Thunderlord snippet - Useful Knowledge

Please remember that this is a work in progress and drafts have a habit of changing drastically from inception to finished book.

From Thunderlord Chapter 10

“There you are! Good morning!” Kyria emerged from behind one of the larger trees. Her cheeks and nose were red, the healthy glow of exercise in cold air. She’d bound her skirts to her legs with strips of cloth, and she moved with assurance. She carried an armful of sticks of various lengths and thicknesses.

“You’re looking much better!” She shoved the wood into Edric’s hands and bent to inspect the roasting meat.

A short time later, both of them were sitting on the insulated ground, contentedly chewing on the bones. Kyria had packed the water skins with snow the night before, and it had melted, leaving delicious-tasting water.

“How did you do all this?” Edric gestured to the fire and the remains of their meal. “And how did you know to make a shelter?”

“My younger brother Rakhal taught me trapping, and I picked up the rest along the way. We used to trap game all winter, when food supplies ran thin. Father was furious when he found out I kept doing it after my brother went…left home. But really, why should it make a difference if I wear skirts or breeches at home? The traps work just as well and people have to eat! I do confess that I borrowed your knife, the one in your boot.” She slipped it out from the top of her own boot and offered it, hilt first, to him.

“You’d best keep it for the time being,” he murmured, more than a little impressed.

I owe you my life.

And I owe you mine, he imagined her saying.