He leaned forward. His eyes burrowed into mine. “I have met my fair share of evil souls. You wouldn’t hurt me, Sarai.”
He was right. There was no possible way I could bring myself to hurt him. To harm him would be harm done to me. Kamryn was my partner, my friend, the light to my darkness. He helped me up when I was at my lowest and had shown me patience I hadn’t been shown by anyone.
“You don’t really know me, Kamryn,” His eyes watched the movement of my lips. “You don’t know what I’m capable of or what I’m willing to do to get the things I want.”
When he was around, I felt as if I could move mountains, shake the skies, and overturn the seas. To him, I wasn’t a senseless mermaiden trying to play walker. I was his equal. It wasn’t true—I could never be as strong or brave as him, but I could imagine. He made it possible for me to believe I was what he believed me to be.
He leaned over the table and planted a kiss in the space between my eyes. “No, it is you who doesn’t know what you’re truly capable of, but I will let you find that out on your own.”
∞∞∞
Kamryn
I was outside of my tent, waiting for Sarai to wash up and change clothes, when I heard a faint rustle from the underbrush at the edge of the forest. A silver fox poked his head out from beneath a spiked bush and sniffed the air.
“Join me.” I gestured toward the fire. “Come get warm.”
Naga gracefully walked into the camp and made his way to the fire. He lowered his chest to the ground, raised his tails in the air, and took a spine-lengthening stretch. I chuckled at the sight. Naga always enjoyed the warmth of a fire. He reminded me of a cat even though he preferred to take the form of a fox.
I joined him and sat down on the ground. “What did you find?” I whispered low enough that the crackle of the fire could mask my voice.
Naga placed his furry head against mine and let out a deep growl that reverberated through my body. Bright, blazing lightning replaced the blood in my veins with fire, light, and imagery.
I closed my eyes and took in the maelstrom of information. Scene after scene flashed through my mind, each more vivid than the next. Visions of Phadrah writing letters, packing trunks, and meeting with a winged man by moonlight.
I jerked back and broke the connection between us. My head spun with the new information. I knew Phadrah was up to something. Trips to the local brujas who sold bootlegged love potions and aphrodisiacs was what I had in mind. Not trips to see her ruthless sister or a mysterious winged lover.
“Phadrah has been in contact with the Icarians.” I sat back and groaned. I rubbed my temples with the tips of my fingers. “She’s up to something, and it can’t be good. I’m glad you’re back. We enter the marsh in the morning, and by this time tomorrow, I hope to be far from here.”
I looked at the long shadows that stretched from the looming forest. Their eyes had been on us since we stepped foot on the land. If I quieted my mind and listened just right, I could hear their soft cries on the wind.
The Forest of the Forgotten where the souls of those who were foolish enough to deal with the witch roamed.
Naga tilted his head at an angle and barked.
“I won’t leave the marsh without her.” I shrugged.
“It’s that easy for you?” Etan silently crept up and sat down in front of the fire. “You’ll choose a female over your blood?”
“It was never a choice, but you wouldn’t understand.” I threw a stick in the fire. “What I feel toward Sarai surpasses any physical relationship.”
It wasn’t simple infatuation. From the day I saw her walking up to my palace gates, I knew she would change my life. For good or bad, I didn’t know at the time, but I knew now.
From the day I carried her back to Irkalla after the Sabosam’s attack, I knew I didn’t want to be anywhere but with her. I never wanted to feel what I felt that day, as if the world was being swallowed by the Void itself. I didn’t know if she was going to make it through the evening even after I poured my magic into her body. The palace had never felt as cold as it had that night.
“We are brothers. No bond is stronger,” Etan snarled like a wounded animal.
Naga dropped to his stomach and hid his eyes behind his paws.
I would laugh if it had been someone else. He truly was trying to guilt-trip me into seeing things from his point of view. I had come to terms with our relationship. We shared blood, but blood didn’t equal loyalty or respect. Blood didn’t mean love. Sometimes, it was your own family who wanted to see you down.
“Don’t use that brother mess with me.” I looked up at the silver moon. “You acted like I didn’t exist after I handed over the crown. If it weren’t for your curse, you would still be tucked away in your palace.”
“I came to you before I went to the witch. You refused to help,” he whined like he used to do when Mother told him to tend to his studies.
“I told you to wait. I’m sure we would have found a way to make peace with the Sirensia. You ran off and made a deal that not even I can break.”
He always chose to forget the things that weren’t important to him. I had told him before he went prancing into the marsh that we would find a way to free him. The Sirensia weren’t friendly, but they had accepted Mother. If he would have waited like I asked him to do, we could have handled the situation peacefully.
“What would you have done?” The fire rose in height. “They told me they would destroy my kingdom if I didn’t find their princess.” He looked toward Sarai’s tent. “I never thought I would actually find her. I thought that Isabis was toying with me. Once I give her Sarai, I will have the power to conquer. Every kingdom, on land or in the sea, will be mine. The Sirensia won’t be able to touch us.”
Etan had lost his damn mind. Conquer? Did he believe he could easily go to war with the other kingdoms? Nueva Vida wasn’t small, but it wasn’t a large city, either. He didn’t have the resources to conquer a village, let alone an entire continent.
If he thought I would let him follow through with his ludicrous plan, he was painfully mistaken. Sarai wasn’t going to be handed to anyone, let alone that sadistic witch. Isabis was a master of deceit, like most witches who dealt in blood and shadow. If he believed she would give him the power he would need to accomplish his goal, he deserved what was coming to him.
“The Sirensia don’t have to do a thing, and you’re not going to use Sarai as a sacrifice.” I put my hand on his shoulder and sent a small dose of my magic up his spine. I sensed the darkness in his heart and knew then that it was too late to convince him to change. “Isabis already owns you, and you don’t even know it.”
“I just want to protect the ones I love.” He pushed my hand away. “You have to understand that!”
I perfectly understood what he meant. When you loved someone, you would do anything for them. Love was the reason why I had traveled to Sirensia and banged on their gates. It was the reason why I went to the Undercity and risked the alliance with the goblins I had spent years to secure. If I didn’t love, I wouldn’t be here. I would be in Irkalla running my kingdom and herding souls to the other side.
Etan was here for himself. He could lie and say he wanted power to protect his people, but protecting them did not mean hurting others. I wasn’t going to accept his pitiful excuses.
“So does Sarai!” I jumped to my feet. “You knew the consequences of visiting the witch. You ignored them, and now you have to deal with it. I will protect Sarai with everything in me, even if it means burning this mortal body out.” I stood and wiped the soot from my clothes. “Sleep well, Brother.”
Chapter Forty-Two
Sarai
I spent the night in Kamryn’s tent, and I slept better than I had in weeks. I didn’t worry about the strange howls that drifted from the forest or the growls that shook the tent walls in the middle of the night. When the sun rose, I didn’t want to leave his side.
We wasted an hour talking on the makeshift pallet before r
ising and joining the others for a quick breakfast and one last walk-through of the plan. Once all that was done, we packed our things and made our way into the densely packed forest.
Stepping into the forest was like stepping back in time. Ancient trees towered over our heads and blocked any source of sunlight from reaching the hard ground. Strange three-eyed creatures with spikes along their backs hopped from branch to branch. They whistled and chirped at me every time I looked at them.
It would have been a nice walk if it wasn’t so humid and hot. My skin was sticky to the touch, and my loose curls were making my back itch. I just knew I smelled horrible, and the flies that tried to land on my face seemed to agree.
We walked in a single-file line. Rylo led the party while Kamryn and Naga followed behind. No one was speaking, but I began to hear voices, nonetheless. They had been nothing but whispers at first, but now they were loud, restless, and hard to ignore.
Kamryn had warned that this would happen. This forest belonged to the Goddess of the Land. It had been planted by her hands long before the Sea and Sky had been separated. The spirits that lived in the trees, born of her breath and blood, were waking and making their presence known.
“Sarai.” My name, loud and clear like a bell, made me stop in my tracks. The leaves of a tree fluttered in the still air. “It has been too long, sister.”
I stopped and listened to the whispers of the forest. There were hundreds—no, thousands of voices, and no two were the same. The trees had personalities. Some were angry and wanted us gone. Others were happy to see me and welcomed me back as if they knew me from long ago. And then were some that seemed young, questioning who we were and what we wanted.
“Sarai.” Kamryn shook my arm. “What’s wrong?”
“The trees. They want us to leave.”
“Don’t listen to them.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me away from one tree whose branches were slowly lowering toward me.
The voices didn’t stop. They got louder and angrier the deeper we ventured. Vines crept across the ground and wrapped around our legs, low-lying branches tugged on our clothes and pulled at our hair, and pines hurled their cones at us when we passed. One particularly large cone hit me in the eye. I cried out in frustration and began to pull at the branches of the contemptuous tree.
Something warm and wet touched my ankle. I looked down and met Naga’s silver gaze. In that strange way that Kamryn and I knew each other’s thoughts without saying a word, I interpreted what his eyes were trying to say. Calm down.
“I’m fine.” I took a deep breath through my nose and let it out through pursed lips.
I had grown tired of the forest and its excessive picking. Leave. Welcome. Who is she? The endless questions were driving me insane. I just wanted a minute of silence, just one. I picked up the pine cone and threw it at the tree with as much force as I could possibly muster.
A good-sized branch stretched out and knocked it out of the air. The pinecone went flying and hit the back of Phadrah’s head. She turned around and bared her teeth. I held up my hands and looked at the pine. She lifted her hand in the air and cocked her head to the side. When she closed her hand into a fist, the branch cracked in half and fell at my feet.
“We are getting close,” Rylo called from the front of the group three hours later. “I can smell the marsh.”
My stomach flipped, and my mouth went completely dry. The voices stopped, and a sense of wrongness came over me. Like the day I was hunted by the Sobasom, I felt like I was being watched. Every nerve in my body screamed to turn back.
Naga nudged his head against my hip and let out a low-pitched whine.
“Here we are.” Rylo stopped at an invisible line. “The haze begins just past that bush.” He pointed at a startling white bush with bright red berries.
“Just in case I get lost.” Rylo turned around and scooped Xiomara into his arms. “Don’t forget me when you return.” He swooped in and gave her a deep kiss that made me avert my eyes.
“Sarai, can I talk to you?” A small shock ran down my arm at Etan’s touch. “I know what I did was iniquitous, and you have every right to despise me, but before we go, I want to apologize. I don’t want animosity between us when we should be working together.”
I didn’t miss the double meaning behind his words or the silent plea in his stormy gaze. I placed my palm against his cheek and watched as he closed his eyes and deeply inhaled.
At that moment, he looked so young, so vulnerable, like the day I first set eyes on him. He’d been only a boy then, yet he had seen and done more than most. I could see the stress of running a kingdom in the bags beneath his eyes and the wrinkles around his lips.
Kamryn had told me about their conversation last night. I knew about his deal with the witch and why he had done it. He was repulsive. His actions had made him ugly in my eyes. He was a boy with a crown, not a king.
“You are willing to hand me over to the witch when we could have worked together.” I tapped my pointer finger against his forehead. “You are a threat, and I won’t forget that.”
He flinched. “We can still work together. It’s not too late.”
“Our friendship is broken, and I do not care to repair it.” I pulled away. “Just stay out of my way.”
His eyes flashed. “As you wish. May the gods watch over you.” He spat over his shoulder and walked away.
“Princess.” Xio peeled herself from Rylo’s side. “I can carry your bag if you would like.”
“No, I got it,” I mouthed and patted my satchel. “Light as a feather.”
She stared at me in shock. “Princess, that mirror is as heavy as a boulder.”
Was she joking? There was no way it could possibly weigh that much. I had been toting it around for weeks, and it felt no heavier than a book.
“The mirror weighs as much as the conscience of the one who holds it,” came the steady rumble of Kamryn’s voice from behind. “I’m not sure how true the statement may be since time tends to misconstrue fact.” He stood close enough that our arms touched. “We have changed plans. Xiomara, you will walk with Etan and Phadrah.”
“Why?” Xio asked in an ill-mannered tone.
“Why does it matter?” Kamryn’s eyes narrowed, and his nostrils flared.
“I-I just like to be aware of any changes,” she stammered. “Just in case something happens, I will know exactly what to do.”
“The news should make you happy. You will be with Rylo.” His lip curled.
His sudden change in temper did nothing for my nerves. I didn’t like the way he stared at Xio, like she was an insect he had found in his food. If something was wrong, he needed to let me know. I didn’t like being left in the dark.
I stepped in front of him and gently grabbed Xio’s hand. “We will leave soon. Rest your feet for a few minutes.”
“I will.” She bowed her head and shuffled away.
I turned around and looked up at Kamryn. “What’s wrong with you? You told me to get along with her just to turn around and be hostile.”
It was hot, I was tired from our walk, and it felt as if every inch of my body had been bit by the horrible mosquitos. Everything was difficult enough as it is, and I didn’t need his attitude added to the mix.
“I’m not feeling like myself.” He stared at Xio’s back. “This forest has me on edge.”
The forest had us all on edge! He’d known the walk here would be a long one. It was the reason he’d told me to wear flat-bottomed boots.
“Look at me.” I put my hand over his heart. He took a chest-rattling breath and looked down at me. His eyes were so dark they looked black. I pulled him behind a tree. “Tell me what’s going through your mind.”
“I don’t trust any of this. I’m debating on turning back and taking you home.”
Home after we had come all this way? No. I wasn’t going to turn back now. I was too close. If I remembered correctly, the witch’s house was a little over an hour from where we stood.
He pulled me into his arms and held me tight. “But I know you, and I know you would hate me for eternity if I snatched you away.”
I wrapped my arms around his waist and closed my eyes. He knew me well. I was relieved I wouldn’t have to argue with him and thankful he hadn’t made the decision for me.
I pulled away and looked up at him through my lashes. “You don’t have to go in there. I know the way.”
“I’m not letting you go alone.” He reached into the pocket of his robe and pulled out a black chain that had a large uncut amethyst hanging from the thick links. “I know that you aren’t fond of necklaces, but I need you to wear it.” He unhooked the link and held an end in each hand.
The necklace was beautiful. Simple, yet elegant. It was perfect. I pulled my braids back into a ponytail and exposed my neck. The heavy crystal comfortably settled into the hollow of my neck. He lightly tugged on a braid and laughed at the scowl on my face.
“Thank you,” I mouthed. “It’s beautiful...”
Like his eyes, the crystal was composed of a range of purple shades. It wasn’t polished, and the ends were jagged, but that only made me love it more.
“Kamryn.” I met his gaze. “If I come back—"
“When we come back, we will talk.” He pulled me into his arms and kissed the top of my head.
The scent of campfire smoke, roses, and brown sugar filled my nose and settled my nerves. I rose onto the tips of my toes and placed a light kiss on his lips. His eyes fluttered close, and a smile danced on his lips. “You’re making this difficult for me, Sarai.”
I slid from his hold and placed my hand on my bag. “Are you ready?”
He sighed and flexed his fingers. “When you are.”
I grabbed his hand, looked at the strange fog that blocked the marsh from view, and took one last steadying breath. It was now or never. If I was going to change my mind, now would be the time. Once I stepped into the marsh, there was no turning back.
“Let’s get this over with so we can get back home.”
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