CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Going home turned out to be easier said than done.
Shea and Trenton were still trapped near the heart of the Badlands with little in the way of supplies. The confrontation in the butte had left her wounded. Granted the wounds were small, the grass hadn’t been long enough to do serious damage, but there were many cuts. The blood loss left her woozy and tired.
Trenton lent a supporting hand more than once, keeping her upright and moving in a straight line when she would have stumbled around like a drunken bee.
To her surprise, Ajari hadn’t wandered off. Whether that was because of some sense of duty or he was waiting until he got hungry to eat them, she couldn’t guess.
Either way, his presence at their side meant many of the beasts inhabiting the Badlands gave them a wide berth—a fact she was grateful for. She wasn’t sure she had enough strength to help fend off any attacks had it just been Trenton and her.
For the most part, the trip passed in a haze. Shea preoccupied herself with simply setting one foot in front of the other as they made the arduous journey away from the heart.
Their walk lasted an eternity, the breaks few and far between. Shea knew if she sat, if she rested, she wasn’t getting back up. For that reason, she pushed on. Trenton trailed after her, the ever, diligent guard. It was for his sake as well as hers that she eventually stopped long enough to sleep and replenish her water.
She made a small sound of protestation when Trenton took the water Ajari found for them.
“It’s not the first water here I’ve drunk,” he assured her. “It’s already done its damage.”
Shea’s half-hearted protest remained locked behind her lips. They really had no choice. The water Ajari brought her soothed her throat and filled her with a brief warmth. Even with the coldness that gripped her, it was hard not to demand more, to not find the nearest source and bury her head in it.
It was near nightfall when Covath landed on a tall rock formation near them.
Shea knew she should feel surprise, fear or any array of emotions, but she didn’t. His appearance seemed somewhat appropriate.
Trenton stood from where he’d been crouched examining something, his gaze watchful as Covath leapt down in a graceful move, landing not far from them.
Ajari straightened, his shoulders stiff as his gaze locked on the dark wings that flared behind Covath before he folded them, holding them tightly to his back.
Covath’s gaze was dismissive as his attention moved between Shea and Trenton before being caught by the mythological at her side.
There was a relationship there. Though neither showed any emotion at the sight of the other, there was the slightest softening in Covath that spoke of relief. Or maybe he just had gas.
At least someone in this motley band was happy, Shea thought.
“You kept part of the bargain, human,” Covath said. “Now for the rest. Where is the controller?”
Shea just stared at him.
“It’s broken,” she told him. “It snapped in the fight.”
She opened her hand to show him the two pieces Ajari had handed back to her. She ignored Ajari’s gaze, too busy staring Covath down.
His lips pulled back in a sneer that flashed his sharp fangs. “That was not part of the deal.”
She shrugged, the motion careless. “You never said it had to be in one piece.”
Covath gave her a look of disgust. She watched with emotionless eyes as he walked over to the mythological. “Let’s go.”
Ajari looked at her, for the first time his face unsure.
Shea gave him a tired wave. The dark at the center of the heart had burned out much of her self-preservation, taking fear with it. If he wanted to leave, she wouldn’t stop him. He’d stayed with her far longer than she had any right to expect. It wasn’t like she’d be alone anyway. Trenton wouldn’t abandon her.
It was clear, now that their common enemy had been slain, Covath was more than willing to return them to the way things had always been. Humans, mythologicals, and beasts— enemies only. If he wanted to remain mired in the past, doomed to repeat its mistakes, Shea wasn’t going to argue. She simply didn’t have the energy to tell him what a short-sighted nincompoop he was being.
Maybe he would figure it out on his own. Maybe not.
Orion landed a fair distance away, his hooves making a clopping sound as he pranced across the hard ground.
