Cormorant Run

by J. C. McKenzie

  Oh. My. God. “Are you…radioactive?”

  “I don’t think so.” He looked at his hands. “But I think I have something like it—the ability to manipulate matter.”

  That explained the shape-shifting.

  “What I do know is your line will carry my gift without any of the negative aspects of my nature. I don’t think your mother understood the true extent of my gift when I bestowed it on you, but I hope you will. I hope…” He cut off again and looked down at his hands. “Maybe it’s foolish of me, but I hope the memory of me will live on with you. Maybe my image won’t be hated and entangled with fear. I haven’t eaten a sapavian since the day your mother saved me. I’ve terrorized human ships taking more than their share of the ocean spoils, but I’ve protected the Eyrie.”

  “We just didn’t realize it,” she whispered.

  He nodded. “It’s easier to fear the unknown than to pause and try to understand. If any other sapavians had found me that day, I would’ve died. It wouldn’t have mattered that the injuries I sustained were from thwarting an attack.”

  Cora straightened. “The humans had launched an attack?”

  “A joint attack. Sometimes, I float near the surface and listen to the sailors talking. This particular attack was orchestrated by a sect of humans and the queen’s lover.”

  Queens’s lover?

  Ronin’s mother had a lover?

  A sheet of ice flowed through her veins as a dark twisted realization bloomed in her head. She patted her vest and pulled the last message from Ava from the pocket. A diligent messenger, she hadn’t opened it, even after all this time. She’d pushed it from her mind, instead.

  Stored in one of the few surviving waterproof pockets of her flying leathers, the message remained undamaged. It had no official address, only a number that would undoubtedly match a post office box. She tore the seal open and read the message: “Eagle down, but not out. In pursuit. We’ll hold up our end of the agreement. Make sure you do the same.”

  Nausea clutched her gut.

  She looked up at the man, whose name she didn’t even know. She hadn’t thought to ask. “I need to go home.”

  44

  “Beware the person who stabs you and tells the world they’re the one who’s bleeding.”

  Jill Blakeway

  Ronin heaved in deep breaths of salt air. The tears never fell. The pain in his chest was too strong for anything other than a wracking ache with each breath.

  Cora was gone.

  It didn’t seem real. Last night, he’d held her in his arms as they stretched out and watched the night sky. The moonlight had played with the angles of her face, he’d traced her scar with his finger. She fell asleep like that, her head resting on his chest, arms and legs tangled up, white and black hair had fanned over his armour. With every breath, he’d take in her scent and all the anger, grief, and uncertainty broiling within would ease away, replaced with just her.

  And now she was gone.

  His chest constricted and he wheezed again, nausea twisting his gut again.

  Rocks crunched behind him. “My liege?”

  Oh good. At least he didn’t have to tramp through the town like a half-drowned rat until he found someone from court.

  He staggered to his feet, pulled his shoulders and wings back and turned toward the guard.

  A large fist flew at his face. It was the last thing he saw before everything went black.

  The ache pounding inside Ronin’s head woke him up. He lay sprawled on expensive tiles, his hands bound behind him.

  He knew these tiles.

  He knew the rose-laden smell in the air and the gentle whisper of the silk drapes along the floor.

  Someone had brought him to the private chambers of the king.

  He scrambled to his knees and struggled to straighten. His vision wavered. The pounding in his head intensified.

  The clack of a woman’s boots echoed in the room.

  He looked over his shoulder from his kneeling position.

  Sasha walked around him. Nestled in complicated knots and braids of her tawny hair, she wore their mother’s crown. Instead of one of those fluffy dresses the courtiers favoured, she wore black leather pants, a white silk blouse and boots with heels. Wicked heels. Like the kind that could be used for walking or stabbing.

  “Sasha?” He straightened some more and pulled his shoulders back. “What’s going on? Release me.”

  She tsked, clicking her tongue at him and crouched in front of him, weight on her toes. “Oh no, dear brother. That just won’t do. We can’t let the traitor of the Eyrie loose.”

  “What?”

  Her mouth quirked up. “Of course, I was devastated to learn my own brother was responsible for poisoning our father. Too greedy to wait any longer for the throne. Such a shame.”

  A chill spread through his body with a sickening realisation. “It was you. You betrayed us.” He swallowed, but his stomach continued to churn as if a giant had delivered a debilitating body shot. He’d had time to grieve on Iom, but part of him still held onto a tiny bit of hope that Ava had lied. Even when the other pieces of information she’d given turned out to be true, he’d clung to that hope. Desperately.

  Now faced with not only the reality of his father’s death, but the cause and the perpetrator, air fled his lungs and his stomach twisted into a knot.

  “Why?” He forced the words out, the dry air shredding along the inside of his throat.

  Sasha’s smile turned into a scowl and she stood abruptly. “You wouldn’t understand.”

  “Try me.”

  “You were the golden one. The heir of the Eyrie. Placed on a pedestal and bathed with love and affection.”

  He jerked back. “That doesn’t make any sense. Father loved you, too. He paid for tutors and trainers. You’ve had everything you wanted.”

  “He tolerated me.” Her hands balled into fists. “And he did it for you. He might’ve thrown baubles and training at me, but only for appearances, only for you. Never for me.”

  “Why would he do that?”

  “If anyone found out I was the illegitimate bastard of the queen and her lover, it would throw your own legitimacy as the heir into question. Your father needed everyone to believe I was a true daughter of the Eagle Clan.”

  “Her lover…” Ronin whispered, mind reeling.

  “Lord Gable.”

  Ronin flinched. He knew the name. Everyone on the Eyrie did. The man had been publicly executed about nine years ago, a few months after Father banished Cora’s family to the outpost.

  No.

  The secret?

  Was this the secret Kane Cormorant discovered that led to his family’s banishment?

  No.

  It couldn’t be true.

  He glared at Sasha. “You’re lying.”

  “I’m not. Mother loved my father, not yours. The affair spanned many years. They had a plan and an alliance with a group of humans to take over the Eyrie. They tried twenty-six years ago, when mother first discovered she was with child with me, but the Sea Beast attacked the human ships and they had to regroup. If Mother hadn’t kept a diary and if I hadn’t found it along with her contacts, I might’ve never known the truth. But I did and I do, and now I’ll finish what should’ve been done years ago.”

  Ronin froze, still kneeling on the hard tiles, too shocked to speak.

  “Kane Cormorant discovered the affair and brought it to the attention of King Edgar and ruined any future chances for my mother and true father to overthrow him.” She lifted her chin. “They wanted me to be queen and now I’ve made it happen all on my own. I avenged my parents in the process.”

  “Father didn’t kill our mother. She died from the bone sickness.” He ignored the pain in his chest pinched every time he thought of Mom’s last moment—her pale face, bleary eyes and the lump on her leg that kept growing despite all the concoctions the doctors kept throwing down her throat.

  “He may as well have.” She looked away, the mus
cles of her jawline bunching. “He executed Lord Gable. My father. Edgar’s actions took Mother’s life better than any knife in the back.”

  Ronin disagreed. Mother’s own choices led to her downfall, but clearly, he wasn’t in a place to argue. Father had discovered the affair, the identity of Sasha’s biological father and plans to overthrow him. To protect the kingdom and Ronin’s claim to the throne, he continued to act as if Sasha was his and executed Lord Gable for treason. “And that’s why he sent away Cora’s family.”

  Sasha shook her head. “Edgar didn’t send anyone away. Cora’s dad offered to leave. Your father couldn’t bring himself to kill his best friend to protect the secret. He couldn’t eradicate all traces of Mother’s deceit.”

  “Including you,” he said. “He could’ve just killed you, made it look like an accident. But he didn’t. He raised you as his own for sixteen years.”

  “And then things changed. He learned the truth and couldn’t stand to see me as the reminder of his wife’s infidelity. My face. My wings. All slaps to the face.”

  “He loved you.”

  She hesitated. Instead of lashing out, she narrowed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I will finish what he started and eradicate all evidence of the affair for him, save myself. How convenient he got Cora to escort you to Iom. Now, I only have her father to eliminate after you.”

  “I’m surprised you haven’t already.” She wouldn’t have left Kane Cormorant to chance. Sasha was brutal and efficient. She always had been, and he’d admired her practical ruthlessness. Until now, of course.

  She pursed her lips together. “He thwarted my earlier attempts and went into hiding, but I’ll ferret him out like the pest he is and finish this once and for all. Those turkey-headed twins have disappeared, too. They’ll be the weak link.”

  “Why?”

  “Because the two combined don’t have one full working brain.” She frowned and looked at him like he had the turkey head. Maybe he did. “Or if you’re asking about Kane it’s so he won’t expose the truth.”

  “No. Why are you doing any of this? You were the princess of the Eyrie. Even with Father’s distance, he still cared for you when he could’ve disposed of you. You had rank, wealth, and the admiration of the nobility. I used to envy how you had all the benefits of royal lineage and none of the responsibilities.”

  This time a genuine smile spread across her face. “And now I’ll have more rank, wealth, and admiration.”

  Ronin shivered. He hadn’t wanted to see the truth about his sister. He hadn’t wanted to accept the darkness about her.

  Oh, he’d seen her cruel actions and efficient decisions based on practicality instead of empathy. To acknowledge the darkness, though, would make it more real and somehow, he wouldn’t, couldn’t, turn a blind eye to it once he became king.

  His sister’s intelligence sparkled in her gaze as she watched him.

  She knew.

  Once he became king, he’d block her cruelty. He’d put an end to her games, and he’d do the one thing father was never able to do when it came to the princess—he’d reprimand her.

  She nodded as if she followed his thoughts the entire way. “Father carried a lot of guilt for his involvement in my parents’ deaths and also for thinking about killing me. He raised me as his own for over a decade, and once the truth was revealed he contemplated ending my life to save yours. I know he did. I saw it in his eyes, in his turned down mouth. Guilt haunted the king more than any ghost.” She shrugged as if Father’s torment was inconsequential. “He let me get away with a lot. You wouldn’t. I couldn’t allow you to become the next king.”

  “So you set me up, suggested Cora accompany me and assassinated the king. All because you wanted revenge and more power? You didn’t want to see your life and current position as a gift or mercy from Father?”

  “As I said at the beginning, you’d never understand.” She pursed her lips again. “Originally, I intended you to stand trial and have a public execution.” She tapped her finger on the hilt of the dagger strapped to her waist. “But I can’t chance the old man getting to you or for you to spread the truth. Despite my lies, there are some who are not as easily persuaded. There’s a pesky whiskey jack asking pointed questions. I may have to eliminate him, and that death will lay at your feet, too. You inspire a lot of loyalty, brother, and it’s another reason why I’ve grown to hate you.”

  “Are you really this petty and shallow?”

  She unsheathed her dagger and stepped forward. Without hesitation, she gripped the back of his head, pulling the hair and yanking his face up. With a steady hand, she brought the dagger to his throat, her yellow eyes blazing.

  “Maybe, brother. But now I’m going to be magnificent.”

  He could surge up, try to head butt her and fight with his hands tied behind his back. He could spend his last moments agonizing over his stupidity for not recognizing his sister as the delusional sociopath she was.

  He did neither.

  Instead, he called up the memory of holding Cora as they spiraled to their possible deaths in the angry ocean below. He closed his eyes and let the crisp air with floral scents and the smell of Cora wash over him.

  Instead of a dagger piercing the soft skin of his neck, a strong gust of air rushed past him. Feathers slapped his face.

  The pressure of the dagger on his neck disappeared.

  Ronin snapped his eyes open. Another sapavian had slammed into his sister and they rolled over the stones in a heap of feathers and limbs a few feet away.

  Black wings. Lithe body. God-awful attire.

  Ronin blinked again.

  No.

  It couldn’t be.

  But it was. He knelt on the expensive stone flooring of the royal chamber bound and gaping like a stuffed turkey while his lover grappled with his sister. Half-sister.

  The women rolled to their feet and faced off. Cora held the dagger with a hammer grip. God, she was glorious.

  “Was it your mom who sent assassins to Hadren’s Keep all those years ago or were you already evil?” Cora asked.

  Ronin ground his teeth. He hadn’t even thought of that yet, but it made sense. If Father wasn’t going to eliminate the threat of Cora’s family, Mother would. She knew where the cormorants were staying and tipped off her human contacts out of revenge for her dead lover and to protect Sasha. The timing was about right, the attack on the keep a mere month after Lord Gable’s execution.

  The humans failed, though, getting the mother and damaging Cora instead of the father. Or maybe they intended to take out the whole family.

  “My mother,” Sasha hissed, confirming Ronin’s thoughts. She jutted her chin up and feinted, lunging in and changing her attack at the last second.

  Cora dodged and countered, flipping the dagger into a reverse hold at the last moment and changing the motion. Instead of jabbing, she slashed. Unprepared, Sasha failed to block the strike and the knife sliced into her arm. Blood sprayed across the room and Ronin’s face.

  Sasha scowled and lunged.

  Delusional. Sociopathic. And apparently immune to pain.

  They circled each other, taking turns attacking and evading, but not inflicting a lot of damage. Meanwhile, Ronin awkwardly made it to his feet and waited. How could he help Cora? He couldn’t stand by, bound and pathetic, and watch her die. Again.

  The women’s circling brought them closer and closer to Ronin. Sasha’s focus was so intent on Cora, so single-minded, she didn’t see Ronin move.

  He struck out, slamming his foot into the back of his sister’s leg.

  She cried out and lurched to the side.

  Without hesitation, Cora lunged in again. She blocked Sasha’s flailing slash and sank her own dagger into Sasha’s chest. The dagger made a sickening sound as Cora thrust the sharp blade through skin and tissue and past bone. Blood oozed around the entry site and quickly spread, saturating Sasha’s shirt.

  Sasha’s eyes widened and she pushed away from Cora. With the dagger jutt
ing from her chest, Sasha staggered backward, gaze frantic.

  Cora’s attack was a well-placed strike, one she’d practiced with him many times during their training sessions at the outpost. She’d missed piercing the heart, but she’d nicked it.

  Sasha dropped her dagger. The weapon clattered to the floor by his feet. Her gaze searched the room frantically and found his. “Brother—”

  His sister’s eyes rolled up and she fell to the floor. Her head hit the tiles with a loud crack.

  He stood beside Cora as they watched the pool of blood grow around Sasha’s body.

  Without speaking, Cora retrieved his sister’s dagger from the floor and cut his bindings. She used her sleeve to first wipe her face and then her own weapon.

  Pain rushed down Ronin’s arms and he shook them until most of the prickling sensation went away. He turned to Cora. “You’re alive.”

  “Turns out the Sea Beast is a friend of the Eyrie and wanted to have a bonding moment.” She paused, as if listening to something in the air. “His name is Darryl.”

  “I watched him eat you, Cora.”

  “I know.”

  “I thought you were dead.”

  “I know,” she whispered again.

  New anger rushed through his body. Hot, boiling rage rose and demanded he rush from the room and kill something.

  “My mother saved him when she was pregnant with me and in return, he gifted me with his essence. He knew he’d never have children of his own and thinks of me as his daughter.”

  “Oh.” He had so many questions, but at least the anger simmered.

  “Yeah.”

  “So that’s why you can do all that cool stuff?”

  “Yeah.” She looked away from him, her gaze travelling to his sister’s body. She flinched. “I’m so sorry.”

  “For what?” She scared the crap out of him and made him feel as though his heart had been ripped from his chest, but it was hardly her fault a giant Sea Beast chose that moment to steal her away in his mouth for some parental bonding.