? Please show me
.

“I’m praying.” He glanced at her, and she went on, her voice low with conviction. “I’m praying He will show you beyond any doubt that no matter what you believe right now, He loves you. I know He does.”

Now Jace did hold her gaze for a moment. The longing glowed dimly in his eyes, but was strangled by fear. Too many betrayals, damaging words, and demons from his past destroyed any confidence he might have had, and the struggle played out on his face.

Elôm, Rayad said he believed once. Please show him his faith was real, that he does belong to
You, that You do love him. He needs assurance so badly.
She forced a lighter tone to her voice.

“Well, do you think we should get moving?”

Neither one had touched their remaining lunch for a while.

Jace nodded and looked eager to put the conversation behind him.

They packed up the uneaten food and set off again. This time, Kyrin paid particular attention to what might be hiding in the leaves and underbrush, but her thoughts lingered on Jace and his struggle. He had to have a soul. Rayad believed he did, and so did she. After all these days spent with him, no one could convince her otherwise. She wanted to help him believe it too, but only Elôm could truly do that.

When evening closed in on them, it appeared they would return to camp empty-handed this time. However, drawing near to camp, Jace stopped. Instead of pulling an arrow from his quiver as he usually did when he and Tyra spotted game, he looked over his shoulder and motioned Kyrin forward. With painstaking movements, she came to his side, where he pointed ahead. Kyrin peered into the trees. Her eyes picked out movement and landed on a small, yearling doe.

She looked up at Jace. He nodded to her and then to the deer. She pointed to herself and mouthed, “Me?” He nodded again, and her pulse pattered to a higher rate. What if she missed? She hated for such a good meal to get away. But something lit Jace’s eyes she had not seen before. Confidence—in her. Her heart rate spiked again with a surge of determination.

She reached back for an arrow and slowly moved into a better position. The deer’s head shot up, and Kyrin froze. It stared right at her, and she held her breath. For a long moment, all was still. At last, the deer put its head down again to nibble at the grass. Kyrin raised her bow and drew back the string. She forced herself to draw a long, slow breath. If she rushed the shot now, she would surely miss. Everything stilled and quieted inside her. The bowstring slipped off the tips of her fingers.

The arrow flew away, and the doe leaped forward, but crumpled. She’d done it. Her first deer. She looked back at Jace. A smile lifted his lips.

“Good shot.”

She grinned, and her breath rushed out with a short laugh. “Thank you.”

Together, they walked over to the deer.

“A very good shot,” Jace said, and Kyrin delighted in the tone of admiration in his voice.

She walked around the doe and knelt down. Looking up at Jace, she held out her hand. “Can I borrow your knife?”

His expression lifted in surprise, but he reached down and pulled out his knife, handing it to her hilt first. Under his expert guidance, she gutted the doe. When she had finished, she wiped her hands in the leaves, and Jace picked up the deer to carry to camp. Just before they arrived, however, he paused and turned to Kyrin.

“Do you want to carry it into camp? It’s your kill.”

Now Kyrin lifted her brows as she considered it.

“Take off your quiver and turn around,” Jace told her with a smile in his voice.

She did as he instructed.

Carefully, he draped the deer around her shoulders. “Got it?”

“I think so.”

It was heavy, but manageable, being a yearling. Once he was
sure she had a good grip, Jace picked up her quiver and they walked on.

She chuckled. “If only Kaden could see me now.”

What a thought, considering his reaction to her all dressed up at the palace. No doubt he’d be just as shocked, but much more pleased. He wouldn’t be the only one.

“If only my father could see me.” She smiled wistfully with the distinct feeling he would be proud.

They walked into camp, and the sight of Kyrin caught everyone’s attention. The men ahead of them talked and pointed, and soon gathered around. Now they’d really be enamored with her. She smiled as they questioned her about the deer and tried to minimize it, but they still made a fuss. She glanced at Jace, who stayed outside the ring of admirers. The little smile twinkling in his eyes made it worth it.

Once the men let her pass, she continued with Jace to the supply shack. Neither said anything, but the comfortable sense of camaraderie between them brought Kyrin much happiness and contentment.

“S
ee these tracks?”

Kyrin knelt next to Jace and nodded. A narrow path was worn into the forest floor, the soft ground imprinted with many little paw prints.

“This trail is used often. It leads back to the spring.” Jace pointed the way they had come. “It’s an ideal location to set a snare.”

Kyrin listened intently. They had plenty of meat at camp, so Jace turned his focus on teaching her other survival and hunting techniques. She welcomed not only the knowledge,
but the reason to spend most of the day in the forest. Her worries and thoughts of the emperor seemed to fade in the quiet and peaceful green surroundings.

“This sapling will work well.” Jace grasped the small tree and bent it down to show her how to rig the snare. “I usually prefer to hunt, but in the winter snares are helpful when game is harder to find.” He tripped the snare and motioned to her. “You try it.”

She traded places with him and reset it exactly as he’d shown her.

He gave her a nod of approval. “We’ll check it tomorrow to see if you caught anything.”

Kyrin rose with him, and they headed in the direction of a wild raspberry patch they’d discovered. If they brought enough back to camp, Lenae promised to make hand pies like the ones Kyrin had enjoyed so much back in Valcré. Maybe she could learn to make her own before Kaden showed up. She could just see him trying to sneak some of her baked goods. The thought brought a grin to her lips. Those days couldn’t come soon enough.

“I never imagined I’d love living like this so much,” she remarked, enjoying a walk without the worry of scaring off game. “I don’t know what it would be like to live in the city again.”

Jace glanced at her and wrinkled his nose in distaste. “I could never live in the city. Especially not Valcré.”

“Have you seen Valcré?”

“Twice.”

He still looked like he’d swallowed something nasty, but Kyrin’s thoughts went beyond the city itself. “We came that close to meeting, but both ended up here.”

Jace considered this in silence. She tried to read his expression. He seemed hesitant about such a notion; no doubt because of the life he’d lived at the time. Hating to spoil a beautiful day, she searched for a lighter topic to discuss.

She opened her mouth to speak again, but Jace stopped and held up his hand. Kyrin halted. A low growl rumbled from Tyra, who stared into the trees, the hair rising around her neck. Kyrin scanned the vegetation, but nothing stirred. She looked up at Jace. His eyes, bright with alertness, swept the area.

“What is it?” she whispered.

He shook his head. “I don’t know.”

Kyrin’s eyes flicked down. His fingers wrapped around the hilt of his sword, and he withdrew it slowly.

“Stay close,” he murmured.

Her heartbeat quickened. Jace spent so much time in the forest that nothing would concern him unless it presented real danger. She drew a breath to calm her nerves. After all, they had no idea what
it
was yet. Still, she reached for an arrow, feeling a lot more confident with the projectile fitted to her bowstring, ready for use.