The ride north was silent.
Caleb rode at the front of our small column, his back straight, his eyes constantly scanning the tree line. Finn kept close to me, his young face serious with responsibility. Behind us, a dozen warriors moved with practiced quiet, their hands never far from their weapons.
I should have been watching for danger. Should have been thinking about the mission, about the Red Claw, about the battle to come. But all I could think about was him.
Caleb.
He was so close. Close enough to touch, if I dared. Close enough to see the tension in his shoulders, the exhaustion in the way he held himself. He hadn't looked at me since we left. Hadn't spoken a single word.
But I felt him anyway. Felt his presence like a warmth at the edge of my awareness, a pull I couldn't resist
