Free The Bride of the Immortal by Auriane Bell

the hunt. In the end the first search parties had only just left the boarding school a couple of minutes ago after having turned the buildings upside down. Unable to stall them any further, Walther suggested meeting up with the two of them. Since he was alone with a well rested horse and didn’t have to pay as much attention as to which path he chose, he wouldn’t have any troubles catching up with them as long as they revealed their position to him. Adrijan unwillingly agreed to the plan, even though he was afraid they would run into a trap by doing so. The whole story sounded too good to be true. Before he ended the call to send Walther their coordinates over the navigation system he advised him to be careful. If Walther really was an ally, he didn’t want him to lead their pursuers right to them.
    Adrijan wished he were able to get the girl out of Traumstadt on his own but he had to face the truth. They were close to the forest but only half way to the cottage, worn out and every bone and muscle in his body was hurting. On top of that the wretched weather had gotten worse. After putting away the phone he gently tried to wake the girl, whose sleep had not been disturbed at all by the conversation.
     

 
    “Let me sleep... just a little while longer,” she grumbled oblivious to her surroundings. Again someone was gently shaking her.
    “There’s no time for complaining. You can continue resting over there under the cover of the trees.”
    Hearing Adrijan’s voice finally woke her and made her realise that she had dozed off and nestled up to him in her sleep. Mairin moved away abruptly and lost her balance so that her companion was forced to grab her with his arm.
    “Careful, girl!” he hissed quietly.
    Embarrassed she shifted her weight and clung to the horse’s neck for support. Nebel snorted as if he were trying to make fun of her. Much to her regret she had to admit that it served her right. Even though her rescuer had his flaws, so far he had been kind to her and she had thanked him for it by distrusting him. Besides, this wasn’t the time to bear a grudge for something that had happened in the past and probably hadn’t even been his fault.
    When the priest dismounted the stallion and offered her help, she was still shy but accepted it willingly. After a few more steps they managed to enter the mixed forest – just in time to escape the starting downpour. Against her expectations they didn’t halt and continued walking further into the woods. Nebel seemed to dislike being surrounded by trees at least as much as she did but like her the horse kept following Adrijan in silence. Mairin was glad that her guide was using his small device to lighten their way through the darkness. The bedspread was still serving her well even though it had become damp from the drizzle and dirty where it had touched the ground. Mairin treasured the cover and warmth it provided for her and was glad that she could avoid being grazed by twigs and bushes the same way. Near a rivulet Adrijan finally stopped and let go of Nebel’s reins to allow the stallion to drink.
    “We can take a break here until Walther – the man we ran into back at Sunflower Garden – joins us. If you have any questions I’ll try to answer them now, but please ask them quietly.” Having that said he turned away and took a small towel out of Nebel’s saddle-bag, as if he hadn’t just invited her to talk to him. Mairin was startled but decided not to take it personally. She kept watching him while trying to decide which question to ask first.
    “Are we still in danger Father Adrijan?”
    “Adrijan,” he corrected her, “and yes, most likely. Would you please hold this for a second?” Mairin freed one of her hands from the bedspread to accept the strange, light emitting item. She expected it to be hot but it was hardly even warm. Relieved but still feeling a little uneasy about it, she kept holding it between her fingertips like a nasty toad. Adrijan