The Raven Coven

by Emma Miles

  Heara appeared before her in the darkness and she grabbed Dia’s hands in her strong fingers. ‘Dia! Are you hurt? Have they mistreated you?’

  ‘No. No, not really. Heara, how are you here?’

  Heara grinned, showing her even teeth. ‘I finally managed to sneak in! I’m going to see if I can break you ou—’

  ‘No!’ Dia gasped. ‘What about Arrus? Where are they holding him?’

  ‘I haven’t found that stupid lump yet.’ Heara frowned. ‘But I will.’

  ‘I can’t go until he’s safe.’

  ‘Dia.’ Heara bent her head to look her in the eyes. ‘You are the Icante. If it comes down to it, you have to get out without him.’

  Dia pulled her hands free and looked away. Heara was right, but she didn’t want to even think about it, not yet.

  ‘Heara, try to find him. It’s not just about Arrus though, Bractius is threatening the Fulmers.’

  Heara snorted. ‘Let him threaten. They saw what you can do, Elden would be conquered by Chem if it wasn’t for you. I don’t understand why you don’t just walk out of here.’ There was both anger and sadness in Heara’s voice.

  Dia thought of her dreams and shuddered.

  ‘There is more going on than we know, Heara. I could walk out, I could probably blow this castle apart, but what would it achieve? Whoever is behind this will still be here. I don’t dare leave Elden as our enemy too. What’s going on out there? Is there any news?’

  ‘Yes.’ Heara gripped the bars. ‘Tantony and Rosa have come from the Raven Tower to see if they can find out anything and help. Cat and Temerran are still at the Tower trying to find answers from Jorrun’s library. Vilnue is doing his best to try to calm the King and reason with Dalton, but he isn’t getting far.’

  ‘What of the Queen?’

  Heara’s eyes narrowed. ‘She barely leaves the King’s side; the bitch is putting on a great act of the doting wife at the moment. If you ask me, I think the both of them are moon-touched.’

  Dia moved back to the bars and held out a hand for Heara’s. ‘Try to find Arrus. If he’s safe, I might risk letting myself out. Get Rosa to watch the Queen, I think she’s the key. See who she meets with, who she talks to.’

  Heara nodded. ‘Is there anything I can bring you? Have you eaten? Are you warm?’

  Dia nodded. ‘Just bring me news if you can.’

  Heara pulled Dia’s hand through the bars and turned it to kiss her palm. ‘I won’t let them hurt you, I promise.’

  ‘I know.’ Dia nodded, feeling tears push at her eyes and make her nose sting. ‘Don’t take any foolish risks, we have to think of the Fulmers.’

  Heara nodded, holding her eyes for a moment before vanishing into the darkness of the corridor.

  ***

  The heavy tread and scuff of feet warned her she had visitors, too loud and too many to be Heara. She sighed, not moving from her position on the bench, legs crossed beneath her long skirt, head leaning back against the rough wall.

  Light spilled down the corridor and shadows appeared first before the men. Merkis Dalton regarded her briefly before gesturing for a guard to open the cell. The guard fumbled with the keys, glancing at her several times although she didn’t move. She looked around at the men, glad to see the vile chieftain, Adrin, hadn’t come to gloat and grin at her with them this time.

  ‘How is the King?’ she asked.

  ‘Better now you’ve stopped sending him nightmares!’ Dalton stepped into the cell and the guard with the torch reluctantly followed.

  ‘I wish I did have the power you attribute to me, perhaps then I wouldn’t be having such harrowing dreams myself.’

  He narrowed his eyes. ‘Are you claiming you are being attacked?’ He searched her face. With her dry stinging eyes and the heaviness of the skin beneath she imagined she must look at least ten years beyond her age.

  ‘I don’t imagine it will matter what I say, you will believe what you want.’

  ‘I’ll believe what’s true!’ His face reddened. ‘The King has sent me to give you one last chance to explain yourself. Why have you turned on his friendship? Why have you attacked the King?’

  Dia leaned forward. She didn’t raise her voice but Dalton flinched back. ‘I risked my life and that of my people to save Elden from Chem, despite what your King did to my daughter. The only reason I’m even here is because someone in your castle killed Larissa. Have you found her murderer yet, by the way?’

  Dalton shuffled his feet. She knew from their previous conversations he doubted the Queen’s story.

  ‘I’m here to ask questions, not answer them.’

  ‘But you refuse to listen to the answers.’

  ‘Your answers are lies, witch!’

  Dia drew flame to her fingers and Dalton cried out, staggering back to the bars. ‘And again, as I’ve told you, I’m a fire-walker, not a witch.’ She let her flames die out. Dia stood and both men almost fell over each other to get out of her cell.

  ‘That was your last chance,’ Dalton warned as the guard hurried to lock the door.

  Dia sat back down. She couldn’t put one man before the Fulmers, she knew that, not even Arrus. But she couldn’t ignore the threat of war against the Fulmers. It was many years since Elden had murdered all of its people who could use magic. Were the Fulmers strong enough to prevent the same thing happening in her own land? Could a nation without magic defeat the few walkers that lived on the islands? It was possible. If only Jorrun hadn’t gone off to Chem.

  She got quickly to her feet and looked around her cell, there was nothing there but her thin blanket that she could burn. Calling her power, she blasted open the door, it swung open but remained on its hinges. Checking the hallway, she saw an unlit torch in a bracket on the wall. She pulled it down and returned to her cell, calling up her flame to light the wood. She waited until it burned steadily and then sat on the damp floor. It took a while for her to focus through her tiredness and the throbbing headache that never quite left, but eventually she slipped into a trance and triggered the part of her brain that allowed her to walk. Nothing happened. She tried again, pushing away the fear that crept through her bones.

  Nothing.

  There was nothing there, no life, no welcoming vortex, no Drake to carry her through the fire realm to see through a window of flame. The fire-spirits had abandoned them.

  ***

  Dia landed with a thud on the hard flagstones, she could still feel the dirt of her husband’s grave beneath her fingernails. She drew a fist to her chest, trying to hold back the pain in her heart, barely able to breathe. Her body shook, and she squeezed her eyes tightly closed, welcoming the coldness that seeped up from the floor into her bruised shoulder and hip. She couldn’t help it, she curled up into a ball and sobbed, giving in to her exhaustion.

  Laughter seeped into her thoughts, it was a moment before she realised the sound was real. Shame washed through her and she reluctantly uncurled and turned over, dreading to see who had witnessed her weakness.

  Ayline stood grinning through the bars, a guard standing back against the wall with a torch in his hand.

  ‘Your majesty,’ Dia said through gritted teeth. She pushed herself up onto her knees and then slowly stood. ‘Can I help you?’

  Ayline looked her up and down, a sneer making her mouth crooked. ‘I shouldn’t think so.’

  Dia called flame to her fingers and Ayline shrieked, staggering back from the bars. Dia immediately let her fire die, the guard drew his sword and moved to stand between her and the Queen.

  ‘I’m only here because I agree to be,’ Dia said. ‘You should remember that, Ayline.’

  ‘Your husband is only alive because I say he can be!’ Ayline spat, pushing the guard aside.

  Her words bit deep. Dia froze, watching the Queen as though she were a snake deciding whether to strike. Her face had gone red, and she folded her hands protectively across her unborn baby.

  ‘We know you’re trying to kill the King with your magic,�
�� Ayline hissed.

  Dia scowled and shook her head. ‘A lie, Ayline. You know it isn’t me. How many times do I have to tell you walkers can’t dream-walk. It’s an Elden magic, ask Jorrun!’

  ‘We did.’ Ayline screwed up her small, pretty nose. ‘He wrote back to say walkers are witches and witches can poison dreams.’

  ‘No.’ Dia shook her head in denial. She took two steps forward, her eyes not leaving the Queen’s, Ayline shrank back. ‘He can’t have. He would never say that. You can’t have heard from him.’

  Ayline’s face broke into a grin. ‘You are to hang.’

  Dia felt the ground fall away from beneath her, but somehow, she was still standing.

  ‘If you try to escape, if you try to fight us,’ Ayline went on. ‘We will execute Arrus in your place, we will burn him at the stake. If you don’t let the hangman place the noose about your neck, we will destroy the Fulmers and burn every last walker. Jorrun himself said he will burn Kesta.’

  Her hand flew to her stomach. This couldn’t be real, it had to be one of her nightmares. She staggered, reaching out a hand to hold herself up against the wall. It was some time before she realised she was standing in darkness. Ayline and the guard had gone. She felt her way back to the wooden bed and sat staring at the floor, she didn’t move except to blink, and then only when her eyes stung. Her breath came only when her lungs forced her to inhale. Eventually she slept and the nightmares tore her soul apart.

  ***

  It was a while before she realised there were people in her cell. She stared blankly at Merkis Dalton for almost two minutes before she blinked and focused on his face.

  ‘Icante? Icante, I’m sorry, you must come with us.’

  She sat up slowly, her muscles stiff and her limbs cold. ‘Where?’

  Dalton pursed his lips and flexed the muscles of his jaw before answering. ‘Out into the courtyard.’

  ‘Where is Arrus?’

  ‘He is safe, as long as you do as you’re told.’ The Merkis didn’t look at her as he spoke.

  She breathed in and out. Dalton took hold of her arm, his fingers surprisingly gentle. He led her out of the cell and along the corridor. She tripped on the first step she reached until she recalled from her foggy memories what stairs were and lifted her knees. She heard Dalton curse under his breath. They came out into an open area and she gasped, lifting her face to feel the cold wind against her skin. The light hurt her eyes, but she couldn’t close them. There were people there, she was aware of their emotions like pecks of a bird against a window, not actually feeling them.

  They came to some wooden steps and Dalton stopped, she tried to continue but the man held her back. His grip on her arm tightened and released, tightened and released.

  ‘This is wrong,’ he said through gritted teeth.

  She felt the deep breath he drew in and he finally started up the stairs, his feet loud on the planks. Dia’s own steps were silent until they reached level ground, then her footfalls seemed to echo. Dalton held her arm a moment longer, then let go and walked away.

  Dia shivered.

  She felt the vibration of someone else approaching and a large presence behind her. Something was slipped over her head, it was rough against her throat. She hadn’t realised there had been voices until they ceased their murmuring. There was a tension in the air; expectation.

  The wind blew her hair back from her face and for a moment she remembered touch. She blinked.

  A single voice spoke, deep, angry, full of fear. The words bounced off her.

  But there was another sound. Someone was singing. Dia fought not to hear it, but it dug in deep, the pain was excruciating, and she cried out, tears blurring her vision.

  She could see!

  Her eyes were rainbows, splitting and splitting again. The song filled her soul, her heart swelled and burst against her ribs. She looked up at the blue, blue sky. Small clouds hurried past like strands of lace and a single raven flew overhead. She watched it glide, strong in its elegance, a glint in its intelligent eyes where the light caught them. The wind caressed her skin, lifting her hair to tickle her cheek, the sun was a warm blessing that eased her bruises.

  Beside her, the hangman reached out his hand to pull the lever.

  Chapter Thirty

  Kesta; Covenet of Chem

  Jorrun’s smile turned into a grin, his eyes travelled across Kesta’s body. He let go of Vilai and she collapsed to the floor. Kesta drew in a sharp breath and stepped back, her heel hitting the solid library door. Her heart stopped. A knife jutted out from Vilai’s spine and her dress was stained a dark red. Kesta forced herself to look back up at Jorrun, he was wiping a spot of blood from the corner of his mouth with the tip of one finger, his eyes still fixed on hers. He placed his finger in his mouth and sucked at it noisily. Nausea rushed up from her stomach to her throat.

  ‘Well, that’s a shame.’ He took several sauntering steps closer. ‘I was looking forward to spending some time with you.’

  Kesta pressed her back up against the solid door, shock rendering her speechless, she could barely breath, she felt hot, the air stinging her skin so that she shivered convulsively. Jorrun frowned at her. ‘I was hoping for a little more fight.’

  She forced her mouth to open. ‘I … I don’t understand. I know you. I felt what you were feeling …’

  He tutted, taking another step closer. ‘Oh, and of course no one can fool a walker. By the way, thank you for my throne.’

  She stared at him, her breath coming hard and fast.

  ‘You made it so much easier for me to take Chem. Of course, I’ll have to destroy everyone who helped me get here, everyone with power. I’m tempted to keep you, though.’ He looked her up and down, his eyes lingering on her mouth.

  ‘Jorrun.’ His name came out in a whisper, hurting the muscles of her chest. Even with the truth standing right before her, she didn’t want to believe it. He was so close now she could smell him, the metallic scent of blood.

  Light flared before her and she raised her arm to shield her eyes. Azrael made himself huge and Jorrun staggered back.

  ‘Don’t you touch her!’ Azrael hissed. He flipped himself about. ‘Kessta! Run!’

  She didn’t need telling twice, she grabbed at the door handle and wrenched it open, sprinting out into the hall. Azrael shot out of a lantern ahead of her and she kept running as she yelled, ‘Tell the women to get out! Warn Osun!’

  Her heart hammered against her ribs, she turned one corner and then another, but her senses told her Jorrun was just behind her. She needed to buy the others time to get out but fear kept her feet moving. Two guards moved to stop her and she created a blast of air to throw them out of the way. She halted, chest heaving, her pulse loud in her ears. For a moment she heard nothing, then the sound of firm, steady steps. He wasn’t hurrying, he was confident he could catch her. He stepped out into the hall and the sight of him made her heart catch.

  For a moment panic rushed through her veins, he was so much stronger than her. Then grief doubled her over, tearing every raw nerve from her body. This couldn’t be true! It couldn’t be happening! Jorrun was a gentle, honourable, and caring man, he loved her, she knew he did! Jorrun would never betray her or hurt Vilai.

  He tilted his head slightly. ‘Do you want me to catch you, Kesta?’

  Her stomach churned, anger cut through her fear and she sent a blast of flames down the hall toward him. Instead of running she pressed forward, ducking into a room and finding some stairs. The sound of his laughter followed her down. She stumbled, feeling dizzy, and had to force herself to breathe properly. The stairs came out into a large room with a polished marble floor, her steps echoed as she sprinted for the door at the other end. She heard the handle turn behind her and spun on her heels, shielding just in time as a strong blast of air knocked her off her feet.

  ‘You belong to me, you know you do.’

  She growled, scrambling onto her feet. ‘Even when I loved you, I didn’t belong to you, Jor
run!’

  ‘Your heart has put you in a cage, foolish one.’ His eyes seemed to darken and Kesta tensed. ‘Even now, when you know I’ll hurt you, you can’t run.’

  Kesta gritted her teeth. ‘I’m not running because I’m going to kill you!’

  He laughed. Cold fingers wrapped around Kesta’s spine and the strength seemed to go from her muscles, but she drew power. She created a wall of flame before her, at the same time as shattering the door at her back. It took only seconds for Jorrun to sweep aside her flames, but by then she was already racing down another hallway.

  Azrael shot out of a lantern to her right. ‘Ruun, Kessta! The others are out!’

  She gasped in a breath and ran to keep up with the fire-spirit. Azrael blasted open some double doors and then shattered the windows of the room beyond.

  ‘Keep going, Kessta! Don’t sstop! I’ll protect the others.’

  ‘Azra!’

  But the spirit was already gone.

  Kesta fled across the room. The broken window before her still held sharp and jagged glass, beyond it was darkness. She jumped up onto a table and sprang across to the stone sill of the window. She waited, her fists clenched, the roaring blood in her ears making it hard to listen out for the sound of his boots. She wanted to be sure the others were far enough away.

  She jumped at the sound of his voice, turning about on the precarious ledge to face him. She’d forgotten how quietly the tall man could move.

  ‘At least make it a challenge for me, Kesta,’ he pouted. ‘I thought you were stronger tha—’

  She threw a blast of air, ripping glass free from the window to hurl with it. Using the blast to give her more momentum she launched herself off the ledge, landing on her hands and springing up onto her feet and straight into a sprint across the grass.

  ‘Kesta!’

  She halted, looking back at the figure standing in the window, even in the deep night with little light to see by, his shape was unmistakable to her.