Kingdom of Ash

Gavriel angled his head in a gesture Rowan
knew meant, Are you all right?
Strange—it was still strange to work with
the Lion, with Lorcan, without the bonds of
Maeve’s oath binding them to do so. To know
that they were here by choice.
What it now made them, Rowan wasn’t
entirely certain.
Rowan ignored Gavriel’s silent inquiry and
stared into the dwindling fire. “Get some rest
while you can.”
Gavriel didn’t object as he prowled to his
bedroll, and plopped onto it with a feline sigh.
Rowan suppressed the twinge of guilt. He’d
been pushing them hard. They hadn’t
complained, hadn’t asked him to slow the
grueling pace he’d set.
He’d felt nothing in the bond since that day
on the beach. Nothing.
She wasn’t dead, because the bond still