“Go to Mithangol, to my family home. Bring with you only those you can trust completely—those who are willing to fix what has been broken. I will be waiting for you there.” He tilted his head back, raising his gaze up to the ceiling.
I looked up, too. Overhead, the ceiling had opened up—or dissolved away, I really wasn’t sure—to reveal the night sky. The moon hung above like a giant, lidless, silver eye.
“Meet me there on the night of the next full moon,” he said.
I stared up into the sky, wondering what the heck was going on. And when I looked down again, Jaevid was gone. So were all the creepy shadow animals. I was completely alone, except for those gleaming white bones.
“Jae?” I called for him, turning in circles to search the whole chamber. But he wasn’t anywhere to be found.
And then the ground fell out beneath me.
It gave way with a rumbling crack and I fell, down, away from the light, until I landed on the flat of my back on top of a huge pile of round, smooth stones. I clamored back to my feet, squinting up into the single shaft of light that filtered down from above.
That’s when I realized they weren’t stones under my feet—they were skulls. Human skulls crunched under my boots with every frantic step I took to try and get away. I sank down, and no matter how I fought I couldn’t get free.
“The balance must be restored,” a whispering voice hissed in my mind, just as the sea of skulls swallowed me completely.
I wasn’t sure how to tell Julianna what I had seen in my dream, or even if I should. I didn’t know what to make of it, myself. Was it real? Had Jaevid actually been trying to contact me? Or was I just riding the emotional backslide from talking about him with Prax?
Sitting at the breakfast table across from her, I couldn’t follow a word she said to me. She was going on about something wedding related. Colors of flowers, maybe. All I did was stare down into my teacup and twirl my spoon across my knuckles over and over again. My other hand was fidgeting underneath the table.
“Felix?”
I glanced up quickly when I heard my name. “Yes?”
“Is everything okay?” She was obviously concerned. Her soft eyes were brimming with worry.
I could lie to a lot of people and get away with it, but Jules knew me better than my own parents. I couldn’t slip anything past her, so I didn’t even bother trying. “I’m not sure.”
She immediately shut the thick book where she’d been jotting down all our wedding plans and pushed it away. “Talk to me, then.”
So I did. I told her about what Prax had said about Mavrik and that Jaevid’s body still hadn’t been recovered. Then I described my dream. When I was finished, I fixed my gaze back down into my teacup and chewed on the inside of my cheek.
“The next full moon is only a few days away, Felix.” Her voice was quiet and thoughtful. “It’s the night after our engagement ball. Remember? We moved the date so the two wouldn’t coincide. It’s bad luck.”
I nodded. “I know.”
Julianna sat quietly for a moment. I didn’t dare look up to see the expression on her face. How could I go? No, I shouldn’t. It was just a dream, nonsense, nothing more.
A small paper swan appeared next to my teacup along with Julianna’s hand. The sight of it made me smile involuntarily.
“You have to go,” she said suddenly.
“What?”
She was sitting up straight with a gentle, but stern look fixed on me. “If you don’t, you’ll always wonder. You need to go. It’s the only way to be sure it wasn’t anything more than a nightmare.”
I picked up her paper swan and marveled at its clean creases. She’d made them all the time when we were kids. It was her favorite prank to leave them hidden around the estate in our favorite playtime places for me to find.
“What about our wedding plans?” I asked.
Julianna shook her head. “They can wait. Besides, you’ll just keep agreeing to anything I choose, right?”
“I don’t want you to think I’m putting this ahead of you,” I muttered uncomfortably. “Our wedding is more important.”
She smiled as she put her hand on top of mine to stop me from fidgeting with the swan. “You’re a sweet man, you know, but sometimes you say really stupid things. You don’t have to lie just to make me feel better. I know how much Jaevid meant to you. And I know you won’t be satisfied until you know the truth. So go, please?”
I felt guilty because she was right. I wanted to go. I wasn’t going to be able to think about anything else until I knew what that dream meant—if it even meant anything at all. Taking her hand, I felt myself begin to relax as she wound her fingers gently through mine.
“You sure you’ll be okay here without me?”
Julianna rolled her eyes and gave me a teasing smirk. “Come on, Felix. How long have I gone without you before now? Besides, I’ve still got to pay a visit to my parents and explain what’s happened. The last I spoke to them, I had just told them I was planning on breaking our engagement.”
I groaned and slumped in my chair. “I should be the one telling them that. I’m sure they’ve wondered what the heck was wrong with me all these years.”
She giggled, and made that cute expression where she nibbled on her bottom lip. I loved it when she did that. I think she must have known, because when our eyes met, she winked at me. “They’re just going to be happy that everything is better now. So don’t worry about a thing.”
“Pfft. Right.”
“You mentioned Jaevid told you to bring only people you could trust,” she said, obviously trying to change the subject. “Who will you ask?”
The thought hadn’t even crossed my mind. I’d been so caught up in trying to decide whether or not to go, I hadn’t even considered taking anyone with me.
“Prax, I guess,” I answered. “He’s the only one who might actually believe I’m not out of my mind. I suppose I should write to him about it. Maybe he can convince a few of the others from Emerald Flight to come with him.”
“And you trust those men?” Jules didn’t seem so sure that was a good idea.
“They all knew Jaevid. The blood we shed in battle made us brothers. I trusted them with my life then, I see no reason not to now. There might even be a few other riders from our little excursion during our avian year who haven’t forgotten what Jae did on that island.”
“But do you trust them now?” she repeated earnestly.
I couldn’t answer. It was a difficult question—one I was going to have to think about.
Julianna seemed unsettled as she sat across the table from me, still holding my hand. It looked like there was something else she wanted to say—something she wasn’t sure she should.
“What is it?” I probed.
She dodged my stare. “What do you suppose he really was? Or still is, if that’s the case.”
“Who?”
“Jaevid. I mean, after everything you’ve told me about him … do you really think he’s just a normal person?”
I didn’t know what to think about Jae. I never had. Every time I thought I’d seen his last trick, he came out with some new, magical secret that saved our butts just in time. That was why I couldn’t discount this dream as just a fiction of my twisted, stressed out imagination.
“He was my friend and that’s really all that matters to me,” I decided.
Julianna nodded. “Just be careful. My mother used to tell me stories. Old tales about the ancient gods who could shake the foundations of the earth until the mountains coughed fire, spin storms in the skies, and make oceans swell until they swallowed up the dry land. Those stories used to make me feel so terribly small and helpless. And when I hear you talk about what Jaevid could do, I get that same feeling.”
I gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. “Trust me, Jules. Jae may have some strange powers, but he is definitely not some ancient god. I’ve never heard of a god who sucked at hand-to-hand co
mbat as badly as he did.”
“Someone told me he beat you once,” she countered.
“That is such a load of crock. I let him win that match! Who told you about that? Was it Fredrick? That soft-handed little weasel always had it in for me. Next time I see him I’ll …”
Julianna started laughing. I realized she’d just been baiting me into getting riled up over nothing. Crap. She’d really gotten me good that time.
I blushed and tried unsuccessfully to sulk.
Then she spoke again. “Just promise me one thing.” Her voice became quiet and she sounded worried. “One way or another, swear you’ll come back home.”
I didn’t know where all this insecurity was coming from. Maybe because I’d mentioned the skulls in my dream? “Jules, nothing’s going to happen to—”
“You don’t know that,” she said. “So just promise me. I know better than to ask you not to do something dangerous. So instead, I’m just asking that you survive it. Please.”
I guess I already knew that whatever might be waiting for me in Mithangol was probably dangerous. It usually was with Jae. But what could I say to that? If I was required to make the ultimate sacrifice, would I go through with it? It would mean leaving her alone, burdened with my family estate and—worst of all—my mother.
I shuddered. No, I couldn’t do that to the woman I loved. Prax was right; I had to start thinking about more than just myself. Julianna depended on me now. After such a long time of being the biggest disappointment a fiancée could ever be, I wasn’t about to repeat my mistakes as her husband.
I nodded and agreed, “I promise, Jules. I’ll come back.”
“I’m not asking you to do anything,” I said, after I finished explaining everything to Prax. He’d come in a day early for our engagement party, at my request, just so I could have this little chat with him.
And in all honesty, I had absolutely no idea how he was going to react.
My story was bizarre. It sounded insane even to me. Dreams about ancient caverns and mountains of skulls? Just thinking of it made me shudder.
Sitting across from me in the privacy of my office, I could practically see the wheels turning behind his eyes as he studied me for several long, uncomfortable seconds. At last, he let out a heavy sigh and scratched anxiously at his chin.
“And you believe this was his way of trying to contact you?” He didn’t sound convinced.
“I don’t know what to believe. That’s exactly why I’m going.”
“Felix, I understand wanting to believe your friend is still alive. Truly, I do. And please hear me when I say that it was never my intention to give you any form of false hope about Jaevid’s fate,” he began to explain.
I cut him off, standing up from behind my desk. “No offense, but this had nothing to do with you. I’ve never understood why Jae could do the things he did. I may never understand. But I believe in him and if he needs me, I’m going to be there, sword in hand, ready to fight at his side until the bitter end. We are dragonriders—that’s what we do.”
Prax’s expression was complex, a mix of confusion and concern. I guessed he was thinking I’d finally lost whatever marbles I still had rattling around between my ears.
And then he laughed. He laughed himself to the verge of tears and sat back, slapping his knee and trying to collect himself enough to speak.
I assumed he was making fun of me.
“I’m sorry, boy,” he managed to rasp. “It’s just that—Gods and Fates—I wish I could claim that courage and determination came from my side of your blood. But that was a speech straight out of your mother’s mouth. When she was younger, she had that same fire in her blood. Seems there’s more of her in you than she’d ever let anyone believe.”
I stood a little straighter when he got to his feet.
“You’re mad, of course. But it’s good. Very good.” He gave me a proud smile. “So give me the order.”
“The order?”
His eyes glinted with mischief. “I can’t just up and leave Northwatch of my own accord without being marked a deserter. You asked me to come here for your engagement ball, Your Grace, and of course I’m pleased to oblige. So if you’d like anything else from me, you’re going to have to give me a direct order.”
I hesitated, then stumbled over the words. “R-right. Lieutenant Prax, I request that you, and as many men from Emerald Flight as you deem worthy, accompany me to Mithangol.”
“As you wish, Duke Farrow.” Prax smirked and nodded approvingly. He stepped closer and began roughly adjusting the collar of my tunic and straightening the buckle on my formal cloak. “And let’s just be clear—am I to tell them what you told me?”
“No,” I answered quickly. “Just tell them to come and be ready. I hope I’m wrong, but we may be in for a fight.”
He opened his mouth to add something, but Miss Harriet came flying into the office. She was flushed and her hair was wild.
“Master Felix, the king has just arrived!” She came at me armed with a golden collar that she draped over my shoulders before she started fussing with my hair.
“What?” I was stunned. Of course I’d sent him an invitation. It was a social obligation for someone of my standing, but I’d never expected him to show up.
“Yes! His carriage just pulled onto the drive. He brought his elite guard, thirty soldiers, and four dragonriders. No one has ever seen such a procession. They say he’s brought an entire wagon filled with gifts.”
I couldn’t have cared less about the gifts. As if I didn’t have enough stuff already. But I was having trouble understanding why he’d come and brought so many guards with him. It was beyond excessive. This wasn’t a dangerous place. I had my own guards stationed around the house, watching the perimeter, and I knew every one of them was capable.
“Very good. You’re dismissed.” I shooed her away from trying to wipe smudges off my face with her thumb. She looked like she might faint with nervous excitement. I hoped Julianna was faring better.
As soon as she was gone, Prax and I exchanged a meaningful look. I knew we both had to be thinking the same thing.
“Sounds like he’s brought a small army,” Prax observed with a careful tone. He knew better than to speak out of turn—not that I would have cared.
I was already making a break for the door. “And to my doorstep, no less. How much you want to bet they aren’t here just to dance and eat the free food?”
Prax fell in step beside me as I left my private chambers. His hand rested anxiously on the pommel of his sword. “I’m not a betting man, but even I like those odds.”
We almost made it to the foyer when Miss Harriet caught up to me again. She seized me by the arm and practically dragged me into a parlor near the ballroom where all my guests were gathering. She went on about how it was nearly time and that I had to stay out of sight until the right moment. Julianna had gone to a lot of trouble planning everything. Blah, blah blah.
Prax just laughed and swaggered away to join the rest of the party. He didn’t look very sorry for me at all. The big jerk.
I sat alone in the darkened parlor, listening to the noise of the gathering crowd and the swell of beautiful music. My mind was racing over everything—the wedding, the king and all his guards camping out on my lawn, and Jaevid. Things were getting more complicated by the second. And if there’s anything I’d learned about myself it was that I don’t handle complicated very well.
“Master Felix?” Miss Harriet appeared in the doorway, speaking softly as if she were afraid of disturbing me. “Are you ready?”
I snapped to my feet. “Always.”
She led me back out into the hall. The sound of the crowd was louder, echoing off the ceilings. Two of my servants in their finest uniforms stood ready to open the doors to the largest ballroom.
And then I saw her.
Julianna was waiting for me. The soft light of the chandeliers made her hair shine and her fair skin glow. He
r smile stopped me dead in my tracks. I’d seen her wear fancy ball gowns before, in all styles and colors, but I had never seen her look this beautiful.
I tried to tell her that when I finally got the courage to approach her. But like a total moron, I choked on everything I tried to say.
She smiled wider and threw her arms around my neck. I hugged her tightly, picked her up, and twirled her around. Girls like that kind of thing.
Behind us, I heard Miss Harriet sniffling.
“Are you sure about this?” Julianna whispered. “This is your last chance to escape, you know.”
I slipped one of her gloved hands around my arm. “Tempting. But I think I’ll pass.”
One of the servants waiting to open the doors cleared his throat, so I gave him the signal. It was time. The doors opened before us and golden light spilled out. Julianna squeezed my arm nervously.
Good. At least I wasn’t the only one.
After midnight, the party was in full swing and there were no signs of it slowing anytime soon. Couples continued twirling away on the dance floor, filling the ballroom with laughter and conversation. There was still plenty of food, and even though we weren’t serving any wine or ale, everyone seemed to be in good spirits. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt so relaxed and comfortable in a setting like this. It was a much different feel than the parties I’d thrown myself. This had Julianna’s delicate fingerprints all over it. It was formal, refined, but comfortable—just like her. She looked happy, too. Happier than I’d seen her in a long time. That alone was enough for me to have a good time.
Besides the king, nobles and gentry had come from all over the kingdom. Everyone, of course, except my mother. I have to admit, I did look for her. I sort of expected she might show up, sour-faced, and skulk around like an old crow ready to badmouth me to anyone who might listen. But she didn’t. For whatever reason, that disappointed me. I suppose as much as I wanted to believe I was completely done with her and it didn’t matter what she said or how she treated me—none of that was true. I’d never be able to break the emotional tether that bound us together. Like it or not, she’d always be my mother. I’d always want her affection and approval.
Immortal Page 10
