Fireblood

by Elly Blake

  “I didn’t, either. Until they tried to kill you over it.” I shivered at the memory. “Watching you almost die had a rather sobering effect on my daydreams.”

  His lips twisted. “I’ll admit that the threat of death has a way of clarifying things.”

  I took a steadying breath. Whatever we had to sort out would have to wait. His life was at stake.

  “Speaking of which, you’re not exactly safe here. I will do anything I can to get you back on your ship.”

  His eyes swept me in a thorough perusal. “And what about you? Will you go through with a wedding that you don’t even want? Or have you decided you do want it, after all?”

  “I don’t want it. I told you that. But the only thing I can think of right now is getting you out of here. I can barely breathe thinking of how much the queen hates you and what she might do.”

  He rubbed his hand over the beginning of a beard on his chin. “I know the feeling. All I did after you left was think about you. Worry about you. Miss you.” There was naked longing in his voice, and my heart leaped in response. “I couldn’t bear it. Even if I’d received word that you were fine, I think I still would have come and tried to persuade you to come home.”

  “Home.” I sat trembling in the chair, his words and tone affecting me more than I wanted, making me want to curl up and weep in his arms. “I don’t even know where that is.”

  “You’re my home,” Arcus said softly.

  I put a hand to my chest, pressing against the lump of pain that was gathering there. My whole body seemed caught in flame that was consuming me from the inside.

  “I want to pull you into my arms more than anything,” he said unevenly, “but I know if I do, I’ll just end up begging you to leave here with me. No matter what the cost.”

  A knock sounded at the door. “Ruby?” Kai’s voice was muffled by the thick steel. “You have one more minute.”

  I took a shuddering breath and dropped my hands. “We need to get you out of here.”

  “Find Marella,” Arcus said, his resolution giving me strength.

  “Marella?” I said in shock.

  “She came with me.”

  “Oh, of course. I bet she’s been attached to your side like a spare appendage since the day I left.”

  “Do I detect jealousy? I don’t suppose you’ve forgotten that you’re engaged.”

  I made an impatient motion and he continued.

  “The ship is on the other side of the island, almost opposite to the main harbor.” He described the small, hidden bay in detail, and how to spot it if I rounded the island in a boat, and what password to use to gain entry. “When you get there, Marella will assemble my crew and…” He trailed off, thinking. “She’s been seasick for the entire journey, but she can still come up with a plan to get me out of this damn place.”

  “I’ll get you out of here,” I said, irritated by the implication that Marella was the only one who could strategize. “There’s no way your crew can get past all the guards.”

  “Not without killing them, and I don’t want to give the queen cause to retaliate. The last thing I want is to be at war with you on the opposing side.”

  “You don’t want war at all. Neither do I.”

  “Ruby!” Kai called, knocking again. “I’m coming in.”

  “One minute, Kai!” I tossed back, not missing how Arcus flinched as I said Kai’s name. His jaw was tight, his eyes aimed resolutely at the rug, his hands on his knees. He had already started freezing me out again.

  “I’ll have them give you ointment for your cuts,” I said, standing.

  His lips twisted, making the scar on his lip whiten a little, which made me long to touch it. “They’re nothing. Don’t fuss.”

  But I think he liked that I fussed, just a little. I stood and stepped forward, bending down to kiss his hair, but he stiffened. “Don’t. I don’t think I can…” He didn’t finish, but I understood. It would just make things more difficult for both of us if he had to leave without me.

  “All right,” I whispered. I stood there for a moment, breathing his familiar scent, then stepped back.

  He looked up with a small smile, and even though it was just a subtle curve of his lips, amusement reached his eyes, and that made all the difference. It felt like a ray of sunshine on my soul.

  “Far be it for me to argue with Ruby Otrera, destroyer of thrones, secret princess, and who knows what else? You’ve never failed, yet.”

  “And don’t you forget it.”

  The door opened. Kai cleared his throat meaningfully, and Arcus turned back to the window, shutting out everything but his own private thoughts. I stepped from the room.

  As the guard relocked the door, I was filled with nearly frightening resolve: I would take my initiation vows, find the book, and free Arcus.

  I would free him if it took my own life to do it.

  TWENTY-TWO

  IN THE DARKEST HOURS OF NIGHT, I snuck out of the castle by the servants’ entrance, used the guards’ shift change to slip past, and hurried to the wharf. I checked the tavern first, and when I didn’t find Jaro there, I headed to the seventh pier. A few sailors lingered, some working on their boats, some sitting in small groups drinking. Jaro sat alone, legs folded under him on the dock as he repaired a frayed coil of rope.

  “Don’t you ever get enough of that?” I teased. “Canoodling with ropes?”

  He grinned and looked up. “This is what I do when I can’t sleep.” He nodded to the east. “I feel a storm brewing—a day or two off, but still, it makes me edgy.”

  I hesitated briefly, then told him what I needed. Jaro knew the exact bay I’d described, but when I told him he had to keep the trip a secret, his eyes narrowed.

  “Why?”

  Water lapped at the docks in a soothing rhythm. “The less you know, the better.”

  “Does Prince Kai know about this?”

  “No, and you can’t tell him. I’m meeting someone and Kai won’t like it.”

  Jaro folded his arms. “I’m not taking you unless you tell me who you’re going to meet.”

  I took a breath. This was a huge leap of faith, but something told me Jaro could be trusted. I lowered my voice and whispered the essential facts.

  He stood and glared, gesturing angrily. “What you ask is treason!”

  “Shh.” I glanced around nervously. “I wouldn’t involve you if there were any other choice. I’m trying to prevent a war. Don’t you think that’s a good enough reason to bend the rules?”

  “Bend them? You mean to break them into tiny pieces and set them ablaze!”

  “True. But only to prevent a much larger catastrophe. Do you want to see your kingdom go to war with Tempesia? I can help prevent that. I just need your help this one last time and I won’t ask again.”

  His lips were pressed so tightly together, they’d almost disappeared. He grimaced and looked away. Then he sighed heavily, his shoulders sagging, and my tense muscles unwound. I knew he was going to agree.

  Without speaking, he threw off the lines of a small boat that bobbed against the dock. The smell of fish overpowered my senses as we pushed off. He piloted the tiny, single-sail craft in his effortless way, his beefy hands wrapped lightly over the tiller, while I watched the ambient light of cooking fires and lanterns casting moving reflections on the breakers. The moon played hide-and-seek behind clouds, flitting out now and again to lay bands of silver over the waves and shore.

  On the eastern side of the island, Jaro steered the boat into the small, forest-wrapped harbor where an anchored ship threw its shadow over the moonlit water. Our little craft sidled up to the massive hull.

  “Gamut,” I said just above a whisper. It was the password Arcus had given me, and it warmed my soul that it happened to be the name of one of my favorite people: the healer monk from Forwind Abbey.

  “Who is it?” a voice whispered back.

  “Tell Marella that Ruby is here to see her.”

  Quiet footsteps led away, a
nd then back. “Come aboard.”

  A rope ladder knocked against the hull. I climbed to the deck. No lanterns were lit. Moonlight picked at the dark spines of the masts and the horizontal ribs of the yards, the furled sails bound tight like muscle on bone.

  The planking rumbled with the approach of running feet. I spun around just before a small whirlwind collided with my stomach.

  “Oof.” My hand came out automatically and landed on a tangle of braids. Two thickly lashed eyes blinked up at me above a mouthful of white teeth.

  “Kaitryn?” It was little more than a gasp.

  The girl’s excited voice chirped out of the dark as she stepped back. “Hooray! We’ve got you! Now we can sail home again!”

  “What—”

  “Not that I mind living on the ship. Square meals and my own hammock. But now that we got you, I suppose we’ll be leaving.”

  “But how did you end up on this ship?”

  “After I saw you, I started thinking about what you said, how I might find life on a ship better than life on the streets. There was a call for ship’s boys or girls on the docks at Tevros. I didn’t think I’d get a spot, but somehow Lady Marella—the one who was choosing us—thought I looked more trustworthy than the rest.”

  “And was she right?”

  She planted her small fists on her hips. “I haven’t stolen anything since I’ve been on board, and there are plenty of marks to choose from. There are barons and warriors aboard, did you know? Anyway, I listen at the captain’s door sometimes and that’s how I knew we were coming to get you.”

  A quiet “hmph” came from somewhere in the dark. “Kaitryn, I don’t know how you can hear anything when you’re always talking.” There was a swish of skirts and the blur of a slim figure moving closer.

  “Doreena?”

  “It’s me, Lady Ruby.”

  I stepped forward and hugged her, forgetting about my heat until she gasped. I let her go quickly. “Sorry. I’m just so surprised to see you! What are you doing here?”

  “When King Arkanus was rounding up some warriors to come along, I heard word of it and begged him to let me come, too. I wanted to do everything I could to help you.”

  I laughed delightedly. “I can’t believe it. How is your adventure so far?”

  “I don’t like the storms, but the rest I’ve become accustomed to. I’m so glad to see you’re well.”

  “I am, but I need to speak to Marella. Where is she?”

  “She’s sick,” said Kaitryn. “We’re not to wake her.”

  I turned to Doreena. “It’s true,” she confirmed. “It’s best we don’t bother her.”

  “It doesn’t matter if she’s ill,” I said. “I need to talk to her.”

  Doreena hesitated, then nodded and gestured toward the steps leading to the cabins. “Second door.”

  As I crossed the deck and took the stairs down to the cabins, the calm swells of the bay nudged the hull, making the planking creak softly. I knocked on the door of the second cabin and, when I heard no reply, turned the knob and stepped in. As I crossed the threshold, a clench of prickly nausea rippled through me. Most likely just a memory of my first hours on Kai’s ship when I’d been too sick to see straight. This cabin was similar, after all: bed bolted to the floor, table, chest, wardrobe, washbasin, oil lamp turned low. It was dim enough that it took a second to notice the slight bump of a motionless figure lying on her back in the bed, her face chalky and angular.

  “Marella,” I said in horror. “What happened to you?”

  She chuckled, but it was a wan imitation of her usual breezy laugh. “Nice to see you, too, Ruby.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry. Of course it’s good to see you, Marella. And I’m so grateful you came all this way for me.”

  “I’ve lost some weight, haven’t I?”

  “I heard you were ill, but…” I moved to the bedside. Her cheeks were sunken, her waxen skin oiled with a sheen of sweat. Her lovely wheat-gold hair was lank and plastered to her head.

  She swallowed and gestured to the pitcher. I poured some water and she took the cup and drank. “Thank you. Ugh, I’m so parched all the time.” She gave me the empty cup and I returned it to the table. “Sea travel disagrees with me. Violently.”

  “My seasickness only lasted a day. I didn’t know it could be this bad. Shouldn’t it improve now that you’re anchored?”

  “Who knows?” Her eyelids fluttered as she tried and failed to open them all the way. “Distract me from my boredom, Ruby. I’ve been cooped up here for weeks. Tell me about Sudesia. Is it everything you’ve ever dreamed it would be?”

  “In some ways, I suppose. The island is more beautiful than I imagined. But nothing else has gone as expected.” I gave a brief account of my efforts to become a Fireblood master, including the part about stopping the lava in the first trial. I played nervously with the hem of my tunic, feeling strangely shy as I said, “And from that, they seem to think I’m the queen’s lost niece. If you can credit the idea of me being royalty.”

  She closed her eyes and shook her head with a low laugh. “Of course you are. Because you weren’t special enough already.”

  She sounded bitter, which stung. I couldn’t help but feel a little defensive. “It’s not as if I’ve been rewarded for my gifts before. Not in Tempesia, at least.”

  “No, not at all,” she said drily. “Only with the infatuation of two kings.”

  I inhaled sharply. Now she sounded… jealous. “I didn’t know you felt that way. You know I never wanted Rasmus to—”

  “Stop, Ruby. You don’t need to defend yourself. I don’t really feel that way. I mean, I didn’t. Maybe only to a small degree, but I never blamed you.” She moaned as if in pain. “These past weeks… I’m finding myself dwelling…” She put her fingertips to her temples and pressed. “I just… I’m not myself.”

  “Marella, we need to get you some help.” I leaned forward urgently. “A healer. Medicine.”

  She laughed, a bit more like her old self, but cut with bitterness. “No healer can help me.”

  My stomach flipped with worry. “Why do you say that?”

  “Hmm? Oh, I only mean I can’t get help here. Hostile territory and all that.”

  “You need to get home, then.” I scrubbed my hands over my face. When Arcus had said Marella was seasick, I’d had no way of knowing she’d be this ill. Clearly he’d overestimated what she was capable of right now. She was barely lucid. “Unfortunately, Arcus has been captured and the queen seems rather reluctant to let him go.”

  “He was captured?” She huffed. “Well, of course he was. He couldn’t stay away from you, could he?”

  My cheeks warmed. “Frost doesn’t show up in these parts too often anymore. You’d have thought a plague had just been unleashed.”

  Her lips curved. “I’m sorry I missed that.” She paused, staring dully at me. “You’re the only person who makes him do that, you know. Lose his temper. He never does with me. Or anyone else for that matter.”

  She made it sound like I brought out the worst in him. While she brought out… something better, at least.

  When I didn’t reply, she asked, “Where is he now?”

  “In the north tower of the castle. I don’t know what the queen will do to him. She’s convinced he has a fleet of Tempesian warships bearing down on her.”

  “That’s what we should have done. Brought some warships. Made her think twice about defying us.”

  “How can you say that? You never wanted Firebloods to be hurt.”

  She waved her hand and I cringed at how bony it appeared. “Don’t listen to me. I hardly know what I’m saying.”

  I heard the frustration and the hint of shame. Marella, for all her pretty smiles and fancy gowns, was as tough as tempered steel. She prided herself on it. This illness must feel like the worst kind of weakness. Concern and pity were not emotions I’d ever felt for her, but I felt them now.

  Her lids fluttered. I sat on the chair next to the bed and we
nt to take her hand, but she drew it away.

  “When I get Arcus back to the ship,” I said, “can you haul anchor and get away from here?”

  “We’ll be gone before you can blink.”

  TWENTY-THREE

  THE QUEEN SENT A MESSAGE TO SUMMON me first thing the next morning. My heart took up a rhythm somewhere between panic and terror. Had she heard about my nighttime visit to the ship? But no, there was no way I could have been followed. And if she had somehow found out, she wouldn’t have waited until morning to confront me. Perhaps she just meant to chastise me for daring to visit her captive the day before.

  The moment I left my room, Kai’s door opened, as if a sixth sense told him I was passing by. He fell into step beside me.

  “Do you realize,” he asked, “that tomorrow we’ll be Fireblood masters?” A smile lit his face, so wide and genuine that I couldn’t help but return it. He gestured with his hands as he spoke, all fizzing energy and excitement. “I have the perfect place to celebrate tonight. A little tavern on the wharf. It gets a bit rough after midnight, but don’t worry, half the people there are former crewmates who will back us in a fight. The ale is surprisingly…” In lieu of a description, he kissed the tips of his fingers to show his appreciation. “And the music is—”

  “I’m sorry, Kai, but I can’t. I’d love to, but I need to rest tonight.”

  I hated to say no, but there was too much at stake to consider carousing in a tavern with Kai. As soon as I took my vows as a master, I had to find out the location of the book. Once that was accomplished, I could focus on breaking Arcus out of the north tower and getting him safely onto his ship. If I was lucky enough to have the book in hand by that point, I would go with him.

  “Rest?” he scoffed, not seeming to notice my abstraction. “Please. You—”

  “Really, Kai,” I said, gently but firmly, to prevent a lengthy argument. “I mean it.”

  As we stepped into the dim stairwell, he idly created a ball of flame in his hand, the warm light carving shadows under his brows and cheekbones. I sensed a thread of hurt hidden under the surface, and I felt an urge to comfort him. But what could I say without revealing the plans I needed to hide?