“He’s not dead,” I murmured.
Cre’s eyes met mine. “He might as well be.”
“I’ll find him.” And I would. I would walk every path Between until I found him and returned him to his body.
“It’s not over, is it?” Michel asked.
The Bonelands stretched out around us. No longer barren, black sand and broken glass, but rolling hills covered in the beginnings of life. Beneath it, around us, the hint of taint and corruption still lingered. The world still wasn’t in balance.
The Darkness still lived in the world, still walked it, able to shift from host to host. His object of power hidden somewhere. Plague wasn’t dead, and War still lingered.
“No,” I replied. “It’s not over. We still have work to do.”
32
I stared out from the top of Raven’s Keep at the Snow Fang Mountains. The majestic peaks stretched like giant, jagged teeth toward the sky, their tops perpetually covered in snow. Raven’s Keep sat deep in the heart of them, surrounded by forest. A fortress of stone in a sea of green hemmed in by the tallest of the mountains.
It had taken us two weeks to leave the Bonelands. Every night, I sat next to Bran and held his hand, straining to find him in the Between, wandering the paths of dreams calling his name. His chest rose and fell with breath, his heart beat. He ate, drank, and functioned on a physical level, but, there was no sign of the man who called me his little lark. My heart broke more each time as I came back to myself without finding him.
Spring arrived late to the Snow Fangs, and a chill breeze ruffled my hair, blowing it into my eyes. I brushed it away. We’d arrived at Raven’s Keep three days after leaving the Bonelands and found it in an uproar. The Bastion had declared all remaining original paladins, and the Lords of Light, to be witches and sentenced them to death. Magic users were being rounded up and imprisoned. No one was safe.
“There you are, imp.” Aeron joined me, leaning on his elbows against the stone parapet. Dark circles lined his eyes, and the haunted look he’d possessed in the Bonelands hadn’t faded. “Michel has been looking for you.”
I shrugged. Ever since I took possession of the Heart, I’d been able to sense every paladin who had sworn their oaths on it. It came in handy when I wanted some time alone.
Aeron raised an eyebrow at my non-response. “Are you avoiding him?”
“No…” I shrugged again. “Maybe.”
Aeron chuckled. “Which is it?”
I stared out at the mountains unable to voice the many reasons why I’d been reluctant to face Michel. Something had changed between us and I wasn’t ready to face it. “I don’t know how to talk to him… especially after…” I couldn’t forget Michel pointing a gun at me while declaring his love, but I missed the quiet moments I’d had with him. The silent support he’d given me.
“It’s the magic—” Aeron cut off when I shook my head.
“If it were the magic of opposites, we would have burned ourselves out by now. Besides, I can use all of the elements. The magic of opposites doesn’t apply in our case.”
“Are you sure? I’ve watched you nearly lose yourself several times.”
I nodded. “It’s euphoric when our magic mixes, but I’ve always maintained a sense of self no matter how far we let it go.”
“Huh.” Aeron rubbed his chin. “Well, regardless, you need to talk to him.”
Aeron turned to go, but I stopped him with a hand on his arm. “Have I changed? Since I found the Heart, I mean.”
He cocked his head, his eyes weighing me. “I don’t know. You’ve changed since Tolbert got his hands on you and the Bonelands altered all of us. I can’t say yet if the Heart has transformed you.” He leaned in and kissed my cheek before ruffling my hair. “Go find Michel and talk.”
I didn’t want to, but he was right. Things had been strained between us since the Bonelands. The taint had warped whatever was between us.
The bond led me deep into Raven’s Keep, to the makeshift war room. Michel and Llyr leaned over a map spread across the gigantic table that took up the center of the room. I’d met Llyr a few times in the past, but now I knew the truth of our family connections. Aris’s memories revealed that he was my, many times over, great grandfather. Lissa, the woman Bran had failed to save and Aris’s twin sister had been his wife. They’d had an older daughter who had survived the Lady’s fall, and it was through her that I had inherited my role as the Lady’s vessel and my skills as a healer.
Llyr tapped a thin finger on the map, his blue eyes narrowed in concentration. “Bree has had some luck recruiting other paladins to our side. The northern provinces aren’t happy with the Bastion, and many of the paladins from those areas are willing to join forces with us.”
“What about the Western Wilds?” Michel rubbed his chin. Once again clean-shaven, his cheeks were gaunter than when we’d first met.
“They are considering it.” Llyr looked up and noticed me standing in the doorway. He motioned me to join them. “The Matriarch has ties to Cre, and the paladins stationed in the Wilds tend to become protective of her.”
“Meaning what?” Michel asked.
Llyr took a deep breath and blew it out. “They are unlikely to support the Bastion or the Council because of the new policies, but that doesn’t mean they will support us either.”
“Does this mean war?” I asked.
Both men pressed their lips together. Llyr nodded solemnly while Michel looked away.
I stared down at the map. My magic began to immediately interact with Michel’s, coiling and dancing as soon as I was within touching distance of him. Anxiety twisted in my gut as I looked at the marks someone had made on the map to indicate both our allies and enemies. There weren’t many allies. “Do we stand a chance?”
Llyr raised an eyebrow, watching Michel and me with an unreadable look. “With our current numbers? Maybe. We have the Heart. That counts for something.”
Did it? I touched the pouch at my waist. The Heart pulsed in a steady rhythm, beating out a song of Light and peace. As powerful as it was, it wasn’t something to be used lightly.
“We should have every paladin re-swear their oaths to the Light on the Heart,” Michel said quietly. He stepped closer, his shoulder brushing mine. “Then we can be sure that the Darkness isn’t walking among us.”
Llyr chewed on his lip. “I agree. The question is how to go about doing that? In the meantime, I have some things that need my attention. Michel, why don’t you fill her in on what we talked about?”
Llyr left the room, giving me a pointed nod in Michel’s direction. Inwardly, I sighed. Apparently, Aeron had filled Llyr in on everything about Michel and me.
Silence stretched between us. Neither of us moved. We stood leaning against each other as our magic danced. Honey and moonlight filled my senses as a symphony wove between us.
“I—” We both started at the same time and stopped.
The corners of Michel’s lips twitched into a slight smile. He turned and pulled me into his arms. “I’m sorry.”
I wrapped my arms around his waist and laid my cheek against his shoulder. “For what?”
Michel kissed my forehead, his lips lingering on my skin. “The taint… the Bonelands… It made me crazy. This bond, it’s different from any other I’ve ever had.”
“It’s different for me as well.” I smiled up at him. “I don’t know what will happen next, but I do know that I need you by my side.”
He closed his eyes, a look of relief passing quickly over his face. “I’m not sure what I would have done if you’d told me to leave.”
Tears pricked at my eyes, and I hugged him tighter. Michel took the cue and held me closer.
“I’m scared,” I whispered. “The Darkness is still out there, and I have to find him.”
“You won’t be alone,” Michel murmured into my hair. “I’ll help you.”
I closed my eyes and listened to the beat of his hea
rt. The steady thrum-thrum that echoed my own. I wasn’t alone. I had Michel and Aeron, Cre and Llyr, as well as the rest of the original paladins. I had the Heart and the Light. I was no longer defenseless. I would find Bran and bring him back from the Between. Together, we would do as the Lady asked and restore the balance.
There are so many awesome people who contribute to the making of a book. There were a great many people on Scribophile who took a peek and offered wonderful advice and insight into my story. Thank you so much. Most especially, I want to thank all the Dragonmonkeys and Ubergroup members who talked me through plot holes, writer’s block, and world building. You guys rock! Next, a huge thank you to my beta readers. You pointed out the inconsistencies and gave me a new perspective. My editor, Sarah Chorn, did a fantastic job knocking all the rough bits off the story and helping me fine-tune it. Lastly, I couldn’t do this without the support of my family, especially my husband and son. Thank you for listening to all of my wacky ideas and helping me come up with a few new ones.
Sonya M. Black lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, son, and kitties. She enjoys reading books in a wide range of genres and takes her inspiration from fairy tales, folklore, myths, and legends. Writing is her passion, and she loves using her imagination to explore the endless possibilities.
Visit www.sonyamblack.com to learn more about her upcoming projects.
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Check out these other books by Sonya M. Black:
Happily Never After
The Twisted Files Series
The Snow White Files
The Riding Hood Files
The Beanstalk Files**
The Lady and the Darkness Series
A Sea of Broken Glass
From Bone and Ash**
**To be released
A Sea of Broken Glass Page 29