“Are you certain you want to do this?” I asked, moving aside as Toryn and Alastair aimed for the stables. I stood in the courtyard with Val, a light wind blowing mist into our faces. The air was cooler today than it had been lately, as if it reflected the chill in our hearts. I tried not to take it as a premonition.
Val pressed down the front of her new fighting leathers and nodded. “The Mist Guard is right. Niamh and Alastair will need a human with them if they hope to learn anything from the King of Talaven.”
I’d had a hunch she would say as much, and the armor suited her well.
“Here.” I dug into my pack and pulled out a leather flask. “I managed to filch this from the kitchens before they figured out what I was up to. Thought you might need it.”
Val folded her arms and gave me a look. “I should take offense to this, you know. I obviously knew to bring some water on a long journey like this. I have four canteens in my pack.”
“It’s fion,” I said with a grin. “Just in case you need to take the edge off.”
She laughed, unscrewed the cap, and then sniffed. “I really do love some fion.”
Niamh strode by with an exaggerated swagger and exchanged a glance with Val, who blushed furiously in response. I held back a smile and waited for her to vanish into the stables before I elbowed Val’s ribs. “I like the idea of you two spending more time together.”
“Me, too. Ah…” Val cleared her throat and pulled a stack of parchment clippings from her bag. She passed them to me. “It’s no fion, but I have a gift for you as well. It’s everything I found that might connect to the gods and prophecies. Have a read through it. Share it with Kalen. See if you can make sense of it.”
“Thanks, Val.” Throwing my arms around her, I yanked her close and squeezed her like I’d never again see her face. A part of me worried I never would. We had a month before the enemy descended upon our world. If we hadn’t made it back to each other by then… “Take care of yourself, all right?”
She nodded, pulled back, and swiped a tear from her cheek. “I never thanked you, you know.”
“For what?”
“After my parents died, you took me into your life like a sister, not just a friend who lived down the road. Without you, I would have never gotten through what Oberon ordered his soldiers to do to my parents. I’m glad you killed the bastard. I don’t care if Andromeda corrupted him, and I don’t care if he was trying to make things right at the end. He deserved to die for everything he did to us. And I’m so fucking glad you were the one to hold that dagger.”
I took her hand in mine and gripped it tightly—my left and her right—like a handshake of promise. “You’re not justlikea sister, Val. Youareone. And stop talking like this, eh? It’s not goodbye. I won’t let it be.”
A ghost of a smile crossed her face. “Well, if anyone can fight the tides of fate and win, it’s you. See you soon, then.”
Swallowing down a lump of pain, I nodded. “See you soon.”
* * *
“Hello, there,” I cooed at Silver, who stood in the warm safety of the stables. The others had been leading their mounts into the courtyard when I’d passed by the stall where I’d been told I’d find my ride. The dark beauty was a magnificent creature, just like they all were, but I was drawn yet again to the horse who had followed me through the mists.
Silver nickered and stomped a hoof when I draped my arms over the low wall of his stall. The stablehands had brushed his coat until it gleamed, and the oats they’d given him were reduced to a pile of crumbs now. But his eyes gleamed with excitement, as if he knew exactly why I’d sought him out.
“You’ve just returned from a journey,” I said, passing him a carrot—another thing I’d grabbed from the kitchens. “Really, you should stay here and rest. There are plenty of other horses who are refreshed and ready to go.”
His hooves clattered as he stepped right up to me and brushed his snout across my outstretched palm.
“If you want to come, you can, but it’s your choice.” I hauled open his stable door and waited to see what he’d do. After a moment, he bowed his head and stomped out to join me in the corridor. I rubbed my hand against his neck and smiled. “I’m glad you’re joining me. I don’t know why, but I feel like you have my back.”
Fenella led a horse from a stall at end of the stables and shot me a look as she passed us by. “You’re talking to a horse again.”
“He understands me.”
“I’m sure he does. Just like you healed from that pooka wound within an hour. Your powers are growing.” To my surprise, she actually smiled. “Sorry I threatened you with my daggers back in that Albyrian pub.”
I nodded, still stroking Silver’s snout. “You were doing what you thought you had to do.”
“I still might have to do it.” She sniffed. “I can smell it, you know. You and Kal made a marriage vow.” She held up her hand when I opened my mouth to explain. “You don’t have to tell me why. I get it. You two had an unbreakable bond long before you spoke the words to seal it. But just remember, I’ve made no such vow. Now, I like you, Tessa. I really do. The thing is, though, I like this world better, and I’m not convinced Oberon’s the one Kal’s mother warned us about. And if it comes down to it, I’ll do what has to be done.”
Fenella vanished out the door with her horse. My heart racing, I leaned against the stable wall and steadied my breathing. Just like me, she clearly still thought I might be a threat, if not for my powers then for my link to the gods. When I’d made the bond with Kalen, I hadn’t considered what that might mean for the others. They might have to kill me, leaving Kalen alone for the rest of his life.
Regret rolled over me like a boulder that threatened to flatten me to the ground, breaking every bone in my body. In the heat of the moment, I’d wanted to give myself to Kalen Denare, the King of the Shadow Fae. It had felt exhilarating and romantic andright. When I looked into his eyes, I felt safe and accepted and cared for in a way I never had before. I wanted to be his. And I wanted him to be mine.
But not like this.
