One of the masked figures steps forward, hand extended. It’s a mirror of what Kaelis just offered me. Except I know nothing about this stranger. My wariness is only made worse when she says, “Come with us, Clara Chevalyer. We will take you to your sister.”
Chapter 14
Chevalyer. My name. Myrealname.
The name that will let Ravin kill me in an instant should he ever discover it.
“How do you know who I am?” I can barely speak through my shock.
“We know much about you.” The older of the two figures lowers his chin. “And that is why you know you can trust us.”
This omission has the opposite effect from what they intended. I immediately trust them less. Maybe they want me to believe my mother told them. Maybe she did. But I’ve no reason to think they aren’t an enemy who’s sleuthed out my name—my secret safety—and will now hold it against me.
I hesitate, glancing back the way I came, as if I might see Kaelis standing there. But there’s only dark, damp stone. I turn to Gregor and the strangers. Gregor gives me a small but encouraging nod. He clearly trusts them.
And that’s the only thing that has me saying, “Lead the way.” But I guard the skepticism in my voice.
We follow the two masked figures through a maze of passages that quickly become unfamiliar. Gregor walks beside me in silence, his shoulders hunched.
I slip my hand into Gregor’s. His large palm is rough, worn from years of blades and brawls. He flinches and then drags his haunted eyes to mine.
“What happened back there?” he asks. “I heard…I don’t know what I heard.”
“Jura, she—” My throat closes on the words, objecting to the truth. “She went out saving my life by taking Emilia and the rest with her. She used a card she knew was too much for her and it reversed,” I whisper, the words barely audible even to my own ears. Though I’ve no illusion that the two in front of us can’t hear.
Gregor freezes mid-step, swallowing hard. “Of course she did.”
“I…” The words stick. “I’m sorry.”
“It was her choice,” he says, though I wish he sounded more convinced of it. Maybe then this crushing guilt would abate some.
“It’s still— If I wasn’t there…” I can’t find what I mean to say.
Gregor stares at the ground, his silence deafening. “At least the rest of us made it.”
Such a hollow victory. What good is “making it” when the cost is so great? I stare at the two in front of us. My speculations about who they are run wild.
“What do you know about these people?” I lean in to whisper, making an admittedly futile effort for them not to hear.
“Not much more than you.” His eyes flick to the shrouded figures. I can’t tell if they’re guides—or jailers. “They say they found Twino, Ren, and Arina in the tunnels and have given them shelter.”
“How do you know?”
He hesitates, freeing his hand from mine to rub the back of his neck. “They described Arina in detail, said how they were already helping her…plus I did see Bristara with someone dressed like this once.”
“And that’s enough for you to trust them?” Surely he must realize how none of that guarantees the rest of our crew’s safety.
“They’re in a small group of people I’ve seen in a week that hasn’t been trying to kill me on sight. Besides, they know things about us, Clara. Secrets about Bristara and the club.” His voice drops even lower. “Aboutyou. About your mother.”
That much was clear from the second they used my real name. I fight a chill that has nothing to do with the cold air of the underground. My mother has been gone for years. Yet today her memory has been invoked so much it’s almost like she’s still lurking in these tunnels.
“They called themselves Worldkeepers.”
Bristara had used that term, too.Guardians of the World…Guards of the secret of the vessel upon which the World is imprinted…and your mother was involved with them.She’d said something like that.
“Clara?” Gregor’s voice pulls me from my thoughts.
“I’ve heard the name before,” I admit. All this knowledge they have on us must’ve been why Twino and Ren agreed to go with them.
