by Jane Henry
A door to the left is ajar, so I push it open. Beyond, I hear something, a sort of grunting and murmuring. I grasp the hilt of my sword, prepared to take action if my bride is in danger. At first, I see nothing. My instincts are on high alert. Something has happened to my wife, right here under my very nose, and I must find her. My desire to punish her fades, and my natural inclination to keep her safe and under my protection once again surfaces.
I must find her.
I want to shout her name, turning over every rock and razing every tree or structure in my path, until I find her. Is she hurt? And what is that humming I keep hearing?
In front of me lies a pathway to the greenhouse, well hidden behind vibrant green bushes. They obscure my vision, but as I walk toward them, the murmuring fades. Shaking my head, I turn back toward the castle. The noise increases in volume. My heart is tapping, a steady rhythm that increases in tempo as I continue to search everywhere. Where is she? And what is that noise? My brothers wait inside. I could rally them and activate a search party, if necessary. But she may have left of her own accord, and Aldric’s admonition to teach her to obey me rings in my ears.
Behind the green bushes, I see a stone bench, beneath it, a wriggling form. Is it an animal? But no.
Drawing closer, I see it is a human, bound and gagged. My pulse races. Is it Svali?
I run until I reach the bench and drop to one knee. I can see now it is a man, much larger than Svali. I pull him out, and my heart sinks as I remove the gag.
Tamar, the one and only guard I put on Svali.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Svali
The vials I have hidden in my pouch jingle against my hip as I run. My time is short. The moment my husband realizes I have escaped, he will catch me and punish me. I will not be able to go to my mother and save her.
While my husband was in deep conversation with the other warriors, I pretended symptoms of distress, clutching my stomach and moaning. Tamar appeared concerned, but said nothing. He was, after all, told to not allow me out of his sight. When I doubled over and told him I was going to be sick and didn’t want to disgrace myself in front of the warriors, he quickly opened the door that led to the garden, telling me he would accompany me and inform Idan I needed a doctor.
I did not give him the chance.
The minute he turned his back to me, as he shut the door, I attacked. I hated hurting him, but it had to be done. One swift blow to his temple, and he fell. I bound his wrists, and as he was barely conscious, I made him go to the furthest end of the garden. There, I instructed him to lie under the bench where he would not be seen, and I gagged him so he could not scream when he came to his senses. I knew he would be found, and I would answer for it, but I needed just a small window of time where I could do what I needed to.
I went with haste to the dispensary, stealing what remedies that would help, and took what I could, choosing the most potent medication that would stop fever and nausea. I grabbed the vials, put them in a pouch I slung across my shoulders, and raced to the portal. I had to get to my mother.
I walk now amidst the trees of the forest, trying with all my might to move quickly, but quietly, so that I do not arouse suspicion. It is only a short distance up ahead now. When I am but a few yards away, a great commotion goes up behind me, and I hear shouts and the pounding of feet.
No.
They have found Tamar bound and gagged.
I run.
Just paces away from the portal, the thunder of horses’ hooves meets my ears. I place my palm on the portal access, turning to look behind me, and what I see astounds me. Idan, on horseback, on the move.
My stomach clenches as he fades from view.
⊱⟢⋯⟣⊰
I arrive on Kleedan shortly thereafter, my eyes not yet adjusted to the inky darkness. If I can only get to the house, it will be much more difficult for them to find me. They cannot ravage the home of every single Kleedian in pursuit of just me. As soon as I’ve gotten my bearings, I run, the pouch at my hip clanging in the darkness. To my left, I see wide, chilling eyes following me, but I ignore them. I will bring my medicine to my mother, and no one will thwart me.
It takes but minutes to reach her house. I pound on the door, desperate for an answer, but none comes. My heart thunders, my palms damp. If I do not enter soon, they will find me. He will drag me back to Avalere and punish me. I do not care about being punished. My biggest fear is that I will not reach my mother.
“Open the door!” I shout. “Cambri, please!”
I hear a rustle inside. I rest my forehead against the cold metal frame. I must get in.
I run to the side, where a window is ajar, and shove my hands underneath the frame. I push it with all my might, and it squeaks in the silence, but only budges a bit. “Please,” I say. “Please!” I do not know who I am asking or what I am asking for, I just know I must get inside. I manage to open the window far enough that I can peek over the ledge, and what I see makes my heart twist.
On the floor of the hovel I once called home, lies my sister. She writhes, her lids closed, her hair damp with sweat.
“Cambri,” I whisper, my eyes filled with tears. She has caught the illness, too.
I look frantically about me for something, anything that will help me open the door or window so I can get in when strong fingers grasp my wrists, and before I can shout, a rough hand covers my mouth.
“Do not say a word,” a familiar voice hisses in my ear. I still.
I crane my neck, and catch the barest glimmer of auburn hair in the light of the moons.
Despite the knowledge he will not be pleased with me, and I will be punished, I feel an inexplicable calm.
Idan has come for me, and I am not alone.
“I will remove my hand from your mouth now and you will not say a word,” he whispers. “Do you understand me? Nod if you understand me, Svali.”
I nod.
He frees my mouth. I inhale and turn to face him. His brows are, his eyes stormy blue, but when he speaks he whispers. “The bragni are afoot,” he hisses. “I am not Duke or a warrior of any order on Kleedan, Svali. I am a man without protection at his back, and but one sword against the legion.”
I still.
“I must take you back to the portal and get you home,” he says.
“No, my lord,”
One heavy brow lifts. I sigh and close my eyes. There is no use in deceiving him any longer. Just behind me, just at my back, my mother and sister, the only two people in the galaxy I love more than myself, lie at death’s door.
I need the help of my husband.
“It is my mother, Idan,” I say, my voice cracking. “And my sister.” One lone tear rolls down my face. I swipe at it angrily. From what I have told him, I have no family. I have lied. I hate that I have lied.
“They are dying, my lord. Without proper care, they will.” I sniffle, wiping at my eyes. “I took medicine from Avalere and brought it here.” I weep openly now, tears flowing down my nose and cheeks, and I do little to staunch them. “Please help me.”
He exhales angrily, but his gaze grows softer…kinder. “You have family? They live here?” he asks, and I know it is not lost on him that this is but a hovel. His eyes fall to the broken windows, the debris the wind blows into our yard, the roof in a sad state of disrepair.
I hang my head and nod. “They are sick, and I cannot get in.”
“Are there no entrances save the front door and window?”
“No, my lord.”
“Very well, then,” he says, grunting. “You are in so much trouble. But we will do what we can.” My heart thumps, and my hope soars. He walks back to the window and grasps the edges.
“I cannot move it farther up,” I say. “It seems as if it’s —”
With a mighty heave, he shoves the window up, wood on the track splintering as it breaks away.
“Come here,” he orders, waving an impatient hand at me. I obey, standing in front of him. Without warning, he lifts me st
raight up in the air. “Feet first,” he said. “Be careful not to get cut along the edge. I would go in myself, but you are far smaller than I am.”
He places me on the window frame so my feet are in front of me. I barely fit into the small room, and I feel the scrape along my sides as I sidle in. I hear his voice behind me. “Have your feet touched yet?”
“Yes!”
“I will release you. Find your footing and run to open the door for me.”
He lets go of me, and I get my bearings, standing up straight in the small room before I race to unfasten the latch and yank it open. He already waits for me, his huge frame taking up the entire door. I move to the side to let him in, and slam the door shut behind him. Frowning at me, he fastens the lock. I am already kneeling by my sister’s side, and he goes straight to my mother.
“Svali,” my sister says, her eyes closed, as her head moves side to side. “It hurts so much. Everything hurts. Will I die?”
My heart constricts in my chest while I reach for her. “Not if I can help it.”
“Idan, how is my mother?” I ask.
“Not good,” he says soberly. “Her pulse is low and she did not wake when I touched her.” He touches her forehead. “She burns with fever and appears to be in a coma. Her life is in grave danger.”
I want to give in to the tears that threaten to fall again, but I cannot.
“We must get them back to Avalere, where they can receive proper treatment.”
His insistence on taking them back with us makes me want to throw my arms around his neck and squeeze him.
“Yes, my lord.”
“You stay here and treat them with what you brought,” he says. “I am going back to Avalere for help. We need more than the two of us to move them to safety, especially with the bragni underfoot.”
Though the thought of him leaving makes me want to weep some more, there is no other way. As he reaches the door, he warns me, “You do not leave here. You do not. Your obedience of late is sorely lacking, and we will deal with that when we return. But you must stay here and lock the door behind me.” He pauses, glaring at me for emphasis. “Do you understand me?”
I swallow, my mouth suddenly dry. I will obey him. I want to. “Yes, my lord.”
And, with that, he is gone.
I fasten the latch behind him. And though I know he did the right thing, I feel the sudden loss of his presence. I wish he could have stayed and helped me nurse them back to health. I inhale deeply, squaring my shoulders and facing my mother and sister.
Their lives hang in the balance. We will save them.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Idan
I can feel them about me, their eyes fixed upon me, but, unlike my vulnerable wife, I am not an easy target for them. The bragni will know my rank and stature and likely know that if they dare to attack me, I will not hesitate to slice their heads from their bodies with the swipe of my sword. I must get to the portal, to alert my brothers.
As I travel through the darkness of Kleedan, what I’ve just seen haunts me. The dirty, dilapidated hovel Svali grew up in, little more than cots in a dismal room, thin, faded curtains dressing the windows, makes my stomach twist in knots. It is no wonder my wife decided to sacrifice herself in the circle. On Avalere, she is now a woman of rank, and financial prosperity will follow her all the days of her life. She will have friends and servants, a full wardrobe, a garden to stroll about in, an enormous home teeming with luxuries.
And a husband whose will she must obey.
Is she prepared for such a life?
The portal lies but a few paces ahead. When I arrive, I hope my brothers will be willing and able to transport her family.
Her family is now my family.
I turn the bend by a row of pines when I feel it, cold, clammy fingers at my back. I grasp my sword hilt, the clang of metal on metal ringing in the dark, dank air as I turn to defend myself, certain that behind me I will see their wide, watery eyes and vapid faces. But, when I turn, I nearly drop my sword.
In front of me stands a slight boy with a shock of dirty blond hair hanging in front of his sunken eyes. Despite his wan appearance, there is something in his manner and the brave way he lifts his chin to speak to me that I admire. This boy is the picture of courage.
“Are you a member of the Hisrach?” he asks.
I nod. “I am,” I say, glancing about me as we stand as exposed as we could be.
“Are you returning to Avalere?” he asks, swallowing but not blinking as he asks me.
“I am,” I say, curious what he wants.
“Will you take me with you?”
I blink. Take him with me? How on earth could a stranger ask me such a thing? Though passage between portals is allowed, minors may not travel without by an adult.
“Take you with me?” I repeat. “What do you mean?”
He swallows again before answering, blinking hard. “Because I am an orphan. And I long to see the traditions and customs of Avalere. I want to see the marketplace and the mountains, the forests and hills, sunlight upon the plains. Avalere is a lush, thriving planet, where kings reign and families grow. Here, the separation of the classes keeps some of us in poverty and some wealthy.”
My head spins. And then I remember my wife waiting for me, and the desperation in her voice.
I cannot save everyone.
“I cannot take you.” When his face falls, my voice shakes a bit when I speak to him. “But I am sorry. I must get to my people in haste, as there is danger afoot in both Avalere and Kleedan.”
He nods. “I see.” But he does not move.
I step toward the portal, wishing I never met him, hating myself for turning my back on his need, angry that Svali’s defiance brought me here to begin with. With a great sigh, I touch the access to the portal and wait for the door to open. But as I stand with my palm to the glass, nothing happens. No light shines.
“It will not work,” says the voice behind me. “Your portal is closed, my lord.”
Closed?
I spin around to stare at him. “Explain yourself.”
The boy gestures to the top of the portal where the lining of the door is visible. “The light indicates your presence, my lord. My father was one of the original designers. He created these portals and tested them in their infancy. If you look closely at the light, you can tell that the laser beam recognizes your presence. The transference process begins after the scan.”
“Yes.”
“But do you see the break in the light at the perimeter?” he queries.
A speck of darkness mars the ring of light. If he had not pointed it out to me, I never would have seen it. “That means that the connection is broken and transference rendered impossible.”
“So no one can move from Avalere to Kleedan and back again now?” I ask.
He shakes his head. “No, my lord. It means you cannot.”
Heat suffuses me, anger overtaking me. “Why would anyone on Kleedan prevent me from traveling? No one even knows I am here.”
“It was not orchestrated on Kleedan, my lord. It was orchestrated on Avalere. Someone there does know you are here and has manipulated the portal to keep you from returning.”
⊱⟢⋯⟣⊰
Why would anyone on Avalere prevent me from coming back? I did not even know that anyone had seen me go, but I have little time to contemplate any of this, as I feel them closing in on me, their presence a palpable force here in the darkness. The little daylight on Kleedan fades quickly. I have no choice now but to go back to Svali, and to help her.
“My lord, I can try to find a way for you to access the portal,” the boy explains. “As a native of Kleedan, it is possible I may be able to go ahead of you, access the portal, and deliver a message to your people that you are stranded.” I frown. Since minors may not travel alone, he risks injury or punishment.
“So the portal is not closed to all visitors?”
The boy shakes his head. “It appears not. It seems it is just
you. Perhaps if they closed it to all, they’d arouse a greater suspicion.”
Though I do not know this child, I cannot help but fear for his safety. “We have no way of knowing who or what has blocked my return. If you access the portal and arrive on Avalere, you could face attack.” I turn, wishing for him to go away. I need to return to Svali, and I do not wish to be encumbered by this child. After a few paces, however, I realize that he is trailing behind me.
I turn and glare at him. “Do not follow me,” I growl. “You are not welcome to accompany me. The people there are ill, and you risk infection.”
I take a few more steps, and still, he persists in following me. I spin around a second time, sterner now. How dare he defy me? On Avalere, children are taught to obey.
“I said go,” I growl.
His thin face falls, eyes downcast. “I only want to help,” he says, but I interrupt him.
“You only wish to incur my anger. I told you to go. Now!” His lower lip quivers. Guilt pricks at my conscience, though I still dislike that he is defying me. In the bushes behind the boy, deep in the dark, branches rustle, and I see yellow eyes, unblinking.
I cannot leave the child alone like this.
Growling, I take him by the hand. Never in my life have I met such defiant subjects as the Kleedians. “Come with me,” I instruct. “But you do not disobey me. If you dare to talk back or defy me again, you will wish you had not.”
Though I am not sure if he truly will obey me, I cannot leave him here alone. I pull him along toward Svali’s home. He opens his mouth to speak, and I growl at him to keep quiet. He finally does. Though I can hear the feet of the creatures in pursuit, it seems the gleam of silver at my waist keeps them at bay. They could hurt this young boy, and take him if I allowed it.
We arrive back at her house, and I knock sharply at the door.
“Svali,” I hiss. “Let me in.”
I hear the scratch of a lock and something lifting, then the door swings open. She stares at me, blinking, and then at the boy. “Why are you here?” she asks. “Did you get help that quickly? And who is this?”
