I whispered a command to the carpet, and it stopped. My heart pounded as I stood, hands raised as I held my guardian aloft above me. He hovered in midair, his eyes widening with terror.
He tried to speak again, but I curled my shadows down his throat, stopping his breath.
I lifted him higher. It was so easy. So simple to manipulate him like this. Power flooded my limbs, crackling like lightning through my veins. Jax had once said that a lorafin’s power was godlike, and in that moment, I knew he was right.
My shadows writhed and danced, snaking around my body as energy crackled in the air. I lifted my guardian higher, then higher, until he rose above the trees’ canopy.
Fear shone upon his face, true fear, but I was done being merciful. I was done being his slave.
I. Was. Done.
My lips spread in a terrifying smile. “I hope you can swim.”
With a huge surge of power, I shot him through the sky, catapulting him through the air. I used so much magic that he flew toward the sea.
I commanded the carpet to lift, taking me above the tree line until the ocean’s sparkling view appeared in the distance. My guardian was still hurtling toward it, moving so high and so fast that he was just a speck amidst the clouds.
I didn’t release my shadowed hold on him until he was miles out to sea, but I watched him the entire time, reveling in his fury mixed with sheer terror, which streamed toward me on my shadowed hands.
His plummet into the Adriastic Sea was so distant I could barely see him, and his splash into the water was nearly non-existent.
His magic wouldn’t help him there. Water doused fire. He was entirely on his own, miles out to sea, and despite my taunt to him, both me and my guardian knew that he’d never learned to swim.
CHAPTER 20
I stayed in the Wood, hidden from view on the enchanted carpet. Hours had passed since I’d killed my guardian, but I didn’t feel one speck of regret or sadness. I felt nothing but firm resolve.
Only one thing mattered now.
So I waited until the time was right. Waited for the sun to set and the moons to rise.
My stomach howled with hunger, and my lips were dry from thirst. I’d had nothing since the tea and pastry in the morning, but my hunger and parched throat would have to wait because I had nothing other than the carpet beneath my feet.
It was only after I’d flung my guardian to his death that I wished I’d emptied his pockets first. But I hadn’t. My rage had taken over me, so I was now entirely dependent upon Saramel.
Once the three moons were shining brightly, I whispered a command to the carpet, and I took off. I sailed through the Wood, around the curves, back onto the road until the billowing night lights of Jaggedston appeared like twinkling jewels.
I kept the carpet at an even pace, and as I grew closer to the city, other fae became present. Some also traveled on the road, and others tended to the yards of their small homes. I rode the carpet, doing my best to remain inconspicuous.
The navy gown I still wore flew around me, the long skirt fluttering in the wind, but my focus was fierce, my goal set.
My heart thrummed in a steady rhythm on the ride to the palace, but I didn’t slow. I coasted toward its onyx spires until I reached the streets surrounding it.
I only stopped when I glided into the alleyway where I would meet Saramel. I commanded the carpet to settle on the ground, and then...I waited.
My teeth were chattering,and the carpet was rolled up beside me by the time I heard Saramel’s pattering feet. Ten bells had rung a few minutes ago, the last bells of the night, and the palace guards had done a shift swap. It was amazing how much one could see and learn about the palace’s going-ons simply by lurking in the shadows.
“Elowen?” Saramel whispered from the mouth of the alley. A shawl covered her hair, hiding part of her face.
“I’m here.” I rushed forward, her doing the same, and we collided in a hug halfway down the narrow lane.
“Oh, thank the stars, I didn’t know if you’d still be free.” She pulled back and quickly unstrapped a pack from her back. “I have your bag, clothes, rulibs, and a few portal keys as you requested. I also swiped some food and drink from the kitchens. I thought you may be hungry.”
As though to confirm her suspicions, my stomach let out a loud grumble. “Thank you, you’ve done so much for me. Thank you, Saramel.”
She shoved the pack in my hands, her eyes as sharp as the moonlight. “Have you heard what happened today?”
“I know they’ve been charged, but that’s all I know.” I tensed. “What do you know?”
