To Dream of White & Gold (Death Dreamer Legacy Book 1) by R.K. Hart

Author:R.K. Hart [Hart, R.K.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pindika Press
Published: 2020-07-31T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seventeen: Wants

The Brinnicans had special leather overlays for their boots, with tiny spikes sewn into the soles. Katrin had packed extra for Lida and Lorcan, and they all sat down on the snowy shores of the lake to tie them on. The horses, too, had special leather socks to cover their hooves; Sacred snickered while Lida slipped them on, but didn’t protest.

Alys went further, pulling a pair of short boots from her pack with small blades attached to the bottom. Lida watched, fascinated, as Alys hobbled to the ice and stepped out. She slid forward, fast and graceful, then spin back to glide towards them, grinning widely.

‘Show-off,’ muttered Ella, smiling despite herself. She held the reins of both Bright Eyes and Silk. ‘Her tribe lives just to the east,’ she said to Lida. ‘They use the lake all the time. Alys loves skating.’

‘Come,’ called Katrin. ‘We need to be across before nightfall.’ She stepped out onto the ice, leading her stallion, Bear, who snuffled at her shoulder.

Lida’s first step was fraught. Though both Katrin and Dylan had gone before her, she could not stop imagining that the ice would crack under her weight and she would fall into the freezing water beneath. She paused when her foot pressed down on the cold surface, truly afraid; it was Sacred who pulled her forward, whinnying at Midnight as Lorcan took her silently past. Lida let Sacred lead her.

It was easier than trekking up the mountain pass, but still hard work. The spikes on the bottom of Lida’s boots necessitated an odd gait with a twist at the start of each step to free them from the grasp of the ice. Her tiredness didn’t help; after the initial uplift at the beauty of the place, her mood plummeted once more, and her head bowed as she struggled along, carefully following the marks in the ice left behind by Katrin and Dylan.

They didn’t stop for lunch that day. Instead, Katrin handed out the last of their dried food as they walked. Lida imagined all the things she wanted to eat - one of Torig’s pastries, dripping with white sauce, or a bowl of pumpkin soup, thickened with cream - as she forced herself to chew and swallow the handful of fruit and nuts.

Alys tried to lift Lida’s spirits, making jokes and telling her about the Kali’s Court, dwelling on the warmth of the valley and the many hot springs. Lida tried her best, but her answers were often short and disinterested, and eventually Alys gave up, skating far ahead of the rest of the group. Lida stayed near Ella, who was not naturally inclined to small talk, observing to herself that as much as she adored Alys, Ella seemed to understand her better. For hours, they spoke no more than the occasional sentence, each content - or not, in Lida’s case - with her own thoughts.

They reached the shore just after nightfall. The sky was clear, and so bright they didn’t need to light their way; Phobis was waxing large, and Galis was almost full.

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