Noah walked with a relentless, mechanical rhythm. Each step was a battle against the deep drifts, his heavy boots sinking to the knee. He carried Cinder high against his chest, shielding her from the worst of the wind with his own body and the thick wolf pelt.
For Cinder, time ceased to exist. She floated in a liminal space between life and death. The only reality was the rhythmic thud of Noah’s heartbeat echoing through his chest and the smell of pine, leather, and woodsmoke that clung to him. She shivered violently, her body convulsing in uncontrollable spasms as it desperately tried to generate heat.
"Stay awake," Noah barked, his voice cutting through the howl of the wind.
He shifted her weight, ignoring the burning ache in his own biceps and shoulders. He had been tracking her for two days. When the soldiers had dragged her out of the settlement, Noah had watched from the tree line. He had waited until the cowards had retreated to their warm fires before moving in.
"Tell me," Noah demanded, needing to keep her brain functioning. "Why did you show them the trail through the valley?"
Cinder’s teeth chattered so hard she feared they would crack. "The... the captain... he said... he said they just wanted to talk to the elders. A treaty. They promised... no guns."
Noah let out a bitter, humorless laugh. "You believed the men who wear brass buttons and carry iron? You believed they wanted peace?"
"Elias believed in peace," Cinder whispered, her voice incredibly small.
Noah stopped for a moment, the wind whipping his dark hair around his face. He looked down at her, his expression unreadable behind the mask of frost. "Elias was a dreamer. The world does not belong to dreamers. It belongs to the wolves."
He resumed walking, his pace quickening. The terrain grew steeper, rockier. They were moving higher into the mountains, away from the valleys and the settlements, into territory that only Noah's people knew how to navigate.
As the sky darkened from gray to a bruised, pitch-black purple, Cinder felt a strange, terrifying warmth wash over her. The shivering stopped. A sense of euphoric lethargy settled into her bones. She felt as though she were floating in a warm bath.
"Noah," she murmured, her eyes drooping. "It's warm now. I think... I think I'll just sleep."
"No!" Noah shouted, shaking her violently. "You do not sleep! The warmth is the end, Cinder. It is the blood giving up. Open your eyes!"
He knew the signs of terminal hypothermia. If she closed her eyes now, she would never open them again. Driven by a sudden surge of adrenaline, Noah broke into a heavy jog, fighting the mountain, fighting the snow, and fighting the death that was trying to steal the woman he both despised and was sworn to protect.
The cabin was a hidden fortress built into the side of a rocky escarpment, sheltered by heavy timber and a natural overhang. It was nearly invisible unless one knew exactly where to look. Noah kicked the heavy oak door open and carried Cinder inside, kicking it shut behind him to seal out the screaming wind.
The interior was pitch black and freezing, but it was dry. Noah laid Cinder on a cot in the corner, covered in thick animal hides. She was completely unresponsive, her skin cold as marble.
Moving with practiced, frantic efficiency, Noah struck flint and steel, coaxing a spark into a bundle of dry tinder in the stone hearth. Within minutes, a roaring fire cast dancing orange shadows across the log walls. But ambient heat wouldn't be enough. He needed to warm her core.