“Accept it,” the voice echoed.
What was this?
“Accept it,” it said again.
Through gritted teeth, I yelled, “I accept it!”
Thunder shook the very foundations of the Archives and the courtyard while lightning cascaded like liquid fire across the darkness. The statues leaned down, each one touching a part of me. And with each brush of marbled hand, the agony subsided, and my eyes fell shut.
My face pressed against the cold marble. I lifted my head, allowing my eyes to come back into focus. Before me stood the Gob Archives and the statues unscathed. Had I dreamed that?
“Are you okay?” Pudge finally fell to his knees beside me.
“I—I think so.” I forced myself to my feet. It felt like I’d been shoved inside a dragon’s arse and then crapped out of it. My fingers held tight to the hilt of the sword as I stretched my body.
“Whoa, where did you get that?”
“The statues, or rather, the giant bird thing. Pudge, do you know what this means?”
“I think the Hag really has marked you, Ivy. For something big.”
“Like rescuing my brother?”
“Maybe.” His face scrunched up as he stared at me. “Are you sure you’re all right?”
“Yeah, I’ll be fine.” Or at least I hoped I would.
“Ivy?” someone called behind me.
I turned to find King Starshooter. My father. Would I ever get used to that?
“Pudge,” the king said, “could you give Ivy and me a few minutes of privacy?”
“I—yes, your highness.” Pudge bowed, then scurried away.
When he’d disappeared, the king drew closer, and as he did, his eyes widened. At first, I thought it was because I held the sword, but he walked over to me, pushed up the sleeves on my gown, and revealed new tattoos. Then his gaze fell on my neck, and his fingers moved to trace the tattoo.
“Our family insignia,” he whispered.
My breath caught in my throat. With trembling hands, I reached up to touch my skin. “The Hag marked me.” I met his glance.
“Yes. You can have no doubts now that you’re my daughter. You’ve been marked as a royal.” His voice caught as he gathered me in his arms. “Forgive me, Ivy.”
Part of me wanted to hate him and tell him to forget it, that he had a chance to be my father and chose to dump me on Archer. But I knew I couldn’t hold a grudge—at least, not right now. Not that I accepted what he had done to me as okay, because I didn’t. There were just bigger things that needed to be dealt with. First and foremost, getting my brother back.
Brother. Not just friend anymore, or future husband in a politically arranged marriage. Dorian was my brother.
“I can’t promise I won’t be angry with you.” I stood still, not moving one way or the other. “It was wrong for you to keep this from me.”
“I know. And I’ve regretted it every day since you were born.” He brushed my hair from my face. “You look so much like your mother.”
“Do you have any paintings of her?” All I’d ever wanted was to know her. To put a face to the woman who’d given birth to me.
“No.” My father gave me a sad smile. “There’s so much I want to tell you about her, though. Things I want you to understand.” He released me and took a step back. “But…”
“But there’s no time,” I finished for him.
He sighed. “For now, I’m going to need you to keep this a secret. I need to know you’ll be safe.”
I looked away. Hag, I was sick of secrets. Why did it matter now? I didn’t see how it would keep me any safer.
“Maybe we should just forget about announcing it altogether. Save you the grief.” My eyes narrowed, blood pounding in my ears.
“That’s not what I meant.” King Starshooter paced in front of me. “I don’t want the council getting wind of this. Not until I have Dorian safely home. Hag only knows what they might try to accomplish if they have the information. As it is, Archer and I have our suspicions about them. And although I can’t go over it now, just know it’s best this way.”
With a nod, I agreed. Even I knew the council was a bunch of dragon sacks. “I’ll keep it quiet. But what am I supposed to do about the tattoos?”
He slid his cloak off and draped it over my shoulders, tightening the laces so the hood bunched up around my neck. “You’ll have to keep them hidden.”
“If you knew I was Dorian’s sister, why did you have him propose to me?”
He sighed. “For starters, the council knew you two had been caught in the Archives. They hoped that by forcing Dorian to propose, it might make the people decide not to support our family being in charge due to the fact that you’re not a full-blooded goblin. They hoped to create tension and chaos with our people. However, they underestimated the fact that most everyone likes you. It’s only some of the nobles who balk at the idea of our kind intermingling with others. Not to mention that, if anything, it shows we are more accepting and don’t discriminate.”
“Oh.” I guess that made sense.
“Come along. We can speak of this more later, Ivy. For now, we have other matters to discuss.”
Once the cloak and sword were secured, I glanced at the palace; candlelight and torches lit the walkways and the windows. No one would sleep this night. We were on the brink of war—I could feel it.
“What next?” I turned to Father. Hag, it still didn’t quite feel right calling him that yet. I mean, Archer was my father—or at least he had been. Now I didn’t know what he was to me.
“We tell the council you’re going on a Mission to retrieve Dorian.”
“They’re not going to like it.”
Clasping my arm, he led me down the path and back toward the palace. “Yes, well, they don’t have much choice. You’re one of the best warriors, Ivy. And you’re the most humanlike. You will have an easier time fitting in and hiding. Not just in the human world, but you could also pass for an elf, which will be helpful while traveling. You won’t have to expend as much power for a glamour like the others would.”
I noticed the king hadn’t mentioned anything about the other races. Goblins didn’t have many allies. Trolls and dwarves definitely didn’t like our kind, and elves had been a longtime enemy, until recently. Of course, I had no idea if any of the others had relations with the humans. According to all the books I read, humans were beautiful but dangerous. They didn’t like things that were different. Which didn’t bode well for us.
This gave way, though, to other thoughts. Humans had taken Dorian. A race that I shared blood with, one I’d been fantasizing about for years. But did I truly want to be associated with them when they held my brother captive, doing Hag only knew what to him? Queasiness churned in my stomach. Did these thoughts sicken King Starshooter as well?
Our footsteps clicked against the stone, and guards bowed as the king passed through. Taking a deep breath, I readied myself to face the council when we arrived outside the heavy wooden door.
Patting the sword beneath my cloak, I pulled my garment closer, not wanting them to see the weapon. Was this truly meant to be? The sword was only supposed to be seen by those it found worthy and during a time of need.
Relief flooded through me when I spotted Pudge and Grr standing outside the chamber doors, waiting for us. Pudge gave me a sympathetic look while my dog nudged my leg.
“You still okay?” Pudge whispered when my father went in ahead of us.
“Not really,” I said. “But I don’t have time to think about it.”
“Don’t worry,” he said. “I’ve got your back. No matter what.”
“Thanks.”
The council’s loud voices rose as Pudge and I stepped inside. This was the last place I wanted to be. Standing in front of a bunch of pompous eejits. From across the room, I caught Archer’s eye and gave
him a wave. I wondered if he’d still let me stay with him and Cook sometimes. Or if I’d be confined to the palace, playing princess. This also gave way to thoughts on whether or not the king would allow Pudge and me to still be around each other—and would he be allowed to claim me during the Choosing Ceremony? I definitely couldn’t marry Dorian now.
This changed everything.
“Silence,” King Starshooter called.
Everyone grew quiet, eyes focused on Father. Councilor Dundry glared, his jowls trembling with anger as he glanced at the other members.
“Ivy Archer is assigned the Mission to bring back my son, along with Pudgeons Wayfarer,” Father said. He stood erect, staring them down as if to dare them to speak against him.
Finally, I was going to get my chance. Yet this wasn’t how I wanted it to come about. Why was it that everything with me had to happen the hard way?
“She’s reckless,” Birdie’s mother said. “You can’t put the safety of our prince in her hands.”
Councilor Girt nodded his agreement. “I don’t believe sending her is in our best interest. After all, she’s your son’s betrothed. Is it wise to send her out, too?”
My jaw tightened, and I moved forward. “Remind me again—whose sons were with the prince when he was kidnapped?”
Councilor Girt reached around the table to grab me, but Archer got between us. “Enough of this. The king has given his order. My daughter has trained for this. If anyone can return Prince Dorian home safely, it’s her.”
“Then I want Vane to go along.” Councilor Girt sat back down, his black eyes focused on me.
“We will send soldiers with them,” the king said.
“Honour Wayfarer and his crew will see Ivy and Pudge to the border.” Archer strode forward, placing a hand on my shoulder. “She’s been marked by the Hag.” He lifted only the section of the cloak that concealed the Hag’s sign but kept the Starshooter family crest well hidden. “I cannot go against the Hag’s wishes, nor should you. Like the king said, we’ll send a small retinue with them. However, they’ll wait at the border of the human realm while Ivy attempts to find Prince Dorian. We need to know exactly where he’s being hidden before making a move.”
“And what of the ransom the humans are demanding? This Lord Frederik made it clear that we were to send gold along with the Crest of the Hag.” Councilor Dundry eyed everyone around the room.
“We don’t have the Hag’s Crest, nor do we know how any human would know what it was—unless, of course, someone has been communicating with them?” the king said. “As far as gold, we will send some with Ivy and the others, but it will only be presented when we know for sure that my son lives.”
“Ivy, we have a time limit,” Archer said, leaning closer to me. “According to the letter sent back with the younglings, we have only three months to comply with the demand. It will take you at least half of that to travel to the human world, if not more.”
“I understand.” Shite. Everything was riding on my shoulders. If I failed, Dorian would be killed.
Murmurs broke out between the council members, but there was nothing more they could argue. The king and the Hag had spoken.
Chapter Fifteen
Staring around my room, I slid one last pair of breeches into my pack and fastened the buckles. It felt like I was saying goodbye to my life as Ivy Archer.
I took a deep breath, trying to ignore the hollowness that crept into my chest. What if I failed? Visions of Dorian’s corpse came to mind, and I fought to stay composed. Grabbing my pack, I hurried from my room and went downstairs to where Archer and Cook awaited.
“Took ye long enough.” Cook eyed my pack. “What’d ye do, stuff yer bed and dog in there?”
Archer moved to my side and handed me a dagger. His dagger. “I want you to take this with you,” he said. “It’s been in our family for centuries.”
Tears formed in my eyes, and I blinked them back. To hear him say our family made everything even harder. I didn’t know the king. I knew Archer. And I loved him. “But you never go anywhere without this.”
He gave a silent nod, then reached for my hand and pressed the weapon into it. “I want you to have it.”
The Archer family crest, a dragon’s head with daggers through the eyes, was etched into the handle and along the blade.
“Thank you.” I belted it to my thigh on the opposite side of where I had the sword sheathed. My throat constricted as I went into his arms. “You’ll always be my father.”
He stroked my hair, pressing a kiss to my forehead. “And you’ll always be my daughter, Ivy. Nothing can change that.”
Cook coughed, and I looked up to see her wiping the wetness from her eyes. “If it’s any consolation, ye’ll always be a pain in my arse.”
With a laugh, I left my father’s—or rather, Archer’s—embrace and went to hug Cook. “No need to get sentimental on me,” I said.
She patted my back good and hard, then released me. “Before ye head out, thought ye might want to pack some of this up for the journey.” Cook held out several bundles of food wrapped in cloth. “There’s dried pork, venison, bread, and cheese here. Don’t want ye going hungry out there.”
I had no idea where to put them. But with some help, I managed to get it all shoved into my bag. Now, my clothing would likely smell like a butcher shop. Meat perfume to attract the wild beasts, I supposed.
A knock sounded at the door. Cook hurried to answer it, then opened it wide to let Amos in.
“Evening.” He bowed first to me, then Archer. “The king wanted me to deliver this to you and see you safely to the docks.” He handed over a scroll with the king’s seal on it.
With trembling hands, I took it from him and slid my finger beneath the wax. Inside were directions and contact information for my mother’s sister, Lady Margaret Weathers. For long moments, I stared at the name, tracing it with my fingers. Finally, a connection to my mother.
I rerolled the scroll and glanced around at the circle of expectant faces. “The king’s arranged for me to stay on with my aunt when I reach the human world,” I said.
Archer gave me a sad smile. “Margaret’s a good woman. She’s the one who ensured you arrived safely to Gob Hollow.”
Hag, it was strange to sit here discussing my human family with my goblin family. Folding the parchment, I slid it inside my leather purse, then turned to the others.
Archer clapped his hands together and picked up my pack from the floor. “It’s High Moon. We best get to the docks so you don’t miss your ship. Remember, while you’re gone, you need to keep up the facade that you and Dorian are betrothed. The others can’t know that you’re really King Starshooter’s daughter.”
“I will.”
Grr sidled in beside me, and we stepped from the safety of the house. The streets were nearly empty of patrons. Most were probably down at the docks, waiting for our sendoff.
My stomach knotted, knowing their hopes lay in my success. My Mission. We made our way down the cobblestone streets, and each building and house etched itself into my mind.
Amos touched my shoulder when we reached the main road to the harbor. “This is what you’ve trained for, Ivy. Remember to look here.” He held up his dagger and touched it to his heart. “And you’ll never go wrong.”
I nodded. Once a soldier, always a soldier. At last, we breached the woodland only to find half the kingdom waiting on our arrival. No pressure. Just had to sail across the sea, journey to the Outer Realm and into the human world, and rescue my brother. Sweat beaded my brow. What if I failed? I would have to come home and face everyone.
Or what if I didn’t return at all?
Cheers rang out when my feet met wooden planks. I scanned the crowd for Pudge and found him standing between Councilor Wayfarer and Margenta, his mother. His eyes were large, forehead wrinkled with worry lines. He had a turkey drumsti
ck fisted in his left hand like a battle-axe.
The crowds parted to let me through, some tossing flower petals at my feet, others hollering out well-wishes and encouragement.
I glanced toward the sky, wishing the Hag would show herself or speak to me with some words of wisdom. Soon I stood in front of the king, and he offered me his hand.
“I wish you a safe journey, Lady Ivy. I know my son’s life will be safe with you.”
I squeezed his arm. “I’ll come home with him. You have my word.”
With a nod, he released me, and I progressed down the line, shaking hands and exchanging words with the council. Archer better be proud of me for being this polite.
“You will bring him back,” Birdie’s mother said, pasting a fake smile on her face. “He is, after all, the Starshooter heir.”
Why did it sound like she didn’t really care if he lived or died? Of course, the council would benefit more if there were no Starshooter heir, although they had no idea of my true identity yet.
Pudge stood at the end of the line, next to Vane. Hag, I wished he’d waited for me before going through the line. We stopped in front of the Girts, and Vane smirked, falling in step beside us. “Barthe and I get to go with you to make sure you don’t fail.”
Pudge bumped into him, sending him staggering back. “Yeah, it’s our bad luck.”
I stifled a laugh, glancing up in time to see Honour watching us from the deck of the four-masted galleon. He winked, lowering the wooden plank for Pudge, Grr, and me to board, along with Vane, Barthe, Beaurick, Percivious, Cray, Captain Bushwell, and other soldiers.
The ship swayed gently when I stood on the deck, staring at my family and friends. I waved as the crew hurried to get the boat untied. Clink-clink, came the sound of the anchor being raised.
Honour shouted orders to his crew, and the sails were hoisted. Slowly, we moved away from the harbor. Pudge wobbled next to me, gripping the rail.
“You okay?” I asked, glad that he was coming along. There was no way I’d be able to do this without him, especially with Vane and Barthe around.
Where There Be Humans Page 12