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“I’m fine,” Iris insisted. “I just tripped, that’s all.”
“You’re tired and you’re stumbling,” Char corrected her. “We’ve made good progress. We can afford to stop and rest.”
Rath frowned. “Except we’re too exposed.”
It was midday, and the bright sun shone from a clear blue sky. Iris could see far down the road before and behind them and far across the plains on either side of them, and she knew the dragons could see farther. They were too exposed. But even if they weren’t, she didn’t want to stop. She’d rather walk another twelve hours at high speed than risk encountering Micah again.
Rath slowed his pace, scanning the area with sharp blue eyes. “There. That shed looks abandoned. Let’s go.”
Iris couldn’t even see the shed.
She followed the dragons with blind faith until a dilapidated wooden structure came into view up ahead, just off the side of the road. There was nobody in sight, but then again, they’d met nobody on the road all morning.
Rath pushed the decaying wooden door open, its rusty hinges creaking a complaint. The musty smell of disuse greeted them. Occasional streaks and spots of sunlight peeked through the rotting walls into the dark interior, where rodent droppings littered the floor and a few rusted tools cluttered one corner.
Char wrinkled his nose. He slung his pack off his shoulder, rummaged around in it while Rath leaned against the wall by the window, arms crossed over his chest, peering through grimy panes of broken glass. Closed off and unapproachable.
Iris still wasn’t used to this serious side of him.
“How much longer until we reach the capital?”
“If we can keep this pace up, we’ll make it by nightfall,” Rath replied.
“Here.” Char laid out a blanket for Iris. “We can only afford an hour, two at the most. Get some rest.”
She shook her head. “I couldn’t sleep right now.”
The fairy emerged from the pack with a biscuit. It zipped toward her, nudging her hand until she took it, and then it flew back and forth, distributing food from their supplies to Char and Rath as well.
Iris sighed and sat on the blanket, forcing a smile. “Thanks.”
The fairy settled on her knee when it finished its self-assigned duty. Char sat beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and giving her a gentle squeeze.
“We won’t let him get you, Iris.”
She leaned into Char’s side, wishing the security she felt with him was real. “You can’t promise that.”
“Sure he can,” Rath said, as confident as ever. “I just wish I could have throttled that jerk then and there.”
“Agreed.” Char hesitated, and then he asked Iris, “How did you know he was coming? I didn’t feel his signature.”
She shook her head. “He hides it most of the time. I think I can feel it because of our connection.”
“But he couldn’t find you,” Rath mused. “Interesting.”
“You made us invisible, didn’t you?” Char continued. “Like in the cave.”
She nodded. “Although I didn’t do it consciously then.”
And hadn’t known she could do it this time. She’d only known she had to do it, because he would have killed them—Char, Rath, and the fairy. And then he would have—
Her stomach lurched. She couldn’t even look at the biscuit, let alone eat it. She was trembling all over.
Char’s embrace almost made her cry.
“This is almost over, Iris.”
The untouched biscuit fell from her hand, or maybe the fairy took it. She only knew she was clutching at Char’s shirt with both hands and burying her face in his chest. Not to cry. To hide.
“You can talk and dream about the future,” she said, her voice as shaky as the rest of her. “But I can’t. I can’t see anything past getting the amulet to the crystal. There’s nothing for me after that.”
“Then I’ll dream for both of us.”
He kissed the top of her head, and just for a moment, she let his warmth engulf her. Just for a moment, she let herself believe the illusion of safety with him was real. Because in less than an hour, they would be back on the road, back on the run, racing to beat Micah to the castle, and then…
Iris. Focus on the crystal. That is the key.
She took a deep breath, in and out. Focus on the crystal. Not Micah. That was how she could protect herself—and everybody else.
“Time to go,” Rath said.
Her head came up. It had only been a few minutes, but Char was already climbing to his feet and pulling her up with him, and Rath was halfway out the door.
“Leave that,” Char said to the fairy, grabbing his pack and slinging it over his shoulder.
The fairy abandoned the blanket on the ground and followed them out into the sunshine. Iris squinted.
“What’s going on?”
“The army’s on the move,” Rath explained, already setting a brisk pace for them. “I can just make out the dust cloud. Micah’s pushing them hard.”
“Are you sure he doesn’t know about the crystal?” Char asked Iris.
She grabbed the amulet with her free hand and dropped it down the front of her dress. “I don’t know.”
She hadn’t thought he’d known about her finding his tent last night, but she had been wrong about that. Maybe he’d lied about the crystal, too. She didn’t know.
Focus on the crystal, Iris.
His lies didn’t matter, nor was there reason to search for grains of truth embedded within them. The crystal was all that mattered.
They raced through the afternoon, silent except for the pounding of their feet on the packed dirt. Iris didn’t dare look back. Char and Rath did from time to time, and whatever they saw made their frowns deepen.
But as the shadows of the day lengthened, the city gates came into view.
Iris’ heart leaped in her chest—until she saw the line of people waiting to get inside.
Rath cursed under his breath. “The guards must be questioning everybody before they let them pass.”
Char nodded. “We’ll never get in before the army arrives.”
“Hold on.” Iris pulled the amulet out of her dress and clutched in her right hand. She took a deep breath, in and out, closing her eyes on the exhale and sending herself into the air. There was a distinctive snapping and crackling behind her, tugging at her, but she resisted its pull and flew forward until she was hovering above the gates.
The line was slow-moving. Too slow-moving. Men, women, children, townspeople, merchants carting their wares—it would take hours to get into the city that way.
She flew along the walls, searching. There had to be another entrance…
There.
She darted back to her body and overshot it, drawn like a magnet toward Micah. His frigid blue eyes flashed through her mind. She panicked, struggling against his magic like she was fighting against a strong current of water, until the whispers yanked her free and back into her body.
She opened her eyes with a gasp. “This way.”
She didn’t wait for Char and Rath to respond, already leading the way off the road, walking fast, ready to break into a run at a moment’s notice. How far away was Micah? She didn’t dare look back. He knew she was here. He’d seen her, felt her presence, and she didn’t know if she was evading him, or if he was playing a game of cat and mouse with her.
There you are.
She broke into a sprint and a cold sweat at the sensation of his voice in her head. Tendrils of blue magic were reaching for her, as thin and dangerous as the red thread he’d used on her before, and she was fighting her own blinding terror just to put one foot in front of the other. Her heart pounded in her chest. Her feet pounded on the ground. The amulet pounded against her with every step.
Focus on the crystal.
It was hard to hear the whispers with her blood roaring in her ears, but she fought for them, fought to keep sight of her goal. The city wall. A large side entrance on the northern side. Large enough for livestock to pass, with no line and no guards—at least, not a moment ago. If she could reach that entrance before the guards returned, she would be that much closer to the crystal.
The pounding was chasing her, catching up to her—and then Char and Rath pulled alongside her.
“I see it,” Char said, breathless but picking up speed to pass Iris and reach the side entrance first. The guard sauntering back to his post had only enough time to widen his eyes before Char launched at him. Char was already spinning to face the second guard before the first hit the ground.
“Hey—”
Char kicked the second guard in the gut. The guard doubled over, and Char dealt a heavy blow to the back of the man’s head, dropping him next to his partner. Char grabbed the second unconscious guard and dragged him off to the side as Rath arrived and grabbed the firstt.
Iris stopped at the gate, panting for breath. She couldn’t feel the snapping and crackling anymore, just a burning stitch in her side, but she cast an uneasy glance back while Char and Rath searched the unconscious guards. The sun was dipping below the western horizon.
Micah knew she was here. They had to keep moving.
“The keys to the city!” Rath exulted, holding a ring of brass keys up in the air. “Or the castle, hopefully. Too bad their armor won’t fit us.”
“Hidden knife. Could be useful,” Char muttered, unstrapping the weapon from a guard’s calf and pulling up his pant leg to strap it around his own. “Let’s go.”
“Hold on.” Rath threw out an arm to block Char and Iris. “This is one time when ladies do not go first. Char, wait for the signal.”
Rath disappeared through the wrought-iron gate, and Iris waited, shifting her weight from foot to foot and glancing at Char for reassurance. A short whistle pierced the air.
“It’s safe,” Char told her. “Go on. I’ll be right behind you.”
She took a few tentative steps onto a cobblestone street. Empty stables and pens marked the location of what should have been a market for livestock, but there were no recent signs of animals or people.
“Welcome to the capital!” Rath tossed Char the keys, and Char closed and locked the gate behind them before tossing the keys back.
“It’s too quiet,” Char observed.
“Micah isn’t hiding himself anymore.” Iris hugged herself as she looked around. “He doesn’t think he needs to, because he thinks nobody can stop him now. He has everybody scared.”
“And that’s the kind of boneheaded mistake I like. Means he’ll make more mistakes.”
Rath grinned, and for the first time, Iris got the impression of a predator baring its fangs rather than a happy-go-lucky guy smiling. His light, cheerful tone belied the dangerous glint in his blue eyes. Char’s green eyes held a similar warning, although he wasn’t smiling. She’d never seen them as soldiers before—not in their human forms.
Maybe she’d underestimated them. Maybe she was safer with them than she’d realized.
Char intertwined his fingers with hers, the same hand he’d used to knock out a guard offering her warmth and reassurance. She glanced down at his leg and the hidden knife.
“You okay?” He searched her face, his sharp green eyes softening with concern.
She nodded. “We need to get to the castle.”
“Kind of hard to get lost in the crowd when there isn’t a crowd, but we’ll manage,” Rath said. The evening shadows stretching across his face made his smile even more threatening. “Time to disappear."8Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnYNWO23KXb
