His brow was furrowed. Whatever he heard in my voice, he insisted, “Try.”
His arm was right there. I could hurt him, just like I’d hurt Wrune. My power was endless and it flowed wherever it could.
And yet…when I reached out to take his hand, he didn’t flinch.
Only Wrune then. Only Wrune suffered with my power.
Why?
Because he was my mate? Myfatedone?
Because Kakkari had bound us together, for whatever reason?
“Let’s hurry,Morakkari,” Valavik said. “Though he will kill me for bringing you there.”
I didn’t remember getting on Valavik’spyroki. I didn’t remember racing across the plains in that quiet, quiet night.
I didn’t even remember steppingintothe Dead Mountain, with Valavik at my side, his sword drawn and glinting.
What roused me from my stupor was the smell.
“No,” I breathed.
It was familiar. Only I had grown used to the fresh air in Wrune’s horde. I had grown used to the smells of smoking meat and the hard soil of the earth, of the breeze that sometimes blew in from the southwest, of the freshness of bath crystals, of Hukri’s hair, and of my husband’s scent mingled with my own in our furs.
All wonderful things.
Yet, I had forgottenthis. The endless darkness. The stench of rot and desperation, cloying and diseased.
And somewhere, Wrune and hisdarukkarswere here. Somewhere, Tess and the others were too.
I needed to find them. I couldn’t be cowed by the pain I hadagreedto take. Knowingly, I had made a deal. Perhaps even with Kakkari herself.
And in exchange, she gave me the power tosave.
“This way.”
The words came from me and I felt myself being pulled towards another energy. An energy I sensed within the Dead Mountain. Strange and roving, like a beast on the prowl.
I recognized the path my feet took. It led towards the throne room, the place we’d always avoided whenever possible.
As I neared, I felt a chill run up my arms. Fear prodded at me. Something was rising. Building.
Just like on the plains.
And when that energy broke, it seemed like the whole mountain shook with it.
Up ahead, I heard the pained cries. The thud of dozens of bodies hitting somethinghard.
Underneath it all, I singled out Wrune. I could actuallyhearhis breaths. I could hear a bone snap, a blade slide.
No.
I took Valavik by surprise when I started to run. The pain was forgotten. I just needed toreachhim. I needed to reach him before something terrible happened, before something terribletookhim!
Kakkari, please, I pleaded in my mind, tears streaming down my face.Please protect them.
And yet…
