“You ready?” Worth asked from the other side of Alexandra. He hadn’t left since she’d received Thomas’ message.
Riley knew what he was asking. Could she stop Rendal? Had she learned enough?
“I’m as ready as I’m ever going to be,” she answered.
“Okay,” Worth responded. “We go then. We go, and we fight. ‘Bout time.”
Riley laughed. “About time? Worth, you’ve been telling me to wait since you joined us.”
“Worth just lazy. Always knew you ready. Just didn’t want to fight.”
They all laughed at that. It felt good to laugh, given the weight hanging over them.
“What are you going to do?” William asked. “We just going to head out into the desert until we run into them?”
Riley shook her head. “No. If the goal is to get back home and face Rendal, we want to do it as quickly as possible. Alexandra, can you send a beacon to their mages to let them know where we are?”
“Yeah, I can, my Savior. It will make me sick to my stomach, but I can.”
“I know,” Riley responded. “We’re heading straight to the people who killed your family, but we will avenge them. Blood is on their hands, and they will pay the cost for that.”
“When do you want me to do it?” Alexandra asked.
“Now. We leave tonight. I don’t want anything else to do with the old bitch who lives in this dead kingdom.”
“Oh, I’m not done with her,” William commented. “We’re coming back when this is over and showing her a thing or two about being heroes. Show her what happens to villains and those who are apathetic.”
“‘Apathetic’ is a big word for you. I’m proud.” Riley smiled. “I also have a feeling she’d kick your ass, chubby.”
“Watch it, skinny. You don’t want to be in the way of my warpath when I’m done with her.”
“Yeah, yeah. I’ve heard it all before.” She glanced at Alexandra. “Will you send the beacon now? Let them know we’re coming to them?”
Alexandra nodded, and her eyes flashed red. Moments passed in silence, with Riley considering what it meant. They were going to the enemy, but not to fight them, or at least not in the desert.
“They know,” Alexandra finally said. “They told me their location.”
“Oh, isn’t that sweet of the bastards?” William grumbled. “Now we can meet up and be a happy family. Riley, what are you planning to do?”
“Go back to New Perth.”
“We’re not going to kill them? We’re just going to surrender?”
“You’re smarter than this, chubby,” Riley replied.
“Got nothin’ to do with brains, skinny. I don’t think we’ll lose if we fight ‘em. You do.”
“It’s not worth the risk. We’ll go back, and then I’ll have my chance at Rendal.”
The group was silent for a few minutes. Finally Riley said, “Okay, let’s get packed.”
Chapter Twelve
“It’s over, Goland. It is oovvveerrrr.”
The last word came out in a sing-song fashion, echoing across the cold stone room Mason and his father occupied.
Goland grinned. “Oh, your constipation finally cleared up?”
Mason loved his father, always had, but he was loving him more and more with all the smartass remarks.
“It’s going to be a lot less funny once Riley is either on my side or dead,” Rendal responded. “Because, regardless of which happens, you two are done. Mason, I might miss you slightly. Goland, it’s going to be a pleasure pulling your lungs out through your mouth. That’s the way I’m going to do it—I just decided. Because it’s your lungs and your everlasting mouth that have annoyed me so.”
“Oh, Rendal, you hurt me so,” Goland quipped. “How am I going to continue praising you without lungs?”
Goland and Mason sat on the floor behind the bars, their cage completely bare.
Rendal was pacing back and forth across the little strip of stone in front of them.
“We’ve found her, or rather, we will soon. I sent a force out to search for her.” Rendal gazed at Mason and grinned. “I hope you weren’t thinking I was just going to wait for her to come here. No, that’s foolish. But my army found her.”
Rendal turned then, taking in Mason fully.
“You sent her to Linda. I thought there might be a chance—though a small one—that Riley could survive what I did to her, but I honestly never thought of Linda. I didn’t even think she was still alive, to be honest. It was a good move, if unexpected.”
Rendal nodded, and Mason thought he saw actual appreciation in the man for the first time.
Mason hated it and wanted to spit on him.
“Well, turns out Linda healed her, and I suppose that’s fine. All I need now is for her to decide to join me or to disappear forever, which is what’s going to happen.”
“She’ll never join you,” Mason remarked, “and clearly you can’t kill her.”
“You’re faith in her is misplaced, young man. Do you know what she’s doing right now?”
Mason said nothing.
“She had one of the people with her contact my army. The person provided a beacon of sorts and asked for a return one from the army. You know why? So they could meet up. She’s not hiding. She’s not running. She is peacefully going to meet them.”
“Of course, so she can come back here and kill you.” Mason felt real fury at Rendal, but he grinned instead of showing it.
“Does this sound like the Riley you know? Meeting up with my men? Sending beacons? No. She’s seen the light, and she’s going to join. I have her kingdom; she must know that by now. Perhaps Linda helped her understand that there is nothing she can do, or maybe she came to the realization on her own. Either way, this is a very different Riley.”
Goland stood and walked to the edge of the cell. “You might be older than me, due to whatever corrupt magic you use. You’re not wiser, though. You know nothing about people. I wonder if you are even human anymore, or if perhaps you’re so wicked you’ve changed to some kind of subspecies. Either way, you don’t know Riley. She’s returning, but it’s to put your head on a silver platter.”
Chapter Thirteen
Two days had passed since the group sat on the beach watching the waves lap lazily on the shore.
“This mage wasn’t playing around,” Alexandra said as the five came to a stop.
“Are we going to fight them?” Eric asked. Even though he was the quietest of the entire group, Riley knew he was no coward.
“No,” she responded. “We’re not.”
Before them stretched a force that they couldn’t hope to defeat. Men stretched to the left and right, all battle-clad and looking like hardened warriors. There were mages too, their eyes red and ready to fight if necessary.
The group was perhaps five hundred feet in front of Riley.
“Alexandra, tell them we’ve come in peace. Ask for their leader to come to us.”
Alexandra’s eyes turned red for a moment.
“This is bullshit,” William growled. “Complete bullshit, and you know it, Riley.”
“What do you want me to do?” She looked at him. He was still sitting atop his camel.
“You’re a Right Hand, damn it. I want you to fight. I want you to fulfill your duties.”
Riley shook her head. “I took no oath to die in vain. Did you, and I don’t know about it?”
William gritted his teeth.
“Plus, you still don’t have your sword, chubby. You’re not even half as good of a warrior with that axe, and on your best day with your sword, you’re not half as good as me. That means that right now, we’re talking orders of magnitude less adept at fighting, and I don’t want to have to save you again. It’s getting embarrassing.”
William grinned despite his anger. “Yeah, you’re definitely getting your ass whipped just like that old biddy.”
Both hushed for a moment as the army opened up some and two riders came through.
/> “That’s the bastard, Harold, ain’t it?” William asked.
“Him and his jackass sidekick Belarus. Come on, let’s get this over with.”
The group of five went forward.
“I hope your message was truthful, Riley,” Harold said as they reached each other. “My orders are rather different this time since Rendal is growing very tired of you. I can either bring you back if you come in peace or I can kill you here. If you look behind me, I think you’ll see that the second option wouldn’t be much of a problem.”
“We’re not here for war.”
“Not yet, anyway,” William chimed in. “War will come once we get to New Perth. I’m going to enjoy killing you. No mage will save you this time.”
“I think once you get to New Perth, you’ll see that a lot has changed. War isn’t even possible for you anymore, Right Hand, although you don’t see that yet. You’ve already lost.”
“The only one losing anything is you, and it’s going to be your damned head,” William shot back.
“Enough,” Riley said. “We’re here. We want to go back. Let’s do it.”
“That’s the spirit,” Harold agreed. “Belarus, go ahead and put the necklaces on our friends here.”
“Sure thing, boss.”
Harold’s second spurred his camel forward, and Riley caught his eye.
“How’s the arm?”
“Fine, you dumb bitch,” Belarus murmured, but quickly looked away.
It clearly wasn’t fine, as the bandage around it could attest.
“Think you’ll want to fight again on our trip?” Riley grinned. “I don’t imagine your boss there will mind. In fact, you and me fighting might be the only thing he truly approves of.”
“I’ll fight you when I’m good and ready. Now shut yer damn trap.”
Riley chuckled, knowing the coward would do no such thing.
Belarus reached over and slapped a necklace on her neck quickly.
Riley focused on the sand beneath her, trying to make it rise. Her eyes didn’t turn red, and the sand remained in place. The necklace had blocked her magic.
Belarus slapped necklaces on all five.
“Their weapons next.”
“To hell with that.” William reached to pull his axe from his back.
Riley looked at him. “No.”
William held his pose for a second, considering whether people would die now or later.
Finally, his hand dropped.
“Smart move, big man,” Harold commented. “Got more people back there than you can even count, I’m sure. Would be awful dumb to make any moves right now.”
Belarus had his camel kneel and hopped off. “All of ya get down. Need to check ya for knives and such. Give me any shit, and I’ll break yer jaws.”
He sounded almost bored, as if he wasn’t dealing with the deadliest fighter on this continent.
Riley did as she was asked, although she hated it. Every moment she sat here listening to these people and doing what they wanted? It went against her very being.
Yet, she didn’t have a choice. She wouldn’t get these people killed.
Belarus unsheathed her sword, tossing it to the ground. Riley nearly kicked his fucking head off at such disrespect.
He squatted and started feeling her legs for weapons, although the way he was gripping was far too intimate.
“I wonder, boss. You think if she decides to not go with Rendal, he might let me, ya know, have a go at her?”
“I think, Belarus, that if you say something like that again, I’m going to allow Riley here to disembowel you. Finish the damn job.”
“Yeah, boss, sure thing. Didn’t mean nothin’ by it,” the man said quickly.
He made his way around the group, removing all their weapons and throwing them to the ground.
“All done. They’re clean.”
“Belarus, what are you missing?” Harold asked, his voice sounding as if he were speaking to a child.
“Oh, yeah!”
He went to his camel and pulled chains from the pack.
“You are a damned idiot,” Riley commented, shaking her head. “I mean, I almost feel bad for you.”
“Say another word, and I’ll cut your tongue out, bitch.”
Riley laughed despite her circumstances. “That why you can’t meet my eyes? Because you’re so dangerous?”
Belarus put the chains on everyone and then hopped back up on his camel.
“Okay. All of you get up on your camels,” Harold instructed. “I’ve left your ankle chains off because if you look around, there ain’t nowhere to run unless you want to die of dehydration in a day or so.”
Riley looked at her sword. She couldn’t stand to leave it here in this desert. She’d already lost one sword to Rendal. Two was too many.
“You’re going to want to bring that,” she told Harold, still staring at it.
“Why’s that? You planning on using it?”
“Trust me, Rendal will want me to have it if I join him.”
The entire group looked at Riley then. She’d never spoken such words in her life. She didn’t return their stares but kept her eyes on the sword.
“I think you're a bit of a fibber, Riley dearest,” Harold said. “I think Rendal will probably have you killed within two weeks, but you are right. If you do join him, he’ll want you to have your little weapon, given how much you can do with it. Belarus, grab it, and let’s get on the way.”
He got off his camel again and picked up the blade. “I’mma take real good care of this for you, Riley.” He grinned, knowing how much she hated having his grimy hands on it.
“You can get dirt on it if you want, Belarus,” she told him. “I’ll make sure I clean it with your blood.”
Chapter Fourteen
“They say she’s been captured,” Brighten told the group.
“Riley?” Erin asked.
Brighten nodded.
“Who said it?” Lucie asked.
“We’re hearing chatter on the street,” Kris jumped in. “New Perth doesn’t have nearly as many homeless kids as Sidnie did, but you still got some, and we can move in and out of them. The streets say the Right Hands are returning, and that Harold captured them. Not that they’re coming on their own.”
The four of them were up in one of Mac’s rooms. They had been trying to stay out of the lobby in case someone walked by and wanted a room.
“I’m not sure what that means,” Erin commented. “Lucie, is there any way you can use your magic to see what’s going on?”
“I can try.”
Lucie’s eyes turned red as the other three gazed at her. She stared into space for long moments as everyone waited in silence.
Finally, her eyes turned back to their normal color, but she shook her head.
“No. I can’t see anything. Granted, I can’t search the entire continent, but I looked specifically for Riley, and there was nothing.”
“Which means they put a necklace on her,” Erin said.
“What’s that mean?” Brighten asked. “If they put a necklace on her, does it mean she surrendered?”
“I’m gonna do you a favor, Brighten,” Lucie interjected, “and not tell Riley you said that when this is all said and done. She’d string you up in front of the entire kingdom if she knew you muttered such nonsense.”
“Ha!” Kris laughed. “She wouldn’t have to string him up. All Riley would need to do was stare at him, and scaredy-cat here would shake so bad his whole body would fall apart. Just arms and legs rattling right off his torso.”
“You all need to get serious,” Brighten said. “If she’s got a necklace on her, we need to ask ourselves what that means. We’ve been running around here risking our lives in the hope that she returns as a savior, not as a prisoner.”
“Okay, calm down.” Erin walked over and placed a hand on Brighten’s shoulder. “We don’t know exactly what is happening, and that’s okay. We can’t know everything all the time, but our goal here doesn�
�t change. We’re trying to help overthrow this evil fucking mage, and we can’t do that if we don’t act.”
She looked at Kris.
“How sure are you that Riley and William are coming back?”
Kris grinned. “Oh, I forgot about Willlliiaaaamm. You going to give him a big kiss the moment this is all over?”
A slight blush rose to Erin’s cheeks, but she smiled. “I think I’m going to give you a kick in the ass if you don’t answer my question.”
Kris’s grin fell away. “Everyone was talking about it. Not just the homeless kids, but we heard adults saying it too. Things like, it’s over—the Right Hands can’t save us because they’ve been caught.”
Erin nodded. “All right, then. We have to go on the idea that Riley is returning and kick our plan into high gear. Lucie, can we get in touch with Eisen and the other leaders? We’re going to need to meet tonight.”
“Yeah, should be able to,” Lucie responded. “Just gotta find the right spot.”
“We don’t need to go, right?” Brighten asked. “Like, Kris and I can just stay here?”
Kris walked over and smacked the back of his head. “I ain’t stayin’ nowhere, scaredy-cat. When this is all over, they’re going to write songs ‘bout my bravery and cunning. I’m sure you’ll be in the songs too, but they’re going to call you Brighten the No-Balls Scaredy-Cat. You will be my sidekick who had to be forced to go everywhere because you were too frightened.”
Brighten rolled his eyes. “The No Balls Scaredy-Cat is the worst joke you’ve ever come up with.”
“And yet, it’s better than anything you’ve ever said.” Kris looked at Erin. “We want to go. We’re a part of this.”
“I know,” Erin replied. “Brighten may bluster about not wanting to do anything, but every time he’s called upon, he’s there. Lucie, let’s get in touch with Eisen and the other town leaders. We’ll meet after midnight and discuss what’s to be done.”
Brighten and Kris sat in the back of the basement. The group had ventured farther into town because it was easier for everyone to meet that way. A whole bunch of people going out to Mac’s would surely draw attention, but having them randomly walk around a busier part of the kingdom wouldn’t be noticed.
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