“Don’t.” He shook his head sharply. “Trust me.”
And then Thomas was gone.
Henrich remained at the lectern, but now his face was a mask of sorrow as he looked toward the exit that Thomas had been taken through. “It seems the virus has left lasting damage to some cadets.” He grew stern. “There is no place for emotional outbursts in the shadow knights. We survive because we are driven by logic, not emotion. We do what we must to ensure the safety of the mortal realm, whatever the cost.”
“Whatever the cost,” the knights said in unison.
Whatever the cost? The cost of my friend’s life? The cost of Thomas’s place here?
Fuck that. I tugged my hand from Carlo’s grip. I had to say something. Do something.
An arm snagged me around the waist, and Brady’s familiar cedar scent soothed the rage building inside me.
I looked up at his profile, pale and tense. His attention was on Henrich as the Shadow Master vacated the lectern, for real this time, and fucked off. The room began to empty out around us.
Brady relaxed, and his weight settled against me.
I quickly wrapped an arm around his waist to hold him up. “What are you doing here? You’re not strong enough to be out of bed yet.”
He gave me a flat look. “Stopping you from doing something stupid.”
Aidan leaned in around Brady. “I went and got him. When Thomas started to lose it, I knew you might jump in to help.”
“And I wasn’t enough?” Carlo rolled his eyes, but there was humor in them. “I get it, Brady has the bigger arms.”
“We need to get you back to bed.” I led Brady out of the assembly hall.
Devon joined us as we hit the main foyer. “They took Thomas outside. He was shouting and yelling at them. The dude’s lost it.”
Panic flared in my chest. “What are they going to do to him?”
Devon shook his head. “They’re going to give him an assessment, but they’ll conclude emotional breakdown. It’s happened once before. Emotional instability is the only way out of being a knight, but no supernatural wants to fake that shit. Once you’re branded with it, you live life on the outside as a pariah. Supernaturals aren’t as accommodating as humans when it comes to mental health issues.”
There is no place for emotional outbursts in the shadow knights. Henrich’s words came to mind. Is this what he’d meant? To get rid of Thomas altogether? Being a shadow knight was Thomas’s dream.
“We have to stop them.”
“No,” Brady said. “Don’t. It’s better this way.”
“For who?”
“Thomas.”
What was he talking about?
Carlo opened his mouth to reply but snapped it closed as two shadow knights passed us. “Yeah, wonder what’s for dinner,” he drawled. As soon as the coast was clear, he leaned in. “Don’t go up against Henrich. No one goes up against Henrich.”
He sounded … scared. “What are you saying?”
It was Aidan who answered. “The last person who challenged Henrich ended up dead, and what do you think Thomas will do if they do get rid of Harmon? Huh? Henrich doesn’t like scenes. He won’t take kindly to being reminded of the fact he had to kill one of his own. And that puts Thomas in danger. Better if he leaves now.”
More knights passed.
“Let’s move,” Devon said. His dark tousled hair had fallen across his forehead, and he swept it back impatiently. “Henrich will have eyes on you. He’ll want to make sure you keep your mouth shut about what really happened in the mist with Rage.”
We walked across the foyer. My mind was reeling. How could this be happening? How could Henrich think it was okay to lie so blatantly, and to my face.
Brady stopped and braced himself on the banister to the main staircase. “Fucking hate this.” He clenched and unclenched his fist. “Hate feeling weak.”
I rubbed his pectoral. “You’ll be fine in a couple of days.”
He locked gazes with me. “Promise me you’ll be smart.”
“Brady …”
“No, Justice. You steer clear of Henrich. Below the radar. Promise me.”
I nodded. “I promise.”
I just hoped I could keep it.
Two
Promise me you’ll be smart, Brady had said.
In other words, don’t do anything stupid. I paced the troop quarters, hands on hips. Thomas wasn’t in the fortress any longer, Harmon was in the dungeon, and I was here, doing nothing.
The rotation had just gone up, and tomorrow, I’d have to ship out to barracks six in sector two with the guys. Lloyd had already gone ahead, which was why he hadn’t been at the assembly earlier. We were supposed to just get on with it.
But how could I act like nothing had happened? How could I go without seeing Harmon, without making sure he was okay?
Carlo sat at the table by the window doing neat tricks with a pack of cards. The rustling sound it made was almost soothing.
Almost.
“Quit it, Justice,” Carlo drawled. “You’re wearing out the rug.”
“There is no rug.”
“Just as well, or you’d wear it out.”
Devon entered the room, jeans slung low on his hips, rubbing his wet hair with a towel. His chest was bare, hairless, and tanned. The guy had abs for days, but my mind was on Harmon. My gaze slipped off Devon’s muscled frame like water off a duck’s back.
“You know things are bad when Devon’s abs don’t get a reaction,” Carlo said.
Devon slung the towel around his neck and stared at me.
“What?” I threw up my hands. “I’m agitated, okay?”
He took a deep breath as if coming to a decision. “I can get a key.”
I came to a halt. “What?” Was he saying what I think he was saying?
“Devon …” Carlo had stopped playing with the cards.
Devon ignored him. “I can get a key. But we go between two a.m. and four a.m. My uncle likes to run at that time. He’ll be out. We take the key, and we sneak in. You see Harmon, and we get out.”
“Devon, what the fuck?” Carlo was on his feet now. The easygoing, nothing-fazes-him guy looked seriously concerned. “If you get caught, you’re both fucked.”
“Then come with,” Devon said. “Play lookout.”
“I’ll go with Uncle.” Aidan sauntered into the room from his bedroom.
Devon nodded as if it was perfectly normal for Aidan to walk into the room and join the conversation. How the fuck had he even known what we were talking about?
Carlo threw up his hands in despair. “The fuck?”
“I’ll make sure he stays out,” Aidan said.
Carlo tugged at his mohawk, which he’d dyed deep purple. “Brady is so going to kick our asses.”
Guilt tightened my chest. No … I’d made a promise to be smart, and this was a smart plan. Loopholes.
I glanced at the clock. Midnight. Two hours before we could implement our plan.
It was going to be the longest two hours of my life.
* * *
Devin and I hid in the shadows by the side staircase a few meters away from the solid oak door that led down to the basement.
The clock ticked.
Aidan and his uncle had left for their run five minutes ago, but two knights stood in the foyer by the basement door, chatting and blocking our path.
Agitation burned through my veins. Every minute we stood here doing nothing was another minute wasted.
Carlo stepped into the foyer through a side door and spotted the guards. He scanned the foyer until he saw us. The angle meant he had a better view of us than the guards did.
He nodded and then headed toward the knights. “What’s up, guys?”
The knights broke off their conversation to look across at him.
“Cadet,” one of them greeted.
“Not for long, I hope,” Carlo said. “Soon, I’ll be one of you. Hey, maybe we can hang out? You guys can tell me all your amazing m
The knights exchanged a quick glance, and then one of them patted Carlo on the back.
“Love your enthusiasm. Another time. We have duties we need to get to.”
They brushed past him and breezed up the stairs and out of view.
Carlo turned our way and winked.
“Yeah, that works.” Devon stepped out of the shadows. “Chat them away.”
Carlo shrugged. “I got the gift of gab. I can use it to entice or repel. It’s a superpower.”
Despite the knot in my stomach, I couldn’t help but smile. The gift of gab really was Carlo’s forte.
“Come on,” Devon said. “Before someone else comes along.”
“I’ll keep watch,” Carlo said. He tapped the radio at his waist. “I’ll buzz you if someone comes.”
Devon’s hand went briefly to the radio clipped to his belt. Then he pushed open the door and led us into the gloom beyond.
Stone steps descended, lit only by lamps hooked into the wall. We moved quickly, quietly. What if someone was down there?
Devon paused on the bottom step.
A small four-by-four area led to another door. He sniffed the air, and I focused with my senses, listening. Silence broken only by a low humming sound drifted through the door.
Devon pulled a key from his pocket and then crossed the floor and unlocked the door.
The coppery-sweet smell of blood hit me, followed by a mixture of odors. Mint and musk and Harmon.
I pushed past Devon, eager to get inside. Needing to find my friend.
Cells lined both sides of the chamber—old-school iron and steel built into the rock. But only one that I could see was occupied.
Harmon’s large frame occupied the tiny space. He was sitting on a bench, head bowed, but it whipped up as I got closer, his eyes flared an eerie green, and my step faltered.
“Harmon?”
He stood slowly and approached the bars, his head cocked to one side. “Indigo?” He blinked, and the green light winked out, leaving me staring into his warm brown eyes. “You shouldn’t be here. You need to go. Now.”
I ran my gaze over him, looking for wounds, signs of torture. He was clean. Dressed in a black shirt and black pants. He looked unharmed. Untouched.
“I had to see you.” I gripped the bars and stepped closer. “I thought you were dead.”
He wrapped a hand around mine, his palm warm and reassuring, and pressed his forehead to the bars.
Oh, God. He was here. He was okay. “I want to hug you.”
His throat bobbed. “Trust me, Indigo, I’d like nothing more right now. But you’re in danger if you stay. They don’t want anyone knowing what happened to me. They don’t want to incite panic. If they know you’ve spoken to me, I don’t know what they’ll do.”
“What happened?”
“They experimented on me. Took blood. Injected me with stuff. I was held in a cabin, chained up, drugged most of the time. I couldn’t understand what they were saying, but … They did something to me.” He held out his arm and pulled up his sleeve. Green veins stood out starkly under his skin. “I can feel it inside me.”
“What is it?” Devon asked.
“I don’t know.” Harmon pulled down his sleeve. “There’s a weaver here from headquarters. She’s been trying to extract it. Trying to purge it from my system, and then they’ll make me sign a Sworn.”
I’d heard of those. Magically and legally binding documents that the council loved to use to control access to classified information. It wasn’t enough to give your word, you needed to agree to have your tongue magically bound. It was like the shadow knight oath.
I moved closer, so the familiar heat of his body brushed against mine. Damn the bars. “How did you escape?”
Harmon’s gaze flicked away, and he shook his head slightly. “I don’t know. I woke up in the mists, and I ran. The fortress was closest. I got there, and the knights brought me down here.”
“The fomorians dumped you?”
He looked uneasy. “Yeah. I know. It makes no sense. Why send me back?”
Unless they had a plan. Unless they wanted to use Harmon somehow. Henrich’s reticence made sense now. The vetting made sense, but it didn’t make me feel any better about my best friend being locked up like an animal.
Wait … I ran over what he’d just said. Me and I … not us. “What happened to Venrick?”
Harmon looked blankly at me. “Venrick?”
“He was taken too,” Devon said. “He was with you beyond the mist.”
Harmon shook his head. “I didn’t see Venrick. It was just me.” His eyes widened. “Wait. They took Venrick too?”
“You both went missing at the same time,” Devon said.
It made no sense. “The knights didn’t ask you about Venrick?”
“No. They didn’t …” Harmon frowned. “They don’t trust me. Not with this shit in my veins. Not until they get it out.”
“And how will they do that?” I studied his face, noting the tightening around his eyes. “Harmon?”
His throat bobbed. “They have a machine …”
“Do they hurt you?” I gripped the bars tighter.
“I can handle it.”
A low humming sound filtered into the chamber through a door at the far end.
We fell into silence.
Listening.
My scalp crawled, and my intestines tightened in response to the sound. “Is that it?”
Harmon made a sound of frustration in the back of his throat. “There’s nothing you can do for me, Indie. You need to get out of here.”
“They’ll be coming for you again?”
His gaze caressed my face, and then he stroked my cheek with the back of his thumb. “I can handle it if it gets this shit out of me. Trust me. I’ll be fine. I’ll find you once this is over.” He smiled reassuringly. “Tell Thomas I love him.”
I opened my mouth to tell him what had happened to Thomas but snapped it closed and nodded instead. He didn’t need the stress right now. He had enough to contend with.
Pushing up on my toes, I pressed my face between the bars and brushed his cheek with my lips. “I love you, big guy. See you soon.”
I blinked back the heat in my eyes. I would not cry.
“Love you too, Justice,” Harmon said softly. “Now get the fuck out of here.”
Boot falls echoed off stone walls.
Someone was coming up the corridor on the other side of the door where they housed the machine.
“Justice. We need to jet. Now.” Devon gripped my elbow.
With a final lingering look at Harmon’s face, I allowed Devon to tug me away.
There was nothing I could do for Harmon now. But I could make sure the troop knew the truth. I could make sure that we were extra vigilant in the mist because it was obvious that the fomorians had a bigger plan, and my gut told me that it wouldn’t be long before they put it into motion.
Three
The mist beyond the windows of the watchtower swirled as if echoing the turmoil inside me.
Thomas was gone. They’d sent him back to the mortal world via portal two days ago, and I’d been back at barracks six for almost a week. Back to work as if nothing had happened, as if we hadn’t been attacked by a killer super virus, and as if a knight hadn’t just returned from fomorian territory with tales of bloodletting and strange rituals.
Henrich still hadn’t released Harmon. If I didn’t hear anything by tomorrow, I’d head back to the fortress and speak to the Shadow Master myself. The foreboding sound of the machine haunted my dreams, and the thought of my Harmon in pain made me sick.
I needed him back.
I’d filled the troop in on what had happened to Harmon, and after bawling me out for taking such a risk, Lloyd had been speculative. Yeah, we’d all been on high alert the past few days.
After two days patrolling round the clock, Lloyd had ordered me to sleep and then take tower duty. My body was still lethargic from my snooze, but the coffee helped. I missed Brady’s cocoa. I missed Brady. Half term officially kicked off in two days, and many cadets would be going home on portal leave. Would Brady be leaving too? Would I get to see him before he left? We weren’t officially together, so did he even have to tell me his plans?
Lloyd said Brady would be back soon, but that had been two days ago. There’d been no sign of Hyde either. And Payne … Payne had been gone for over a week. Surely the weaver council, or whatever their internal governing body was called, would have come to a resolution by now? My stomach hurt thinking about it.
I needed to speak to Kash, find out if he could get information on my father. He’d asked me to go to the weaver ball with him during half term, and at the time of agreeing, I hadn’t considered my cuffs. Brunner had yet to get back to me about the council’s decision to remove them. Another thing I needed to chase up.
It looked like I had plenty to do once this shift was over. I was already packed to head back to the shadow cadet dorms at the Academy. Larkin would be glad to have me back.
The door to the tower opened, and my heart skipped a beat before shooting up into my throat and pulsing in excitement.
Brady closed the door and then stood staring at me.
Neither of us spoke, and then I was out of my seat and in his arms. Legs around his waist, arms wrapped around his neck, face buried in the hollow between his shoulder and throat. He held me easily, one hand under my butt while the other splayed across the small of my back.
“You’re back.” I hugged him tight. “I fucking missed you.”
His chuckle was a warm vibration against my torso. “I missed you too.”
He moved with me clinging to him like a rhesus monkey and then lowered himself into the seat I’d just vacated.
I pulled back to look down at him. “Remember the last time we were here, like this?”
He ran the pad of his thumb across my bottom lip. “It’s branded in my mind.”
I smiled down at him. “I’m glad I got to see you before the break.”
His face clouded. “Me too. I need to leave for a week. Portal leave. Fast-tracked first years have all been granted leave, but the knights have only granted a handful of portal leaves to the older cadets this half term. Too much shit going down in the mist, so they need the manpower, but it’s been a while since I went home, so mine was approved.”
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