He whirled on her. “What do you mean there’s nothing particularly special about Wayside?”
She shrugged, her cheeks flushed from the cold and perhaps embarrassment. “It’s a village like any other. There’s a tavern and a bakery, a blacksmith and a chandler.”
He shook his head. “But the tavern is the one you and Sass brought back to life, and the baker makes the best sweet rolls I’ve ever tasted. It isn’t the shops or the buildings that make Wayside so special, it’s the people.”
“You’re right.” She gave him a shy smile. “I honestly didn’t know if I’d ever find a place like this, a place where I belong. Even though this is where I grew up, I didn’t know if it would become my home when I returned.”
“But you did. You found what you were always searching for, Lira. A home. A place to belong. People who love you not for what you can steal or how well you can fight, but just for being you."
She nudged him with her elbow, a gesture so familiar it made his chest ache. "You found it too, you know. This is your home now, as much as it is mine."
He swallowed hard around the lump that had suddenly formed in his throat. "That's what terrifies me."
She waited, knowing him well enough not to push.
"I fear losing it," he continued, his voice barely above a whisper. "This place, these people who've become family. I’m heartbroken at the thought of having to leave all of this. But I'm more afraid of putting the family I’ve found here in danger. Marina doesn't make idle threats, and if she brings her crew here?—"
"We won't let that happen,” Lira said firmly, taking his hand in hers. “None of us will let some uppity hellkin hurt someone we love.”
A watery laugh escaped Vaskel’s lips. “I hope Marina is the uppity hellkin in question.”
Lira winked at him. “For now, she is.”
From the corner of his eye, Vaskel spotted movement beyond the bridge. “There.” He inclined his head as the edge of a cloak disappeared into the woods surrounding Grayhelm. “Someone is on their way to the castle.”
“Sass?” Lira asked as she turned to follow Vaskel’s gaze.
“Not sure,” he admitted. “But someone in a hurry.”
Lira gave him a grin he’d seen many times during their crewing days. “Then let’s find out who.”
Thirty-Two
Vaskel and Lirawalked briskly but quietly across the icy stone bridge, placing each foot with care to avoid both slipping and making noise. Below, the stream gurgled and rushed, swollen with snowmelt and churning with bits of ice loosened from the banks.
By the time they reached the far side of the bridge, the mysterious figure was completely out of sight, but the open road was empty and the only other option was the path leading to the castle.
Without discussion, he and Lira took the road to Grayhelm. The old laird had been sick for ages now, and it was hardly a secret. The castle's reduced guard, the hush that had settled over the formerly bustling fortress, and the way the grounds had withered were all signs of a lord too ill to rule properly.
But there was something else in that castle, something that iced Vaskel's blood—a dark mage imprisoned in the dungeons below, the one who'd nearly killed him and his friends before being captured, the one who'd been locked away for many moons now, supposedly rendered harmless by magic-suppressing chains.There was no chance Marina would have any connection to him or even knowledge of his existence. Was there?
Dread sent a chill through him colder than any winter gust as he passed through the stone archway into the castle yard. The change from the days long ago when he’d passed through the area and stopped at the castle was noticeable. Where once the courtyard had bustled with servants, merchants, and guards, now it stood nearly empty. It was less dilapidated than quiet. The castle felt like a place holding its breath, waiting for death.
A few guards patrolled, but it was clear they had grown unused to frequent visitors. The only reason Vaskel didn’t worry that the imprisoned mage was at risk of escaping was the fact that both Val and Korl checked on his security every time they were on patrol.
One guard noticed them and straightened slightly, though his hand didn't go to his weapon. “You have business here?”
Lira was already moving like she was a rogue and not a tavern baker. “We’re looking for some friends of ours.”
“Dwarves,” Vaskel added.
The guard scratched his head. “You’ve lost some dwarves?” He glanced at another guard across the way and cocked a brow, as if wondering if they should be worried about a dwarf invasion. “How many?”
“Two,” Lira said, flashing her sweetest smile. “They’re friends. Not armed.”
The guard rocked back on his heels. “I saw a dwarf, but she said she was with the healer.” He cocked a thumb vaguely over his shoulder. “She went to deliver something to her room.”
Vaskel stiffened but tried not to let his worry show on his face. Sass was sneaking into Marina’s room? He was both impressed by the plan and terrified. If Marina caught her…
