Chapter 96

Mara's POV

At breakfast I told Ronan I was going to walk to the river. He asked whether I wanted company. I said I wanted ten minutes alone and that he could join me afterward. The question cost him more than he showed, but he accepted my answer.

The black pine beside the path wore a crust of new ice. From there I could still see the refuge. The echo tightened beneath my ribs when Ronan noticed I had gone; it eased when he chose not to call after me. I raised a hand toward the house and continued to the river. It was beautiful in an unfriendly way.

Ice covered most of the surface, blue-white beneath the morning sky. Mountains enclosed the valley on three sides. The refuge sat in their shadow, ancient enough that trees had grown around sections of the wall. After ten minutes, footsteps sounded behind me. Ronan had come halfway down the path. Then