Nightfall

by Shannon Messenger

  She grabbed Keefe from Lady Cadence, scooping him up like a baby.

  “You’re coming with us?” Lady Cadence asked.

  “Pretty sure that’s the plan—unless I missed something.” Ro glanced at her father.

  “I’m starting to think I missed something,” Lady Cadence said when Dimitar nodded.

  “Weren’t you the one who suggested a trial run?” the king asked. “It’s a bonus, really, that this also satisfies Gisela’s request.”

  “And what request is that?” Blur wanted to know.

  Dimitar’s eyes drifted to Keefe. “A bodyguard for her only son. Apparently he’s made some powerful enemies. And we need to keep him alive, so he can fulfill his legacy.”

  Thirty-four

  I THINK YOU’VE officially broken Sophie’s record for most Healing Center visits,” Elwin said as he straightened his enormous iridescent spectacles and helped Keefe sit up on the narrow cot. He’d already cleaned and dressed Keefe’s wounds and made him drink at least two dozen elixirs. “Or maybe you’ve tied her record—it’s so hard to keep up with you two. Either way, I’m going to add your photo next to hers.”

  He pointed to the wall behind them, where a picture of Sophie in her humiliating mastodon costume from the Level Three Opening Ceremonies hung in all its glory.

  “I’ve never been so proud of us!” Keefe said, holding up his hand for a high five.

  Sophie left him hanging.

  She didn’t feel like celebrating when Keefe had a thick bandage covering his shoulder and a wide band of gauze wrapping completely around his torso, starting just below his armpits and stretching to the middle of his stomach.

  Keefe winced as he lowered his arm.

  “Still tender?” Elwin asked, shaking his messy dark hair out of his eyes as he pressed gently along Keefe’s bandages.

  Keefe sucked air between his teeth. “Yeah. Just a little, though.”

  “Is that bad?” Sophie asked.

  “Not necessarily,” Elwin said. “It’s honestly what I’d expect with wounds this deep.”

  “Deep” was understating things.

  “Dimitar practically gutted him,” she grumbled, standing to pace again.

  “At least he missed anything vital,” Elwin said as he snapped his fingers and made a purple orb glow around Keefe’s torso. “I think the Panakes blossoms you gave him made a difference too.”

  “And I stole his earring,” Keefe added. “His head will always be lopsided now. You’re welcome, world!”

  He tossed the yellow stone up and caught it—then winced from the motion.

  “Hmm,” Elwin said, snapping his fingers again and changing the orb from purple to green. As a Flasher, Elwin used light to affect what his strange glasses allowed him to see.

  “What’s wrong?” Sophie asked.

  “Probably nothing.” But he frowned when he changed the orb from green to blue.

  “You found something serious, didn’t you?” Sophie asked when Elwin rifled through the satchel of medicines he kept slung across his shoulders.

  She’d been trying to console herself with the fact that Bullseye—Elwin’s pet banshee—was still sleeping on Elwin’s desk in the private-office section of the Healing Center, instead of screeching or curling up at Keefe’s side, like he would be if Keefe was in mortal danger.

  But Keefe looked so pale. . . .

  “I’m starting to think you’re doubting my abilities,” Elwin told her, handing Keefe three more elixirs in various shades of pink.

  “It’s not you,” Sophie promised. “I just wouldn’t be surprised if Dimitar laced his weapon with toxic bacteria.”

  “If my father was going to do that, your boy would already be dead,” Ro called from where she’d stationed herself near the main door to the Healing Center.

  “Oh good, I was wondering when we were going to acknowledge the armed ogre in the room.” Elwin padded over and offered a hand to shake. “And you are?”

  “Ro,” she said, side-eyeing Elwin’s outfit, which was covered in tiny golden flareadons.

  “She’s my new babysitter,” Keefe explained, wiping his mouth after chugging his medicine. “Wasn’t it sweet of my mom to get me my very own ogre?”

  “Mommy issues alert!” Ro said. “Though I get it. I met your mom once, and after about five minutes I was begging my dad to let me stomp her. But like it or not, she did you a solid by getting me assigned as your bodyguard. Those little tricks you did during the sparring match aren’t going to save you in a real battle. I trained with some of the idiots who’ve defected, and if they come after you, you’ll be dead in one slash.”

  “And your father is . . . King Dimitar,” Elwin clarified.

  She pointed to her forehead tattoos. “He’s going to owe me big-time for this. He didn’t tell me how lame it is here in elf land—though I guess I should’ve known.”

  She crinkled her nose as she glanced through the doorway at the shimmering hallway. “No offense, but what’s with all the crystal? It’s sorta desperate, don’t you think? Like oh, look at us—we’re elves, and we like light, so we make everything sparkly!”

  Elwin laughed. “It’s always fascinating to see our world from another perspective.”

  “Well, if you like honesty,” Ro said, following him over to Keefe, “it stinks here, too. Everything smells like . . .”

  “Fresh air?” Sophie guessed.

  “Awww, my girl keeps getting snarkier and snarkier,” Keefe said proudly.

  “I’m not your girl,” Sophie snapped back. “And don’t think I’m done being mad at you!”

  “Ohhh, a lovers’ quarrel!” Ro clapped her hands. “Those are my favorite. Anyone have snacks? I feel like we should have snacks for this.”

  “That’s not what this is,” Sophie told her. “We’re not . . . never mind.”

  Ro grinned, flashing pointed teeth. “If you say so.”

  “Foster’s not ready to face her feelings,” Keefe stage-whispered.

  “I’m ready to strangle you,” Sophie countered.

  “You should!” Ro said. “Or wait—am I supposed to tell you not to? I’m still not clear on how this bodyguard thing works. Like, if he’s annoying me, can I smack him around a bit as long as I don’t do permanent damage?”

  “Be my guest,” Sophie told her.

  “But not until he’s recovered,” Elwin added. “Then, by all means. Maybe you’ll finally knock some sense into him.”

  “I doubt it.” Keefe winked, but Sophie looked away.

  “By the way,” Elwin said, “am I supposed to keep Ro’s presence here a secret? Or is the Council aware that Keefe has an ogre princess protecting him now?”

  “I think Blur went to tell them,” Sophie said. “Or maybe he went to tell the Black Swan, and Lady Cadence went to tell the Council? I can’t remember.”

  She’d been so desperate to get Keefe to the Healing Center that she hadn’t paid much attention to what Blur and Lady Cadence had worked out. But there was no way they’d be able to keep Ro hidden from the Council—not if the ogre princess would be following Keefe everywhere he went.

  And not if Ro was supposed to be a trial run for a larger alliance.

  Sophie had been keeping an eye on the door, expecting twelve angry Councillors—and possibly the rest of the Collective—to come barging in for an endless shouting match. But so far, things had stayed mercifully quiet.

  “Well,” Elwin said, “just make sure Magnate Leto does an announcement before school starts, so the other prodigies are prepared to have an ogre on campus. Otherwise there’s going to be major panic. No offense to you, your Highness—”

  “Ugh, call me Ro,” she interrupted. “Titles make me itchy. And wait—I have to go to school? Gross. If I have to sit through a bunch of lectures on how brilliant you elves think you are, I might start smashing your crystal walls.”

  “Don’t worry, I spend most of my time ditching or in detention,” Keefe assured her.

  Ro grinned.
“Sounds like you and I are going to get along just fine.”

  Elwin laughed. “I’m not sure I want to know what havoc you two are going to cause together. Just promise me you’ll save the shenanigans until you’re stronger, okay, Keefe?”

  He flashed another orb around Keefe’s middle—a deep red this time—and gave his biggest frown yet.

  “There really is something wrong, isn’t there?” Sophie asked.

  “It isn’t wrong,” Elwin assured her, heading for the wall of shelves and scanning the pots and vials. “But it looks like I need to get the tissue regenerator deeper into his muscle. And to do that, I have to reopen the wound. It’s not a big deal,” he added quickly. “The seal I made is fresh, so a few drops of piquatine should do the trick.”

  “And by ‘piquatine,’ you mean . . . the stuff that melts off skin,” Sophie confirmed.

  “Coooooooooooooooool,” Ro breathed when Elwin nodded. “Can I watch?”

  “If you want to. But I think Sophie should step out to the hall. This isn’t going to hurt, but it will be . . . messy.”

  The word alone made Sophie’s head woozy.

  “Don’t look so freaked,” Keefe told her, offering a smile that didn’t match the green-gray pallor of his skin. “I was just thinking this morning—you know what would be awesome? Having my skin melted off today!”

  “How can you joke about this?” she asked.

  He shrugged—then winced—and ended with his serious eyes. “Elwin says it’s going to be fine, right?”

  “It is,” Elwin assured them. “Just give us five minutes, okay, Sophie? Use the time to hail Grady and Edaline and let them know you made it back safe.”

  Sophie wanted to argue, but then she remembered something she could use the time for. “Fine. Five minutes.”

  “Woo-hoo!” Ro said as Sophie headed for the door. “Bring on the skin melting! Things are finally getting interesting here in Sparkle Town!”

  “How about I let you hold the bowl to catch the liquefied skin?” Elwin offered, which was enough to make Sophie hurry out to the hall.

  Once the door was safely shut, she closed her eyes and stretched out her mind, calling for Silveny with all the energy she could muster.

  Seconds ticked by, and Sophie was on the brink of seriously worrying when Silveny’s energetic voice filled her mind.

  SOPHIE! FRIEND! HI!

  Hi! Sophie transmitted back. Thank goodness! I’m SO sorry I haven’t checked on you in a little while. Are you and Greyfell okay? And how’s the baby?

  GOOD! GOOD! GOOD!

  Sophie let out the breath she’d been holding. Where are you? Somewhere safe?

  SAFE! Silveny agreed, filling her mind with a picturesque scene of sweeping green hills and a trickling river with large mossy stones. It looked lush and empty—a perfect place for a pregnant alicorn to graze.

  So you guys really are okay? Sophie asked.

  OKAY! OKAY! OKAY!

  Glad to hear it. But you should probably visit soon I’m sure Vika wants to check on you and the baby.

  There was a long pause. And then Silveny told her, NO!

  No? Sophie repeated, sure she must’ve misunderstood.

  NO! VISIT! NO!

  Aw, come on I know you’re not a fan of Vika—and I don’t blame you. But she’s the one who knows the most about this stuff. And I’ll be there the whole time!

  The Heks family were experts on unicorn breeding, which was the closest the Lost Cities had to alicorn-breeding expertise.

  But Silveny kept filling her head with a never-ending chant of NO! VISIT! NO!

  Sophie puffed out a breath, not sure what to do. Silveny usually begged for a visit, and appeared the second Sophie suggested it.

  Don’t you want to see me? she asked.

  MISS! Silveny agreed.

  I miss you too. So why don’t you want to visit?

  LATER! LATER! LATER!

  How much later?

  Silveny just kept repeating, LATER!

  Sophie rubbed her head. You’re sure everything’s okay?

  OKAY! OKAY! OKAY!

  Before Sophie could ask anything else, she told her, BUSY! TALK! SOON!

  Then Silveny severed their connection.

  Thirty-five

  UNBELIEVABLE,” SOPHIE GRUMBLED as she stretched out her concentration again, trying to reconnect with Silveny.

  Her head stayed frustratingly silent.

  Silveny was clearly ignoring her—but why would she do that?

  Dozens of theories bubbled up, each more troubling than the last—until Sophie reminded herself that Silveny had assured her that she, Greyfell, and the baby were all okay. She must really be “busy”—though what a sparkly winged horse would be “busy” with, Sophie wasn’t sure.

  The most she could do at the moment was stay calm, trust Silveny’s instincts, and be much more regular about checking on the pregnant alicorn.

  The door to the Healing Center burst open then, and Elwin peeked his scruffy head out. “We’re all set. Come back in whenever you’re ready.”

  Sophie tried one more time to reconnect with Silveny before she gave up and headed inside, where she found Keefe propped against a pillow with his torso wrapped in an even thicker bandage.

  “You missed all the fun,” Ro told her. “There was ooze everywhere!”

  Sophie tried very hard not to picture it.

  “Did it fix the problem?” she asked Elwin.

  “Yes, and no,” he admitted. “This is one of those injuries that’s going to take some good old-fashioned bed rest before he’s truly back on his feet.”

  “How long?” Sophie asked.

  “I’m guessing at least a week. Maybe more.”

  “Yeah, that’s not happening,” Keefe told him.

  “You’ll regret it if you don’t,” Elwin warned. “Play this smart and the most you’ll have is a thin scar. But if you’re not careful, you could end up with nerve damage.”

  None of that sentence was good—but the scar part hit Sophie the hardest.

  Dex had a burn mark from their kidnapping. Fitz probably had some small remnant from the giant bug-impaling in Exile. And now Keefe?

  How long would it be before all her friends had some sort of permanent mark?

  “Easy, Foster,” Keefe said as Sophie’s hands curled into fists. “It’s not a big deal. It’ll make me look tough and soldier-y.”

  “He’s right,” Ro jumped in. “Scars are marks of honor. See this?” She pointed to a thick line curving down her back from the base of her neck to the dip of her breastplate, with thinner lines running along each side. “My dad gave me that the day I completed my training. It’s a scar only his sword leaves.”

  “Wow, I thought my dad was harsh,” Keefe mumbled.

  “It wasn’t harsh—it was a gift. Yeah, it didn’t feel good when he slashed me—and I totally kicked him in the teeth to make it even. But that scar tells any soldiers marching behind me that I’ve held my own against the king. It’s the mark of a leader, and it’s earned me respect I never would’ve had without it.”

  “Maybe so—but he didn’t slice up Keefe for respect,” Sophie argued. “He wanted to hurt him—and he enjoyed it.”

  “Hey,” Keefe said, grabbing her arm as she paced past him. “Need me to calm you down again? Because I can.”

  “Is that really what happened?” Sophie asked, remembering the blue breeze that blew through her mind and shut down her inflicting.

  Keefe nodded. “You were losing it, so I tried to figure out which emotion was doing the triggering. And as soon as I took your gloves and cuffs off, I synced right into your emotional center. Somehow once I was in, I knew exactly how to shift your emotions a different way.”

  “That’s . . . weird.”

  She stared at her hands, which were back in her gloves again.

  “I put them back on when you’d calmed down,” Keefe whispered. “And the cuffs are in your pocket. Wasn’t sure if you were supposed to wear them outsi
de of Ravagog.”

  “What do the gloves and cuffs have to do with anything?” Ro asked, narrowing her eyes when they both flinched. “Looks like I caught my first elf-y secret!”

  “You didn’t catch anything,” Sophie told her.

  “Riiiiiiiiiiiiight. That’s why your pulses just doubled—yeah, I can hear them. I can smell your sweat too. And I get it. I’m an ogre. My dad’s the king. And you guys have some . . . issues. But right now, I’m here to keep your boy there alive, and I can’t do that if you’re hiding things from me.”

  “Ugh, you sound like Sandor,” Sophie muttered.

  Keefe snorted. “Oh man, he is going to haaaaaaaaaaate Ro.”

  “If he’s a goblin, I’m sure the feeling will be mutual,” Ro told them. “But nice try distracting me. What’s the secret with the gloves and cuffs?”

  “It’s just a privacy thing,” Keefe said. “Foster doesn’t want me reading her feelings, because then I’d know how irresistible she finds me.”

  Ro raised one eyebrow. “That’s the best story you’ve got? Ugh. Fine. But don’t blame me if that secret costs you your life. Or a limb or two.”

  Elwin cleared his throat. “Regardless of that, you look a little pale, Sophie. So I want you to take one of these.”

  He handed her a vial filled with a deep violet liquid, and Sophie chugged it, only half-noticing that it tasted like milky rose petals.

  “Does that mean we’re done?” Keefe asked, swinging his legs around to the edge of the cot.

  “Easy,” Elwin said, blocking him from getting up. “You shouldn’t be walking.”

  “On it,” Ro said, reaching to scoop Keefe up.

  He blocked her with his elbow and stood on his own. “I’m fine. See?”

  It would’ve been a lot more convincing without the sharp breath he sucked through his teeth.

  “Go straight home,” Elwin told him. “And get in bed immediately. I’ll check on you in the morning. Where are you staying?”

  “I’d . . . rather not say.”

  Sophie shook her head. “Of course not.”

  “Hey, I wouldn’t need an ogre shadow if everyone wasn’t convinced that there are people coming after me,” he reminded her. “I’m just trying to keep you guys safe. I promise, I’ll come here for a checkup as soon as I can,” he told Elwin.