Azulo darted in, vanishing through it. Hands in his pockets, Leoake followed.
She bolted after them.
“Dyna, no!” a voice shouted behind her.
Her foot caught on a root, and she crashed into Leoake from behind. He yelped, toppling through the glowing portal with her. The worldseemed to split and spin. Everything went downside up and right side down. Every strand of what made her unraveled as she was blown away like threads in the wind.
Then she was nothing at all.
Gasping for air,Dyna jerked awake. She smacked away the pouch of smelling salts held to her nose.
Golden eyes glared down at her. “How dare you come through my Door!”
Sharp nausea swept through her stomach. Dyna rolled to her knees and grabbed a pretty clay pot in the corner as all the contents in her stomach were expelled out of her.
“Oh, that’s simply perfect. That pot is now ruined.” Leoake gagged as she continued to heave. “Do you know how old that is?”
“Sorry,” she croaked before vomiting again.
“Deal with this before I toss them to the Void!” Leoake snapped, storming away.
Her blurred vision struggled to take in her surroundings, and her head ached terribly. At first, it looked like a cave, but she realized they were in a den carved out of a tree. It had round wooden walls covered in vines and a stone hearth built into the corner. A small bed of moss was on one end and on the other a desk with all sorts of trinkets, including a blooming blue rose in a crystal vase.
But Dyna’s eyes fixed on the round door, or rather what Leoake calledhisDoor.
It was painted green with a brass knob in the center. Painted with the design of a tree formed in a perfect circle. Ancient runes had been carved in the frame. She couldn’t read them except one.
Raido.
The rune for journey.
“It’s enchanted, isn’t it?”
A cool cloth pressed on Dyna’s forehead. “Yes, Mistress.”
She weakly smiled at Azulo, now in his human form. “Magic not meant for mortals, I take it.”
He nodded. “Your stomach will settle in a bit. Though your horse is handlingit much better.”
“What?” Dyna snapped her head up and gaped at the white stallion standing in the middle of Leoake’s house. “Oh, Gods. Fair, no! You were supposed to stay!”
He nuzzled her clammy cheek.
Dyna moaned, slumping against the wall. “Send him back.”
“If I could, I would send you both back,” Leoake said coolly. He sat in a chair at his messy table and glared at her. “My Door can only be used twice in one day. Once to cross and once to return. That allowance is met.”
Groaning, Dyna pressed on her aching head. She vanished with Rawn’s horse. He would be terribly worried.
But someone saw her jump into the portal.
Who had called her name? Her mind was still too groggy to place the voice. She didn’t even remember if it had been female or male. It may have been Zev. Someone had gone in search of her when she didn’t come back.
Whoever it was, they would logically guess where she was headed. Tomorrow was the sixth day. Tarn wouldn’t wait for her anymore. She had to find him, but she prayed her Guardians wouldn’t come after her. It was too unsafe for Rawn and Lucenna.
“I must arrive in Kelpway by dawn,” Dyna told Leoake. “Geas or not, I will not retrieve your key until I go there first.”
His golden eyes churned with anger. “Actions have consequences, clever mortal. Remember that when you find yourself standing alone in the rain.”
