Free Beneath the Black Moon (Root Sisters) by Clara Fine

creature part predator and part protector. Or perhaps the protector part
was just an act, Cam thought, stealing a surreptitious glance at his face. If
she was honest with herself, she was fairly certain that he did not have her
best interests at heart. And if it weren’t for that knowledge, Cam was fairly
certain that she would be experiencing the faint stirrings of first love, the
sort of thing that filled the poems Helen was always reading. As it was, Cam
knew to take everything he did with a grain of salt. Still, she couldn’t deny
that there was a strange, sweet comfort to have him walking beside her.
    The
forest wasn’t quite as safe as she had lead Brent to believe. Cam did know the
woods well, better than anyone in her family (except perhaps Helen, who acted
as if she were part forest sprite sometimes). There were animals in the forest,
but apart from the snakes they were mostly harmless. The real danger was the
people. Most of the regular inhabitants knew not to interfere with Cam, but
travelling vagrants occasionally passed through, and they could be dangerous.
And there was always the chance that some rootworker might take it upon him or
herself to cast bad conjure. That was what the enchanted silver coin in her bodice
was for, to ward off evil. Or, at the very least, to warn Cam of its presence.  
    She
sensed no danger today, though, not unless she counted the man who padded
beside her as gracefully as a wolf or some other powerful animal. It was a
beautiful day, one of those still bright days that cast a spell over
everything, making the world seem eternal. Just the pattern of filtered
sunlight that dappled the path ahead of them was lovely enough to be captured
in a painting. The cool green of the forest around them was a sharp contrast to
the gold that showered down on Cam’s head and neck. She shouldn’t have taken
off her bonnet, but her skin was tanned beyond recovery anyway and she loved to
feel the light on her face.
    Beyond
the chirps and trills of the smallest forest creatures, no sound pierced the
stillness of the day. Cam realized that this meant there were no other people
nearby, and that she was journeying deeper into the forest alone with Brent.
Oddly enough, the idea caused a shiver that originated not so much from fear as
from anticipation.
    “Miss
Camilla,” Brent said, and Cam winced at the use of her full name. “Where is
she?”
    Cam
blinked. “Where’s who?” She asked, just a split second before she remembered
her lie.
    His
delicious lips curved upwards at her slip. “Your… woman, Miss Camilla. Where is
she?”
    “Hm…
er, well, I think we’ve missed her.”
    “Missed
her?”
    “Yes.
I told her to go on without me if she got there first,” lord, she was piling
one lie on top of the other, “so she must have gone on ahead. I’ll probably
catch up to her before I reach home.”
    Brent
frowned. “She went ahead without you?” He said uncomprehendingly. “Neither of
you should be walking alone. Miss-“
    “Cam,”
she interrupted him, already cringing at the thought of being called ‘Miss
Camilla’ one more time. “Please, just call me Cam.”
    “As
you wish,” he told her, and unless it was her imagination, his voice was just a
little bit huskier. “Cam.” She was going to shiver again if he said her name in
that tone one more time. She glanced up at him from under her lashes, but he
was frowning about something. “You said before you reach home.”
    “Yes,”
Cam said, lifting her skirt with one hand as she climbed over a few fallen
branches. This time, Brent didn’t offer her his hand, he just took hers,
raising it high as he helped her navigate the pile of brush.
    “But
we’re not heading toward Cypress Hall,” he pointed out once she had safely crossed
over the branches.
    “That’s
true,” Cam said, gently slipping her hand from his. His large, strong fingers
reflexively closed over hers, but eventually he released her. Cam quickly moved
to the side