“There,” he said brightly. “That one even looks like a woman.”
I peered at the rock he’d kissed. He was right. A lonely lemon tree grew beside the handful of rocks, but the boulder he’d kissed was as tall as a woman, with worn carvings that might even resemble the outline of hair and lips, breasts and a whittled waist.
“You’re certain thatrakshasifruit is out of your system?” asked Vikram.
“Yes?”
“Good.” He took a deep breath. “Because, once more, I told you so.”
“You do realize that I don’t need the enhancements of demon fruit to knock you to the ground?”
“I do. But I concede that some bodily harm from you is inevitable. I’m just trying to minimize the damage.”
“How very wise,” I said, rolling my eyes.
Vikram grinned. “You saved my life, now I have saved yours.”
“We’re no longer in each other’s debt then,” I said, walking past him.
“No reward, fair maiden?” he asked, jogging to keep up with me. It was at least an hour’s walk to the front doors of Alaka. “If you remember, I very generously offered you my hand in marriage.”
“And I rejected it. Consider that your reward.”
Vikram stopped, turning to the spot where the door had opened in the air and dropped us into Alaka.
“Silly as it sounds, I’m almost concerned for thevetala.”
I understood that. Even I almost liked thevetala.But he’d made his choice. We’d offered help. The creature rejected it. I didn’t waste time mourning.
“I wish he had come with us.”
I swatted Vikram.
“Ow! What was that for?”
“We’re in Alaka now. I wouldn’t start off any sentence with ‘I wish.’ Save it for when you win.”
Vikram pulled the ruby from his pocket, tossing it into the air so that the gem caught the light.
I looked ahead of us to the outline of the palace, appraising it as I would any enemy on the battlefield. Maya’s stories ran through my head. This was a place where dreams and nightmares borrowed each other’s faces. Somewhere, folded among all that dark gold and all those bright jewels, was my wish. A new reign in Bharata. Nalini’s safety. Skanda’s legacy scrubbed out of history. I saw a promise of freedom so close I could snatch it out of the sky. But I also saw Maya swallowed whole by the dark of the forest. I saw every night I had spent wondering where she was, what had happened. What waited for us wasn’t just a tournament, but a new future. And I would fight for it with my eyes wide open.
I looked at Vikram and caught the same hungry gleam in his eyes.
“Race you to the end?” I said.
He grinned. “What does the winner get?”
“A chance to risk life and death at an impossible game.”
His smile fell away. “That’s a solemn victory.”
I shrugged. “Most victories are.”
“What about the loser?”
“The loser gets no chance at all.”
Vikram eyed the palace. “Then we better start running.”
