Fated

Chapter 74. The Wrong Forest

The snare was perfect.

Two thin loops lay buried beneath pine needles and damp moss and scattered twigs I'd arranged to look carelessly fallen. A freshly killed bird I'd set as bait laid beside it. I crouched far away from the sight behind a bracken fern with Amren. Somewhere high above the treetops, Cassian circled, scanning the perimeter. Every so often his wings would beat loud enough, just a fraction, enough for me catch on. no threat. Amren shifted for the hundredth time. "Stop," I whispered through my teeth.

Her eyes cut sideways at me. "We've been staring at a dead bird for over an hour. I'm developing wrinkles." she gritted.

"You don't get wrinkles." I didn't look at her. "And you're the one who told me you had nothing fun to do today."

"If I had known we'd have to stare at a dead bird. I would have lied to you and say I was busy." A rustle of impatience. "Catching a Suriel is not fun. It's boring. The fact that you did it once was luck, girl. Don't go thinking—"

A flicker of irritation spiked me. "Luck?" I hissed, turning my head just enough to meet those silver eyes, gleaming faintly in the shadows. "If we don't catch one, it'll be because you couldn't keep your mouth shut, Amren."

Her brows rose, that dangerous glint lighting in her gaze. "Careful, girl—" A thud landed behind us like a dropped boulder. Instinct took me first, my blade was half drawn, magic sparking down my fingers as I spun, pulse pounding in my chest. Amren's posture shifted instantly beside me but we halted. Not an enemy.

Azriel.

He stood there with an arched brow, his shadows around his shoulders as if they'd been scouting for him. His expression said it all: two figures crouched in the dirt and plants, whispering fiercely like rabid squirrels. Amren straightened, "you scared us! we could have killed you, dumbass!" She snapped before I could say anything, voice pitched low but annoyed enough to make the leaves rattle. The corner of Azriel's mouth lifted, amusement flashing in those hazel eyes. "Scared you?" he murmured. "What exactly are you two doing out here?"

I scrambled forward before Amren could answer, grabbing a fistful of his leathers and dragging him down into a crouch in front of us. "Quiet," I hissed, shoving him lower until his hands had to snap out in front of him and into the dirt to keep from tumbling forward. "Whisper. You're going to alert it." I said. His brow furrowed in question, but there was that look of dry amusement still in his eyes. "We're catching a Suriel," Amren announced, like it pained her physically to share the information. "Vaela thinks she can do it again."

I gave Amren a dagger look that promised retribution if she cursed us out loud. Azriel's gaze cut to me, questioning and curious, almost bracing. "Why?"

I met his eyes. "I just want to ask it some questions," I murmured low with a shrug. "Now, how did you find us?"

Az's mouth quirked as he pondered. "I went to Cassian's post. The Illyrians there told me he'd gone off with 'two small females looking to plot for danger in the wilds.'" His gaze drifted deliberately over me, then Amren. "I decided to either join you or save your asses. So I set out looking for the mayhem when I spotted Cass circling. Flagged him, and here we are."

"Perfect," Amren muttered. "Another Illyrian piece of ass to ruin our day."

I bit back a laugh, but it slipped through anyway, a short snort. Az gave her a flat, unimpressed look before his attention slid back to me, still serious in a way that only made the corner of my mouth wobble further. His shadows curled tighter around him, like they were muttering about the absurdity of the scene. "You two are ridiculous." He grumbled under his breath. He reached past me and with two fingers nudged a plant down, just a touch, checking the far away clearing. "I heard Rhys woke." He said in a lower voice. He answered my question before I asked it. "Elaria. She sent word through the shadow."