Free Unleashed Fury (BloodRunes: Book 1) by Laura R Cole Page A

natural,” Gryffon told her
admiringly.
    Layna simply laughed. She wasn't sure that
her legs were going to agree with that statement tomorrow, but she
did feel as though she was doing moderately well. “Why is it that
you know so much about riding?” she asked, lulled into a tentative
feeling of comfort by his winsome demeanor and the distance from
the manor. Just the same, she added a “sir” a moment later, not
quite ready to completely give up formalities just yet.
    “I've always loved the animals for one,”
Gryffon answered after a short pause. “I grew up in the country, so
if we wanted to go somewhere, we walked or we learned to ride
horses. Now that I'm a big city man, I take them to get away from
places instead of using them to get places. And, of course, to
hunt.” He grinned. “Hunting is my therapy. No matter what else is
happening, I can always ride out into the woods and then there is
nothing in the world but me and that big buck that I'm after.” He
sighed happily, looking out into space for a moment before focusing
his gaze on her once again. “And how is it that you’ve never ridden
before? Where did you grow up?”
    “In Rockham,” she answered and then explained
since his blank expression suggested he hadn’t heard of it. “It’s a
tiny village west and south of here. We had mules that pulled the
cart, but we never rode them. We couldn’t afford horses. Plus, my
parents were very distrustful of people in general. They were happy
to just deal with those in town and we rarely went anywhere
else.”
    Gryffon nodded and then let the conversation
lapse. They briefly rode in silence until Gryffon announced, “Ah,
and here's the spot I promised you.”
    A small brook bubbled past an outcropping of
rocks, and Layna gasped at the beauty of the landscape beyond it.
Gryffon dismounted and helped Layna down, his huge hands encircling
her waist and giving her a thrill down her spine. After a moment of
appreciation for the view, she settled herself amongst a cluster of
rocks that was covered in soft moss and rummaged in her bag for her
book.
    A frosty breeze down her back made her shiver
involuntarily.
    “Cold?” Gryffon asked.
    She nodded, but shrugged it off saying, “I'm
always cold, I'm convinced I am cold-blooded.”
    “Well, we can’t have that,” Gryffon exclaimed
with mock indignation. He reached down to pick up a stone about the
size of his fist, hefting it in his hand for a moment as if
measuring its weight. Then he set it at her feet, and she watched
with growing interest as he laid his hand over it. He whispered
something inaudible and stood back. The rock began to glow red hot
and soon it started to give off a radiant heat.
    Layna gasped in delight. “How wonderful!” As
the heat seeped through her clothes to warm her skin, before she
realized what she was doing she crooned dreamily, “I think I'm in
love.”
    She punctuated the last while batting her
eyes dramatically at him and he laughed out loud. “Well, if that's
all it takes, I'll heat up rocks for you every day.”
    Layna giggled, far more at ease with Gryffon
than she had thought would be possible. “Where did you learn to use
magic?”
    Gryffon looked startled, but answered without
hesitation. “At the temple of Ashwald, my father thought I had more
potential than simply serving the gods through the Priesthood,
making fireworks at services to impress the commoners.” Gryffon
grimaced, and looked quickly at her. “No offense.” Layna made a
gesture of acceptance. “My father was never a big supporter of the
Priesthood. He said that they had wandered too far from their real
mission. That they should be training those that went into their
service as healers or something else that was useful to the people
rather than trying to win over people's faith with cheap tricks.”
Gryffon shrugged. “Anyway, he scraped together enough money and
sent me to the training instead.”
    “He sounds like a good man.” Layna