The next few wagons I moved, I did so in silence, barely bothering to acknowledge those I was helping. On and on I went, pouring my pain into the shadows, giving Rokath something he could never give me.

“Assyria!” Rokath barked, and I lifted my head, glaring at my mate. The day had fully renewed my hatred of him, and it seemed that the feeling was mutual. Dutifully, I had waited for him exactly where he’d left me once I decided I needed to rest. I still had myself and five animals to move to the top, after all, though I had no clue which side we were to go on. Rokath kept all his plans from me, and apparently Rapp had hidden a great deal too.

I was hot, tired, thirsty, and angry with both of them.

“What?” I snapped back, not bothering to rise.

“There you are,” he groused, rubbing his temples. “It’s time for us to go.”

Bracing a hand on the rough rock behind me, I rose. “Which side?”

Rokath tipped his head back, looking straight up. “There.”

I lifted a brow. “And I’m going with you? Not Rapp?”

“Obviously,” Rokath grumbled, shadows so dark they were difficult to differentiate from his armor working themselves into a frenzy.

I rolled my eyes. “I thought after our interactions the last few days you’d send me off with Rapp.”

“Have I not been training you at night?” he growled, taking what he thought was a menacing step forward. I wasn’t afraid of him and he couldn’t intimidate me.

“Just because you are training me does mean you are enjoying it,” I snarled, calling on my own magic. Black, membranous wings snapped from my back, and I flexed them, having to stretch them a bit since I hadn’t used them in a while. I wrapped the dark tendrils gingerly around Grem and Zeec, lifting them off the ground. Blaeze, too, floated up in time with me.

With one last spiteful glare, I shot into the sky with my animals, leaving Rokath and the two horses on the ground. Now that I knew something I could at least get out of his way, since I was such an annoyance.

“Do not run from me,” Rokath rumbled in my mind.

“I’m flying, actually,” I shot back. The veins of color flashed by me as we rose faster and faster, trying to get away from him. We burst over the edge, startling those still repacking wagons and reorganizing themselves. With more consideration than I’d ever give Rokath again, I placed the hounds on the ground, then Blaeze on his feet. The stallion tossed his mane like he was trying to shake off the feeling of flying through the air.

A heartbeat later, a heavy thud shook the earth behind me. I didn’t have to turn to know it was Rokath. Our fucking mate bond told me.

Grabbing Blaeze’s reins, I strode forward, whistling for the dogs to follow. But Rokath whistled too, and they halted, first looking at me and then Rokath. “Grem, Zeec,” Rokath snapped at them, and they started to move in his direction.

“Stay,” I told them, and once again they paused. Confusion played out in the flicks of their ears.

I whirled on my mate. “Are we really going to play out our issues with the dogs?”

“Now is not the time.”

“It’s never the time!”

“The entire army is watching.”

“Let them. Or are you too scared they’ll lose respect for you, stop fearing you, because of me?”

“Do you want to say goodbye to Rapp or not?”

His question hit me like a punch to the gut. Was Rokath implying that Rapp would die and I’d never get to see him again? He’d been my only friend, only support, besides the dogs, since I left with the army. A snake wrapped itself around my chest and squeezed the air from my lungs. Sweat slicked my palms as I tried to calm my racing heart.

“What are you not telling me, Rokath?”

“This is war, Assyria. I know you’ve lived a sheltered life in Stryi, but it’s time to get your head out of your ass and face the realities of what’s to come. If you want to live with regret, then that is on you. But if you want to say goodbye, now is your chance.”

“Like you’d know anything about regret and loss.”

Icy anger shattered down our bond. “You have no idea, little imposter. Make your decision now because we still have ground to cover today.”

Nails curled into my palm as I stared Rokath down. I did want to say goodbye to Rapp. But I didn’t want this to be the last time I would say that to him. “Fine. Where is he?”

“Below. Waiting for you.”

With a huff, I stomped toward Rokath, giving him a wide berth as I flapped my wings again. He caught my arm before I could fling myself over the edge. “Please be careful.”

I jerked out of his grip and leaped. Fear froze my stomach as I realized just how far away the bottom of the canyon was, and just how unaccustomed I was to using my wings to descend. Flaring them to either side, I tried to slow my fall, half-succeeding. For the millionth time, I cursed myself for not learning my magic better.

Changing the angle slightly, I turned in a lazy circle, falling like a leaf in the autumn wind instead of a ripe fruit in the midsummer. Rapp grinned up at me from the ground as I made my final descent. I landed with a thud, harder than I meant to, and stumbled forward before righting myself. Banishing my wings, I approached the Hadvezér.

We were utterly alone in the bottom of the canyon, I realized. The lack of sound was eerie. Rapp opened his arms and pulled me into an embrace. The gesture was unexpected, and my eyes burned as I returned it. “Rokath can be an asshole when he’s focused. Support him, Assyria, even if you feel like he doesn’t deserve it. There’s more going on beneath the surface.”

I snorted and stepped back. “He doesn’t. And none of you will tell me anything. It’s always, ‘wait for Rokath to tell you.’” Focusing on my anger at my mate was better than focusing on the sorrow that wanted to slash another gouge into my heart.

But I failed, and a sob wracked my chest. Rapp crouched so we were eye level and rested a hand on my shoulder. “We are going to win, Assyria. We are so close. And then, when this is all over, I’ll force Rokath to tell you everything. You two are mated now, and you deserve to know what shaped him to be who he is today. Then, you two can move forward with a clean slate and much more understanding.”

Twin tears tracked down my dusty cheeks as I nodded.

Rapp hugged me again. “I won’t die, Assyria. You won’t have to lose anyone else important to you, okay?”

“I don’t have anyone else,” I choked out, squeezing him tighter. As it stood, I barely felt like I had him for support. I was so utterly alone.

“Take care of yourself too,” he instructed, unwinding us. “You are powerful, smart, brave. Not many would have jumped in to help like you did today.”

A watery laugh escaped me. “You saw that?”

“Rokath did too.”

“Then why didn’t he stop me?” I asked, searching Rapp’s face for answers.

He merely shrugged. “He is changing, whether he wants to believe it or not. Trust that, trust yourself, trust him. The Weaver’s thread is strong, and he will lead us to victory.”

“Glory to the Demons,” I muttered.

That pulled a grin to the Hadvezér’s face. “Glory to the Demons, indeed. Now go before he flies down here and rips my arms off for touching you.”

I laughed again. “He wouldn’t.”

“Oh, but he would.” Rapp stepped back, shadows swirling around his leather-clad forearms. Wings sprouted from his back, and the tendrils snaked around his horse, lifting him into the sky. “May the Reaper’s eye pass over you. I’ll see you soon, Assyria.”

“May your gift never fade,” I choked out.

And then, Rapp flew away, across the canyon to the males under his command. After a moment, I called on my own magic to ferry me to the top one last time. When I landed, Rokath was nowhere to be found, but Blaeze still waited, pulling what little he could off a desert bush. His munching filled my ears as I mounted then steered him toward the wagons rolling away.