The Midnight Strider (The Chronomancer Chronicles Book 2)

by Reilyn J. Hardy

  “I didn’t think you did too,” he tells me. He shoves me with his shoulder as he walks past me and toward the inn.

  I can’t bring myself to move. What did he say?

  I make myself turn around.

  “What are you talking about?” I ask.

  “Don’t play dumb,” he says and goes inside.

  “I’m not playing — Jace!”

  I run into the inn and Benny is tilting himself on one of the chairs, trying to balance on two legs. He simply points to the stairs and I don’t waste another second.

  I find Jace in our room, he’s lying on his bed, facing the wall. As usual.

  I grab his shoulder and make him face me.

  “What is your problem? What did I do?”

  He jerks his shoulder away from my grasp as he sits up.

  “I’ve seen you two,” he says. “Think I haven’t noticed you two getting closer since we met up in Newacre? How long as that been going on? Since Christmas?”

  “Are you crazy?” I ask. “There is nothing going on between me and Rhiannon. Nothing. I am not attracted to her, I’m not attracted to anyone!”

  “You don’t need to feel attraction to get affectionate with someone.”

  “What are you even talking about?”

  “Ever since Newacre, you two have been acting differently. Especially around me. She won’t even look at me, but she’s over here always touching you and holding your hand.”

  I start to laugh. He gets to his feet.

  “It’s not funny,” he snaps.

  “You’re right,” I say, stopping immediately. “It's not funny. But there’s nothing going on between us. Even if I was interested in — those things, which I’m not — we’d never do that to you. The way she’s acting toward you, that has nothing to do with me. She does not — we — no! There’s nothing, Jace.”

  “What happened in Newacre, Mae?”

  “You’re back to calling me Mae now?”

  “That’s the only person I know.”

  I sigh and take out the Heliosi. I hold it out in my hand and point to the dial in the center.

  “When Rhiannon pushed in the center piece, I saw what would have happened if I went back in time. Like a vision, because I’m not supposed to mess with those things. Rhiannon was reading my mind the whole time.”

  “So what happened? Did you see Zoirin?”

  “Yeah,” I say. “But I saw a little more than that. We saw you too. You were dead, Jace. She saw your corpse, and it — it destroyed her. She completely fell apart and you know what? I don’t blame her.”

  He closes his eyes and falls back onto his bed. He leans forward, resting his head in his hands. “I thought —”

  “I’m sorry, Jace. I should’ve told you. I didn’t think this was gonna happen.”

  “It’s not your fault,” he says. “I assumed. I guess I just thought, you know, me and her, it was too good to be true. After she went along with Nadia’s dare, I thought maybe things were gonna be okay between us at least, then suddenly they weren’t. I thought the worst and I ran with it. I should’ve known better.”

  “You do know better. But come on,” I say, nudging him. “People love these freckles. Who can blame them?”

  He rolls his eyes and laughs. “You’re getting kinda cocky,” he says.

  “Gotta keep up with you somehow.”

  “Is this Artemis?” he asks me. His tone is serious.

  I shrug. “I don’t really know who Artemis is,” I say. “He was an impulsive kid who never listened. But don’t start calling me that. Please. I’m glad someone still calls me Mae. It reminds me of home.”

  “I didn’t mean to make you leave,” Jace says.

  “You didn’t make me do anything.”

  Jace leans back on his bed, leaning against the wall as he starts twiddling his thumbs. “How’s she doing?” he asks. He doesn’t look at me.

  “Well, someone might try to kill her,” I say as I turn around. He sits up and grabs my arm, forcing me to face him again.

  “What? And you didn’t tell me?”

  “Hey, I did try to ask you for your help — but I don’t know if it’s actually going to happen,” I say. “Can you loosen your grip? That hurts — thanks. It was part of the… vision,” I say, pulling on my sleeve. “Coin’s stepdaughter tried to kill her.”

  Jace shakes his head, furrowing his brows. “Wait, what? Coin’s married?”

  “Well, he’s gonna be. He’s getting married here — and your sister’s kinda scary.”

  “Kina?” he asks and I shake my head.

  “Effie.”

  “What the hell happened in this vision?”

  “Too much,” I say, shaking my head. “Met your family — Dapper flirted with Rhiannon a little bit when we were in Harnsey —”

  Jace jumps to his feet. “I’m gonna kill him,” he scowls, clenching his fists.

  “Didn’t actually happen, remember?” I say.

  “Oh, right.”

  I wonder what he would do if he knew about Salvador and what he did, but I don’t bring it up. I’m not that curious.

  “So let me get this straight,” he says, pacing in the room now. “Coin’s getting married and his stepdaughter wants to — what did Rhiannon ever do to her?”

  “Nothing,” I say. “She thinks Maverick killed her father, when her father actually abandoned her and her mom. Maverick’s Rhiannon’s brother.”

  “I know,” he says.

  “Why don’t you keep Rhiannon company later?” I suggest. “Kina and Miko are staying with Coin and Maite for a few days to help. I said I’d go, but I think maybe you should instead.”

  “I don’t think that’s —”

  “Can we not do this again?” I ask and nod toward the door. “She’ll be happy to see you. Well, maybe not happy exactly, considering she saw what you were doing earlier but still.”

  “Come with me,” he says.

  “What? Are you afraid of her or something?”

  “Or something,” he mumbles.

  “We’ll go up later. Coin and Maite are having some celebration dinner tonight. You want to go to that?”

  “Of course,” he says. “I love parties.”

  That makes one of us.

  *****

  Once we’re there though, I kind of regret agreeing to it. I’m there for Coin, and I want to be there for Coin, but I can’t take my eyes off of Marisol and I haven’t even been technically introduced to her yet. She’s only a teenager, and I’m more than aware of what she’s capable of. Maite’s twin brothers are there too, Salvador and Valentino, and I’m a little glad that Rhiannon stayed up in her room like she said she would. I look over at Jace, also glad that I kept that part of the vision a secret.

  I’m not sure what he would have done otherwise.

  Trying to keep an open mind, and I try to look like I’m having a good time, but the truth is, I’m not in a celebrating mood. I’m still nowhere closer to saving my brother. I haven’t had much chance to see Nadia recently, and my ouroboros is at a standstill.

  There’s a storm raging outside, I can see the rain fall through the windows as it hits the glass, and thunder sounds above us, but it’s not as loud, not with the music blaring. I shovel a few things onto a plate and Jace and I go up to see Rhiannon.

  “Rhiannon?” I say quietly as I knock on the door, and thunder roars overhead. “Rhiannon?” I say again, twisting the knob open.

  “Artemis?” She emerges from the darkness. Her face is slightly flushed.

  “I brought you some food,” I say, “and —”

  “What are you doing here?” she asks, glaring at Jace as he steps into the room behind me.

  “I thought you could use some company,” I say, handing her the plate.

  “Your comp
any,” she tells me. She doesn’t look at Jace again and turns around. We follow her further in and I sit down on the couch. Jace slides onto the armrest and Rhiannon sits across from us.

  “It’s quiet up here,” I say, looking around. “Dark. Why are you sitting in the dark?”

  Thunder roars again and Rhiannon nearly slips off of her seat as she throws her arms over her head.

  “Are you afraid of thunder?” Jace asks and laughs.

  She glares at him and slides back onto the couch.

  “Arthur?”

  The three of us turn toward the door and Nadia is poking her head in through the crack. I look at Jace and Rhiannon before getting up. Nadia taps the door with her finger and looks up at me.

  “You’ve been doing better,” she says, while thunder roars again. She tilts her head to the side and raises an eyebrow at me before dismissing herself from the room, closing the door behind her. I frown.

  I turn toward Jace and Rhiannon, but they’re gone.

  I peer into the bedroom just as the thunder sounds again. Rhiannon’s cowering in a corner wedged between the wall and the bed, her hands covering her ears and Jace is sitting down beside her, the back of his fingers, running down the length of her arm.

  “It's okay,” he says quietly, not taking his eyes off of her. His voice is gentle with her. He slowly pulls her hand down as thunder sounds again. Rhiannon turns her head toward him and he drapes his arm around her, pulling her close to his body. “I got you,” he says to her. “You're safe.”

  I back up from where I stand and walk toward the door. Things are going back to the way they should be, and I have to find Nadia.

  To my surprise, she makes it easy.

  I find her sitting on the couch in my room, her dagger pressing against her wrist, but not hard enough to slice through her skin.

  “I figured Jace won’t be coming back down anytime soon,” she says as she looks up at me, softly dragging the tip of the dagger along her arm. “He’s right, you know.”

  “About what?” I ask, closing my door. I lean back against the wood, not taking my eyes off of the dagger pressed against her skin.

  “Attraction isn’t necessary for affection,” she says. “I overheard you two arguing when I was passing up to my room. I’m never going to get what Rhiannon has,” she continues, running the toe of the blade along her neck now. “No one’s ever looked at me the way Jace looks at her, and that’s okay, I just — I just want to be appreciated.”

  I get up from the door and sit down beside her on the couch. “I appreciate you,” I tell her. I tear my gaze from the blade and look her in the eyes. “I appreciate everything you’re doing for me.”

  “Then will you do me a favor?” she asks. Nadia drags the blade across her lip and slices it. Blood rushes to fill the cut. “And I’ll give you what you want.”

  At first, I’m hesitant. I don’t know what exactly she wants from me, but then I see her gaze fall to my mouth. I lean forward and I kiss her, tasting her blood on my lips. Nadia drops the blade and pulls me closer to her.

  *****

  I roll over on my bed. My entire body aches. There’s pain in my stomach, and I’m having trouble breathing. I rub the back of my neck and open my eyes.

  Nadia’s gone.

  I lean over the side of my bed to grab my shirt and I drop it when my door flies open. Rhiannon comes barging in. I sit up but before I can say anything, she beats me to it.

  “You are not boarding the Midnight Strider, Artemis! What is wrong with you?”

  “Jace!” I yell as he trails in behind her. “You told her?”

  “Hey, I just did what you told me to do and she was being all, ‘Jace’,” he tries to imitate a seductive womanly voice, “and pushing herself against me and touching me. You saw how she got in Newacre! Trust me, it did not go where I thought it was going.”

  “Weak,” I mumble and fall back on my bed again.

  “Artemis Lilienthal, you are not getting on that ship.”

  “Ooh, full name. You’re in trouble.”

  “Shut up, Jubilation. I’ll deal with you later.” He raises an eyebrow as she directs her attention back onto me. “You can’t get on that ship, Artemis. It’s for the dead.”

  “I can now,” I say.

  Rhiannon narrows her eyes.

  “What's that supposed to mean?” Jace asks.

  “I just — I have a plan, okay?”

  “Well what is it?” Jace asks, shoving my legs off of the bed so he can sit down. “You know you’re not going by yourself, right?”

  “No,” Rhiannon says sharply. “You definitely can’t go. You’re too hot —”

  “Oh, am I?” He raises his eyebrows.

  “I meant — your temperature — be quiet.”

  She sits down beside him and averts her eyes.

  “I have to save my brother, Rhiannon. I’m getting on that ship, whether you’re coming with me or not. I’m not asking for your permission.”

  She sighs. “Well, what’s your plan?”

  “I’m still figuring out the details,” I say. “But I’m gonna summon it.”

  “What?”

  I can feel my headache coming back, it’s beginning to pair itself with chills. I grab my blanket and wrap it around my body. “There’s something I have to tell you both.” Rhiannon leans forward to look at me, and tilts her head. I look away from her. I can feel the both of them burning holes into the sides of my face. I close my eyes and inhale deeply. “I’ve been — I’ve.” I sigh. “I’ve been drinking Nadia’s blood.”

  “WHAT?” Rhiannon shoots up from where she’s sitting.

  Jace just looks away from me. He’s frowning.

  I can’t look at either of them.

  “This was her idea, wasn’t it? No wonder she started being nice to me. I can’t believe this.”

  “No, listen. She had this idea, of making creatures of the night think I’m Apollo. Just enough to get us onto the Midnight Strider and to the underworld after I summon it.” I twist my body and show them the back of my neck.

  Rhiannon gasps.

  “The triskelion — the ouroboros destroyed it. Oh, Artemis. What did you do?”

  “I knew something was off with you,” Jace says. He shakes his head and he stands up. “I didn’t think it’d be this.” He sounds disappointed. “How could you do this?”

  “I’m just trying to help — you and Kina — you —”

  “Mae, I’d rather fight my dad and possibly lose than have you do this!”

  “Why risk your life when there’s another way?”

  “This is not another way!”

  “I can get you on the ship, Jace.” I try to stand up and I slip right off of the mattress. The two of them help me back onto the bed.

  “Have you been eating?” Rhiannon asks me. I avoid her gaze for as long as I can. “Artemis, answer me. Have you been eating?”

  “No,” I say finally, not looking at either of them. “Not really. I wanted it to work faster.”

  “This is suicide, Mae,” Jace tells me as he shakes his head. “You’re killing yourself.” He backs up to the door. “I can’t do this again.”

  He opens the door so quickly that it rips right from the hinges. He drops it on the ground and leaves. Kina’s standing in the hallway and he walks right past her. She steps into the room and looks at the two of us, mostly me. She doesn’t take her eyes off of me. I lie down on my bed and turn away from her, pulling the covers over my body.

  It’s freezing.

  “He’ll be fine,” I hear Rhiannon reassure her before she picks up the door and leans it against the frame. I feel her sit down on the bed near my legs, but I don’t turn to face her. “You have to eat,” she says. “You’re human, you have to eat, or you won’t survive this.”

  I look back at her
. “You think I’m strong enough?”

  “Only if you take care of yourself,” she says. She gets up to press the back of her hand against my forehead and then against my neck. “Well, at least you aren’t warm enough for me to feel it.”

  “Are you gonna help me?”

  “I’m going to help you regain your strength first,” she says. “I’m not against you, Artemis. Jace isn’t either.”

  “Sure seems like it.”

  “Put yourself in his position,” she says. “How would you feel — if he was drinking my blood? And to know you’re doing it for him and Kina? I know it hurts, Artemis. Everything with your brother and all. But this?” She purses her lips together and grabs my hand. “We’ll get you through this,” she says. “I promise.”

  “How can you promise something like that?”

  “Because I’m not going to give up on you, and no one else will either.”

  “I just want everyone to be okay,” I mumble.

  “Well, everyone includes you, too.” She stands up. “I’m going to get you something to eat, and I’m going to sit here and wait until you eat it. Okay?”

  I nod, but then I grab her wrist. She turns back to face me.

  “It’s not Nadia’s fault,” I say. “She didn’t force me to do anything I didn’t want to do — and she tried to get me to eat and only take her blood in moderation. But I couldn’t pace myself. That’s my own fault. It’s not her fault, Rhiannon.”

  “She shouldn’t've put the idea in your head to begin with,” she says, pulling her wrist away from my grasp. It slips easily. “She took advantage of you while you were in a vulnerable state. It was still wrong.”

  She slides the door a little and slips behind it before sliding it back.

  I cover myself with the sheet.

  I felt okay last night.

  I turn over on my bed, beginning to feel uncomfortable. The mattess feels as hard as the floor.

  “Arthur?” Nadia peeks in the room through the crack. “Are you all right?” she asks, trying to slide the door to allow herself entry.

  I twist my body and slide my feet off of the bed.

  “I need to complete the ouroboros,” I say. “I don’t have anymore time.”

  “You did,” she says. “Last night.”