Green Lady Preview

Chapter Two
In the morning, the great hall bustled with guests and curious servants. Cleandra eyed Wulfram as they
engaged in meaningless conversation, wondering how her departure had affected him last night. She hadn’t
meant to be brusque, but how was she supposed to respond? How could she tell him the forest was
everything to her without wounding him?
“It’s a beautiful morning,” he commented as they exited the great hall.
“Yes,” Cleandra agreed. “Perfect. Will you join me for a walk?” She directed him to the east side of the
castle, into the bright sunshine.
“Are you certain you wouldn’t rather be in the forest?” he questioned. “Even within the castle walls,
you can’t stay away from the trees.” He indicated the orchard, and heat rose in her chest as she
remembered her tirade under the starlight. What useless things words could be when they fell unguarded
from the human tongue.
“You’re right. Let’s go!”
She tugged on his sleeve, and a grin twitched at the corner of his mouth. Allowing her to pull him
along, he said, “You know, this is the first time you’ve asked me to go with you.”
She stopped walking. “I never knew you wanted to.”
“Why wouldn’t I? You know, I’m curious about how you spend your time.”
But her focus was on a huge footprint on the ground. It looked like a dog’s, except it was at least two
handbreadths wide. She frowned, her skin prickling.
Wulfram followed her gaze and spotted it, too. “Did the party from Lamlay bring hunting dogs?”
She smeared the tracks with her foot and grasped his hand, pulling him deeper into the trees. “They
must have.”
They had to, she told herself. Because it couldn’t be a wolf track; they never ventured this close to the
castle. She breathed deep of the fresh pine air, trying to calm herself. Wolves meant trouble, even death. It
had been years since they were last sighted in Elodria.