When Shadows Rise (Book 1)

Chapter 2 (Kayden)

Kayden Branimir raced up the mountainside with Eka, snow kicking up beneath her fur-lined boots. The wind burned cold against her rosy cheeks. For a blissful moment, Kayden forgot who she was. She couldn't remember the last time her heart had soared like a hawk through a valley, and—

A snowball exploded in her face.

"Ugh." Kayden wiped the snow from her eyes. "You'll pay for that!"

"You have to catch me first," Eka said with a wink, and then she ran off.

Stumbling, Kayden caught up to her and tackled her into a snowdrift.

Eka's laughter sang through the air, and Kayden couldn't help but echo it. They lay side by side, clutching at their stomachs as they tried to catch their breaths. Snowflakes drifted around them, clinging to Eka's light lashes. A clump of snow was stuck in her hair, and Kayden reached out, but before she could remove it, Eka turned onto her side and propped herself up on one elbow.

At the sight of Kayden's outstretched hand, Eka raised a brow.

"There's snow in your hair," Kayden said, feeling foolish with her hand still hovering between them. She quickly withdrew it.

"That's the least of my worries." But even as Eka said it, she combed her fingers through her hair. "I have snow in places I don't want to think about."

Kayden snickered, but then she halted. Eka watched her intently, as if trying to commit to memory every curve of her face and the exact shade of her dark eyes.

"Something wrong?" Kayden asked.

"Not that I'm aware of."

"Then why are you looking at me like that?" A blush crept over her cheeks, but she hoped Eka wouldn't notice. "Knock it off."

Eka grinned. "Aw, look at you all flustered."

"I don't know what you're talking about." The words tumbled out too quickly. Eka was so close—too close. Kayden could smell the faint hint of snowberries on her breath.

"I think you know exactly what I'm talking about." Reaching out, Eka trailed her fingers along Kayden's jaw, tilting her chin up so she couldn't avoid her gaze.

Kayden's breath caught. She tried to rein her thoughts back in, but the task was near impossible with Eka staring at her like that. The girl was all sharp angles with even sharper green eyes, and right now, those eyes were so close to cutting away the ice surrounding her heart. Kayden opened her mouth, but then she closed it, trapping words she could never say.

She wanted to tell Eka that looking at her was like late night bonfires, the taste of warm cider on her lips, and the twinkling of stars and everything good in this frozen world.

But the thought of him ruined the moment.

It was always him putting the distance between her and Eka—the dead boy with the same sharp, green eyes that could carve their way into her soul.

"Do I really make you that speechless?" Eka prodded.

Kayden reached into her pocket, needing something to fiddle with. She grasped the torbit leaves that were tucked away and realized her mistake too late.

Eka followed the movement, and the light in her gaze dulled. "You're thinking of him again, aren't you?"

Instead of answering, Kayden stood. "We shouldn't go to the cliff today. Let's—"

"He was my brother," Eka said, tone icier than the howling wind. "I will pay my respects."

Kayden swallowed hard, but the lump of guilt in her throat refused to budge. Out of everything she could have said to Eka, why, oh why did she have to say that? Eka's older brother, Jesse, had been dead for years now, but time couldn't heal this wound.