From somewhere came the eerie echo of a howl, and I wasted no time in staggering forward.
“Help me,” I gasped, scooping handfuls of sand. The ordeal must have sobered him, as he joined me in digging, grunting with exertion, heaving himself upward.
At last he stumbled out onto the flats, his fashionable breeches mud-blackened, ruined. He sank down, buried his face in his hands. He was crying, I realized. Murmuring something between the sobs.
“Zennia. I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Zennia.”
“Come on,” I hissed, dragging him up. We had to get out of here. I urged him toward the causeway.
But as we neared it, my stomach sank like a stone. Our stallion was gone, no sign of him anywhere.
And then, when I turned and peered behind us—
Eyes.
“This way,” I whispered, tugging Emment along with me. The lights of Port Rhorstin flickered to the west. Ahead of us must lie the lapping water, but how far I no longer had any idea. The clouds shifted again, dappling the bay with moonslight, and another glance back revealed black shapes on the sands. Three, maybe four. Even taller than the wolfhounds.
I broke into a run, shoving Emment ahead of me.
“Wha—What is’t?” He stumbled, craning his neck.
“Just go!” I shouted, then turned, jogging backward.
The eyes were getting nearer. I sucked in a breath.
Another exam. That was all. I could do this. I called to the nearby streams, to the wet sands, “Cut them off! Block their path to the causeway.”
I didn’t wait around to see if it had worked.
Whirling, I took off after Emment. And together we sprinted onward into the night.
—
More howls sounded as we raced along the causeway, but no eyes winked in the surrounding darkness. I hoped that meant the wolves couldn’t cross the soaking sands.
When we finally made it to the little stone harbor, I collapsed into the boat, relief searing through me. Emment lay back in the vessel with a groan. I peered at him as we slid through the water, thankful that at least he wasn’t crying anymore. I’d never been a natural at comfortingpeople. I’d always felt utterly unhelpful and awkward, guiltily wishing I could just slip away. Not that Emment deserved any comfort, not after his antics back at the Veil.
I soon picked out the island rearing above us, a deep black against the navy curtain of night. As I looked keenly for the beach, for the planes and angles of its harbor, I saw a single light there, hovering in the darkness. A lantern, being held aloft by a cloaked figure.
I nudged Emment with my foot but elicited no movement. To my annoyance, a loud snore emanated from his slumped form.
“Who’s out there?” came a hoarse call from the beach. Over the sloshing water, I didn’t recognize the voice.
“It’s us,” I called back stiffly, trying to shake Emment awake. I heard a bitten-off curse, theswooshof someone wading into the surf.
Emment finally stirred, blinking into the thick darkness. “Wha—?” His bleary eyes took me in.
A cold hand touched my back, and I wheeled, caught off guard. For a second, the light of the lantern blinded me. Then the figure who was holding it resolved: Llir.
His cloak’s hood was up, shadowing his face. As I took in the smooth lines of his features, he yanked it back. “Emment,” he said, staring wildly past me. He’d waded up to his waist into the water, his doublet darkening, his hair wet with spray. “Is he all right?”
“Functional,” I said, glancing back at the sorry sight, “if incoherent.”
“Help me get this boat in,” Llir said tersely, handing me the lantern. He gripped the boat’s side and began to haul it along with him. Though he wasn’t as broad at the shoulder as his brother, his tall frame still exuded a lean, wiry strength.
When I spoke to the water, it heeded me quickly, seeming almost to sense my weary impatience. I was too fatigued to be hampered by anxiety, too fed up with Emment to let the nerves creep in—thoughLlir’s presencehadsparked an odd flittering in my navel. Probably I was conscious of failing in front of him, like last time.
Together our efforts easily grounded the boat, and I helped as best I could to drag it clear of the water. By now, Emment was up, trying to clamber out of the vessel, and Llir darted around to him, slipping a shoulder under his arm.
