When he straightens up his eyes are dry.
“Wade?” Ry asks.
For some reason, he looks at me. “The Duskers are going to pay for this.”
✽✽✽
Unlike the stories and laughter that helped pass the time before, now, we’re silent. Sal’s loss weighs on us all. Some of us sneak glances at Wade, who is staring straight ahead without seeing.
We all know we need to keep moving. Sal’s last order was for us to continue on, to complete the mission. Still, it feels wrong to move forward when our leader is gone.
“Here.” Wade thrusts something into my hands as we walk. “Sal would want you to have this back now.”
I look down at Brice’s map. A bloody fingerprint is smeared across the edge. I want to say something comforting to Wade, but I know from experience there’s nothing I can say to make what happened any less awful.
“He really loved you,” I say after a long pause.
Wade gives me a short nod and then turns his gaze toward the mountains. “He was my whole family.”
“No, he wasn’t.” Ry moves to loop her arm through Wade’s. She looks at him, unabashed, as tears continue to stream down her face. “I’m your family, too,” she tells him.
Ry wraps her arms around Wade as his shoulders begin to heave. It’s a private moment, and I know I should look away. But the sight of them like that makes me ache for my mother. Ry holds Wade the way my mother did every time a Dweller said something cruel to me.
Even five years later, knowing I’ll never see her again leaves me with an aching heart and an emptiness that steals my breath away.
✽✽✽
After a sleepless high day, we’re back to the slow, laborious climbing.
We clamber up the steep mountainside, catching each other as rocks slip beneath our feet and send us sliding backward. Someone makes a wry joke about wishing we had the glide to get us up the mountain, but no one has the heart to laugh.
I look back to where the mound of rocks covering Sal is no longer visible. There’s a flash of color as something moves behind a rock. I stop walking.
But when I blink, there’s nothing. I shake my head. Lack of water is making me imagine things.
At lowest day, we reach a ledge protected from the sun by an overhanging rock wall. A stream trickles through the first bit of greenery we’ve seen in days. There’s a spacious cave nearby, built deep into the mountainside. We all agree we won’t find a better place to rest before the last steep part of the climb.
We sling our packs down on the hard ground. While the others are stripping off their cloaks, I step out to the edge of our shelter. My gaze is pulled down to the rocks below. Something is moving.
A hint of a gray cloak is visible before it disappears behind a boulder.
“Duskers!” Wade and I yell at the same time.
CHAPTER 30
The Duskers are using the tall rocks and sparse trees for cover, so it’s impossible to tell their number. I pace back and forth at the edge of the summit as I wait for a target.
The glimmer of a sword shines up from behind a boulder.
“Fire at will!” Ry calls to the small group of archers surrounding her.
It takes only a few moments before all of our archers’ remaining arrows are spent.
There is no sign of movement below us.
“Did we get them?” Ry peers down.
The Solguards grow restless as they pace along the summit’s edge, weapons in hand.
“Scouts need to go down and report back,” Jarosh says.
“You go down there if you’re so keen,” one of the scouts retorts.
“I’ll go.” Wade ends the argument.
“No.” I grab Wade’s arm. “It’s too dangerous.”
“What do I care.”
The deadened look in Wade’s eyes makes my heart clench. I know what it’s like, I want to tell him.
Before I can stop him, Wade drops beneath the ledge of the cliff. I move to follow him, but Jarosh puts a hand on my shoulder. “Your sling will be more use to him from up here,” he points out.
Knowing Jarosh is right, I kneel down to peer over the ledge. It’s too steep for me to see Wade, but I can hear the loose stones crumbling away from the sheer rock wall as he descends.
Minutes go by. And then more time passes.
I start to fidget. The others guess at how many Duskers there might have been and which archer killed the most. I ignore them, my eyes fixed on the spot where Wade disappeared.
What’s taking him so long?
Everyone stops talking at the sound of feet scrambling on rocks.
“Wade? Is everything okay down there?” Ry calls down.
The top of Wade’s head appears. I step forward to pull him up, but as soon as I bend down, a different voice snarls, “Everyone back up.”
A curved blade is pressed against Wade’s neck. The hand is covered in a Dusker’s gray cloak. The Dusker uses Wade as a shield against an attack from our company as they make the last of the climb up to the knoll.
Wade’s expression is full of a dark fury. The Dusker’s face is hidden in the shadow of his gray hood. When he speaks, his voice is muffled.
“Where is the man I am looking for? Where is my spy?”
We all look at each other uncertainly. Spy? What is he talking about?
And then I remember…the Duskers hiding in the mountains. They knew we’d be there, and the only way they could possibly have known was if….
“Come now,” the Dusker speaks into the silence. “I come from Malarusk. If you do not reveal yourself, you will die with the rest of these fools.” He points at the rocks below us. “My army waits for my signal.”
I start at the feeling of steel against my neck. I look down to see a droplet of blood snake its way down to the collar of my cloak.
“Gorgoran, what the hell?!” Wade strains against the blade pressed against his own throat.
Gorgoran steps around from behind me, twisting the blade so the tip is poking the back of my neck. In his other hand, Gorgoran holds up a Dark God pendant.
“I am the one you seek.” His squinty eyes dart from the Dusker to me. “You are right on time.” His lip curls in a twisted smile.
“But you’re a Solguard,” Jarosh says.
I can’t turn my head to look at him, but I can hear the betrayal in Jarosh’s voice.
“Fools,” Gorgoran sneers. “Did you think you could defeat the Duskers? Not even Jadem can protect you now.”
“What have you done?” Wade’s voice is strangled.
“You made it just so easy for me,” Gorgoran gloats, pressing the point of his dagger deeper into my flesh. “Didn’t you ever wonder how the Duskers knew where you were…always seemed to be one step ahead?
“They knew because I told them,” he answers his own question, cackling. “I have also kept them informed about the goings on in Jadem’s little cave fortress, for which they have paid handsomely.”
“Why?” Ry yells. Spit flies from her mouth.
Gorgoran’s smile widens. “They have promised me something of great value.”
Gorgoran steps closer to me. He draws the point of his blade along the edge of my throat and down the front of my shirt. He leans in and flicks his pink tongue over his fleshy lips. When I wince and jerk away, he laughs.
He moves to stand in front of me as he moves his dagger lower. “How’d you like—”
Before Gorgoran can finish, the Dusker throws off his cloak and hurls his knife in a single motion.
There is a deafening shriek. Gorgoran clutches at the hilt of the curved dagger that is stuck in the back of his neck. Droplets of blood bead up along the blade’s edge.
Gorgoran takes several steps backward, teetering on the cliff’s edge. He waves his hands in front of him as though trying to grasp some invisible railing. His stunned eyes pass over me once before he topples backward off the cliff.
For a moment, no one moves. It’s like time is standi
ng still.
And then we all squeeze onto the ledge to watch Gorgoran’s body tumble down the sheer rock wall. He utters one more piercing cry before his body hits a boulder. A plume of thick dust rises into the air.
“I have to imagine that cleared up a mystery or two.”
I recognize the voice that is no longer muffled by the Dusker’s uniform.
“Dayne?!”
My friend and traveling partner stares back at me. He wears a heavy cloak the same blue color as mine. The gray uniform of the Duskers lies in a heap beside him.
Dayne’s graying hair is dark with sweat. The wrinkle in his forehead is more pronounced, making him look older, but he is otherwise the same as when we parted.
All thoughts of Gorgoran flee from my mind. Dayne is safe. He’s here. I feel safe in a way I haven’t since we left Jadem’s fortress.
I want to throw my arms around him, demand to know where he’s been. I want to tell him I never want him to leave again. But already, there is a chorus of voices.
“How did you know about Gorgoran? How did you find us? Is there really an army of Duskers waiting for us?”
Dayne holds up a hand to stop the flurry of questions. “I happened on a party of Duskers.” His scowl deepens the crease on his forehead. “The scout I captured told me about the Solguard spy. I did the figuring and knew it would be all of you who turned up.”
“There were at least a hundred of them and dozens more archers in the mountains,” Ry says. “How did you get past them?”
“I impersonated the scout I captured,” Dayne says. “But by now, they’ll know their scout isn’t returning and they’ll be after us. We need to get moving.”
“Will you stay with us now?” There is undisguised hope in my voice.
The rest of the company echoes my pleas for Dayne to stay and lead us now that Sal is dead.
Dayne makes no promises, nor does he answer any of the dozens of questions that fly from all sides. Instead, he says, “We need to get moving. I wasn’t lying about other Duskers being close by.”
For the first time since we lost Sal, everyone in the company is in agreement.
“Did you take care of your errand?” I ask Dayne as we walk.
“To a degree,” he says.
“I’m glad you’re here.”
Dayne stops walking and turns to look at me. When he smiles, I notice the dark circles under his eyes.
“Dayne,” panic creeps into my voice at a new thought. “Gorgoran said Jadem couldn’t protect the Solguards anymore.”
“Indeed.” His face is grim.
“Do the Duskers know….” I trail off, the horrible truth of what Gorgoran has done sinking in.
Dayne gives a short nod. “He told them everything. By now, every Dusker in Malarusk knows the location of Solis.”
CHAPTER 31
Aunt Jadem…Wokee….
It’s only the thought of Brice, imprisoned in Tanguro and surrounded by monsters, that keeps me from sprinting all the way back to warn them. That, and the party of Duskers not far behind us, courtesy of Gorgoran. According to Dayne, there are at least a hundred of them—and they would pick us off one by one if we tried to go back down the mountain. There is no other choice but to keep moving forward.
The pain from Sal’s passing is less raw now that Dayne is here, which leaves room for new worries. My mind is torn between thinking ahead to what we’ll find at Tanguro, and the danger Solis is in now that its location is exposed.
During the high day, we sit in silence, each lost in our own thoughts about those we’ve left behind. The travel cave is large with many alcoves, and one by one, the soldiers drift away from the fire to find a spot for themselves. Dayne takes Brice’s map from me and disappears, muttering about needing to plan our route without unsolicited advice. Soon, Wade, Ry, and I are the only ones still sitting by the fire.
“They’ll be okay,” Ry says. “Jadem knew it would happen eventually. She’s been preparing for this.”
She looks at us for confirmation. Neither Wade nor I speak.
I hate feeling so helpless. I can’t stand the thought of Jadem and Wokee and the rest of the Solguards being in danger, and being unable to help. Wade and Ry look miserable, and I know they’re having similar thoughts.
Is this what it’s like to be a Solguard…to feel a responsibility not just for the people you love, but to want to make life better for everyone?
I stare at the tattoos on the back of Ry and Wade’s hands. The center of the sun begins as a spiral, curling outward into elegant black rays. It’s almost hypnotizing.
“It’s beautiful,” I say.
Ry follows my gaze to the marks on her hand.
“It represents everything the Duskers fear. It’s the only thing in this world with more power than them.”
“I want to join the Solguard.” I put words to the thought that has been churning around in my mind ever since Sal’s death. “After everything that’s happened….” I can’t finish the sentence. I look from Ry to Wade. “I want to help.”
My whole life, I’ve been separate and apart from everything and everyone around me. I want to be a part of something bigger, something more.
“All you have to do is—” Ry begins, but Wade interrupts her.
“You don’t know what you’re asking,” he says. “The Duskers will kill anyone with the Solguard mark on sight.”
“My eyes are more recognizable than your marks,” I argue. “They would kill me on sight with or without the tattoo.”
“She’s got a better chance of surviving all of this than the rest of us,” Ry points out.
I think about Wokee and Aunt Jadem. “I have as much reason to fight them as anyone.” I take a breath to calm myself. “And I want to fight them as one of you.”
After a brief glance at Wade, who shrugs, Ry says, “If you’re sure, you’ll have to swear allegiance to the guardians of the sun and swear to fight for freedom from the Duskers.”
“I’m sure.”
“It’s for the rest of your life,” Wade tells me, his golden eyes burning with the intensity of his words. “You can never stop being a Solguard.”
I nod. I want this.
For a long moment, no one speaks.
“And the tattoo?” I press. “How is it done?”
“It’s powdered blackwood mixed with water and ash.” Ry shrugs her shoulders. “If there was a blackwood tree around, I could do it now.”
Before she has even finished speaking, I’m rummaging through my pack. I pull out the stub of blackwood pencil I’ve been carrying since I left the Subterrane and hand it to her.
“The mark won’t fade,” Wade tells me. “You’ll never be able to go back to the Subterrane territory.”
“My parents are both dead; there’s nothing left for me there. But I can help the Solguards.”
“It’s fitting in a way,” Ry says as she crushes the pencil against a stone. “Unlike the rest of us, the sun can’t hurt you.” She adds a few drops of water to the powder to make a kind of paste.
As she works, I think about my father, loyal servant to the Duskers. What would he think if he could see me now? Would he think me brave? Foolish? A traitor?
When the paste is ready, Ry heats the blade of a dagger in the blue part of the fire. She rolls the tip of the blade in the blackwood paste and presses my palm flat against the ground in the light of the fire.
“This will hurt,” she warns.
“Just don’t get any of my blood on you,” I tell her.
The first cut makes me bite down hard on the inside of my cheek. Black spots dance across my vision as Ry carves the black swirls into my hand and down my fingers. Blood fills the cuts.
I don’t look at Wade. I don’t want him to see the tears leaking from my eyes.
“Do you want me to stop?” Ry’s face swims in and out of focus.
I shake my head as I let out an unsteady breath. “Just get it done with.”
A steady pressure moves
to my back, making the pain a little less biting.
“You’re doing great, Hemera.” Wade’s baritone comes close to my ear.
My vision is too hazy for me to see, but I think it’s his hand on my back offering silent reassurance as Ry’s blade scrapes deeper into my flesh.
What must be minutes seems to take hours. When Ry is finished, and the feeling that I’m going to be sick starts to pass, I inspect the bloody lines that cover my hand.
“Welcome to the Solguard,” Ry smiles.
CHAPTER 32
I sleep badly. The pain in my hand changes from a roar to a nagging, pulsing ache that is inescapable.
When the activity of others packing their belongings wakes me, I hold up my hand to the flickering candlelight to inspect the damage.
“Wow!” Ry grabs my wrist as she peers at the marking. “It’s healed.”
The skin around the elegant swirls is still red and angry, but the deep cuts are gone.
“Watch out Duskers,” Ry winks at me. “Here comes the Bisecter.”
I almost laugh at loud. When she says it like that, being what I am starts to feel like the gift my aunt said it was. I look down when I realize I’m grinning like a fool.
We follow the narrow cliff until the ground levels out. We round a cluster of tall boulders before taking our first steps onto the other side of the mountain. I suck in my breath at the sight.
The land that sprawls between the mountains and Tanguro is nothing like the bleak, stony terrain we climbed to reach the mountaintop. The slopes leading down are a tangle of wild, unfamiliar trees of every shape and color. At least a dozen shades of red, purple, and green dot the slope leading down to the valley.
I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s like something out of one of my mother’s stories, where everything was shinier and brighter than it is in the real world. Except this place is real.
“It’s beautiful,” I breathe, not even wanting to blink and lose a single moment of staring at the vibrant colors melting together on the other side of the mountain.
Bisecter Page 19
