“You would be foolish to try.”
Maya watched me, and I couldn’t look away from her unsettling silver eyes. “I’ve seen it. I’ve seen you.”
The blood left my face and I swallowed.
“You’ve seen me? Like in a vision? What was the vision? What did you see?”
I felt Jon tense next to me, still uneasy with all things supernatural.
“Not now, Maya,” hissed Ada. She had noticed Jon’s discomfort.
“Elena’s already been through enough. No need to fill her head with nonsense about what might or could come to pass.”
I shifted in my seat. My curiosity was much stronger than my fears.
“It’s not nonsense,” said Maya. Her eyes glinted with anger, and I could hear the annoyance in her voice. “Just truths of what may be and—”
“—and what very well may not be.” Ada glared at Maya.
When Maya turned back to me, I looked into those silver eyes and squeezed her hands. “Tell me. I want to know.”
Maya smiled at me from her end of the table.
“I will tell you this. Steel maidens are dangerous because their blood magic is dark and can easily turn to evil. If you use the stone, your soul will gradually become corrupted until you become a twisted dark imitation of yourself, a specter. If you use the stone you will die.”
She let go of my hands. I was stunned.
I could feel all their eyes on me. I didn’t know what I’d expected her to say, but I never expected her to tell me I was going to die if I used the stone. While Maya’s visions only predicted what might happen in the future, I still felt ice crawl up my spine. She had seen me die in a vision. I drew a long, shaky breath.
“Best bring it here,” said Ada, turning her attention back to what I should do if I got the stone.
She gave me a gentle smile. “We can keep it safe until we find a better solution.”
The three elder witches nodded their heads, but it didn’t sound promising to me. I chose to keep my mouth shut on the subject. An ominous silence fell over us and lasted throughout dinner.
* * *
We left Gray Havens with a heavy heart. I had felt at home with the witches. We said our goodbyes to Ada and the others, and I was surprised at the number of them who had risen so earlier to see us off. I had the suspicion that many of the younger witches had come to feast their eyes on Jon one last time. And I couldn’t blame them.
Will and Leo got fresh horses while I rode Torak, and Jon was back on his white mare, Starlight. The two men avoided my gaze and kept as far away as they could from me. It was clear they didn’t like traveling with me. Perhaps they would have left me to die, just as the prince had done. I tried not to let their unfriendliness bother me, but it did.
We traveled south towards Soul City, and the rising sun in the east painted the sky in hues of pink. It was a glorious morning, but it wouldn’t last. We rode our horses hard to catch up to Prince Landon. He had a date with my fist.
After just a day with plenty of food and rest, and I felt stronger than ever. And yet I still felt a sting at the back of my neck with every bounce. The red monk’s poison was a constant reminder that I wasn’t immortal, and that we were up against black magic.
It seemed preposterous to think that the high priests could be dabbling in black magic. They had banished everything magic. What would it mean if they had it, and why? The stone was connected to all of this, and I was going to find out exactly what that connection was.
I learned from Jon that the others from the Pit hadn’t survived, so it was going to be the three of us against Landon’s company. If my numbers were correct there were nine of them, eight men, and the woman, Thea.
We rode hard all day and most of the night. We stopped to rest for a few hours in a clearing, but as soon as I closed my eyes, Jon was waking me to get moving again. We ate a silent breakfast of cheese and bread, climbed back onto our horses, and set off again. My joints, thighs, and lower back were stiff, and the optimism we felt about reaching the stone before we neared Soul City was fading.
My spirits lifted when we approached a camp by the side of the road, and I recognized the royal colors of the Fransians, the Romilians, the Girmanians, the Purtulese, and the Espanians. I searched for the red and gold colors of the royal seal of Anglia. But the Anglians weren’t there. We were outnumbered, and I prayed silently that the other kingdoms wouldn’t interfere. After all, we didn’t have the stone.
As we got closer, I could see only bleak expressions on the faces of the riders from the other realms. They were surrounded by devastation. There had been a great battle. Bodies that had been shot with arrows were covered in mud and lay in puddles of their own blood. The coppery smell of rot and decay rose in the hot morning sun like a mist. Limbs and bodies were scattered everywhere, and bile rose in my mouth at the sight them. I felt Torak tense beneath me, and we slowed down.
It had been a massacre. Only a handful of men were left and no women. I tensed, one hand on the reins, while the other rested on my weapons belt. Perhaps they had thought I was dead. The last they knew, I had run off with the stone.
I saw the body of a single Anglian, and it became clear that the others must have caught up with the prince and had figured out he had the stone. They had apparently tried to get it from him and had failed.
He still had it, and we needed to get it from him.
Jon must have come to the same conclusion as me. His expression was troubled, and he, Will, and Leo had all drawn their swords.
Suddenly, a wave of angry, desperate, and frightened men charged us.
And before I could urge Torak away, something hit me on the side of the head, and the world went dark.
CHAPTER 32
IT WAS A MIRACLE that I didn’t fall off my horse. The Goddess was protecting me. Warm blood gushed from my temple, and I tried to blink the blood from my eyes and ignore the wave of dizziness. Someone grabbed me from behind and tried to pull me off my horse. I held onto Torak’s saddle, but my fingers slipped, and I was hauled backwards until I was practically lying on his back. Two bearded men pulled my left arm and nearly pulled my shoulder out of its socket.
“The horse is mine!” said one of the men. “I’m going to kill you, witch!”
I pulled out my dagger and stabbed him in the eye. He let go with a howl and fell from my view.
“Stupid bitch. You’ll pay for that.”
The other man backhanded me in the face so hard that I was thrown forward in my saddle. Tasting blood, I didn’t give myself time to think and acted on impulse. I whirled around and kicked out hard with my leg. My boot hit his head with a horrifying crunch, and he went down.
I spit the blood from my mouth. Jon and the others were fighting hard against the mob, and suddenly they had cleared a path.
“Elena,” Jon turned to me, his face flushed with sweat. “This way!”
He pointed through the opening they had created.
I didn’t hesitate and kicked Torak’s sides. The big stallion flew past the men in a thunder of hooves. With Jon, Will and Leo behind me, we gathered speed and escaped.
We rode hard, and I was thankful for the flatness of the land. We tore through the forest so fast that I could no longer distinguish the pine trees from the birch. Everything was a blur of browns and greens. I kept my focus on Jon and marveled at the speed of his mare. I let out a shaky breath, when I realized that I’d been holding it, and let my grip on my reins relax a little. My fingers were stiff, and my blisters were bleeding.
After a half hour of riding hard, we slowed our pace. I was glad to be free of the hoard of crazed men, but I soon started to feel wary again.
Where was Prince Landon? Did he take some other route? A shortcut? Were there secret paths to Soul City that weren’t on the map?
No one spoke for a long time. The tenseness in Jon’s shoulders told me he was thinking the same thing. He kept moving his head back and forth as if he were searching. But searching for what?
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The silence was becoming too heavy to bear.
“We should have caught up with them by now,” I yelled to Jon over the beating of hooves and the wind in my ears.
“It’s a two days’ ride to Soul City. How could they have moved so quickly on foot? Do you think they found another way in? Another path?”
“They’d be fools to travel through the forest,” he said. “It would take them twice as long. No. They came this way. I’m sure of it.”
But his face betrayed him, and he looked like he was trying hard to convince himself.
“Are we too late?” I pressed anxiously. “Will they get to Soul City before us?”
Jon’s dark eyes were troubled. “Can’t let that happen. You heard what the witches said. Come on! Ride hard, men!”
He slammed his heels into his horse’s flanks and flew, his cloak flapping behind him as he rode.
I spurred my heels and Torak sprinted with a clean, pure speed that we hadn’t achieved before. Perhaps he’d gotten a little push from the witches.
Hooves pounded hard behind me, and a quick peek back showed that Will and Leo were still hard on our heels. The forest flew by me. I was amazed at Torak’s speed, but more amazed that I was managing to hold on and hadn’t fallen.
I thought about the stone and the ancient power I had felt in my bones. It was wild and dangerous, and the vilest men in all the realms wanted it. I thought about the dirty faces of the starving children in the Pit and about the courtesans, the sick, and the elderly. Tears flew out of the corners of my eyes as I thought about how much the children and Rose had suffered and starved. It would get worse, a hell of a lot worse, if the priests got ahold of the stone. Ada had said that the world would burn.
I had seen pure evil, and I had seen it in the eyes of the high priest. He must never get the stone.
We rode in silence, each of us alone in our own thoughts as we raced through the forest. Torak never tired, and I was grateful for it. We flew up and down the hills we encountered, slowing and speeding up again, but never stopping. After perhaps two hours of hard riding, we cleared the woodlands and were galloping through farmland on the edges of Soul City.
Jon slowed his stallion and assessed the ground for tracks.
“Horses,” he said out of breath. “And by the looks of it maybe eight or nine horses.”
He threw his hands in the air. “Damn it. Damn. Damn. Damn.”
I slowed Torak and looked to the ground. “Are you sure? These could be older tracks from before. These could be our tracks.”
Jon frowned, shaking his head. “No, these are fresh.”
“He’s right,” said Leo, and he swung down from his horse in one swift move. He skimmed his hand over the dirt. “These are fresh tracks. If I were to guess, I’d say only a few hours old.”
The blood drained from my face. “But how can that be? Who would know they needed horses, and how would they know where to find them?”
“Merlins, most likely,” said Will as he looked to the sky. “I don’t remember the prince having a bird with him, but if he’s in league with the priests, then they’ve probably been communicating.”
“And communicating this whole time,” said Jon.
I had heard that the priests used pigeon hawks to spy and to transport messages. I felt like someone had hit me across the face when I remembered that I had heard a hawk’s cry before, and that had coincided with Landon’s arrival at my fire. I didn’t believe in coincidences, but I had dismissed it at the time. Damn.
I swallowed hard. “But that means … that means …”
“It means the royal bastard has been planning this the entire time. He knew what he was doing from the start. He knew how to play you, Elena. And he did.”
I glowered at him. “No need to bring that up again.”
Will and Leo looked up at me, but I wouldn’t meet their eyes. I was humiliated enough.
Jon kept on.
“He made sure to keep you in the race. He waited for you to get your hands on the stone and didn’t interfere because he was already planning on taking it from you. That’s why he let you walk out of the temple with the stone. He knew he was going to get it back eventually. But he needed you alive and well because he knew you were the only one who could touch it. It was all part of his plan.”
“His and the fucking priests’,” hissed Leo. “Now I know who’s been leaking information to the temple guards. It explains the raids on Wedgemore. Landon’s people were the moles. They’ve been playing us too.”
Will punched into his hand. “I can’t wait to get my hands on the royal prick’s neck.”
I had to agree with him. I had had my suspicions about the handsome prince, and now Jon had just confirmed it. The wine, the sweet smiles, him helping me with the race, they had all been a ruse, and I had been the fool. I had believed he cared for me, and it had hurt like hell when he had left me to die. I was going to make him pay.
“Let’s pray that we make it back before they do.” Jon spurred his horse’s sides and tore down the road.
When we had ridden on for another half hour, it was clear that we should have caught up with the Anglian company, and we hadn’t.
We reached the farming lands and homesteads that dotted in fields just outside of Soul City. I could see the great circular walls that surrounded the city in the distance, and yet there were no traces of the prince.
The road became crowded with merchants and carts moving to and from Soul City. We couldn’t continue our fast pace without killing passersby and injuring our own horses.
A woman jostled against Torak and raised her fist at me.
I looked down at the wave of humanity. Was the city always this crowded? I shifted nervously. The wound at the back on my neck throbbed. The pain was increasing as we neared the city.
“We’ll never get through,” I yelled and slowed Torak to a walk.
“Keep moving, don’t stop.” Jon took the lead.
He yelled and waved his arms to get people to move to the side of the road and let us through. I kept as close as I could to Jon and the others. I recognized a few traders from the Pit. Still, they were slowing us down, and I cursed them for it. I was sweating with anxiety, and my fingers trembled. I tightened my grip on the reins to stop my hands from shaking.
“Keep going,” Jon yelled from ahead. “If we stop now, we’ll never reach him before he breaches the city walls.”
“I’m trying,” I yelled. “There are too many people. I can’t get through!”
And the farther we went, the more densely packed the road became. Eventually we were at a standstill. I looked over the heads of the crowds. We were nearly there, but we were completely surrounded.
A flash of red and gold caught my attention inside the west gate. A man on a horse turned around, and our eyes met.
Prince Landon had breached the gates. We were too late.
CHAPTER 33
EVEN FROM A DISTANCE I could read the surprise on his face. Clearly he thought I’d be dead. I was glad to disappoint him. I smiled at him defiantly, and he turned around and yelled something to his guard. I caught a glimpse of Thea grinning victoriously, and then they galloped away.
“To the gate!” I yelled. “The prince has breached the gate!”
Jon looked to the spot where I pointed, but I didn’t have time to wait and see if he’d spotted the prince. I was already moving.
I slid off Torak’s back, and I led him over to a tree at the far edge of the road. After I’d looped the reins around a branch, I stroked his neck gently.
“I’ll be right back. Promise.”
Understanding seemed to flash in his big brown eyes.
I had lost sight of the prince, but it didn’t matter. I knew where he was going. And I had to beat him there. I waved my sword around like a madwoman.
“Out of my way, or I’ll slit your goddamn throats!”
It worked. A crowd parted, and I kept my eyes on the gate and ran. Jon slid off his horse whe
n I passed him, but I didn’t have time to stop.
I dodged another crowd and kept waving my sword in front of me. I didn’t want to hurt anyone, but I would if I had to.
Four temple guards stood at the gate when I arrived. Their eyes darted from face to face, searching, searching for someone. Me.
I ducked behind a cart, and then I used a very fat man as a shield. I slipped through the gate unnoticed. I never stopped moving. I only hoped Jon was behind me. As soon as I cleared the gate, I tore down the main city road, dodging the nobles and merchants. I felt a moment’s satisfaction at the fear that flashed on the snotty faces of a group of wealthy ladies as I purposely elbowed them out of the way. I wouldn’t soil my blade on the likes of them.
The golden temple glinted in the sun like a giant yellow diamond. Eight horses were tied to a hitching post at the base of the temple. Landon’s horses. He was already inside. I cursed and dashed towards the temple. Two temple guards stood at the entrance, their swords already drawn. Someone had told them I was coming. I didn’t care.
I threw myself at the nearest guard. He grinned as he lifted his blade. He swung, but I sidestepped and rammed my sword into his side. I yanked my sword from his bleeding body and knocked him aside. As he staggered back, I caught a glimpse of Jon slamming into the other guard’s chest. My assailant had only been wounded, and he came at me again. He swung at me hard, and I danced back.
“Make no mistake, whore, I am going to kill you. First I’m going to cut that pretty little face of yours and slice your throat, and then I’ll have my way with your dead body.”
I didn’t have time for this.
The guard sneered and swung straight for my heart, but I whirled away and sliced him in the back. He staggered but steadied himself. He grimaced and charged after me again. I swept forward again and landed a few strong blows on his blade. His shirt was stained with blood, and his movements became slow. It was all I needed. I could see the hair in his nose and smell the ale on his breath. I stepped to the side when he attacked and thrust my sword into his back. Blood spattered my face. A puff of air escaped his lips, and he crumpled to the floor and didn’t get up.
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