Wings of Shadow

by Nicki Pau Preto

  As soon as they were alone, Sev wrenched open the lid.

  Kade scowled out at him, bits of straw sticking to his sweaty skin. Jinx was behind him, looking equally ruffled—but Sev got the impression that now that Kade was with her, she was having fun. She chirruped brightly at the sight of him.

  Sev was oddly flustered by the gesture, the way she seemed to light up when she saw him. “How’re you doing?” he asked Kade, as Yara handed him a water canteen.

  “I’ve been better,” he said dryly, before taking a long drink.

  Jinx gave him a look that called to mind Kade’s earlier assurance that the arrangement was “not that bad.” Sev had the urge to smile again.

  “You’re going to have to stay in there for most of the day,” he said apologetically, glancing over his shoulder at the sound of voices and footsteps in the hall beyond. “We’ll be back in to check on you and bring food.”

  Kade nodded, handing Yara the empty flask.

  She reached out, but Theo stopped her. “You better keep it.”

  Kade frowned. “For what?”

  Theo shrugged. “That water’s gotta go somewhere.”

  Kade opened his mouth, then shut it, pulling a slightly mortified expression before taking the empty container back for future use.

  “I’m sorry,” Sev whispered, planting a hasty kiss on his cheek. That seemed to mollify Kade, and his expression was equal parts baleful and resigned as they shut him in once more. Behind him, Jinx chirruped again.

  Sev turned to the others. “Now what?”

  Yara led them to the small captain’s office that was currently occupied by her alone. She shut the door, and they considered how they might get into the general’s house to find out where the captives were being held.

  “His house is well guarded—there’ll be no sneaking in, and we can’t just burst out of the hidden passage in the middle of the day.”

  “We need to get word to Emma and the others so they know to be ready for us.” Emma, Sev assumed, was Theo’s friend.

  “Even if we do, we’ll probably need to wait for nightfall,” Sev said with a frown. “Otherwise, the house will be bustling with servants, and we’ll be seen.”

  “Where is the tunnel entrance?” asked Yara.

  “According to Kade, it’s in the basement,” Sev answered.

  “All the governors’ houses were built at the same time, and they follow very similar floor plans,” said Theo. “It’s safe to assume it’s the same inside the general’s house.”

  “I don’t suppose we can send a pigeon with a letter for Emma?” Sev asked, getting to his feet to pace. “Or a messenger?”

  “Too risky. We don’t know if the mail is filtered or how closely they’re watched. With General Rast gone, he might have added security measures.”

  Sev heaved a sigh. “Then there’s only one way. Through the front door.”

  * * *

  It was surprisingly simple. They had Theo change out of her soldier uniform and into regular street clothes. Then she strolled up to the front door—not of the general’s main house, but the attached building that served as the offices for the registry.

  Her business? She knew the name and location of an animage in hiding.

  “Will they recognize you?” Sev asked as Theo straightened her tunic and finger-combed her tangled hair.

  “Maybe not at first… except Emma. I think she would.” Her voice was filled with a raw, aching hope that made Sev unable to stop himself from thinking of Kade.

  He cleared his throat. “Ask for her, then. Though I suppose she’s going by Theo now. Ask for Theo—the registry enforcers are well known in the city, so it wouldn’t be unusual for an informant to know them by name—and when we cause the diversion, slip her the letter.”

  Theo had already written it, explaining everything that was happening, in case their meeting was supervised. As for the diversion, Sev and Yara planned to watch from the street and throw rocks at the window of their front meeting room. Yara had been inside the office several times on business with Lord Rolan, so she knew the layout.

  “Get out of there as quickly as you can. We’ll be waiting.”

  Theo was displaying nerves for the first time that day, her hand trembling as she took the letter and folded it into her pocket. Having seen her lie through her teeth, smuggle a phoenix, and impersonate an empire soldier for half the day, Sev knew it had nothing to do with the upcoming deception and everything to do with seeing Emma and the other prisoners again. Facing the life she had escaped and all the guilt attached to that.

  It was midafternoon when they arrived at the general’s house. Sev and Yara waited outside, watching as Theo knocked and was admitted into the registry building. They were positioned so that they had a view through the window and could see Theo sit in front of a desk with a woman facing her on the other side. Was it Emma? Sev hoped so. He didn’t want to leave anything to chance, and the others might not recognize Theo or could be suspicious of the letter.

  They edged closer and closer, waiting until Theo craned her neck, glancing their way.

  Sev already had a stone in his hand, and after aiming carefully, lobbed it over the wrought-iron fence and dense shrubbery that separated them. It landed true, colliding loudly with the wooden shutter. He ducked, peering up through the branches in time to see a guard poke his head out the window.

  They waited until he returned his attention inside the room, where Theo was nodding her goodbyes. They fled to the street and waited for her.

  “Well?” Sev prompted, as soon as she was in earshot.

  She looked clammy and pale, but nodded. “I gave it to her.”

  “Now we wait.”

  * * *

  It took longer than Sev wanted for Rolan’s household to settle down for the night, though he knew they needed to wait equally long for the general’s to do the same.

  Impatient, Sev wandered the house as innocently as he could and spent some time inside Lord Rolan’s study. There he found a locked box set into the wall behind a painting and let his curiosity get the better of him.

  Afterward, he asked Yara for her fastest pigeon and sent what he’d found to Commander Cassian at Haven.

  As soon as the servants and attendants retired after dinner, they got Kade and Jinx out of their crate and waited together with Theo inside the storage room until even the steward withdrew to her private rooms and the guards on the evening shift took up their positions at the front and back of the house.

  Sev was aware that every moment slipping away was a moment Veronyka and the others were outnumbered. He wanted to rush into the tunnel, burst into the general’s house, and make a run for the arena, but it would all be for nothing if they got caught before they’d even found the phoenixes.

  Perhaps sensing his agitation, Kade took his hand. Sev was reminded of the time on Pyrmont when he’d run away without thinking, stealing a llama—and weeks of Kade’s hard work in the process. That llama had been killed for Sev’s foolishness, and he had jeopardized Trix’s plans. He squeezed Kade’s fingers and expelled a slow, steadying breath. He was different now. Better.

  Yara popped her head into the room, and all three of them stood.

  She nodded. It was time.

  They were in the underground tunnels in minutes. Kade’s familiarity with the hidden latch and tightly winding staircase made the entire thing quick and silent. Getting Jinx inside was marginally harder—the phoenix clearly loathed the idea of entering another dark, cramped space, and Sev couldn’t blame her—but she followed Kade anyway, and Sev admired her bravery. He reached without thinking, stroking the trembling feathers of her neck and making soft, soothing noises.

  Kade whirled around, but then the door shut behind them, plunging their company into darkness. Jinx began to glow, providing much-needed light, and Kade’s confused gaze landed on Sev’s hand. He frowned, uncomprehending, and looked up into Sev’s face.

  Sev had the bizarre urge to snatch his hand away—but h
e didn’t.

  She’s as enamored of you as I am.

  Kade’s expression softened as he looked between them, and he seemed reluctant to turn his back on them when it was time to move.

  They’d studied several maps in Yara’s office to figure out the rough direction of the general’s house, and did their best to maintain that course, even as the tunnels twisted right and left and right again.

  Finally they located the correct passage, and followed it to the hidden entrance.

  They had already decided that Yara and Theo would enter the house, while Sev, Kade, and Jinx waited below in the darkness. Sev paced back and forth while Kade fiddled unnecessarily with Jinx’s saddle.

  It didn’t take long.

  The hostages filed out, tense and wary, each clutching a bundle in their arms—likely all their worldly possessions. Despite appearing like lost children at first, their eyes burned with intensity not unlike what Sev had seen in Theo’s expression when Sev promised her a chance at freeing her friend and her bondmate.

  While they appeared fit and strong and healthy, there was a guardedness about them—a hard, haunted look that made a chill run down Sev’s spine.

  That was until their gazes settled on Jinx.

  They approached her with an eagerness that made Sev wary at first. There was a fearful desperation, a hunger in them, and he had the urge to step in front of Jinx, to protect her, which was ridiculous—she was a firebird, and more than capable of taking care of herself.

  His muscles tensed anyway, and so did Kade’s next to him, but Jinx gave them both a quelling glance. Then she lowered her head for the captives to run their hands over her feathers, to stroke and whisper to her. Some of them were crying all of a sudden, while the others clenched their hands into fists after they touched her, their expressions edged in self-recrimination and guilt.

  They were Phoenix Riders, but they had spent as much—even more—of their lives being forced to hunt down and punish their own kind. Those two parts of their identities couldn’t be easy to reconcile, and Sev felt a wave of understanding wash through him. He knew what it was like to deny himself and his people, and to serve the wrong side. And he’d had far less cause than they had. They were doing it to keep their precious bondmates alive. Sev had been doing it only for himself.

  The tension in his body melted away, and instead he reached out a hand to introduce himself. They seemed startled at first, but Sev smiled, his expression earnest, and they each returned his handshake.

  “I’m Sev—animage and former empire soldier. This is Kade, Phoenix Rider and former bondservant. And this fine lady is Jinx.” She bowed her head gracefully, and the group smiled and nodded at her. “This is Yara—she’s a captain in the military and gleefully betraying her superiors as we speak.” Nothing about Yara was gleeful, but she nodded tersely at them all, and the introductions seemed to be lightening the mood. “And I think you all know Theo?”

  She was just returning to the tunnel after closing the hidden door behind her. She seemed surprised to have everyone staring at her and crossed her arms tightly over her chest.

  “You’re all grown up, Theodora,” said Clara, her voice kind.

  “How are Theresa and Thomas?” asked Joshua, who looked like the oldest of the group. “And your parents?”

  “They’re fine, from what I hear. Thomas has a daughter, and another on the way. I haven’t seen them since…” She trailed off. That’s when she noticed Emma, standing off to the side, staring at her. She held a piece of paper in her hands—the letter Theo had given to her before?

  Forgetting the others, Theo strode purposely toward her, though her steps faltered as she drew near. Theo stared at her, searching for words, then dropped down to her knees.

  She took Emma’s hand. “You shouldn’t have,” she said thickly, speaking to her palm rather than to her face.

  “You would’ve,” Emma countered, her own voice wobbling. “And I would again.”

  Theo looked up at her, eyes wide with anguish—then she wrapped her arms around Emma’s middle, forehead pressed against her stomach. It was as if Theo couldn’t bear to look at Emma, or to have Emma look at her.

  Emma bent over, murmuring quietly into Theo’s hair, urging her to stand, and Sev looked away.

  More than a few sniffles cut through the silence, but when Theo got to her feet, the atmosphere in the group changed.

  “Come on, then,” Sev said, taking the lead with Kade beside him and Jinx lighting the way. Yara brought up the rear.

  The others continued to stare at the phoenix, walking close enough to touch her feathers or chase one of her trailing sparks before fading back into the group. However they reacted, they seemed to take strength from her—to walk away with straighter shoulders and clearer eyes.

  It seemed to Sev they were coming back to themselves, as if waking from a dream—or he supposed, a nightmare—and were steeling themselves for what was to come.

  “Sometimes,” Kade whispered, watching Clara gaze at his bondmate with awe in her eyes, “I can’t believe she’s mine.”

  Sev tilted his head to consider Kade. “I know the feeling.”

  Kade flashed him a wide, startled smile, and Sev returned it.

  Since Theo’s note explained the gist of their plan, they walked mostly in silence through the underground tunnels, Kade pausing at every junction to make sure they were heading in the right direction.

  “Why now?” Emma asked abruptly, speaking to Theo. “How did this happen?”

  “The war provided a unique opportunity,” Theo said grimly. “But the tunnel idea was thanks to Sev and Kade.”

  Sev saw an opportunity. “Actually, we’re here on Veronyka’s orders,” he lied. “Veronyka Ashfire. She’s leading the Phoenix Riders now, fighting against Avalkyra and the empire.”

  Tension fell over the group. He wondered what they’d heard about the resurrected queen, the woman who had left them to their fate more than seventeen years ago. Either way, he wanted to differentiate Veronyka from her as much as possible.

  “She heard your story from one of the Haven Riders and asked us to intervene,” Sev continued. Kade and Theo were staring at him now, and he hoped they didn’t give him away.

  “So we can fight for her?” asked Joshua, his voice tight.

  Sev shook his head. “So you can fight with her. You’re Phoenix Riders, which means you’re a part of her flock. She’ll fight and die to defend you, whether you choose to fight with her or not.”

  The group fell into a thoughtful silence, and Sev flashed Kade a grin. Whatever happened once they freed the phoenixes, he wanted these people to know that Veronyka was not Avalkyra. She brought people together; she didn’t tear them apart.

  After a time, Sev noticed a member of the group walking off to the side, alone. While the others seemed to grow livelier with every step, whispering excitedly to one another or staring ahead with intense focus, he did not. He seemed listless, like a boat drifting out to sea.

  Theo noticed him too, and Emma whispered, “Aron’s phoenix went to ash. I think…” She lowered her voice even further. “I think Aron had given up, and so his phoenix did too. That was after his brother, Adam… They were twins, you see, and Rast liked to pit them against each other. I only need one, he’d say, over and over. And then Adam finally snapped, turning against Rast, and…”

  Sev looked at Aron again and realized that he alone had not approached Jinx… had not even looked at her.

  They reached a juncture in the tunnel that had a narrow offshoot with stairs leading straight up. It went into another, secondary passage that led to the street. Yara checked the tunnel quickly and nodded that it was safe.

  Theo stopped and took Emma’s hand. “Go up there and get word to your family. I… I didn’t dare tell them you were alive in case I was wrong.”

  “I’ll go too,” said Aron. He looked miserable, but also somewhat relieved, as if he would rather face his family and the empire’s politicians than the empt
y cell where his bondmate had once been. “My parents… They need to know about Adam. About everything.”

  “Tell them to contact all our families,” said Theo. “Now that you’re free, they’re free to act against him. He might have thought himself clever to get them under his thumb, but he didn’t consider the other side of that coin—how unwise it would be to piss them off.”

  Aron nodded and marched off alone, into the darkness of the passage outside Jinx’s light, leaving the others to call out their goodbyes.

  Emma, meanwhile, was hugging Theo tightly. “Don’t do anything stupid,” she whispered.

  Theo had her usual gruff expression in place, though it seemed false and put-upon. “You know I always do.”

  “I’m not kidding.”

  Theo swallowed, glancing at Sev and the others. “I won’t. I promise.”

  “Does anyone else want to go?” Sev asked as Emma followed Aron into the dark. “There will likely be danger ahead—here, and once we get outside. You’ll probably have to fight.”

  They looked at each other, and it was a moment before anyone spoke.

  “I have been waiting seventeen years to be able to fight,” said Dane, the youngest of the group, his voice eager and energetic. “If there is danger, if there is fighting—I am ready for it.”

  Nods and murmurs of agreement followed his proclamation. Even Jinx stood tall and proud, chest puffed out.

  Sev wondered if their tune might change once they were reunited with their bondmates. It didn’t matter. They deserved their freedom, whatever they chose to do afterward, and it was their best chance at helping Veronyka and the others.

  He had to try.

  But if one focuses on the differences alone, it is only a matter of time before sister fights sister.

  Before your victory becomes her loss.

  - CHAPTER 53 - VERONYKA

  HEART RACING AND BLOOD thundering in her ears, Veronyka strode to the general and withdrew her dagger. She held it out between them—not close enough to touch him, but the threat was plain.