Dreamwalker's Bride - Chapter 308

Chapter 308: Red
Ford was so wrapped up in his musings that he almost missed when Mia stopped.

“What’s wrong?” He asked reflexively before looking forward.

Crimson flowers seemed to drip from every tree branch. They were as beautiful as they were haunting, and Ford swallowed. “Oh.”

“I didn’t see this in my vision of the path,” Mia whispered. “I don’t think we’re going the wrong way, but…”

“But now you’re worried about what else might have changed since we got off course,” Ford finished. “Don’t think about that now. I bet we’re only off track by a little. Should we mount so we can travel faster?”

He turned towards her, sensing that the stress of the journey was hitting her more heavily than she was showing. At least she didn’t seem mad about him holding her hand the night before.

“Yes,” She answered after a thoughtful moment. “I think… I think I want to get through this section of forest as quickly as we can.”

She turned back to the others with a serious expression. “Is everyone up for a gallop?”

Mia’s family answered her with solemn nods, except for Daniel, whose enthusiastic grin seemed to make the moment heavier rather than lighter.

Ford worried that the boy didn’t quite take in the gravity of the journey or how dangerous it might become. He hoped it wouldn’t get the lad into trouble when his curiosity overcame his good sense.

Everyone mounted without further delay or commentary, apparently trusting Mia’s instincts that this was not a place to linger.

“Are you sure you’re all right?” Ford whispered to her as she checked the tightness of Harper’s saddle.

“I’ve been looking for the safest route,” Mia glanced at him. “But I’m afraid there’s not one. If there’s only one path to get to Uncle Trace, we’ll have to face whatever dangers there are, no matter how terrible, or give up and turn back.”

“Do you want to turn back?” He lowered his head to catch her eyes before she could look down.

“No,” Her answer was firm.

“Then no sense worrying,” He tried to cheer her. “We’re in this together.”

He wanted to reach out and take her hand, but Seth’s gaze was boring into his back. He didn’t seem to like Ford riding alongside Mia, but he hadn’t said anything to interrupt it as of yet.

Mounting was far easier without his injuries, and he nearly beamed at how smooth he felt getting atop the horse. Mia seemed nonplussed, which somehow disappointed him.

“Oh, Daniel,” Mia glanced at her cousin. “Ford had an interesting thought earlier that I think you might have some interesting input on.”

“What’s that?” Daniel perked up in his saddle.

“I’ll explain at our next rest stop,” Ford told him with a questioning glance at the woman next to him. Was she trying to get rid of him?

“Let’s go,” Mia touched her heels roughly into Harper’s sides, spurring the horse forward. Ford’s mount matched the pace after a split second’s delay, apparently feeling competitive.

The former miner didn’t have full control of the animal he rode, even after being on it every day for a while now. At least it went in the same direction as Mia.

He assumed the rest of the group followed swiftly on their heels, though he didn’t spare himself the time to turn and check. While Mia’s horse avoided low branches and picked her steps for a smooth ride, Ford’s horse was far less considerate.

At times like this, it made him wonder if the animal was intentionally trying to get rid of its rider. He ducked under the lower branches and held on tightly over the rough patches of ground. He’d seen a horse shy and buck once. This felt almost as bad as that had looked.

Mia had given him riding tips long ago when they were first heading for the cave. Back then, he couldn’t really grip the saddle well with his knees and legs due to his injury, but now that he was healed? He shifted his posture, remembering her advice.

Oh, what a difference it made! Instead of being precariously balanced on top of a teetering perch, he leaned low and held fast, feeling more a part of the horse with each small adjustment he made, remembering the instructions he’d been given.

No wonder people did this recreationally! He’d thought they were crazy before, but now, the terrain seemed to melt away as the wind met his face.

The strings of blood-red flowers hanging from the trees began to fall in the breeze, fluttering down and flowing around them in a mesmerizing dance that was sliced apart by the horses’ mad dash across the land.

Ford blinked as one grazed his cheek, soft as a feather’s touch, and looked over at Mia. Streaks of crimson marred her face and arms like trails of blood. Ford’s eyes widened before refocusing on where he was going, barely avoiding being hit in the head by a low-hanging branch.

Pollen. The pollen was red, wasn’t it? Those were the marks he saw… surely.

A doubt poked at the back of his mind, and he raised one hand to his cheek, rubbing it and glancing down at his fingers.

Red liquid stained them.

The wind picked up, and the flowers fell in earnest, like a vermillion rainstorm.

“HYAH!” Mia kicked her heels into her horse’s sides in a desperate gambit, and the animal leapt forward, red all around.

Ford ducked his head low, covering it with one hand as his mount struggled to keep up with Mia’s.

Flowers brushed against him, soft as kisses, but the confusion of the moment left him unsure if it was truly pollen and nectar, or trails of blood, left in their wake.

There was no pausing to find out.

Forward, onward, deeper into the forest the group plunged. Cries of horses and people behind Ford assured him the others were close behind. Ahead, the curtain seemed about to part, but Mia didn’t slow her pace at all.

Her eyes, half-crazed, looked on the verge of despair.