Blood Red (74 page)

She was alone under the fur. She glanced around, saw she was alone in the room and stretched lazily. Her muscles were sore, burning from a thorough workout. She had slept well. No dreams.

She hadn’t slept like that in more days than she cared to count.

She touched her side gingerly. Her ribs were healing. Goldilocks had given her some herbal cream to put on. It stunk of swamp water, but soothed her bones and muscles.

She sat up. The hide fell off her, exposing her naked breasts. She shivered in the cool morning air.

She rubbed her arms vigorously as she looked for her clothes. They were in a neat pile beside her. She smiled, thinking of Wolf. She dressed quickly.

She wondered where the others were. She moved out of the room, snatching a piece of bread off the table as she passed. She crept down another dirt passageway. She heard muffled voices. As she neared the entrance to another part of the cave, she could 146

Blood Red

hear more clearly.

“I can not believe she does not know.” Rapunzel’s voice was strained with anger.

“It was not my first priority to tell her,” Wolf answered his voice deep and gruff.

“I bet getting in her pants was,” Goldilocks giggled.

Red bristled at the sound of her laugh. It grated on her every nerve.

“Shut up, Goldi.” The voice was either of the Bears’. Red could not distinguish between them yet.

“It should have been the first thing you told her,”

Rapunzel said.

“Do you really think she would have believed me?

She can barely believe that I didn’t savagely murder her Granny. I’m not absolutely sure that she still does not think me a murderer.”

“She is falling in love with you, Wolf. She will believe what you tell her.”

“Love does not make one stupid, Rapunzel. Red will decide what she believes.”

There was a long pause.

“The prophesy is real, whether Red will believe it or not. She needs to know her role in it. She needs to believe in it. Or we will all be doomed.”

Red stepped through the chipped out entranceway into the large room. They were all gathered around a high wood table. Various weapons piled on top. They all stopped moving when the light flickered over Red’s taut form.

She smiled wryly. “’Morning, all. Could someone please tell me what the fuck is going on?”

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