A Treasure Beyond Compare (ThorinxOCxOC)

Chapter 20

A gloomy pall hung over Mirkwood, seeping beneath my skin causing me to shiver. Of course, that had less to do with the spooky atmosphere and more to do with the spiders I knew skittered somewhere in the forest. My eyes darted around the skeletal trees, noting the clawed hands of the limbs draped with spiderwebs and bearded moss.

The moment I set foot on the elven road a dizziness washed over me, churning my stomach into a tornado of nausea. After a few minutes of trudging along I couldn't take it anymore. Bracing against a tree root, I closed my eyes willing the disorientation to pass.

When I opened them Bilbo and the dwarves were gone. I fought down a surge of panic. How could they have vanished so quickly?

Hurriedly scanning my surroundings, I spotted them ahead just around the bend. I rushed to catch up, only to trip over a tree root and fall flat on my face. Wincing, I slowly lifted my head. Pain throbbed through my wrist.

I really hated this place.

Scrambling upright I cursed when I realized I lost sight of the Company again. Bracing myself, I proceeded down the road cautiously. A sepulchral gust sent a flurry of dead leaves across the cracked and broken stone reminding me of the inherent danger lurking in the broken landscape beyond massive spiders weaving their webs.

A sudden howl of frustration cracked through the gloom. "Is there no end to this accursed forest?"

My head shot up. Thorin. Turning in a slow circle I searched for the Company leader. He was to the left in the distance on a broken arched bridged. The other dwarves were scattered far and wide around him.

Crap.

I began to hyperventilate. We were all strewn about like pool balls shot by an unskilled hand. How the hell were we going to get out of this mess?

Taking slow breaths to calm myself, I put on my metaphorical big girl pants and continued down the road alone. I had to have faith the rest of the Company would find their way back. Until then I had to stay focused. It wouldn't do for me to get lost too.

Gandalf told me to rely on my instincts.

Time seemed to proceed at a crawl. The density of the canopy prevented me from gauging the position of the sun which meant I had no clue how long I'd been trudging along.

I clenched and unclenched my jaw repeatedly as I walked. The unnatural quiet ate away at my nerves. The light patter of feet in the limbs above jerked me to a halt.

Thick silver rope unspooled from the foliage and several slender figures rappelled to the ground and surrounded me. I gulped at the multitude of arrowheads trained on me and slowly raised my uninjured hand in surrender. "Parley?"

A handsome blond elf in dragon scale armor worthy of a Targaryen, broke through the circle and assessed me with cold eyes. "Who are you?" He said in Common Speech.

My heart did a somersault. Legolas! I resisted the urge to fangirl. My favorite character aside from Bilbo!

His cupid bow lips turned down into a scowl. "Woman, why have you trespassed in the lands of my people?"

I blinked stupidly, realizing he'd just asked me a question. "Um, what?"

Legolas took a step forward. "Who are you?"

Okay, I needed to spend a little less time admiring his sexy elven self and a little more groveling. I hitched a sweet smile into place. The one I used on Bilbo when I accidentally burned his dinner or forgot to weed the garden.

"I'm Adelaide Monroe." I held out my hand and the elven prince stared at it coolly. I dropped it. "Never mind."

"Adelaide Monroe." Legolas repeated slowly, tasting the foreignness of it. Suddenly, he pinned me with his sharp gaze. "You have crossed our borders without leave. For this you must answer to the king." He spun on his heel and barked something in Elvish.