I let him drink from me.
“That was a mistake. I’ve learned my lesson.”
Through Isolde’s death and Greer’s story.
Wilder is the enemy.
“I’m sorry about your parents,” I say as Greer starts walking again.
“That was a long time ago.” There’s nothing hopeful in her tone. Only grief. A mantra of survival.
I’d know when I keep telling myself time heals all wounds. That someday this weight of losing my father—my home—won’t hurt anymore. No matter how often I think it, I don’t believe it myself.
“So you never came back to Tempest after that?”
She shakes her head. “I’d rather do something more than sit around waiting to see what the fates will show me. The king offered me a place within his Guard, and I was grateful to wield a sword instead of books. At least with this, I can make a difference in this war.”
Her palm presses the hilt.
“The queen planned to use Wilder to manipulate the Well, but how?” I ask. “Isn’t the magic in the Well of use to no realm? I thought that was why it drained us.”
“My parents didn’t know how the queen was going to accomplish it, just that she intended to. King Malachi said my parents ran before hearing anything else, as they were at risk of being caught. They relayed to the king what little information they had.”
Greer pauses as two priestesses pass. They glance at us,whispering, but I don’t know if they’re talking about me or her. Only when they turn another corner do Greer’s shoulders relax.
She leans closer. “I’ve heard that’s why the king kept Wilder alive all these years instead of killing him when he had the chance on the battlefield. King Malachi could have ended his life then, but he didn’t. Some think it’s because Wilder knows his mother’s secrets. That he knows how to use the Well to alter what is destined to happen.”
“Even if Wilder does know, why would the king think Wilder would help him?”
“He wouldn’t.” Greer grunts. “I guess it’s a good thing we found you.”
My stomach sinks as I digest those words. A breeze whips through the street, and I wish I’d thrown a cloak over my leathers.
Greer offers me a sad smile, walking to meet the Guard coming toward us, but I stay and take a deep breath.
It’s a good thing we found you.
I’m not sure that’s what I’d call it.
Chapter 35
Elorie
The sleep quartersin Tempest are a tall square tower of rooms that remind me of cells without bars or locks. A spiral staircase winds up the center, with three wooden doors on every floor. The room I’m given is barely big enough to walk around the bed.
At least my small window offers a view of the valley below.
Firebugs flicker in the night, dancing with the stars. The thick scent of burning pine hangs heavily in the air from the great hearth. After Greer told me about her family, she took me to the center of the mountaintop, where a large fire blazed in a circle of stone.
She said it was the heart of the mountain. That if you stare into the flames long enough, they will show you your path.
After my conversation with Lady Reah, I wasn’t prepared to swallow any more truth, so I looked away.
But that fire, burning all day and night, never weakening in the breeze or snow, sends its essence into the sky, reminding me of its presence like the pyres at home reminded me of imminent death.
I roll onto my back, closing my eyes. But all that does is makemy mind wander to the edge of my thoughts, where a thread still hangs ever present. Even as I hold my fist around it, I sense aether.
Wilder is the enemy king.
