Hilo cocked an eyebrow at Kai, and then at River.He jutted his chin, mutteredArright, whatever,and left Kai alone.
With River.
The world went quiet, colours and movement around them blurring together until it felt like only they stood together in the wide, busy hall.One pace apart, waiting.
“Sorry, I…” Kai reddened and glanced away, playing with his ear.“I remembered a dream I had, I think…”
Something flickered behind Kai, approaching, rapid footsteps beating against the tiled floor.Cynthia, her face pale and eyes panicked.
“Have either of you seen Ione?”she demanded, breathless.She gave them seconds to respond before she clenched her fists like she wanted to strangle them.“For gods’ sakes, it’s three in the afternoon, are youbothstill blitzed?”
Kai’s mouth twisted, guilty; River cleared his throat, recovering from whatever Kai was about to say to him and heaving himself back to reality.“Is Ione not with you?”
“I hadn’t visited my grandfather since we moved here,” Cynthia said quickly, “Ione assured me she was fine, I should go see him, so I stepped out to check on him, and when I returned – ”
River started, his stomach dropping.“What, she’sgone?”
“She shouldn’t have been on her own,” Kai said, which was precisely the wrong thing to say from the way Cynthia rounded on him, furious.“How long were you out – ”
“Half an hour,” she seethed.“After looking after her for five solid days, because you two were too drunk to help her, and because her parents were ‘too sad’ to talk to her.For five days,Ihave made sure she woke up and ate and stayed angry enough to live, and if you want to start something with me for spendingthirty minuteswith my own grandfather – ”
“No one’s trying to start anything,” River broke in, hands up.“Where’ve you looked?”
“The dormitory and lower floor,” she said, her voice hoarse.
River nodded, more alert than he’d felt in days.“Kai has a meeting – ”
“Oh, ameeting.”
“You go, then!”Kai snapped.“You think I wanna fucking deal with it?”
River sent them both a look.“We’ll find her.She’s probably just taking a walk.”He took a deep breath, counted, released it.“Cynthia, keep searching the other floors.Kai, go appease Saros and then help Cynthia.”He waited for either of them to argue.“I’ll look outside.She might be in the garden.”
Cynthia darted away without question, but Kai lingered.Uncertain.
“Kai, go,” River commanded, pivoting, but a hand wrapped around his, halting him.
Kai released him, his eyes down, embarrassed.“Later, after you find her…” He wrung his hands together.“We’ll…”
River couldn’t help but wait.Hope, want.
“Find her,” Kai said, smiling finally.Made brighter, fuller, by Ione.“Tell her I’ll let her get one good punch in, but then I want to speak to her.Make things right.”
River’s chest caved.“Deal,” he said, feeling both proud and cold as he watched Kai stride away from him.
Ione was fine.Of course she was.He’d find her, haul her back home, help her and Kai come to terms with their new lives.Let them find peace, become happy.Become friends, partners, whatever they wanted to be.
And hope, selfishly, that there was a space for him in whatever that was.
Chapter Nineteen
Ione
An ice blade and a well-worded threat from Menon’s Rejected was all it took to procure one of the horses populating the stables outside Caelos.Withered and pallid after days spent mourning her old life, swathed in a dingy, once-white cloak, Ione supposed she looked like a spectre to the boys minding the horses.
In a way, she was.While few had known of her divinity, everyone, now, knew that Menon had discarded her.Menon’s Rejected was an ill omen and Caelos would be glad to be rid of her.
Wind whipped at her as the grey mare carried her, surefooted and familiar with the wide path, down the barren mountainside.Ione shivered, both with the cold and the absurdity of what she was doing; she gathered her hair into her hood and rooted through her satchel for the new monocular Cynthia had bought from a mechanist’s shop in the shrine.She played with the dials, fighting to ignore the anxiety curling in her stomach.
