Rescue

ERIK

I tried to convince Garth that I was ready to travel that day, but he insisted that we hold for a few days. He used the excuse that I needed to recover, but I knew that he just wanted a few days with Leila without any other distractions. My suspicions were confirmed when they kept sneaking off together.

Tova proved to be quite the huntress. She took Leila’s bow and came back with a doe that she efficiently skinned and quartered. I looked at her with amazement, blood up to her elbows as she arranged spits of steaks around the fire.

“Where on earth did you learn to do that?” I asked.

“Birgir,” she answered. “He wanted me to learn how to take care of myself and how to survive if I had to. This is the biggest animal I’ve ever cleaned but it’s not much different than a smaller one. It just takes longer.”

I could smell the meat roasting. “I need to thank Birgir for making sure you got a good education. That smells amazing.”

She smiled shyly. “Thanks,” she murmured.

The smell