A painful ache formed in my gut as I led Silver out of the stables to join the others. Nellie stood with them, her long chestnut hair blowing in the breeze and a defiant look in her eye. The dark trousers and fitted tunic matched my own, though I’d donned leather armor on top of mine. I walked over to her, leaving Silver with the other horses.
“Let me guess,” I said. “You want to come with us.”
She lifted her chin. “Val is going with Niamh and Alastair. She doesn’t have any more fight training than I do.”
“The mortal kingdoms will be a lot safer than the Kingdom of Storms. We don’t even know what we’re walking into there.”
“I want to help. There must be something I can do.”
I sighed. “All right, Nellie. Do you want to go with Val? You could see the world and find answers we desperately need.” And it would be safe for her there. Far safer than Endir.
Her jaw clenched. “One day, we will fly away from here like the ravens. We promised each other that, and I always meant that we would do it together. Not you by yourself, leaving me behind to twiddle my thumbs.”
“But we did do it, Nellie. We got out of there, away from Oberon and the light fae. That doesn’t mean you should fly into something far more dangerous. The storm fae might try to kill us.”
“You’re going,” she pointed out.
“That doesn’t mean you should.”
“If you leave me here, I’m just going to follow you again.” Her eyes flashed with defiance. “I heard what Fenella said to you—that you might still be a threat because you were the one to hold the blade that killed Oberon. You need me with you if something goes wrong. I don’t trust her.”
I didn’t quite know what to say to that.
So Nellie continued. “It’s your decision, I suppose. Take me with you now or let me trail behind you in the mists where I’ll be traveling all alone. Either way, I’m going to the Kingdom of Storms. I’m not staying behind this time. I want to help.”
I heaved a sigh and closed my eyes. “And there’s nothing I can say to convince you to go with Val instead?”
“Absolutely not.”
I almost had to laugh at that. “You’re even more stubborn than I am. Well, all right. I guess I have no other choice. If there’s no stopping you, go choose one of the horses. There’s a black one in there that I think would like to come. I hope you’re prepared for how much your ass is about to hurt.”
* * *
We set off an hour later, leaving behind the safety of Endir’s walls. Toryn and Fenella took the lead, along with her cousin, Caedmon. He was a tall, muscular fae with silver hair shot through with red. As with his cousin, pale blue horns curved out of the top of his head.
The mists clogged the world around us, thicker than I’d ever seen it before. A blanket of unease settled over our silent party as only the clop of horse hooves filled the air. No one dared speak, not after our fight with the shadowfiends the day before. If the beasts were gathering in greater numbers—if they were hunting in ways they never had before—we couldn’t risk the sound of our voices drifting toward them.
The hours passed in a blur. When my stomach began to growl and my eyes grew heavy, a familiar smudge rose in the distance. Tall, black, and gleaming, the onyx stone castle stirred a forgotten fear in my gut. Echoes of my days spent in Itchen with Kalen flashed through me. Quiet moments filled with hope and a newfound connection. But over all that sat the understanding that I’d released part of the god’s essence that final day we’d been stuck in that castle. If I hadn’t done that, if Andromeda’s half-spirit hadn’t tricked me…well, just like with everything else, I’d messed up.
As before, the city was silent and empty. The last time we’d been here, we’d found evidence of a shadowfiend attack. Anyone who had survived had been chased out of the city, leaving behind an eerie settlement full of empty homes and footprints in the sand.
The only sign of life now was the six shadow fae warriors who stood outside the castle doors. Kalen walked off to speak with them while I set up camp with the others. We chose one of the empty homes and set out our bedrolls in the living space after pushing aside tables and chairs to make room. Camping out in the open, we’d be much more likely to attract undesired attention. So inside it was, even though it felt like a tomb.
I curled up on my soft bedroll, and it didn’t take long for the sound of my sister’s steady breathing to lull me into sleep. I’d only just drifted into a dream fresh with spring flowers and birdsong when a strong, calloused hand grabbed my shoulder. I sucked in a gasp and leapt to my feet, grabbing the dagger I’d set beside my bedroll. I angled it at the intruder’s neck.
Kalen gently moved the blade away from his throat. “Good instincts. Come outside with me.”
Tiredly, I blinked at him and lowered the dagger. “What’s going on?”
“We need to work on your powers before we reach the Kingdom of Storms.” That was all he said before he turned, walked across the creaking floorboards, and pushed out into the shadowy night. Frowning, I glanced around me at the sleeping forms of our companions. Toryn rested on Nellie’s other side, while Fenella lay flat on her back on the opposite side of the room with both daggers clasped to her chest. Caedmon looked dead to the world.
I couldn’t help but wonder what they would think about this, us sneaking off to tease out the dark magic running through my veins. Would it make Fenella distrust me even more?
With a sigh, I followed Kalen outside and found him pacing at the bottom of the wooden steps. Mist swirled around him, his own power mingling with the ever-present fog that flowed through these lands. He glanced up as I approached and read the tension and uncertainty on my face.
“You need to do this, love,” he said before I could voice my arguments. “You healed from the pooka’s venom incredibly quickly. The power is coming to you, and you don’t know how to control it yet. You need to master it before it masters you.”
My hands fisted. “Control what, though, Kalen? Killing people with my touch?”
