I knew what she was walking into, even if she didn’t realize it herself. Even with the Mortal Blade, trying to kill King Oberon was a dangerous mission. He didn’t have full access to his powers, but he was still strong and difficult to kill. He surrounded himself with soldiers who worshipped at his feet.
Tessa was just as likely to die as she was to sink that blade into his heart.
It was a fact I’d been wrestling with for days. How could I send her in there, knowing she might not make it out alive?
“Kalen?” she asked, whispering up at me. “What’s wrong?”
I ground my teeth together. Right now, none of that mattered. She wouldn’t be sneaking back into Albyria until we’d found her family, and that could take weeks or even months, especially if we needed to return to Dubnos soon. I still had time to train her. Or find another way.
“Nothing.” I shook my head. “I’m just sorry we’ll have to travel with you injured and bleeding, but as soon as we reach Itchen, you’ll be safer. There will be plenty of comfortable beds where you can rest, too. I daresay there will even be some clean sheets.”
“Sounds luxurious after this. The pookas don’t go there?”
Rubbing my chin, I glanced at the shutters that blocked my view of the churning mists beyond the village. “They never have before, but things are changing. Don’t let down your guard. They might very well follow us there.”
Twenty-Nine
Tessa
My back was on fire, but I didn’t voice a word of complaint as we charged through the empty countryside toward Itchen. There was nothing either of us could do about it, and we sure as light couldn’t slow down. Every now and then, a screech tore through the mists. Even the pounding of hooves couldn’t drown it out. The pookas were following us, and there was no telling how many had caught our scent.
If we didn’t keep moving, they’d catch up.
Another shriek sounded nearby, and Kalen’s arms tightened around me. A chill had settled deep into my bones, but his steady heat kept my teeth from chattering. That and his hot breath against my ear every time he leaned down to ask if I was still all right.
Truth was, I felt close to passing out. With every thump of the hooves, my body rattled, sending a fresh flare of pain through my back. I forced myself to focus on Kalen’s gloves gripping the reins. I counted his fingers. One, two, three, four, five, before moving on to the other hand and doing the same. As the moments ticked by, I kept counting. It was the only thing that kept me from losing my grip on this world.
At long last, a city rose up before us. A towering building brushed the sky, the sleek black stone gleaming from the moonlight that poured through a break in the mists. Windowless, the central round building seemed wrong somehow, as if I were gazing into a pit of nothingness. Around it, little wooden huts hunkered in the shadows. Remnants of fires were dotted about, and wet clothes hung from lines.
It was the biggest sign of life I’d seen in days. And yet, no people were in sight.
Hope still swelled in my chest. I twisted my head over my shoulder to glance up at Kalen. “There are no mists here.”
“Itchen is a special place during a full moon,” he murmured, his breath caressing my neck. I tried not to shudder. “The brilliance of the moonlight burns the mists away, but it only lasts a day and comes twice a year, if that. I’m surprised they’re not out enjoying it.”
He frowned, and my stomach twisted in on itself. I could hear his unspoken words as clear as a day in Teine. If the people of this city weren’t out enjoying the freedom of this one day, something was wrong. I closed my eyes, clutching the cloak in my fists. Something wasalwayswrong.
When we reached a hitching post, we dismounted, and Kalen tied up the horse.
“Stay here,” he said before heading toward the silent buildings.
“Absolutely not,” I said, almost tripping over my feet to keep up with him. Pain sliced through my back with every step. “Val and Mother might be here. Besides, you’re the one with the sword. If a pooka shows up here, I—”
“Pookas can’t leave the mists,” he threw over his shoulder, carrying on without even a moment of hesitation.
I scowled. “Yeah, and they don’t like going into buildings, and don’t tend to sneak up on you, either, right? They’re doing things now that they didn’t do before.”
He came to a sudden stop, whirled toward me, and placed his hands firmly on my shoulders. My lips parted, heat creeping through my chest. I was so focused on the strength in his fingers, the heat of his touch, I almost didn’t hear his words.
“This is not like that, Tessa,” he said, a roughness creeping into his voice. “If they step out of the mists, the moonlight will burn them to death. So, even if they threw all caution to the wind and tried to attack this place, they’d die before they reached you. You can relax. They can’t get to you here.”
But I couldn’t relax. Not with his hands on me.
“I’d still rather go with you than wait here.”
His eyes softened, and my heart did something strange in response. I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen him make that expression before. Almost as though he…cared. My eyes betrayed me as they drifted down to his full lips. For a moment, neither one of us said a word. I wasn’t sure I even breathed.
“All right,” he finally said. “Stay with me, but brace yourself. There’s a hint of blood on the air, and you might not like what we find.”