“Not exactly…” I should have left with her sooner then she’d never have been taken and I wouldn’t be married to Caiden. Iglance over at the emperor and he looks away as if trying to pretend he wasn’t watching me closely.
“If you’re sure, I’ll do my best to get them there,” she says.
“Thank you,” I say. “I know this is what we need to do. I just wish I could be there with you.”
“What are you going to do?” she asks. “He’ll let you return with me.”
“If I do, you’ll never get to the temple. They guard me constantly. I couldn’t sneak out.” I release her hands. “Besides, I have to finish what I started.”
“You were right about one thing.” She glances over her shoulder, then looks back at me. “Caiden wasn’t your target.”
A lump rises in my throat. “I know.”
“You’re going after Ludis,” she says. “And Brevan.”
I nod. “If he felt confident enough to do this and leave without me when he claimed I was his leverage, it means he already had a deal with his father. And I refuse to let that man get any closer to a throne. Brevan, well, what if he’s who Mara was hinting at? What if that’s why she couldn’t tell me?”
“I have one favor to ask,” Anya says.
“Anything,” I echo her earlier offer.
“Memorize exactly how he looks as the life leaves his eyes. I want to hear every detail when I see you again.”
I grin. I might not be able to follow through with Brevan, but at least I can promise her Ludis. “Done.”
She pulls me into an embrace and for some reason, this time, it doesn’t feel like a long goodbye. I know we’ll see each other again soon. And when we do, everything will be different.
“Please take care of her,” I say to Stanley.
“I’ll protect her with my life,” he says.
My chest tightens and I hope his loyalty to Caiden extends to me. “Thank you.”
“Safe travels,” Caiden says.
Out of the corner of my eye, I notice a raven land on a tent that’s still standing. Another joins it, then another.
A shiver runs down my spine but I ignore the birds while I wave to my friend. As soon as she’s out of sight, I look to where they’ve gathered.
More ravens fly to meet their fellows and my pulse races.
“You wouldn’t have anything to do with this, would you?” Caiden asks.
My lips part to answer, but then my jaw drops lower when I see the unkindness of ravens approaching like a black cloud. They’re carrying something.
No.
They’re carrying someone.
Fifty
Caiden
I step in front of Taylan, my hand moving to the hilt of my sword. She moves to the side, then rests her palm on my hand.
The look she gives me is both reassurance and warning. “I invited them. Let’s not make them feel threatened.”
“Is this part of your gift?” I fail to mask the hurt in my tone. When she opened up to me about her ability to wake the dead, I thought she was finally trusting me.
