Oh no, Elena!
In all the commotion, I had forgotten about her.The last time I’d seen her was at the Citadel Market, when I’d told her to go home.Only now did I realize how critical that advice had been.If Elena hadn’t heeded my warning and had stayed in the market, it was possible that Orlik could have found her.And if she had some kind of latent Ember that Sentinels could detect…
“I have to go home and check on Elena!”I said.
“Just as well,” Mrs.Crowe said.“I’ve told you too much already.”She grabbed my shoulder with a bony hand.“You must know this: Veilsense is a rare Ember, and one coveted by King Tarnasau.All of his Sentinels have it.”
At the wordSentinels, a chill ran down my back.That I had something in common with them disgusted me.
Mrs.Crowe continued, “If he finds out you have Veilsense, he’ll do everything in his power to capture you and add you to the Sentinels’ ranks.That’s how he hunts down Emberborn.Be vigilant.”
The idea of Sentinels hunting Emberborn, hunting Elena and me, was horrifying.My mother’s dying request that I protect my sister took on a whole new dimension.Now I was doubly worried about her.“I have to go!”
Mrs.Crowe walked me to her door, undid the locks, and turned to me, her face drawn into a deep frown.“Remember, I’m leaving for Thornfell.Don’t ever seek me out again.”
I gave her a grim nod, knowing a significant part of my life had come to a close.“Goodbye, Mrs.Crowe.”
Chapter seventeen
Long Overdue
“Elena,whereareyou?”I yelled, bursting through the door to our home.The herb cart was parked in the corner where it always was, but there was no sign of my sister.I checked every room and climbed the ladder to the loft, calling her name.Only silence greeted me.My heart was already pounding from my sprint home, but now it felt like it might burst through my rib cage.
I was on the cusp of panic and doing a terrible job of suppressing it.I imagined Orlik and Syra tying Elena up and stealing her away.I had failed at the one job my mother had given me, all because I’d let Darion distract me.Just like what had happened with Bren back at the farm when I was eleven.
I fumbled for the locket around my neck.Deep breaths.My mind quieted as the only option I had became clear: I would confront Orlik directly.I began to gather my thieving supplies and stock my belt with new potions.I was stashing my throwing daggers under my tunic when a voice called out from behind me.
“Where are you off tothistime?”
I raced to the front door and hugged my sister like I’d never let her go.“Thank the heavens you’re safe.”
“Of course I’m safe,” she said.“Ouch!Not so tight.Your dumb potions are digging into my chest, and you’re smashing our dinner.”
I pulled away and took a moment to inspect her.Everything looked normal except for the crushed loaf of bread sticking out of the sack of food she held.
“What in the dust has gotten into you?”she said with genuine concern in her eyes.“Is this about those bastards at the market?I can take care of myself, you know.”
I had spent my entire life looking out for my little sister, so it was tough not to protect her from everything.But by hiding things from her, I was, in a way, making herlesssafe.I had to tell her what I had discovered today.She had to understand the danger we were in.
“Elena, sit down.We need to talk.”
I told her everything, starting with my thieving and my grand plan to escape to a farm, which all felt quite naïve as I spoke it aloud.The idea of the farm touched Elena, but she was more than a little annoyed that I had kept it from her, once again reminding me that she wasn’t a child.She had guessed on her own that I was a thief, but I filled in the gaps.
An unexpected thing happened as I told Elena all the things I’d been keeping secret: I felt better.A massive weight was being lifted, one I hadn’t even realized I was carrying.
Next I recounted the Emberlight Trials and everything I’d done with Darion (except a few intimate details).Elena listened with rapt attention, as if my story were one of the plays at the local theater she loved.She particularly enjoyed the race through the catacombs with the bone rats on our heels.
“Were there really hundreds of them?”she asked.
“I didn’t really have time to count, but you couldn’t even see the floor.”
She grimaced and giggled at once, wiggling her body.Elena was fond of the macabre.
Finally, I told her about my conversation with Mrs.Crowe, though I didn’t mention her by name, per her conditions.When I told Elena that we were Emberborn and that some Emberborn had special abilities, she didn’t seem as surprised as I anticipated.
“I kinda suspected that,” she said.
“What?”I was genuinely shocked.
