“I’ve got you,” he said.
Her breath came in small, quick bursts. The pain in her ribs, in her arms, the exhaustion weighing on her, all were making her vision waver. Her grip was slackening. Darkness was creeping in at the corners of her eyes and she blinked it away, to no avail.
A mighty cry called across the vale, drawing her attention. She wondered, briefly, if the exhaustion and pain were causing hallucinations as a gigantic hawk soared between the mountains.
“What in damnation is that?” Oda shouted, confirming Aloisia was not imagining things.
Inari hauled Aloisia upwards. She let out a cry of her own, red spots clouding her vision.
“I’m sorry,” he murmured, lifting her further. “Almost there.”
The hawk circled back, swooping down to where they were. With a beat of its wings, a gust blew them all back. Inari’s grasp faltered. The rope was still slick in her palms. Her stomach dropped with the sickening feeling of falling.
Then she was caught, like a mouse. Talons as big as she was tall wound around her shoulders, her ribs, pinning her against the rock face. The hawk cried again, its beady eyes centring on her as it clung to the cliff side.
With a glance upwards, Aloisia confirmed she was now out of Inari’s reach. Should the bird let go…
A figure appeared on the hawk’s outstretched wing. A woman. She seemed surprisingly calm for someone relying on the stability of a wing. Across her face, harsh black lines were etched like fangs cutting from brow to chin. Her dark hair was wound in twisted braids, decorated with feathers and coloured strings. She cocked her head, much like the hawk, considering their catch.
“What have we here?” Her voice was light and lilting, contrasted to the harshness of her face. She turned her gaze to the others.
Aloisia wished she had her bow, for what little good it would do her.
“You are not of the mountains, nor the vale,” the woman said. “You have made a brave attempt to enter this land, but a foolish one. And it is so easy for one to disappear within these mountains…”
“Chieftain Cathan sent us,” Aloisia rasped. She feared if she had been heard, if her voice was loud enough as her vision blurred and the wind howled.
The woman tilted her head the other way, her eyes narrowed. “Curious.”
After a long moment, she whistled. The hawk let go, swooping back with one beat of its giant wings. Again, that horrifying rush of falling flooded Aloisia. And then, once again, she was caught between the bird’s claws. Only now they were soaring in the air and suddenly Inari was in the other set of talons. Another cry sounded above them. Another hawk.
As they rushed through the air, Aloisia fought the urge to vomit. All too soon, she was released. The ground rose swiftly and, as she had predicted, the poppies did nothing to cushion the impact.
THIRTY ONE
Aloisiayelpedasshehittheground.Theheighttheyhadfallenfromhadnotbeenas great as she had first thought, but it was high enough. Inari tumbled alongside her, swiftly followed by Kaja and the guards.
Inari was the first on his feet, his fists clenched at his sides. Kaja scrambled across to Aloisia.
“Are you still with us?” Kaja placed a palm on her cheek, her other going to her neck to search for a pulse.
“Unfortunately,” Aloisia murmured, blinking away the red starbursts which bloomed at the edges of her vision.
She turned her gaze to the crowd now surrounding them. Like the woman they had encountered up on the cliff, they each bore fang-like markings on their faces. Their hair was pulled back in braids, wound through with string and feathers, some with silver loops. There were too many to count.
One woman stepped forth, a blade in one hand and a small hawk upon her shoulder. Her hair was bright as flames, her eyes much the same, such a contrast to the black markings and dark leathers she bore.
“Welcome,” she said, spreading her arms wide, “to the Vale of Poppies.”
The woman from the cliff leapt down from her giant hawk. Placing a fist over her heart, she bowed to the other woman. “Hail, Maili.”
“Why are they alive, Una?”
“They mentioned Chieftain Cathan of Clan Tolmach. Said he sent them.”
“Is that so?” Maili turned her gaze back to Aloisia, a wicked grin on her face.
Aloisia tried to stand, leaning heavily on Kaja’s shoulder. “Chieftain Cathan—”
