By Blood Betrayed (The Lost Shrines Book 3)

by Amberlyn Holland

  *****

  As soon as Selena stepped out of her brother's bedroom, she found Omal waiting for her. She had no doubt the only reason the entire outpost wasn't lurking outside the door was because the fearsome cook kept everyone at bay with the threat of her wooden spoon.

  "He's alive. He'll need time to heal, but as long as there's no infection and I can make him rest properly, he should recover," she reassured Omal. Then she wiped her hands down the front of her, noticing the dirt and the blood for the first time. "I really have to clean up, now. If you gather everyone in the dining hall, I'll explain what happened to everybody at once."

  "Yes. But you will eat while you talk," Omal insisted with narrowed eyes. "And then you will rest."

  For once, Selena didn't argue, only nodded her acquiescence.

  She waited for the cook to disappear back down the stairs before heading to her own room. Once in its dubious sanctuary, Selena leaned heavily against the door and finally allowed herself to release the riot of emotion storming inside of her.

  Hand pressed to her mouth, hot tears flowed steadily down her cheeks unchecked. The air in her lungs hitched around the knot of pain and fear and anger tied there. When the tempest ceased, Selena had no idea how long she stood like that. Had no idea how much time she had before Omal sent someone to check on her.

  Hurriedly, she stripped off her disgusting clothes and balled them into a corner. Even if they came clean, she'd never wear them again. After less than a moment of consideration, she pulled out her dark fighting leathers, usually reserved for raids, and put them on with deliberate care. Then she strapped on a full complement of weapons. Finally, she redid her braid and slid two needle sharp blades into it. They looked like nothing more than decoration but were as deadly as the sword at her side.

  It was the first time she'd been completely kitted out inside the outpost since they'd settled there. Despite knowing they were always at risk, she'd made the symbolic choice to have only the minimum protection. Selena refused to be vulnerable in the home they were creating. She'd been determined that everyone feel a least a little safe within their walls.

  But she couldn't maintain that illusion any longer. Because they weren't safe. Mora had easily infiltrated them. With wide eyes and waif-like innocence, she'd crept in under all their defenses. She'd weaseled her way into Arun's heart.

  And Selena had no way of knowing if Mora had acted alone. Or if there were more traitors still lying in wait among their makeshift family. That was yet another wound Selena would never forgive the sorceress for. Making her doubt everyone. Making her look at her home and the people she'd come to love with suspicion-filled eyes.

  Selena's hand curled painfully tight around the pommel of her sword and gritted her teeth in determination. Someday soon, Mora would taste Selena's wrath. For now, though, Selena had to decide just how much to share with a group of people she could no longer allow herself the luxury of trusting.

  Not when her brother's life hung precariously in the balance.

  Keeping her body tight and controlled, Selena smoothed her face into a mask that allowed her concern to show through but hid her suspicion. Once sure no one would see anything she didn't want them to, Selena headed for the dining room.

  The cacophony of questions that met her came as no surprise. She didn't bother to try to shout over them, just stood silent and still, patiently waiting until the noise died down. Selena took a healthy bite of the bread and cheese Omal handed her and ignored the chaos around her.

  Eventually, they got the hint, and the room dropped into silence. With careful consideration, Selena shared the bare bones of what happened. She started with the discovery that someone had used sorcery, presumably to contact Tresk or Hafgan. There was a brief spurt of outrage that this was the first they heard about it. But it quickly sank in that sharing it with the innocent also meant sharing it with the guilty.

  When things settled again, she continued, explaining about the nightly watch they set, hoping to catch the traitor. She waited through another rumble that Finn, the newest resident, had been involved, but it faded quickly as well.

  "Tonight, Arun was attacked, and I felt it."

  From the beginning, everyone had assumed the uncanny understanding between Arun and Selena existed because they were twins. Now, Selena allowed them to believe that was what led her to her brother.

  She hated lying to them. Hated the secrets and the subterfuge necessary to protect them. Hated that she was beginning to understand why Phelan had found it necessary to lie to her.

  But she lied one more time, glossing over just enough to imply she and Phelan had been discussing their patrols when she felt the attack. That was why he followed her to the clearing.

  "While I did my best to heal Arun, Finn chased after the fleeing attacker." Selena swallowed hard against the threat of fresh tears. It was getting harder and harder to maintain a dispassionate facade while remembering the raw terror of holding her brother's lifeless body.

  "Did he catch them?"

  "Who was it?"

  The questions flew from some, but others were already looking around at each other, noting who was there. And who should be there, but wasn't.

  "Mora," Selena quietly confirmed. "She betrayed us all."

  An outburst of outrage and disbelief roared through the room. Demands for a search party. Questions about their safety. Promises of retribution. She felt their pain and disillusionment as keenly as she felt her own.

  When the room finally started to quiet again, Nis stepped to the front of the room.

  "What about Finn? We still don't know much about him, and all of this started when he arrived. If he's the only one who saw Mora, how can we be sure he didn't do something to her to cover up his own involvement?"

  Selena cut him with a glare.

  "Do you think, for one second, I would have left my brother vulnerable and alone with him if I had any doubt about his involvement?"

  Nis dipped his chin, looking chastised and uncomfortable, but determined. "You believe Mora seduced Arun. Can you be sure Finn didn't seduce you?"

  Selena wanted to laugh, but she knew, if she started, it would descend into a madness she couldn't stop. Seduced? They were bonded. If he'd wanted to seduce her, he could have used it against her at any time. Instead, they'd both fought to keep the connection as light as possible.

  "How do you know he's who he says he is?" Chel stepped forward reluctantly to support his brother. "I mean, we all like him. But it seems unlikely all this happened right when he showed up and it's just a coincidence."

  "He isn't who he said he was. And I don't think it is a coincidence."

  Another explosion of shouting overtook the room and Selena stood her ground. With arms crossed, she leaned back against the stone of the fireplace and waited patiently until the room dropped to a quiet murmur again.

  "Finn is really Phelan, one of the Hounds of Alwyn."

  The eruption of shouts and gasps and fearful questions shouldn't have surprised her. She'd heard the same stories, had half believed the dark rumors about the Hounds. She couldn't blame them for wondering. But they couldn't afford more suspicion and superstition to drive the wedge even deeper than Mora's betrayal already had.

  "Stop. Enough. He's still the same Finn you all got to know. The one who's spent hours helping on the training ground. He's helped Omal with dinner and stole cookies for the night patrols. He's entertained us every night. Nobody's die—"

  Selena paused, choking on the word, the memory of silent heart and drying blood still a little too fresh. But she swallowed and kept herself stoic and unmoved on the outside.

  "Nobody has died. The Harbinger stories are just that. Stories."

  "If he's still Finn, why did he lie? Why did he come here with a false name?"

  Selena didn't see who in the crowd shouted the question, but it didn't matter.

  "Until he got here, he didn't know who to trust. He needed to keep h
is mission and his presence a secret from the capital. He came to protect the spring from Hafgan."

  The spring was one of those secrets everyone knew and no one mentioned. Just being near it, they'd all heard the local stories and legends that ran rampant with hints of its power and history. And everyone knew it augmented her healing. No one knew how much more Selena was capable of doing with it, though. And she intended to keep it that way. Her days of using magic for anything other than healing had been left behind in the opulent palace she'd fled years ago.

  "Mora recognized him and knew it was only a matter of time before he realized what she was up to. He and his brothers have been trying to stop Hafgan's plots for years. She needed to warn Hafgan their scheme was in trouble."

  "How can you be sure? He looks the part, but anyone can claim a name that doesn't belong to them."

  Selena was sure because she watched him risk his secrets to save her brother. Watched the cold, implacable power of his Attribute take over completely. Watched him perform a miracle.

  But she couldn't say any of that.

  "I've seen his other form. I've seen the Hound."

  This time, there were more whispers and gasps than shouts at the revelation. And it wasn't even a lie. She had seen it. She just hadn't seen the transformation from dog to man in person. And hadn't known the stray was really one of the Hounds. Or that it was Finn.

  Phelan. She needed to remember he wasn't who he'd said he was. Even as she was trying to convince the others to trust him. But it seemed to be working.

  "What do we do now?" Nis asked.

  "We continue doing what we'd planned to. You take a team and see what is coming. We continue to fortify the outpost as best we can. When we have more facts, we consider our next step. We will have more scouts and lookouts, day and night. Chel, can you work out a schedule for that? Omal, we need to know what we have for supplies and what we need for both staying and going..."

  Selena continued handing out chores and projects until she got everyone's mind off their fear and onto tasks. Once she had everyone moving instead of panicking, she finally returned to Arun's room.

  "How is he?" The question jumped out of her mouth before she was even all the way into the room.

  "He's still resting comfortably. Like you should be," Phelan answered sternly.

  She knew he was right. She was beyond exhausted. It hurt just to keep her eyes open. Yet, she also knew that if she let Arun out of her sight, she wouldn't sleep. The fear of something happening when she was away would keep her awake.

  Phelan watched her struggle for a moment, understanding darkening his eyes.

  "Wait here." He disappeared before she could ask why. He returned a few minutes later with an armful of bedding and spread it on the little bit of floor space left next to Arun.

  "Rest here. I'll stand guard outside."

  "But if I'm asleep, I won't hear—"

  "I will," he insisted softly. "I'll hear any change in his heartbeat or breathing. I'll wake you if that happens. Sleep."

  "What about you? You're as exhausted as I am."

  "I'll take my turn later."

  -11-

  SELENA knelt by the spring, filling a cup with its healing waters for Arun. Out of habit, she shifted focus and checked the leylines, making sure it was still safe to give to her brother. Making sure that in the week since she'd first repaired the magic of the area, nothing had been disturbed. That her healing hadn't been undone since she'd last come out to the clearing.

  The spring still looked exactly as it had the day before, though. Beautiful and pristine and untouched. Silently, Selena renewed her vow to make sure it stayed that way.

  She'd never forget the way it looked a week ago. Sickly. Wasted. Polluted. She needed to be sure it never looked that way again.

  After rescuing her brother and getting the outpost calmed and focused, she'd surrendered to exhaustion and slept. As soon as she'd gotten a few hours of rest, though, Selena had dragged herself back out here. She'd used the small store of renewed energy her nap had given her to fix what Mora had broken.

  It had taken more out of her than she'd expected and she stayed there on her knees, too exhausted to make the short trip back to the outpost. She hadn't had to wait long, though, before Phelan came looking for her.

  He'd carried her back without a word of censure and tucked her back into the nest he'd made for her next to Arun.

  Of course, he did tattle on her to Omal, and she'd endured an hour-long lecture on taking care of herself from the cook.

  When the cup was full, Selena stretched and headed back into the outpost to deliver the water to her brother.

  Arun still spent most of his time asleep, his body and mind continuing to heal from the ordeal he'd endured. The times he woke, his thoughts were still foggy and unclear, but at least he was beginning to stay conscious for longer and longer periods of time.

  Selena couldn't help worrying what would happen when he woke up and found out what happened. That Mora had betrayed them. Betrayed him.

  If she ever got her hands on the sorceress, Selena would make the woman regret ever hurting Arun. In the days since Mora had disappeared, Selena searched her room twice but found nothing. Not even the pathetic satchel she'd carried around like a talisman. Which, in retrospect, probably held the tools of her dark trade and had nothing to do with the sentiment everyone usually ascribed to the eccentricity.

  Omal was with Arun when Selena slipped back into his room. He was awake but bleary, and it took both to help him sit up enough to drink from the chalice.

  "Wha'...what's happened?" Arun asked with a raspy, breathless voice when they got him settled back on his pallet. "How long?"

  Selena pressed her hand to his warm brow and smiled softly. "Don't worry about it, right now. Rest. Heal. We've got everything under control."

  There was a burst along the bond, and then Selena sensed Phelan moving toward them from somewhere below.

  The connection had been wide-open between them since they'd rescued Arun. They hadn't talked about it. Hadn't acknowledged it. But neither had made any effort to close it, either.

  They also found ways to be near each other often. To allow a brush of fingers or press of shoulders. To sit close. To simply be in each other's presence whenever their duties allowed.

  Selena knew that she'd regret the lapse when this interlude ended. But she couldn't stay away from him. And didn't want to think too hard about whether it was the bond or something deeper inside of her that made her need the closeness.

  When he appeared in the doorway, she was already getting to her feet and looking towards him. Instead of asking, she let a pulse of curiosity shift across the connection and realized how often in the past week their conversation had been in a simple exchange of emotions.

  "Nis and his team are back. He says they have news."

  Beside her, Arun struggled, trying to get up.

  "Oh, no you don't," Selena said with an exasperated glare. "Where do you think you're going?"

  Arun blew out a long sigh and glared right back. "Downstairs. With you."

  "You need to rest—"

  "No time. Need to make plans."

  Omal inserted herself between them, putting a gentle but immovable hand on Arun's shoulder, stopping his continued attempt to rise.

  "Stubbornness runs in the family," Omal said with an arch look in Selena's direction. "Go. I'll stay with him and try to keep him out of trouble."

  Selena pinched her lips and gave her brother a hard look.

  "Stay with Omal. I'll come back and tell you everything when we're done."

  He looked like he wanted to argue but Selena didn't give him a chance.

  As she walked away, however, she heard Arun bargaining his good behavior in return for finding out had been happening while he recuperated. Relief trickled into Selena's heart but was coupled with anxiety and guilt.

  This was as clear and coherent as he'd be
en all week and the assurance of his recovery made her breathe easier. But Omal began with telling him about Mora and Selena winced with guilt. She really should have been the one to tell him. But she'd have to worry about that later.

  For now, she needed to face whatever news Nis brought back. And figure out how to make sure they all stayed safe through the coming trials.

  *****

  Every single inhabitant of the outpost crowded inside the dining hall. Word had traveled fast, even for such an insular community.

  Selena paused in the doorway in front of Phelan and her uncertainty bit into him across the bond. Her eyes narrowed, assessing the gathered residents. Then she looked across the room, and Phelan followed her gaze. Nis stood next to the fireplace, looking drawn and serious. Whatever news he'd brought, it wasn't good.

  Squaring her shoulders and stepping inside, Selena walked through the crowd until she stopped beside Nis. Phelan trailed behind her silently.

  "What did you find?"

  The bruiser glanced around at the audience and asked, "Are you sure you want to do this here?"

  She spoke to Nis but pitched her voice to carry to the whole room. "The decisions to come aren't mine alone to make. Everyone has to decide for themselves what they do next."

  Nis took a deep breath then turned slightly, so he was addressing the entire room.

  "Marnak troops are definitely coming this way. They've broken up into several groups and are moving slow, but they are coming. From what gossip we could overhear, the troops think there's something going on in Galwei. Whoever gives the orders wants them to wait to see how that goes before committing too far north."

  "So, we've moved up on their priority list, but we're still not number one," Anes added, trying to lighten the pall that descended on the room.

  "Hafgan and Tresk aren't with them?" Selena asked. Her voice was calm, like she was confirming any other intel. No one else would have pegged the tell in her question. But Phelan had been watching her for weeks now. He knew her well enough to catch the way her hand curled into a fist, inches from her sword hilt. And the way her jaw clenched just a little too tight, like she wanted to spit out the words.