RIKA
They'd run without speaking for an hour when they paused for another rest. She could feel the tension in Gar's arm—she was still getting past some of her own tension. But her head was clearer now. And that crackling in her veins had passed. The run had done her good.
She didn't even flinch when Gar raised a hand and slowed his steps.
Slowed them more, she corrected herself. She knew that, despite his size, he could run so much faster than she could. And that was in his human form. In his lion she couldn't pace him for ten feet, she was certain.
She wasn't sure stopping was a good idea, though. The adrenalin she'd been running on since they left her camp was wearing off. She was fit now, and strong. But she didn't run as often as she used to. And not for lengthy periods like this.
Her breath rasped in and out of her throat, though Gar was barely breathing heavily. It was embarrassing.
