by Skye Horn
He winced at first, then looked at her with guarded eyes. “If you argue with me about this, I will smack you,” she warned.
Even though her tone was serious, she saw the corner of his lips pull up just slightly and it lightened the weight in her chest.
She had no idea why she cared at all about these two men, but no matter how hard she fought it, she cared too much.
“Who did this to you?” Thea asked. “It’s obvious you didn’t just run into a tree. The cut is too clean.
“You think I’d run into a tree?” Adrian asked, sounding offended. Thea heard Caden stifle his laughter behind her, but all she did was shrug with a tiny smile as Adrian shook his head. “We can talk about that later. I actually came here because I found someone.”
“Who?” Caden asked, coming to join Thea. She could feel the heat of Adrian’s body so close to hers and forced herself to control the urge to examine him at this proximity. She didn’t get the chance often, but now that she had it, she found herself a bit mesmerized by the dark line that encircled his hazel eyes.
“She says her name is Haven.”
Thea nearly dropped the handkerchief as she gasped out, “Where is she?”
“I’ve made her wait beyond the castle walls. I couldn’t exactly have her in the castle dressed as she was, but she’s quite a—”
“I wouldn’t finish that sentence if I were you,” Thea warned, but she couldn’t keep the smile from her face.
Haven was here. Haven had come for her. But why? Her smile faltered a little. If Haven had come, did that mean there was more bad news? Why wasn’t she with Iris and the others?
Worry surged through Thea as quickly as the happiness had. “I need to speak with her.”
“I figured you’d say that, but Thea, you’re going to make my wound worse if you press any harder.” Adrian’s voice was teasing, but Thea immediately dropped her hand from his neck, letting him hold the handkerchief himself, and blushed.
Caden nudged her side and asked, “Who is Haven?”
There were so many possible answers to that question. Thea could say Haven was her best friend, or her lead guard, or a loyal protector. All of them would be true, but she had to be smart about what she told them.
“Haven is the leader of Thea’s guard,” Adrian explained before Thea could think of an answer. Her eyes widened in surprise. “I saw her tattoo. Plus, she’s a chatty one.”
He shrugged his shoulders and Thea tilted her head. “You knew she was the leader of my guard and you brought her anyway?”
This made Adrian’s cheeks flush darker. It was a cute look on him that Thea did her best to ignore. She needed to focus on Haven now and whatever news she brought, but if Morrigan found out she was here, who knew if Thea would be allowed to see her? She needed to see her now.
“Take me to her, please, Adrian.”
The pleading in her voice surprised even her, but Adrian nodded his head. “We need to hurry. Caden, are you coming?”
“Of course I am!” He scoffed and hooked his arm with Thea’s, smiling. For once, she didn’t have the urge to shake him off. Instead, she leaned into his touch for comfort. Adrian eyed them with suspicion but said nothing about their new closeness.
“Okay, let’s go, then.”
He walked past them away from the door and Thea followed him with her eyes, confused. “Where are you going?” she asked.
“There’s a passageway. Come on,” Caden explained, tugging her after Adrian, who didn’t bother to answer.
A moment later they stood in front of a large hanging banner. Adrian cast one glance around before he pulled the heavy material aside and motioned Thea and Caden forward. To her surprise, there was a small crack in the stone wall, just large enough for each of them to slip through. Thea had a slightly more difficult time maneuvering her wings, but once she was inside, the space opened up into a narrow passageway. There was no light, but she focused, letting her eyes adjust to the darkness surrounding them.
“Ready?” Adrian whispered.
“How many of these are there?” Thea asked in astonishment. She could reach up and touch the damp ceiling, and the walls brushed against her wings as she moved, but it was clear someone had made these passageways for a reason. She wondered when her companions had discovered them and what they’d used them for in the past, but there was no time to ask. Adrian had already disappeared into the darkness. His feet were light as feathers against the damp ground while Thea’s thunked loudly with each step she took.
Caden gave her a slight nudge and she quickened her steps to catch up with Adrian, air rushing past her lips as they wound down corridor after corridor. Despite her earlier arguments about being well enough to train, she felt the ache in her bones now. She would never admit it out loud, but she was glad that Adrian had not allowed her to continue her training this morning. For one, if he had, he may have never found Haven.
Her heart raced with both anticipation and nervousness. She’d missed Haven desperately, but what would her friend think of what she’d done back in Ivandor? Would she call her a coward for running away like that? Her stomach twisted miserably at the thought.
As they headed farther away from the library, Thea could not keep track of how many other passageways they passed, but she was sure that they must go all throughout the castle. Did they run between the walls? She wondered if Ivandor had similar secret passageways.
“Almost there,” Caden whispered, startling her in the silence. She wanted to turn and smack him, but the corridors had narrowed and now she was stuck tucking her wings at an odd angle to get through. Apparently these passageways had not been created with the winged Fae in mind.
They turned three more corners before they came to a dead end and stopped. Thea looked around for whatever door they would use to get out but saw none. Immediately, she began to panic. Had they led her in here for some other reason? Maybe they weren’t taking her to see Haven at all. She turned a little and grazed her wings along the wall painfully, letting out a slight whimper and stepping on someone else’s foot.
“Ouch!” Adrian snapped, and Thea was glad it was dark enough that he couldn’t see her blush. “What are you doing?”
“Why are we stopping?” she asked, trying to hide the panic from her voice. She didn’t know if she’d be able to fight in such a close space, but she’d definitely try if they were attempting to get rid of her.
You have major trust issues, the rational voice in her head that had been absent as of late said, but she ignored it. Of course she had trust issues. She’d been betrayed too many times.
“We need you to open the door,” Caden whispered, seeming to sense her discomfort. He placed a hand on her shoulder, and she controlled her reaction to the best of her ability, not wanting to jump out of her own skin.
“What door? I don’t see anything.”
“That’s because you need to use magic.” Adrian sighed and suddenly his hand was around hers. She fought the urge to rip her fingers away from his as he tried to guide her arm forward. The corridor was hardly wide enough for one person, let alone two and wings.
“What are you doing?” She asked.
His fingers were rough against her soft skin, and they trembled slightly as he moved her palm to touch the stone of the wall. She was close enough to him to feel his frantically beating heart, but there was no time to think about whatever was troubling him. He guided her fingers over a long crack in the stone that Thea hadn’t been able to see, even with her Fae abilities. As she traced it, she realized it was lined in the shape of a door.
“We can’t use elemental magic, but you can,” Adrian explained, pressing his back against the wall to give her more space. Her wings brushed against his chest as she maneuvered around him, and she couldn’t help the shiver that trembled across her skin. It infuriated her more than the uncomfortably tight corridor.
Adrian seemed to sense her discomfort and stumbled to the side, colliding with Caden, who cursed as Adrian stepped on hi
s toes.
Finally free to breathe, Thea placed both hands against the doorway and frowned, wondering if she’d even have the strength to perform any type of magic.
If Haven was on the other side, she needed to at least try.
“How does it open?” she asked, tracing her fingers along the groove in the stone. It was definitely a door, and a heavy one at that. No normal person could have pushed it open, but with a little magical assistance, she imagined she could do what was being asked of her.
“Just shift the rock,” Caden explained. His tone was reassuring, as if he had no doubt she could do what he was asking. “It should push outward.”
Thea still didn’t understand why Adrian and Caden hadn’t been taught elemental magic. If she could practice the magic Morrigan was teaching her, it only seemed logical that they could practice the magic that Kieran had trained her in. Maybe with just a little bit of practice.
The thought of Kieran sent a dull ache through Thea where their missing connection had been. She’d never thought of the way she constantly felt him, even when he wasn’t there, but now it was noticeably different. She wanted to cry even thinking about it, but instead, she just steadied her hand against the stone, closing her eyes. She could feel the life of the earth beneath her feet and the way the grooves of rock had settled together over the years without sunlight. The stone was damp against her palms, cooling her skin.
Closing her eyes, Thea focused on the connection to the earth below. Pushing the rock outward with air magic would not be enough. She knew she’d need an extra boost. She inhaled sharply, letting the tingle of magic warm her veins until she felt it spreading toward her feet. At the same time, she conjured the wind. It was one of the first things Kieran had taught her to do, and doing it now made her miss him even more. The breeze ruffled her feathers as it picked up and pushed against the place at which she directed it on the wall. A low whistle echoed around them as the small passageway was filled with warm gusts. Her breathing quickened and she bit down on her cheek as her heart began to race. Even the simplest spells were hard now that Ainé fought against her every step of the way. She knew that the magic had been a gift, but now, without the Goddess’ support, it was much more difficult to control, as if she’d never been trained at all.
Realizing she was losing control, Thea dug her fingernails into the stone, feeling them crack under pressure, and focused on the earth beneath her feet. She could sense the ancient roots below the soil, and although they’d been dead for ages, they responded to her call, bursting forth from the ground against the base of the stone door.
Thea released a breath and opened her eyes just as Adrian gasped and jumped back. A root had flung up just beneath his feet. There was a string of curses Thea had never heard before from Adrian, and a deep chuckle from Caden, but she focused as the sweltering magic traveled from her fingertips into the soles of her feet.
“Goddess above…” Adrian said in a whoosh of breath as tremors shook their surroundings. He’d seen her use of magic before, but she imagined it was different being this close as the stone began to shift outward. At first, there was only the smallest glimmer of light between the cracks of the door. Droplets of sweat dampened Thea’s forehead as she pressed her palms harder against the stone, giving it a powerful shove with the force of the wind behind her.
“Just a little farther…” Thea told herself as her body began to tremble. The stone was heavy, and who knew how long it had been since it’d been moved, but her determination was stronger than the rock. No matter how much the magic weighed on her, she needed to see Haven.
Finally, the rock moved away and Thea smiled at her own accomplishment.
“Well done!” Caden patted her on the shoulder, causing her to jump. “Sorry!”
Thea looked toward Adrian, who despite his attempt at hiding it was looking impressed, and smiled at him. Adrian had done something selfless today, and Thea wouldn’t forget it. He could have easily never told Thea that he’d found Haven. Or he could have reported it to her uncle or Morrigan, but instead, he’d come straight to her. That was something she vowed to herself to repay someday.
“Thea?” a familiar voice called from beyond the doorway. Thea’s heart thudded more quickly as she stared at the opening. Whatever news Haven brought, she needed to be ready for it.
The problem was, she didn’t think she’d ever be able to overcome the guilt she felt now.
Chapter 13
“I’m here,” Thea said quietly, unable to force her feet to take her beyond the castle wall. She’d practically run here to find Haven, but now she felt frozen in place. Thoughts of what her friend might possibly say haunted her. She imagined the blame Haven might place on her for running away from Ivandor—or worse, for Ethel’s death. How could she face that? How could she face Haven?
“Please come out,” Haven said, her voice strained as if she were fighting back tears. The muscles in Thea’s chest felt tight. Just a few steps and she would be with someone she trusted, someone she loved—part of the family she’d built here in Faerie. She just needed to take the steps.
Thea could feel Caden and Adrian’s watchful gazes as she stared at the opening in the wall, but neither of them spoke. It was surprising, since they never seemed to stop speaking otherwise. The silence was worse than their usual teasing.
You can’t hide forever, she told herself, realizing she was not only hiding from Haven but from her own guilt. She couldn’t bury it for the rest of her life. She needed to deal with the fact that Ethel was gone and Kieran was gone, and everything they’d fought for felt like it was gone too. There wasn’t a clear answer to what they were supposed to do next, but she knew she had to do something, and that started with facing her fear.
“I’m coming,” Thea finally said, squeezing through the crack in the door slowly and blinking into the daylight outside. They were somewhere to the side of the castle that was bordered by forests. Overgrown bushes had been pulled from the ground as Thea had opened the door. Now their roots stuck into the air through the snow, fresh dirt turning into mud around them.
The instant Thea was out of the castle a set of slender, toned arms wrapped around her, pulling her into a tight embrace that made her already aching body burn, but she didn’t pull away. Instead, Thea sank into Haven’s arms, burying her face against the other girl’s shoulder and closing her eyes.
“I’m so sorry,” Thea said, voice trembling as Haven rested her head against the top of Thea’s hair.
“You have nothing to apologize for,” Haven responded immediately, but Thea was already shaking her head. Everything she’d been burying inside was threatening to make its way to the surface, but there were things she needed to ask Haven first, important things that a queen would need to know.
Slowly, Thea pulled back to look Haven in the eyes, trying not to cry as she saw the dark circles beneath that lined her face.
“Why are you here, Haven?” Thea examined the rest of her friend, searching for any signs that she’d been injured during the fight or on her journey here, but aside from the telling signs of exhaustion, Haven looked well. She was dressed in the armor Thea had last seen her in, fully decorated in weapons, one of which was Thea’s bow and quiver of arrows.
“King Aragon has been captured,” Haven said, eyes darkening. “We fought to get as many of the villagers to the safety of Gimmerwich’s walls before they arrived, but it wasn’t enough. Grimwalde has been overrun.”
Thea chewed on her bottom lip and began pacing, forgetting the ache in her muscles as she thought of her great-godfather and his people. “And Iris?”
“Iris remains with the rest of your council and the Queen’s Guard while Mica has returned to his mother under my orders.” Haven’s eyes followed Thea’s every movement, but she could not stop. She needed to think of what she would do next. If Grimwalde and Ivandor were now under Ainé’s control, that only left Gimmerwich and Blackmire, but they would never fight side by side.
She groaned in
frustration, and Haven caught her by the wrist to stop her pacing.
“Thea—”
“Don’t,” Thea warned, glaring now as the anger rose within her. If she had been there, perhaps she could have stopped them from taking over Grimwalde. Perhaps she could have helped the king after everything he’d done for her. “I should have been there with you.”
“You did the right thing. If they’d captured you, who knows what Kier—”
Haven stopped abruptly, but Thea met her gaze, knowing the emptiness her own eyes held.
“Kieran would have killed me. I should have died in Ivandor.”
Haven fell silent, but Thea continued. “She died because of me. How am I supposed to live with that?”
Tears swelled in Thea’s eyes but she didn’t look away as Haven laced her fingers through hers. “She did what any of us would have done to protect you, and now you need to honor her choices by making this second chance you’ve been given mean something.”
“How, though?” Thea asked, letting the tears fall freely down her cheeks. She was well aware of Caden and Adrian listening to every word they said, but knew better than to think they would give them any sort of privacy. It didn’t matter anymore anyway. Adrian had risked everything to let Thea see Haven; she needed to allow herself to trust him, at least a little, because of that. “How do I make her death mean something when the person who killed her…”
She couldn’t finish the sentence but Haven pulled her into another hug before her sobbing could start. Thea’s chest constricted, fighting against the impending panic attack.
“Have you seen him?” she whispered.
“Yes. With Ainé, during the attack.”
Thea swallowed, mouth feeling dryer than normal, and nodded her head. “Of course. Did he look different?”
She didn’t know why she was asking such ridiculous questions. Who cared what he looked like? But Haven gave her a sad smile that said she understood. “Don’t worry about him, okay?”
A small laugh escaped Thea’s lips, knowing that was impossible, but she nodded her head anyway.
