And I would cheer him on. After I cleaned his wound, I examined it. Deep, with ragged edges and still bleeding, it snaked from his left shoulder down to his bicep. I could stitch the skin together, but it wouldn’t heal well. Magic grew, expanding from my core.
Before healing him, I glanced at the door. “How many more wounded are coming?”
“I’m it. Those dead things chased down anyone not quick enough to escape.”
Which was why he was so certain Liv and Thea were gone. I bit my lip to keep from crying. Instead, I concentrated on mixing a sleeping draft for him. Saul’s obvious pain stemmed more from the loss of his friends than the gash on his shoulder. He drained the cup without question.
It didn’t take long for him to lie back on the mattress. When his eyes drifted shut, I traced his injury with my finger, letting the magic inside me flow into Saul before returning to me. A line of fire carved into my left shoulder and down my arm. Blood welled, soaking my sleeve as the pain gripped me in its hot talons, matching the burn of sorrow in my heart.
* * *
A pounding on my door woke me. Bright sunlight filled the room, indicating midafternoon. My shoulder throbbed, and the memories of why it hurt came flooding back. Ah, hell. Then the deep voice attached to the ruckus penetrated my grief. Saul.
I jumped to my feet and paused for a moment to weather the sharp pains that shot down my arm. My correct assessment of Saul’s injury being difficult to heal didn’t make me feel any better.
Yanking my door open, I almost ran into him. He scowled and crossed his arms over his chest in the classic pissed-off man pose.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“You drugged me.”
“No. I healed you. Big difference.”
“Avry, you didn’t need to—”
“Excuse me. Are you a healer now? ’Cause that would be very helpful.” I waited.
His shoulders drooped. “Ursan was right.”
“About what?”
“You.”
“And?”
“He said you were the most vexing person he has ever met.”
Remembering Kerrick’s similar comment, I grinned. “I’ll take that as a compliment. Now, unless you want to assist in cleaning out bedpans...?”
Saul stepped back, wrinkling his nose. “I should report in.”
“I thought so.” Then I sobered. “Tell Wynn and Odd I’ll stop by later tonight.”
“Will do.” Saul left.
Since I was awake, I checked my patients. A few needed their bandages changed. One young soldier thrashed in his sleep. Sweat dampened his hair, and his forehead was hot to the touch. I gestured Christina over and instructed her to administer him a dose of fever powder. Then I discharged a handful of soldiers. I’d been pleasantly surprised there hadn’t been any serious cases so far, but Saul’s remark about the dead chasing down anyone not quick enough to retreat explained the reason and killed any optimism I’d felt.
Saul returned. A strange half scared, half queasy expression creased his face. He barreled through my caregivers as if he didn’t see them, heading right to me.
“What’s—”
He clasped my wrist and pulled me to my feet. “You’ve got to see this.”
Without waiting for my response, he tugged me along, almost dragging me from the infirmary.
“Is someone hurt?” I asked.
“Not yet.”
“Saul, what—”
“You’ll see in a minute.”
We left the manor house by a side door. Questions piled up in my throat, but I followed Saul. He led me to the same shady spot I’d used to spy on the activity around Jael’s tent. Except this time, all the action was happening in the courtyard.
A white flag of truce drew my attention right away. It fluttered above a woman on horseback, but as soon as my gaze dropped, it riveted on the ring of ufas surrounding the horse. I braced, expecting the creatures to leap onto the line of soldiers blocking the manor house’s steps. But the ufas remained in position as if they’d been ordered like dogs to stay.
When Jael exited the house with her entourage of officers, I moved closer, keeping to the thin line of trees. No one would notice me with a dozen ufas drooling on the cobblestones.
“What are you doing?” Saul asked from behind me.
“I need to hear.”
I crept as far as I dared. As expected, none of the people even glanced my way, but a few of the ufas swung their huge heads in my direction. Sniffing the air, they stared at me with dead eyes. I clutched a tree trunk to keep on my feet. Dead ufas. Tohon was beyond insane.
Recovering from the shock, I considered how effective that pack would be in a fight against the living. Ufas were already hard to kill, but now they’d be impossible to beat. Probably why Tohon used them to protect his emissary. I wouldn’t trust Jael to abide by the protocols of a truce flag either.
Jael stopped midway down the steps behind the line. “I see not much has changed since school, Cellina. You’re still Tohon’s lackey and he still treats you as well as his mongrels.”
Her tone was derisive, but I caught an edge of fear in her voice. Had Cellina noticed?
“Go fetch your mother-in-law, Jael,” Cellina ordered. “My message is for her and not some underling playing dress up.” She sat straight in the saddle, looking down her pudgy nose at Jael. Her blond hair had been braided and wrapped around her head like a crown. She didn’t appear intimidated, even though she was in the middle of the enemy’s camp. Then again, with a pack of ufas at her feet, I wouldn’t be worried either. Plus she had her sword—
I stared at the hilt of the sword hanging from her belt. Blinking, I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment, hoping I was mistaken. No, it couldn’t be. But it was. She had Kerrick’s sword. Which meant...
A wave of dizziness washed through me. I sank to the ground and buried my face in my hands. To never see him again... To never feel his magic again... To never touch him again... I lay there in utter and complete misery.
“What’s wrong?” Saul asked in alarm.
I couldn’t answer.
“It might not be that bad. We haven’t heard any terms yet.” Saul tried to console me even though he had no clue why I’d collapsed. “No sense getting upset before anything is confirmed.”
His logic pierced my fog. Kerrick might still be alive. Tohon might have ordered Sepp to freeze him in a magical stasis or locked Kerrick in his dungeon. Or turned him into one of his dead soldiers. I shuddered.
Saul rubbed my arm. “Come on, Avry, pull it together.”
With considerable effort, I reined in the crushing despair. I needed to be able to function. I returned my attention to the courtyard. Estrid had arrived.
“...I will not discuss terms with you,” Estrid said. “Tohon—”
“King Tohon will accept nothing less than unconditional surrender,” Cellina said, causing a shocked silence. “In exchange for your lives, you and your entire population will swear loyalty to him and accept him as your king. Your army will be incorporated into his.”
“And if we don’t surrender?” Estrid asked.
“Then you will be slaughtered. Every single one of you.”
The ripple of voices from those within hearing distance soon turned into a loud outcry with everyone talking at the same time. Cellina gestured with both her arms. The ufas all howled at once. Silence descended.
“You have one day to decide,” Cellina said. “I will return tomorrow.” She turned her horse and nudged it into a walk toward the border. The ufas followed.
Without thought, I sprinted after her. I had to know what had happened to Kerrick. The ufas snarled when I approached. Not caring, I called Cellina’s name. She glanced back and then stopped the horse. I slowed, keeping my distance from the creatures.
“Well feed me to a Death Lily,” Cellina said. “She lives.”
“You didn’t know?” I asked in surprise.
“We’ve heard rumors, of course, but you
had the plague. How did you survive?”
“How did you get Kerrick’s sword?”
She smirked. “You answer my question and I’ll answer yours.”
I almost growled in frustration. Instead, I stuck to the explanation I’d given Estrid and Jael. “Kerrick shared his magical energy with me, and I recovered. Now it’s your turn.”
Cellina studied me. “Kerrick had a nasty run-in with my mutts.” She swept a hand out, indicating the ufa pack. “Unlike you, he didn’t survive.”
KERRICK
Kerrick had spent a sleepless night wondering what Danny would decide and a restless day worrying about him. One of his guards had brought him his breakfast, claiming the boy was busy with lessons.
Last night he had told Danny it was his decision to heal the tribespeople or not. Kerrick would support him either way.
Danny hadn’t been happy with his reply. “Why would you let me decide? It’s my stupid fault that you’re cooperating with them!”
Ah. Kerrick had knelt next to Danny and waited until the boy met his gaze. “No. You’re wrong. Remember what I told Noak’s father, Canute? My information isn’t going to make any difference in the end. In fact, we’re helping our people right now. Since Noak and his warriors are here and not on the warpath, they’ll have more time to evacuate.” Kerrick considered the situation. “Plus, Noak could have easily killed me during the battle. He planned to take a prisoner. Probably because of his sickened tribe members.” Now it made sense why Noak had returned to Krakowa.
Kerrick had touched Danny’s arm. “Okay?”
He’d nodded, and the deep crinkles between his eyebrows had smoothed for a moment before puckering again. “But what should I do about the sick tribespeople?”
“Look deep within yourself. I can’t order you one way or another. Avry taught me that. This is something you will live with for the rest of your life. Can you do nothing and let them die? Think about it.”
Danny had agreed to sleep on it and Kerrick hadn’t seen him since.
When another guard brought him his evening meal, Kerrick decided to search for Danny in the morning if he didn’t show. Since no one had locked his cell door or confiscated his lock picks despite being well aware he had them, Kerrick figured they wouldn’t object. And if they did, he’d deal with it then.
* * *
After the guard left with the remains of his breakfast, Kerrick strolled from the jail with confidence. If he acted as if he knew what he was doing, perhaps no one would question him. Danny had pointed out the house he stayed in during one of their trips to the bathhouse. He headed to it. Kerrick was surprised guards hadn’t been posted outside the jail, but within a few blocks he spotted a couple tails. Noak had probably planted them.
The tribespeople he passed gawked and scowled, but he ignored them. Danny lived in a narrow two-story row house in the middle of the street. Unlike dozens of others, this town had survived the plague with little damage. The Krakowans hadn’t burned down the homes of the plague victims in panic. Living so close to the border, they tended to be rather unflappable.
Kerrick didn’t bother knocking on the door. He pushed it open and called Danny’s name, startling a group of boys in the living room. Some jumped to their feet, while others remained rooted in place, gaping at him. Danny wasn’t among them. He questioned the boys, and they told him Danny had been spending all his time at the library. He managed to get directions before their guardian bustled in from another room and shooed him out.
His tails followed him across town, but he didn’t care. It felt good to be moving. He wished he could get some real exercise. What would the warriors do if he joined one of their practice sessions? With their expert skills on the battlefield, it stood to reason that they trained constantly.
Or was that part of their magic? Did they all possess magic, or only Noak? There had been no record of anyone else with his ice magic in the Fifteen Realms. But he was beginning to distrust the history books. Kerrick wondered if Noak’s father or sister also possessed powers. And, if so, what would they be?
Danny sat at a table just inside the library’s entrance. Bent over an open book and making notes in another, Danny didn’t even glance up when Kerrick entered. Rows of full bookcases extended to the back of the room and along the walls. Kerrick moved closer and read the titles, impressed by the extent of topics. His father would have been ecstatic by the collection and would have badgered the poor librarian for hours. Kerrick glanced around, but no one else occupied the other tables and reading chairs. Then he remembered the tribes didn’t read words.
Kerrick returned to Danny’s table and cleared his throat. The boy jerked at the sound but then relaxed.
“They let you out?” he asked.
“Not exactly. I was concerned about you,” Kerrick said.
“Oh. Sorry, I found these great books about herbs and medicines.” He gestured to the piles on his table. “They were brought here after the town’s healer died of the plague. And there are some of his journals in here, too. I guess I just lost track of time.”
“Does that mean you decided to help them?”
Danny met his gaze. “Yes. It was an easy choice once I thought about it.” He tapped his stylus on the book he’d been writing in. “Well, once I considered what Avry would have done. She healed Tohon’s soldiers. And they’re probably attacking Estrid’s army right now.”
“True, but she was his prisoner at the time and had to cooperate.” A horrible situation—it had taken all of his willpower not to storm Tohon’s castle and rescue her before she could find and heal Ryne.
“But Tohon didn’t care about his wounded soldiers. To him, they are just as useful dead. Avry could have made a token effort, but she didn’t. She cared, and I do, too.”
And her patients had thanked her by pretending to be asleep when Kerrick and Loren had finally reached her. He couldn’t call it a rescue since she’d stayed behind after they had escaped with Ryne. It had been a miserable ten days, but she’d broken out on her own and had saved Danny and Zila from Tohon.
“Can you cure them?” Kerrick asked.
“I thought so, but the plant Avry mentions in her journal doesn’t grow this far north.” Danny pointed to a drawing of a plant with large heart-shaped leaves. “So I’m trying to find another that will work as well before the disease spreads.”
“Any luck?”
“Not yet, but there are plenty more books to look through.”
“Want help?”
Danny beamed at him in relief, which meant the boy had been worried Kerrick would object to his decision.
“Sure.” Danny explained the specific healing properties he was looking for.
Kerrick pulled a book off a pile and settled next to Danny. They worked for a while in silence, but it didn’t take long for Noak to enter the library with an equally tall man by his side and a few guards behind him.
Disgust creased the stranger’s sharp face. He resembled a bird of prey with his hooked nose and his blond hair hanging loose like feathers over his wide shoulders. He wore a warrior’s uniform and held his dadao at the ready. The powerful muscles along his long arms were as thick as Quain’s. Kerrick stood and braced for trouble.
“It is just as I expected,” Noak said to the man. “He is with the boy.”
“So they can conspire against us,” he snapped.
No one else had taken that tone with Noak except his father, so this must be the Jevnaker leader, Olave. His bright blue gaze swept Kerrick with contempt.
“He keeps his promise,” Noak said.
“To lull you.” He pointed the sword at the books. “We can’t read that. He’s probably going to poison us all.”
“I don’t have to,” Kerrick said.
Olave swung the blade’s tip toward him. “Explain.”
Kerrick glanced at Noak as if seeking his permission just to anger Olave. When Noak nodded, he said, “The sickness will kill you all. Good riddance, as far as I’m concerned.” r />
With a cry, Olave lunged at him. Kerrick sidestepped the thrust and grabbed a chair just in time to block the next attack. The dadao was primarily a chopping weapon, and Olave hacked the wooden chair to pieces as Kerrick dodged and ducked.
Eventually Kerrick was left with a single spoke. But he used it like a sword. Avoiding the sharp edge of Olave’s weapon, Kerrick countered along the flat of his blade. Kerrick snaked in past his defenses a few times, rapping him on the arm and poking him in the stomach. Olave didn’t have Noak’s skill or finesse. Each touch increased his fury. A part of Kerrick knew this fight wouldn’t end well for him, but he was having too much fun goading him.
Despite Kerrick’s skills, a sword beats a wooden stick every time. Olave unarmed him and pressed the dadao’s tip into the hollow at the base of his throat.
“Olave, my father has him under our protection,” Noak said.
“He should die,” he said.
“That is not your decision.”
“Nor yours, princeling. You shouldn’t have brought him here.” Olave traced the four scars on Kerrick’s neck with the blade’s tip. “These marks mean he’s lucky. Nothing more.”
“Even so. He is protected.” Noak put his hand on the hilt of his dadao.
Olave stepped back. “Not for long. Once I marry your sister, I will challenge your father, and take his place.”
Noak laughed. Kerrick stared in amazement. The man did know how to smile.
“It will be your right to test my father,” Noak said. “But consider, a man armed with only a chair almost defeated you.”
“I spared your pet dog. For now. Once I’m leader, he’ll be the first to go, followed by you.” He left without saying another word.
Kerrick touched his throat. The cuts burned, and blood coated his fingers, but they didn’t seem deep enough to worry about.
Danny stared at his neck with a strange expression. He reached toward Kerrick with an intense focus. Kerrick recognized the significance of it. He had seen that same avid gaze on Avry’s face before she healed someone with her magic.
Kerrick grabbed Danny’s arm, making sure he didn’t touch the boy’s skin. If Danny healed him in front of Noak, then they’d never let Danny go free.