He wasn’t even my type.
What, brave, rich and good-looking isn’t your type? I ignored the mocking voice in my head. Anyway, I wasn’t his type. He was destined to be with a real lady, a princess or an aristocrat, someone who knew how to run a kingdom.
Not a common thief like me.
Maeva gave a little snore and turned over in her bed. I thought of Dhav lying next door. Alone.
Groaning, I pulled the pillow over my head and tried to shut out the thoughts running round it like a hamster on a wheel.
The next day I felt like death. I was cheered to see that Dhav, if anything, looked worse than me.
“Sleep well?” he inquired.
I gave him the biggest smile I could muster as I buttered a piece of toast.
“Like a baby,” I said brightly. “You?”
“Hardly at all,” he growled. “I was distracted.”
“You should try counting sheep,” I said airily. “That always helps me.”
His eyes glittered.
“I can think of far more pleasurable ways to tire oneself out.”
I flushed and looked away quickly. My gaze fell on a small black creature quietly watching both of us.
“Hey look, it’s Balthazar,” I said, glad of the interruption. The cat gave a little miaow, as if it recognised its name. I put on a crooning voice. “Have you come to lead us to the tower, little puddytat?”
I was joking, of course, but the cat got up and trotted to the door. It paused, looking back over its shoulder.
“Um, Dhav, I think the cat wants us to follow him.”
Dhav raised a brow.
“You don’t seriously think a cat is going to guide us through the mountains?”
“He’s a magic cat,” I said, not quite knowing why I was defending it. “Anyway, we don’t have a map. Let’s just see where he takes us. If we don’t think it’s right, we can leave him behind.”
Dhav rolled his eyes.
“Fine. But he’d better be able to catch his own food. We only have enough for the two of us.”
I told the cat to wait, wondering why I thought it could understand me. But it obediently sat down again, yawning as we rushed around.
We grabbed our stuff and said goodbye to Maeva and Deelan, promising we’d be back in a few days. It was a promise neither of us knew if we’d be able to keep.
Then, rucksacks on our backs, we headed into the mountains with a small domestic animal that may or may not have known where it was going.
Chapter Twenty Four
The cat led us through the village to the start of the mountain path. From there we began to climb. It grew steadily colder as we moved upwards, and I was glad of the thick-soled boots and padded coats we’d bought.
Dhav had insisted on packing most of the equipment into his rucksack. The hilt of his sword stuck out through the top. I wasn’t sure if it was chivalry or because he thought the weight would slow me down, but either way, I was grateful. He strode in an easy rhythm, and after a while I realised he was humming under his breath.
“You seem happy to be out here,” I commented.
“It reminds me of my time at Sandhurst. Marching outdoors, heavy backpack, possible danger ahead.”
“What’s Sandhurst?”
“Royal military academy in Britain. Trains you to be a leader. My father went there too.”
“You had quite a strict upbringing, didn’t you?”
His lips tightened.
“My parents were preparing me for leadership.”
“Still. What did you do for fun?”
“Fun?” His voice was scathing.
“Believe it or not, ‘fun’ is not a four letter word, your Highness,” I teased him. “What games did you play? What were your favourite stories? Which fairy tales did you like? Surely you must have played make-believe with Raj?”
“We had little time for games.”
His voice was stony and I let it go. No wonder he was so uncompromising sometimes, I thought. I felt a pang of sympathy for him. My parents weren’t perfect, but I never doubted they loved me.
We walked without a break for several hours, climbing higher into the mountains. The sky overhead was intensely blue, the bluest I’d ever seen. It was as if it was becoming more crystal clear the closer we got to it. And there were birds in the mountains. I could hear their trills as they swooped on the currents.
The air was cold though. Pretty soon, I could see little puffs of white whenever Dhav and I exhaled.
“I don’t suppose you’re able to call up a warm wind?” he said hopefully. “A little scirocco, perhaps?”
I shook my head.
“It doesn’t work like that. I can only work with what I’ve got. But I can do this…”
I took my glove off and called up a globe of air in the centre of my palm. I made it swirl, slowly at first, then faster, allowing it to grow bigger as it expanded. Dhav watched, fascinated, as I controlled the spiral. I grinned and flicked it at him.
He flinched, then relaxed as he was momentarily bathed in warm air.
“How did you do that?” he asked.
“It’s just physics. I made the molecules move faster, so the air warmed up. But I can’t sustain it, and it’s only enough for a quick burst. Useful if we need to melt ice or something, not so great for trying to keep warm.”
“You are full of surprises, little thief.” His voice held an uncharacteristic note of affection, and I hurriedly looked away. As I did so, I noticed something was missing.
“Hey, where’s the cat?”
Dhav shrugged.
“Well, I’m certainly not calling for it.”
“Balthazar’s a bit of a mouthful,” I agreed. “Maybe we can shorten it to…”
Dhav frowned and held up a hand.
“Shh.”
“I was only…”
“Something’s following us.”
I went quiet. I realised there was no longer any bird sound. I should have noticed before.
We were on a path between two sets of peaks rising on either side of us. A perfect ambush, I thought wretchedly. Something moved behind one of the rocks, and I stiffened.
“They’re all around us,” said Dhav in a low voice. He lowered his rucksack to the ground, and I did the same.
“Bandits?” I asked.
“Not sure. Don’t think so.”
Something growled. The sound was deep and menacing, and it made the hairs stand up on the back of my neck. I swallowed.
“Definitely not bandits,” I said.
A dark shape moved from behind the rock and directly into our path. It could have been a wolf – its snout was long and wrinkled, its ears were tufted, and it definitely had a long wolf tail. But it was standing on its hind legs.
It bared its teeth, and a glistening trail of mucus dripped onto its chest.
Dhav and I stumbled backwards as the man-wolf towered above us. Its scent drifted on the breeze, and it stank of blood and gore. I glanced involuntarily at its claws. They looked like sharpened razors, still covered with the shredded flesh of its last victim.
I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. Other creatures were sliding out of the rocks. It was a pack.
The growling increased till it was vibrating through my bones. My heart started hammering in fear.
I counted five on either side of us as well as the one in front. Something dripped on my hand, and I looked up to see another directly above us, balancing on an overhang. Its yellow eyes gleamed, and it was drooling.
“Dhav…”
“Stay calm, Samira.” His voice was reassuring, but I saw the tension around his eyes. “When I move, please take care of the beast above us.”
Without waiting for a response, he jerked his wrist and a blade snickered into his hand. He flung it at the creature in front of us, and it thudded into its shoulder. It screamed in pain, and the beast above us leapt.
I felt its fetid breath on my face just as I managed to catch it in a gust o
f wind. I hurled it into the rocks. Another creature lunged and Dhav threw his second knife straight into its heart. It dropped without a sound and stopped moving.
“My blades, Samira.”
I curled air around the shafts and yanked them out of the bodies. They flew into Dhav’s waiting hands.
We stood back-to-back as the wolves circled watchfully, realising we weren’t defenceless. The creature I’d flung into the rocks got to its hind legs again, shaking its shaggy head. The one with the wounded shoulder examined its fallen pack-mate.
“What the hell are these things?” I tried to keep the fear from my voice. “Did you hear that one scream? It sounded human.”
“I think he’s the leader. Maybe we only need to take him out.”
It snarled, its muzzle pulled back from its fangs as if it was listening. I called up a blast of air, holding it steady.
“I can pin him to a rock, but you’ll have to finish him.”
“Do it.”
I whipped the air towards the man-wolf like a battering ram, lifting it off its feet and smashing it against a rock. It hung there, struggling, the weight of my air keeping it helpless.
Dhav flicked his blade straight through its heart.
There was silence as the beasts saw their leader fall. Dhav held out his hand as I brought back his knife on a cushion of air. We stood, poised, ready for what came next.
The wolves threw back their heads and howled in unison, a bloodcurdling shriek which I felt in my bones.
“I don’t think they’re going to leave us alone,” I said, my teeth chattering.
“You should run. Go. I’ll keep them busy.”
He reached for his rucksack and grabbed the sword hilt, yanking the blade out in one easy move. I shook my head.
“Are you crazy? There’s too many of them.”
“Samira, for once in your life, will you please do as you’re told.”
“I’m not leaving you.”
“By the gods, you are the most…”
The wolves stopped howling, and in the sudden silence I could feel the weight of every single baleful eye pinned on us. One wolf trailed its razor claws across the rockface, making sparks jump.
The growling started again, sinister and threatening, and my mouth went dry. I had no doubt we were about to be ripped limb from limb. Dhav gripped the sword, face pale, and I conjured whirlwinds in both trembling hands.
Balthazar wandered out onto the path.
“Get out of here. Run,” I screamed. Balthazar stared at the wolves.
“Miaow?”
They fell silent. For a moment, they peered at the small feline, as if not quite able to believe its temerity. Then, one by one, they fell to all fours.
Balthazar hissed.
The wolves cringed. One of them whimpered, a pathetic little sound. Another peed itself. I saw the trickle of urine running down its leg.
Balthazar sat down and began to lick his paws. After a moment he looked up and cocked his head, as if to say ‘are you still here?’
The creatures bolted.
Balthazar glanced over at me and Dhav, with what could only be described as a smug expression.
I let the whirlwinds dissolve, exhaling shakily, while Dhav cleaned his blades and replaced them in his harness. I peered down the path, which was now decidedly wolf-free, except for the two carcasses.
“Um, did you just see that? Or did I imagine it?” I frowned. “Maybe I have altitude sickness.”
“No, I saw the same thing.” Dhav squatted in front of Balthazar, which arched against his leg, purring. “They were afraid of the cat.”
“Maybe it’s because he’s a familiar. Maybe familiars give off a badass vibe, or something.”
“Maybe.” Dhav scratched the cat’s ear. “He is a very strange animal.”
“Not as strange as these.” I went to have a look at the dead creatures. “What are they? Some kind of werewolf? Do werewolves exist?”
Dhav straightened up.
“Do you remember what Mother Paduri told us? How Al Uddin became insane after his wife died?”
“She said he turned his enemies into animals.” I peered at the bodies. Despite what I’d seen in the movies, the hairy forms hadn’t changed after death. “You think these are them?”
“Who knows? There could be dozens of man-beasts running round these mountains. No wonder everyone keeps out of them.” He hoisted his rucksack onto his back. “We should keep going. Let’s get a few more miles in before dark.”
“Sorry, did you say dozens?”
“Let’s go, Samira.”
“As long as Balthazar sticks with us. I don’t know why those things were freaked out by him, but I’m glad he’s on our side.”
The cat trotted ahead, skirting round the dead wolf-beasts with barely a sniff.
I wondered how Al Uddin could have done this to them. How he could have deliberately mangled a human being into something so unnatural, and then left it to roam the mountains.
I was beginning to see why people in the village didn’t like to say his name.
Chapter Twenty Five
We walked until dusk, then set up camp. Dhav put the tent up while I made a fire. I opened some food supplies, heating up a tin of brown sludgy stew on the little stove. It smelled more appealing than it looked.
The stars came out, and the temperature dropped. The night air was sharp and cool. I put more wood on the fire, encouraging the flames along by blowing on them.
Dhav brought out a blanket and put it round my shoulders.
“Thanks. Here, have some dinner. It’s not exactly Gordon Ramsey but it’s edible. Just.”
We ate in silence for a while. Then Dhav cleared his throat.
“Magic carpets.”
“Sorry?”
“You asked earlier what make-believe games Raj and I played.” His voice was sheepish. “I always pretended to have a magic carpet.”
“That’s very specific.”
“I think it was the idea of freedom. Being able to fly away whenever I wanted. Anyway. That’s what I played when I was a boy.”
I imagined him standing on all the carpets in the palace, pretending to fly, and hid a smile. I took another mouthful of food, chewing thoughtfully.
“I never set out to be a thief, you know,” I said finally. “It just sort of happened.”
“You do not strike me as a person to whom things ‘just happen’,” he said drily.
“No, well, there was a boy.”
“A boy?”
“He was my boyfriend. I had such a crush on him. I told him about my power, and he persuaded me to use it to steal his dad’s wallet off the kitchen table. I floated it right out the window and into his hand. We spent it on cheap vodka and cigarettes.”
“And so began your life of crime?”
“It was something I was good at.” I sighed. “Not that it kept my boyfriend interested. He went off with my best friend. Former best friend.”
“Ah.” He nodded. “If you wish, I can order my secret service to hunt him down and exact retribution?”
He quirked an eyebrow, and I laughed.
“No, that’s okay. It wasn’t his fault anyway. I liked using my power, and after gran died, it was a way of feeling close to her. Even though she would have been furious at how I was using it.”
“Did you never wish to become something else?”
“What, other than a pickpocket, you mean? Like a teacher or an accountant? Can you really see me in an office?”
“I think if you put your mind to it, you could do anything.”
I hunched my shoulders, his words making me feel awkward.
“Gran used to tell me the same thing. But when I lost her, everything seemed pointless. Jobs, university, none of it meant anything. So I decided to use my talents to pay for my travelling. I wanted to see where she’d grown up.” I smiled ruefully. “I didn’t bargain on this, though. I guess they’re right when they say crime doesn’t pay.”
Dhav studied me.
“When this is all over, perhaps you should try to find something you enjoy. Something legitimate.”
“Is that career advice from a prince?”
“Career advice from a… not-enemy.”
I laughed.
“You know, you can be quite funny when you put your mind to it. Promise me something.”
“If I can.”
“Promise me that when you’re back at the palace, you’ll remember to have a little fun now and then.”
“Life isn’t always fun, little thief.”
“Life is what you make it.”
“Then I promise I will try.” He stood up abruptly. “Let us get some rest.”
I eyed the tent.
“It’s a bit small for the two of us.”
“Deliberately so. It will be a cold night, and we must stay close to keep warm.”
“How close?”
“Do not fear, little thief. We have at least ten layers of clothing between us, it would try even my patience to get through all of them. You’ll be safe.”
His eyes glittered in amusement, and I cursed myself for sounding like a virginal aunt. We crawled into the tent and I lay on my side self-consciously, facing away from him.
“Samira, come closer.”
“I’m okay here, thank you.”
He muttered a curse under his breath. Putting an arm around my waist, he pulled me towards him. I felt his body curve against my back, and my breath caught.
“It’s a matter of survival, nothing else,” he said softly.
He tugged the quilted sleeping bag over us both. I heard his breathing close to my ear, steady and reassuring. I started to relax. It was cosy and comfortable. In our cocoon of warmth with his arm around me, I felt my eyes grow heavy.
“Goodnight,” I murmured.
“Goodnight, little thief.”
At some point in the night, I was awakened by a sound. Something was moving around outside. Something big.
I struggled to open my eyes, fighting against my drowsiness. A large shape was silhouetted on the side of the tent.
I didn’t know if I was still dreaming, but the black outline looked all wrong. It was an animal with four legs, but strangely misshapen. As though it had extra appendages growing from its back.
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