“Very well.” Queen Karasi rises from her chair, brushing down her dress as she takes charge once more. “Please escort Asha and the Vandawolf to the north wing. Gallium, Tamra, and Thaden are to be escorted to the south wing.”
Gallium immediately protests. “We should stay with our sister.”
The Queen raises her eyebrows at him. “But I promised you would be safe here. There’s no saying what the wolf-man will do when he wakes up in a strange place and hears about Tamra’s betrayal.”
My sister flinches and Gallium’s expression darkens, but I’m the first to respond.
“Nothing,” I rasp, sighing at the Queen’s inflammatory choice of words. “He won’t do anything. He’s smarter than that.”
My sister lifts her head for the first time in what must be hours, her cheeks tear-stained and her eyes glassy. “Queen Karasi is right,” she says without looking at me. “We should stay away from him.”
My jaw clenches with frustration. I’m not sure if she’s motivated by the belief that shedidbetray me or because she thinks the Vandawolf could hurt her.
My chest quickly deflates. Either way, the fact remains that the Vandawolf obliterated nearly our entire race. The first memory Tamra has of him is terrifying. He was a mess of blood and sweat and gore, a towering beast whose mere shadow paralyzed her with fear. His vengeance against the Blacksmiths was justified, but so is Tamra’s wariness.
Gallium, on the other hand, appears torn. Just for the chance to speak with me, he spent years training with the Vandawolf to become a Wasteland Warrior. For me to be separated from them now, when we should have been free to be a family again, is painfully cruel.
To my surprise, it’s Thaden who protests loudly. “Asha should be with her family. Surely, there’s some way to make that happen.”
The Queen scowls at him. “There is not,” she snaps. “Not within the terms of our agreement.”
He looks prepared to argue, and I’m grateful for it, but I speak up first.
“It’s okay,” I say quietly. “I made a choice.”
The Vandawolf is healed, so the Queen’s largest leverage over me is gone. Separating me from my siblings will help ensure I stay in line until I leave.
“My choice has consequences.” With a groan, I scoop up my toolbox and attempt to rise to my feet, wobbling and barely making it up.
“Then I’ll come with you,” Thaden says, reaching for me with his scaled hand.
One look at the Queen’s pinched features and I give Thaden a little shake of my head. “Not a good idea,” I murmur.
His jaw clenches, his expression tense as he steps back.
As soon as I stand clear of the stretcher, four warrior fae hurry forward to pick it up.
The Queen continues with her orders, addressing Gliss this time. “Gliss, you will go with Asha to the north wing and heal her there.”
Gliss looks taken aback, but apparently, it’s not about healing me so much as waiting to do so. “Wouldn’t you rather I healed her here, my Queen? She may not make it that far?—”
The Queen sucks in a breath that sounds like an indignant hiss.
Gliss immediately bows her head. “Of course, Queen Karasi.”
The Queen’s command to wait doesn’t make a lot of sense. I’m of no use to her if I’m dead. But I also recognize that she must view me as a far lesser threat to her while I’m wounded. After all, if I weren’t struggling to stand, I could rage around this room and kill all of the fae now that the Vandawolf is healed. I imagine the Queen doesn’t like the thought of being around me when I’m at my full strength. Certainly not right now, while emotions are running high.
“I’ll make it,” I say to Gliss. Then to Gallium and Thaden, I add, “The Queen has granted you full freedom to move around. If you want to come see me tomorrow, please do. No matter what, I’ll leave as soon as the Vandawolf is awake and ready to move.”
They exchange glances before they each give me a solemn nod.
“We’ll stay safe,” Thaden says.
“Thank you.” That’s all I can manage before I move on, dragging my heels.
Somehow, I make it through the maze of hallways, following Gliss and the stretcher bearers and not letting the Vandawolf out of my sight. I can onlytrustthat we’re moving in a northerly direction since my senses are now completely dull.
What I do notice is that once again, we seem to be traveling farther into the mountain itself, such that any sort of natural light is now far behind us and our way is lit purely with lamps positioned high on the walls.
