by Eliza Tilton
She rolled out her shoulder, silent. “He’s powerful,” she said after a while. “He can command at least two elements.”
“What do you mean?”
“Terra and air—that’s how he was able to transport me. Most human mages I’ve seen only possess one magical ability. Three hundred years, and I’ve never seen his equal.”
“Three hundred years?” Had she been here that long?
She smiled. “We don’t age like humans. A Reptilian ages very slow. I’m twenty-one human years.”
I’m only eighteen …
“You look younger,” I grumbled.
“Not used to an older woman?”
Heat flushed my neck.
“Don’t worry. I won’t spoil you.” She laughed.
I looked away from her, and the way the moon sparkled her electric eyes.
“I need to rest, and think.” Her head slid to my shoulder, and I let it stay. She brushed a finger over my collarbone, then lower. “So that’s how.” She traced the lines of the tattoo, pulling back my shirt to inspect the design. “It must’ve hurt.”
“Like shoving a hot ember into my skin and letting it burrow.”
“But it doesn’t protect you from all magic.”
I sighed and leaned my head against the wall. “I didn’t think I needed to protect myself from The Order. They’re supposed to be the ones protecting us.”
She kept her hand on my chest, tapping against my shirt. “You’ll learn there’s good and bad on both sides.”
“And what side are you on?”
“Neither.”
“Pshh.”
I rubbed my eyes. The moon still hung in the sky. Lucy had curled against me, sleeping soundly in my lap with my arm resting on her side.
“Pshh.”
I searched for the voice, but saw nothing. “Harold.” I moved Lucy aside, and went to the gate. “Harold?”
“I’m here.”
The air in front of the gate wavered slightly.
“I can’t pick the lock,” he whispered. “It’s fit for a specific key. I’ve tried. How did you find me?”
“Jeslyn had come searching for you. I was trying to find her, but the trail led us to you.”
“That stubborn girl. I feared she would do something foolish. Did she go alone?”
“A boy named Edward went with her.”
Harold grumbled. “I don’t trust that lad, but at least she’s not alone.”
Getting into how Lucino had shapeshifted into Edward would probably just confuse and frighten Harold. “You need to leave. If they find you, everything we did will be for nothing.”
“I won’t leave you two here. This bracelet keeps me hidden. I’ll see if I can find a key.”
The suns peeked over the horizon, warming the sky with orange hues. Nomad appeared beyond the gates.
“Go,” I hissed. “He’s coming.”
I slid back into the cell and closed my eyes, pretending sleep.
“Wake up,” Nomad said.
I nudged Lucy, and she sat up.
“Ready to die?” he asked coldly.
“How about we chat instead?” Lucy smiled as she smoothed out her long hair.
“I’d much rather kill you.”
“Ahh, but then you wouldn’t know all my secrets.”
He stood silent, assumingly contemplating her request. “All right. You’ll die anyway.” He pulled a key from inside his jacket and opened the gate before pointing at me. “Don’t move.”
Lucy brushed the dirt off her clothes and winked at me. “Be back soon.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Take a very big risk.”
Nomad locked the gate after her, and they walked off.
“Harold,” I whispered. No response.
I sighed. He was going for the key.
Don’t die on me, either of you.
Lucy didn’t return until night, and when she did, she was unbound and escorted by a giant of a man who opened the cell.
“Give us a minute, please.”
The giant nodded and walked off to the side.
“What’s going on?” I asked as I left the cell.
“I made a deal.” She held up a finger. “Don’t worry, you are free to go, and Harold is still safe.”
I heard a cough and looked to the side. “I’d like to be able to see my hands again.”
“What did you agree to?”
She placed her hand on my chest. “Are you worried about me?”
“Lucy …”
“I told him, well, showed him, who I am.”
“What?”
“I offered our services in exchange for a mutual alliance. We’ll help him find his sister, whom The Order took, and he’ll assist us with reclaiming Daath from the rebels.”
I shook my head. “You did this for me?”
“Don’t be silly. I’m not my brother. This will benefit my people.”
“Thank you, milady.” Harold said. “I’m forever in your debt.”
I wished he hadn’t said that.
“You’re sweet,” she said before turning back to me. “What will you do now that you’ve rescued your beloved’s grandfather?”
“Jeslyn is still missing,” I said. “Harold has contacts within the shipmasters. We’ll find her. What about Lucino?”
“He’ll have to wait. An alliance with the mage army will strengthen our resources here. My father will be very pleased. I’ll need to inform him.” She trailed a finger across my chest, grazing the tattoo. “Try not to get yourself killed.” She leaned forward and kissed me. I all but gritted my teeth. How could I want to kiss and kill her within the same breath? She was my enemy, yet the more time I spent by her side, the more hate had shifted into acceptance.
“We will see each other again, and very soon.” She stepped back, and for the first time since we set off, she wore a genuine smile, something I didn’t think possible from a girl who wasn’t human.
The End
Crimson Tides:Book Three
Chapter One
Avikar
Agonizing screams echoed through the castle, urging me forward. My pulse thundered in my ears as I tore down corridor after corridor in search of Ginna and Raven. Running, I pushed past guards and servants, skidding to a stop inside a large oval room, stone walls surrounding me on all sides.
A group of men in flowing black robes stood in a circle around a metal cot in the center of the room, Raven standing just outside of them.
She looked up as I approached, with tear-filled eyes.
I strode to her side and grasped her hand as Ginna’s screams reverberated off the walls once more, magnified by the stone. A priest chanted over her, his hands glowing a fiery orange as they hovered just inches from her elbow. Two other men poured a dark, thick liquid onto her arm. Black lines traveled from her bare shoulder to the black stump where her forearm used to be. She screamed again, eyes clenched tight. Raven’s grip on my hand tightened.
My thoughts raced back to the battle at Stormwood and how Lucy, Lucino’s vicious sister, ripped off Ginna’s arm with just the power of her voice. A slight chill ran through me. We still didn’t know what happened to Lucy or what was left of Stormwood.
A young girl tapped my shoulder. “Come.” King Corban’s servant waved us toward the hallway. “I’ll take you two to your quarters.” She turned and walked toward the door.
Raven’s eyebrows raised, and I flicked my gaze between her and our friend on the table.
“We should stay,” Raven said, the lines of her face hard as she watched Ginna writhe under the priests’ care.
“No,” the girl said, standing behind us once more. “There is nothing you can do; her healing will take a long time. Please, follow me. You are tired and need to rest.”<
br />
Raven released my hand and gripped the daggers hanging from her sides, scowling as the servant girl walked away from us.
I didn’t want to leave Ginna either. How could we?
The priests, chanting words we did not understand and doing Creator-only-knows-what, poked and prodded at our wounded friend. Sweat glistened her forehead and dotted the bridge of her nose.
She screamed again, her whole body convulsing, and I pushed through the men circling Ginna to stand by her side.
“Can’t you do something about the pain?” I wrapped her hand in both of mine, her fingers icy cold from blood loss. “I’m here. You’re going to be fine.”
A priest moved beside me and placed his hands above Ginna’s head. Light radiated from his palms and showered over her. “We can only lessen it. This part of the process is the most painful. She will be able to rest very soon.”
She stared straight ahead, unfocused eyes on the ceiling, unseeing as pain gripped her body. Tears spilled down her cheeks as she slowly tilted her head in my direction, a desperate plea etched on her pallid face. Movement caught my eye at her elbow. The black stump shifted, morphing, shaping into an arm.
Raven coughed. A deep, wet sound that screamed sickness. We had pushed ourselves to the brink of exhaustion in order to reach the king, and hopefully save our friend, but now we both needed rest
The air sizzled with the scent of burnt flesh and a metallic taste filled the air. I held back the bile etching its way into my throat and watched as black stubs slowly expanded from the stump, creating fingers black as onyx. The priests stepped aside, their chanting done. Holding Ginna’s hand, I examined her new fully formed arm. Ginna’s cries finally subsided and her eyes closed.
“Rest,” I whispered, wiping sweat from her brow. “We’ll be back soon.”
I joined Raven at the doorway and followed the servant through the long stone hallway, then up a winding staircase. Other servants and maids briskly past us, never giving a second glance.
“Guest quarters are in the west wing. You’ll stay there until the King receives you.”
My stomach grumbled and exhaustion pulled at my legs, my steps slow and deliberate as we followed the servant girl to the west wing. I shook my head, forcing myself to stay awake, at least until I made it to the room.
During the final leg of our escape from Stormwood, Ginna fainted, and I’d carried her the rest of the way here to King Corban’s castle. If I hadn’t been so angry with Lucy vanishing or Cael’s death, I wouldn’t have had the strength to walk, let alone carry another person, but adrenaline fueled me forward.
I wished for that energy now.
“I’ll put you two next to each other.” The servant opened the first door on the left, then waved for Raven to proceed. “My lady.” She lowered her head.
Raven stepped forward, but I slid my fingers around her wrist before she could duck into the room. “I’m here if you need me,” I reminded her before letting go. Dark circles surrounded her chocolate eyes, and the strain of the past few days had paled her normally tanned skin. Her long black hair tangled against her shoulders. She gave a gentle nod, then stepped into the room.
The desire to stay by her side wrapped tight fingers around my heart, but she didn’t ask me to come in, and I couldn’t push.
We both needed time to rest and let the reality of the fight at Stormwood—and all the friends we’d lost—sink in. Raven would have to mourn the loss of a dear friend, and I couldn’t force her to allow me to help her through it.
The servant opened the door to the left of Raven’s and stepped aside so I could enter. “Food and a hot bath are ready for you.”
“Thank you.” I stepped inside, the door closing softly behind me. Warmth seeped from the crackling fireplace, beckoning me toward the hearth. I stripped off my mud-caked cloak and tossed it onto the stone floor. Dirt fell to the ground as I kicked off my boots, then followed with the rest of my clothing.
Shivering and covered in grime and sweat, I climbed into the steaming tub. Soft pink rose petals dotted the water’s surface, eliciting a subtle fragrance. I inhaled deeply and slid down to my chin.
Warm water embraced me, soothing the tight muscles in my body. I tipped my head from side to side, stretching the burning muscles of my neck and shoulders. I leaned my head against the wooden rim and stretched out my body, starting with my toes and moving slowly up.
Closing my eyes, I pictured Lucy. My hands clenched at my sides as her face floated through my mind. I opened my fingers and dragged them through the rose petals, fighting to hold on to the relaxation I so desperately needed. Lucy’s twisted smile—like our fight was little more than a game—and the touch of her lips against mine as I plunged my dagger into her chest and she leaned forward to kiss me … these would haunt me for eternity.
She vanished before my eyes, my dagger still in her chest.
I wouldn’t rest until Lucy was dead.
With my head leaning back against the rim of the tub, I blew out a slow breath.
Don’t think about her.
Cael’s face floated through my mind, replacing my anger with the gravity of his sacrifice, a heavy weight on my heart.
There was no way he could have survived the avalanche. Repeatedly I replayed that moment, how Cael paralyzed me in place so I couldn’t stop him, Raven and Gina’s horrified screams, the rocks crushing the spot he stood in … Why did he have to be so stupid and get himself killed?
Cael’s dying command was for us to go to the king and warn him of the shapeshifters. I would honor that wish, honor his sacrifice.
A sacrifice he never should’ve made.
“Avikar.”
“Hmm.”
“Avikar!”
I slipped quickly beneath the surface before popping back up, eyes wide. My pulse raced as I scanned the room for the threat. “What’s wrong?”
Raven stood a few paces away, her head facing away from me. “Sorry, I … I didn’t mean to barge in here, but you didn’t answer the door. Then, when I saw you in the tub, I thought …”
My shoulders relaxed and I sighed. “I’m fine, Raven, just tired. Hand me that robe, please?”
“Oh, sure.” Her gaze remained focused on the floor as she retrieved the red robe lying across the chaise. Once she placed the robe in my hand, she turned her back to me. “I’m sorry.”
I stood, shook off some water, and slipped into the soft cotton. “Nothing to be sorry for. Have you eaten?”
She shook her head.
“There’s a tray over there. Let’s go sit.” I stepped up behind her and placed my hand on her lower back. She flinched beneath my touch, so I dropped my hand and motioned toward the table of food.
I glanced at my pile of dirty clothes on the floor, my lip curling.
“They brought us new clothes. Yours are on the bed.” Raven sat on one of the curved chairs near the food. “I promise I won’t look.”
“You could if you wanted to.”
“Avikar!” She laughed and my chest warmed. It was the first time she’d smiled since we left Stormwood, and I fought the urge to kiss those full lips, standing still until the rush of desire past.
She placed a hand over her eyes, and I quickly changed into the leather jerkin, shirt and extremely comfortable black pants. A tiny smile pulled at my lips at the sensation of being in clean, and quite nice, clothing.
“I’m starving.” I sat across from her and grabbed a handful of grapes.
“Me too.” She tossed a grape into her mouth.
“Did you sleep at all?”
“No.”
“You should sleep.”
She looked away from the food, and away from me.
I refused to press her about Cael, even though she should talk about the loss. Her shoulders slumped, and I went to her side, desperate to help her any way I cou
ld.
“Come on,” I whispered, taking her hand and pulling her to stand.
“Where?”
“You’re about to have the best nap of your life.” I led her to the bed and pulled back the covers.
“What?” She gave me a half smile.
“I don’t know how long we’ll be here, but this hasn’t been an easy journey. You need to sleep.”
“I can’t …”
“You can.” I patted the pillow-soft bedding. “Slide in.”
She climbed into the four-post bed and snuggled under the covers. When her head rested on the pillow, I wrapped the blanket around her shoulders.
“Close your eyes.”
Sighing, she closed her eyes and hugged the pillow tighter.
“Once upon a time—”
“Are you going to tell me a bedtime story?”
“No. My mother does that. I can tell you about the first time I hunted with my father.”
The tiniest smile lifted her full lips, and before I got to the best part—the part where I made my first kill—her breathing slowed to a deep, steady rhythm.
Chapter Two
Jeslyn
My life, like the whirlpools in the sea, had become chaotic, spinning out of control. Only days ago, Lucino walked out the door, my heart tearing a thousand different ways. Not only was I utterly and hopelessly alone, I feared he would not return home from battle.
Strange how when I thought of home, my mind now conjured images of Luna Harbor, not Lakewood.
Sweeping black drapes hung from the ceiling of Queen Velaria’s chambers, framing the twelve-foot windows overlooking the city. Plants that moved on their own and ate insects sat atop multiple surfaces. Plush chairs beckoned with large cushions to sink into after a long day of ruling the kingdom.
I walked to the window to admire the Royal City. When Lucino spoke of his home, he never mentioned its beauty. All the buildings were made of glittering crystal, the deep crimson hue reminiscent of the blood crystals Grandfather showed me. Two suns hung high in the sky, the smaller of the two spotted with black patches. I tilted my face upward to soak in the warmth.