by Cait Marie
“When was the last time you slept decently?” she asked, taking a seat next to him.
Putting a finger to his chin, he looked toward the ceiling. “Let’s see… when did Ada overhear my father and run off with a bunch of pirates? Three—three and a half months ago? Somewhere around then.”
“Shane…” She grabbed his hand and stood, pulling him with her. “Come on.”
“It’s no use.” But he followed her to the bed.
He let her help him remove his boots and get under the blankets. She sat on the edge of his bed, and he was grateful she didn’t leave right away.
“It’s so quiet in the castle without them here,” he whispered. “I hate being alone.”
“I know.” With a sigh, she got up and moved around to the other side. She climbed onto the bed, lying next to him. “It’s been hard at home with my father too sick to move and with Marley…”
When she trailed off, he shifted an arm around her to pull her close. “I’m sorry.”
For her father. For her former roommate being killed when Shane’s plan to get Michel out of the castle to safety failed. He was sorry for all of it. If he had done things differently, handled them better, maybe Gwyn would still have her family. Maybe he’d still have his.
“How are things going with Viktor?” Gwyn asked.
Shane groaned. “I went down to the laboratory today to check in. He claims to be working on it, but I have no real way of knowing if he is or if he’s just mixing things around to look busy.”
“Well, maybe we’ll have to pay him a little visit and follow through with Phillip’s threat. Give him some incentive to work harder.”
“No, Gwyn, we’re not infecting him.” No matter how desperate Shane was for a cure, the thought of purposely infecting someone else made him sick. Well, sicker. “We’ll find another way.”
She glanced at him in dim firelight from the hearth. Mere inches separated them, but the desire to close that distance had waned. When she rested her head against his shoulder, he stared up at the dark ceiling, his thoughts and feelings pulling in every direction.
A noise startled Shane from a nightmare of his sister and Phillip lost at sea. He fought to clear his mind from the vivid images.
“What are you doing?” Shane asked, rubbing his tired eyes. He looked around for Gwyn, but she was nowhere to be found. Instead, his mother’s translucent form stood by the end of his bed.
“You need to find the treaty.”
“What?” He sat up. “What are you talking about?”
His mother inclined her head. “Find the treaty from the war.”
“It’s in the case in the library, right where it always is.” He pushed to his feet.
“No, my son.” Her voice floated on the air. “There is more. You must remember.”
“Remember what?”
“Remember the stories.” She began to fade. “Remember the promises.”
Shane took a step forward and gasped as his eyes snapped open. A dream. It was another dream. Then, he realized he was, in fact, standing. He looked around, crossing his arms over his chest to fight off the chill of the stone hall. Swallowing hard, he walked to the end of the dark space, to the lone torch on the far wall.
The hall was empty. It was a floor of spare rooms in the east wing they rarely used. Only during large celebrations did they house so many people in the past. In recent years, his father had not allowed that to happen. Only the rooms below their own were used by visiting dignitaries. The few extra rooms on the same floor as the royal residences were saved for the closer friends and allies, such as Prince Michel and Lady Saundra. And the Nihryst.
Shane grabbed the torch from its sconce, unsure who’d lit it. He hadn’t entered the east wing since he was a child. When his father was in a temperamental mood, he’d often brought Adalina and Phillip to the empty rooms to play. They could laugh and yell there as loud as they wanted without the king’s wrath.
He wasn’t sure how he’d made it so far in his sleep. It was rather alarming. He didn’t have a history of sleepwalking. Strolling through the castle in the middle of the night was more Adalina’s terrain.
A soft whisper sounded behind him, and Shane whirled around, his heart thumping in his chest. “Hello?”
Fear pumped through his veins, but he stepped forward. He quietly moved to the end of the hall, where a door sat open just enough to peek inside. As he walked in, the dark room nearly took his breath away. It was the one they most frequently played in as children, but it was utterly untouched. Dust coated the floor, and white sheets lay draped across most of the furniture.
Using the torch, Shane lit some of the candles along the walls as he looked around. In the far corner, one of the sheets had fallen to the floor. It sat in a heap before the tall wardrobe. His mother’s words about finding a treaty floated back to him, and one side of Shane’s mouth tugged up as he recalled hiding various things in there.
He pulled the doors at the top open, but the emptiness disappointed him. He’d thought that, after the dream, the fallen sheet was a sign. He checked the drawers but found nothing still. With a sigh, he glanced around the rest of the room. Why would his mother—hallucination or not—lead him to that room if there wasn’t anything to find?
Placing the torch in a nearby sconce, he began searching the rest of the room. Sheets fell to the floor one by one. Nothing was there but old furniture and dust. A niggling sense in the back of his mind persisted—he needed to remember something.
Frustrated and out of patience, he grabbed the torch, blew out the candles, and stormed from the room. It was time for answers, and there was only one place to get them.
He just didn’t know how to get his father to talk when nothing seemed to work so far.
The main village of the Sannwyn Isles was just as Ada remembered it—full of life and color. People strolled through the warmer streets, wandering through the market that made up a large section of the central square. Brienne walked beside her, pointing out different goods and pieces of art. Ada had only been to the southern islands once—when they first visited Nayani to break the curse. The witch had legends of her own which claimed she was a thousand years old and that she protected the chain of isles with a spell that kept out malintent visitors.
Ahead of her, Phillip kept his eyes forward. His shoulders drooped in a way Ada had never seen. The dread and sadness mirrored her own. She glanced at Brienne, wanting to ask a dozen questions about what they’d do if Nayani didn’t have answers.
“We’ll find it,” a deep voice whispered from Ada’s other side.
Without needing to look, she reached out to entwine her fingers with Lee’s. He squeezed her hand as he pulled her closer. Brienne quickened her pace to walk with Phillip.
Ada met Lee’s eyes as they continued to the far end of the village. “Thank you.”
He released her hand to wrap an arm around her back. As he kissed her temple, she leaned into his embrace, grateful for his strength. Despite the arguing that rarely seemed to end, when it mattered most, Lee was always there. Supporting her. Loving her.
Even without him saying it, she knew it was true. She just didn’t know if it was real or if it was because of a hundred-and-thirty-year-old prophecy told in the stars of their connected paths.
They reached the narrow river on the edge of the village where a string of boats sat, as if waiting for them. They paid the owner before making their way up the shallow waters. Tall, mossy trees gave the swampy area a haunted feel. Yet, something about it was also welcoming and peaceful. Perhaps that was only because the witch allowed them passage. After everything she’d seen in recent months, Ada didn’t entirely doubt the witch’s spell on the island was real.
Ada looked around as small huts came into view, and she pulled her hair up off of her neck. Unlike the northern kingdoms that cooled with the changing seasons, the Sannwyn Isles stayed at a nearly constant state of muggy warmth.
They stopped at the same rickety dock as las
t time when they could go no farther. The river turned into a stream too narrow for boats to get through before widening once more. It weaved through the village, with bridges and docks connecting the different areas. Lanterns hanging from trees and fences lit their path, as the sun barely made it through the thick canopy above them.
Walking hand in hand, Ada and Lee led the group toward the largest hut on a chunk of solid land near the center of the rundown village. She smiled as they carefully passed the boards he had fallen through during their previous visit.
“Don’t,” he said under his breath.
“I didn’t say anything.” She grinned up at him and laughed when he rolled his eyes.
As they made their way up the steps to the deck, a familiar young face greeted them. The boy beamed up at them before running off. He returned seconds later with his mother, May, who welcomed them like old friends.
“She has been expecting you,” May said, inclining her head in their direction.
Without another word, she motioned for them to follow her inside. They obliged, and Ada tightened her grip on Lee’s hand as they descended through the dark halls made of compacted stalks and grass. The colorful room opened up before them, taking Ada’s breath just as it did the first time. The soft lanterns glowed, giving life to the tapestries hanging on the walls.
Nayani stepped out of her workroom. As she looked from Ada to Lee and back, she said, “I knew you would return to us, your Highness.”
Ada straightened. The title felt too formal in such a setting, and it brought out the instinct to behave with the proper etiquette instilled in her throughout her entire life. Lee’s hand braced her lower back as they stepped closer to the woman. She did not look more than a decade older than Lee, but her light eyes held years of history. Though the thought of her being a thousand years old seemed impossible, Ada had always believed in fairy tales, and this was no different. After all, the man at her side had been alive for a century and a half.
When Ada bowed her head, the rest followed suit. May held a hand out to the cushions along the floor that circled a firepit. Embers flared to life in the center. Ada and the crew sat as the woman retrieved more firewood from the far corner of the room.
Nayani sat on a small settee in their ring. When the flames instantly grew with the added wood, Ada looked to the witch. She saw the woman’s fingers twitch on her lap before meeting her eyes. When Nayani winked, Ada couldn’t help the small smile that appeared.
Magic had long ago been banished in the northern kingdoms. After the terrible Haevlan wars on the other side of the world, Detmarya and Rayerna outlawed its use to avoid the same fighting. It was the one thing the two kingdoms ever agreed on before the treaty.
People had still practiced the old ways in secret, but it was primarily a source of healing. It had nearly died out by the time King Henri took the throne. His mother had magic and was hidden away until he used her to curse the Nihryst. Despite Ada’s familial history though, the magic seemed to end there. No one in the royal family had shown any signs of magic since her great, great, great, great grandmother.
“I have the answers of which you seek,” Nayani said.
Ada glanced over to Lee, wondering if she meant the cure or the Heulwen.
“Both.” Nayani spoke in a calm tone, but there was a force behind all she said.
As Ada met the witch’s eyes, she shifted uncomfortably. “You know where to find the Heulwen?”
“Of course, my child. And so do you.”
Her brow scrunched as she thought through everything she knew about the flower. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, fearing the truth she’d hoped she was wrong about the past couple weeks.
Before she could voice her guess, Nayani asked, “Do you know the true story of the Heulwen?”
“Drops of sunlight fell upon a small field of flowers, giving them the power to heal all ailments and injuries,” Ada said without hesitation. When a hand covered hers in her lap, she looked over to smile at Phillip. It was another story she’d loved as a child. One she hadn’t thought of in years until Lee and Brienne mentioned it.
“Ah, yes. Those are the stories told throughout the northern kingdoms, but it is not the full truth,” Nayani said as Ada turned her attention back toward her. “You see, it was not a field. It was a single drop that fell on a single flower. For centuries, it has been protected within the Shirewood Forest.”
Ada let out a small gasp.
Nayani went on, “Its exact location was never known by the people of Rayerna, save for one family who placed a spell over it. They feared that if anyone found it, they would take it. It held too much power, and the family could not yield such control to the masses.”
Ada’s stomach twisted the more the witch spoke.
“With the spell, none can touch its healing petals without permission from the royal bloodline of Rayerna,” Nayani finished.
Ada could hardly breathe as her suspicions from the past couple weeks came to light. “So, the royal family does have it.”
“It is unlikely they have removed it from the forest. It has been there for centuries.”
“He doesn’t know,” Ada whispered. She was right about its location in the forest, but despite her earlier concerns, she knew Michel better than just about anyone. When Shane and Lee pointed out Michel’s discomfort in her arriving with another man, she knew they were right. He'd never intentionally keep something so important from her. Which meant one thing.
“What, love?” Lee asked in a soft tone.
“Michel,” she said. “He doesn’t know where the flower is. Maybe his father doesn’t either, and it’s been lost in Shirewood all this time. If he knew, he would have allowed us to use it.” Looking back to Nayani, she asked, “If we were to get the flower, could it be used to create some sort of cure for any illness, such as the Kald?”
“Yes, of course. The petals may be placed in liquid and ingested. If done properly, it can be broken up into small pieces and distributed. The petals replenish themselves in time. That is how it has been able to survive for so long.” Nayani paused. “But it cannot be taken or exchanged for something else. You must be given the flower freely by someone of royal descent of Rayerna.”
A plan began forming in Ada’s mind. If they were to find the flower and show Michel it existed—show his family that it was more than a fairy tale—he could grant them permission to take its petals.
“And what of the curse?” Ren asked, bringing her back to the present.
“Is there nothing more you can tell us?” Brienne finished her friend’s thoughts.
“I have shared the full prophecy as it has been told,” Nayani said. “But there is more I have seen myself in recent days. For the stars burn brightly of a girl formed from rose and flesh who will yield the ultimate sacrifice. To reach your destiny, you need her.”
“A girl formed from rose?” Lee asked. “What does that mean?”
“That, I cannot say. It is for you to figure out.” Nayani stood from her seat. The light, swirling symbols along her dark skin danced in the flickering firelight. She stood tall, her back straight. After glancing around the circle, her eyes landed on Ada. “Just remember, the truth is harsh. You must be absolutely certain this is what you want.”
“Of course it’s what we want,” Brienne said.
Beside her, Lee tensed. Ada reached over to hold his hand.
“Can you tell us anymore about the girl we need to find?” Ada asked quietly.
“No, there is nothing more to tell.” Nayani walked to the door she’d entered from and turned. “You must return to where it all began. Only then will it all come together and the key may be used.”
She retreated to her private room, and Ada glimpsed the shelves of vials and jars before the door shut. The group sat in silence, the only noise was the soft crackling of the fire. Ada turned her gaze to the dancing flames. They needed to return where it all began, but they still weren’t sure where exactly that meant. They’d se
arched parts of Rayerna, but it was a large kingdom full of possibilities.
She knew one thing though: They needed to return there to find the Heulwen before it was too late.
Shane paced in the hall before his father’s door. He ran a hand through his hair and stopped walking. Exhaustion weighed him down, and he needed to rest. But he needed answers more.
“Your Majesty, are you all right?” Concern filled the guard’s voice, and Shane knew what he was thinking. They’d all but convinced the people that his father had gone mad. The guard beside the door looked at him as if wondering if Shane had too.
Shane steeled his spine with a deep breath. Refusing to let his men see the weakness, he nodded. “I’m fine. I just need to speak to my father.”
The guard inclined his head as Shane passed him and opened the door. He’d sent in a few maids, accompanied by more guards, to clean up the mess his father had made. To his surprise, the room was still put together.
“Back so soon?” Emyr said with a sneer. He still sat in one of his high-backed chairs near the fire, and Shane wondered just how much time he spent in that seat. Guilt coursed through him, but he refused to acknowledge it. The man was his father, yes, but he’d done horrid things. He was a monster.
Grateful for the excuse to rest, Shane sat across from him. He had so many questions, but he started with, “Where is Saundra?”
“We’ve been through this,” his father said with a sigh. “I don’t know. I have nothing to do with the missing girl. That wasn’t part of my plan.”
“Surely you know something. You’re the most powerful man on this side of the world.”
“Not anymore.” His quiet words were barely audible over the crackling fire.
Shane looked closer at his father—at his slumped shoulders and the dark circles beneath his eyes. It was almost as if he’d aged a decade while contained within his rooms. Standing, Shane moved around the familiar space. As a child, his mother had often brought him in there to tell him stories. He’d never obsessed over them as his sister had, but he’d loved sitting with the queen. She loved the stories as much as Adalina, and her excitement always bled into him.
