The Tempted Read Free Page B

antlers tangled in the branches of a tree.
    The buck caught her scent before he saw her, and it set him to jerking his antlers in a renewed attempt to get free. Morvan began to hum softly and walked toward the frightened animal. The louder the buck cried, the more his hooves flailed and his legs kicked, she louder she hummed, all the while moving slowly and calmly.
    She slowed and cocked her head to the side when she caught the buck’s gaze. “Easy now, handsome. I’m here to help.”
    The buck let out a snort, his black eyes wild with fatigue and fear. Morvan remained where she was, hoping the animal would calm a bit to allow her to get closer.
    The humming helped, but she had to touch him before she could really help him. The longer she waited, the more the buck’s frenzy would double. By the marks on the tree from his antlers, and the grooves in the ground from his pawing of the earth, the poor animal had been stuck for some time.
    With only five feet separating them, Morvan took a deep breath and moved closer. As soon as she did, the buck kicked out a hoof. Morvan grunted as it slammed into her stomach, knocking her backwards.
    She clutched her abdomen but kept eye contact with the buck. Pushing past the pain, Morvan once more walked to the deer. He kicked her twice more in the legs before she was finally able to put a hand on his flank.
    Instantly, the animal calmed. Tears gathered when she felt how the buck shook beneath her palm. She hummed and softly stroked him while walking around to his other side.
    “It’s all right now. I’m here to get you loose,” she whispered in a sing-song voice that matched the tune she was humming.
    The buck closed his eyes. Morvan ran her hand up to his spine, then forward to where his antlers sprouted from his head. She kept one hand on him at all times and slowly turned his head this way and that to get him free.
    For the next ten minutes she worked, sweat dripping down her face. The buck’s breathing had calmed, but he needed food and water quickly.
    Suddenly, the thick antlers came free. Morvan released the animal as he stumbled backwards a few steps. His black soulful eyes blinked at her for a heartbeat. Then he walked to her and lowered his head enough so that she could rub his forehead.
    “You’re welcome,” she whispered with a smile. “Go now. The forest is calling to you.”
    The buck turned and leapt over a fallen tree before he bounded out of sight. No matter how many animals she saved, their gratitude afterwards always made her teary.
    Morvan leaned against a tree and gently touched her stomach, knee and shin where the deer had kicked her. She was lucky not to have any broken bones, but there was definitely going to be bruising. Despite the injuries she’d sustained, it was worth it to save an animal.
    She turned east to return to MacKay land and had only gone a few steps when something urged her to go left. Morvan tried to fight the compulsion, but the force was too strong. Trepidation made her hands clammy. Four times she tried to turn around, and each time the force compelling her grew stronger.
    Morvan gave up fighting and allowed the compulsion to take her where it would. To her horror, she walked deeper onto Sinclair land toward a rock structure that seemed to burst out of the ground and stretch to the heavens. Every step she took left a sinking feeling of doom that spread through her.
    Quickly, she found herself at the structure, staring up. Morvan tried to turn around, but the force wouldn’t loosen its hold. With a sigh, she began to climb up a steep incline riddled with moss-coated rocks. By the time she reached the top, she was winded and weary. Precipitation began to fall in a soft drizzle that quickly increased. Morvan blinked through the rain.
    All around her were massive boulders that dwarfed her. Morvan saw an opening to a cave and dashed. She didn’t know where to go next. The feeling that had been guiding her was gone. She hoped that meant