Whisper of War and Storms (Heirs of Elydor #1)

Chapter 13

13

MEV

The woman, Isolde, pushed right past Kael, no easy feat given his size. She closed the door behind her after telling Kael he had to leave.

But weren’t we supposed to be staying another day? I had to find an ally. Escape Kael’s clutches. I couldn’t leave yet.

“I know,” Kael said when Isolde put her hand on his arm. It was a touch of familiarity.

“Draven has not kept her presence quiet. I told him to do so but?—”

“Let me guess? He undermines you, as usual.”

She pulled her hand away. “He was my father’s closest friend.”

“Your father’s, Isolde, not yours. I do not understand why you trust the man.”

“We have little time to debate this now. He hates you, Kael, as well you know. And seems inclined to uncover your purpose here.” She nodded to me. “And hers.”

“Collect your belongings,” Kael said to me, in his typical gruff manner.

I assume it was him. There weren’t that many Elydorians powerful enough. He hates humans. He hated that your father gave them land, bordering his own, which made it worse. He hated the humans’ brand of magic and how powerful they became, so quickly. But most of all, he hated them for bringing in a disease that killed his wife.

Jiminy Christmas. How could I have forgotten it all so quickly? More importantly, what the hell had happened when I’d waved my hand? As Kael suspected, something had happened. That same feeling, as when I came through… but this time, in my hands.

I had to think this through.

Kael’s father had potentially sent my mother and me through the Aetherian Gate and closed it, and that’s who Kael was taking me to.

Before he could stop me, I blurted, “I came through the portal.” Shit. “Aetherian Gate. He was the one to find me, and now he’s taking me to Gyoria against my will.”

Wanting to squeeze my eyes closed to avoid the look of murder Kael was now giving me, I stood my ground. Held my chin high, like my mother had done all these years. I would not be cowed by him. Despite the fact that he could toss boulders like pebbles and create an earthquake to swallow me whole.

“Is this true?”

Thankfully, Isolde turned her ire on him instead of questioning me.

Yep, he was definitely going to kill me if he had the chance. Despite the fact that he was staring hard at my cleavage earlier. Worse, my traitorous body had forgotten, momentarily, that he was the enemy.

Before he could answer, I added, “I wish you had his abilities so you would know definitively that I am not lying. I am what he calls an Uninitiated and?—”

“Abilities? Not lying?” She looked more than a little skeptical, her questions aimed at Kael.

In response, he shrugged, as if he didn’t have a care in the world.

Oh. M. Gee.

What a giant asshole. “That isn’t one of your abilities, is it?”

“Lie detection?” Isolde looked as if she’d burst into laughter any second. Instead, she stared at me. “No, it isn’t one of his abilities. Mia, how did you get through the Aetherian Gate? It’s closed.”

He could glare at me all he wanted, but Kael had tricked me.

“Apparently, it isn’t,” he said. “Neither is my ability to detect its dormant passage. I was at the Summit when she came through. Lyra and likely every past Council member are now following us.”

“Splendid.” Isolde let out a huge sigh, as if she wasn’t the only one in this chamber wanting to murder another of its occupants. Kael was still really pissed, too. “I assume you intend to take her to your father?”

“I do.”

“And you expect me to allow you to simply walk out of here with the poor woman held captive? I love you, Kael, but there are limits. Even for me.”

She loved him? That wasn’t good, but at least she was willing to help anyway. Also, who could love such a man? Granted, he was hot as hell, and every place I’d touched him was as solid as that rock he’d tossed, but I knew as well as anyone, physical attraction only got you so far. He was also high-handed, reticent, a deceiver and… did I mention high-handed?

“We don’t have time for this, Issa. I am not leaving her. And surely you know I’d not allow an innocent woman to come to harm.”

I watched Isolde closely. She did the same to me, the woman’s indecision clear in her expression. Her shoulders rose and then fell as she let out a deep breath. This beautiful noblewoman, dressed like a warrior, held my fate in her hands. Before she spoke, I guessed how she would respond based on the look of sympathy she now gave me.

“I will not be the only one with a keen interest in her well-being. If I learn of any mistreatment by your father?—”

“You will not. You have my word.”

“Please,” I begged her, knowing it was useless. Clearly these two had a long history. “Do not let him take me.”

I couldn’t tell her the real reason why I was desperate not to be brought to Gyoria to meet the man who’d likely ruined my mother’s life. Not without Kael learning my true identity.

“I am so sorry, Mia. We have an accord, Kael and I.” The look she gave him was, and this could not be more shocking, one of adoration.

“Come,” he said. “Issa’s word here is law, as Lady of Hawthorne. None here will help you if she does not will it. And as I said, you will not come to any harm under my care, Mia.”

Yeah, I wouldn’t be so sure of that.

But fighting them both was futile, obviously. I’d have to find another ally, another way to escape and get back north. But not in this gown.

“My clothes,” I said, looking down at the very impractical attire.

“Take it, and the breeches and tunic too. You may need them.”

I looked around the chamber. “My own clothes? The ones I came in?”

“Are gone.” That from the lying kidnapper. “They are out of place here and will draw too much attention.”

Great. I loved that college hoodie. It reminded me of some good times, ones when I’d felt less unsettled, more sure of my life’s purpose. When things were carefree and simple.

And so I found myself tossed onto Stormbreaker in a freaking gown (no time to change, apparently) waving goodbye to my would-be savior and leaving Hawthorne Manor. As we sped away, Kael not speaking to me, I thought back to that weird tingling which had happened three times. When I’d come through the portal, when I’d met Lord Draven and when I’d waved my hand around. Though there was a similar quality to them, the first had been obviously the strongest, affecting my entire body and every nerve ending. The others were more localized, but nonetheless distinct. The time with Draven, more negative than positive, but still similar.

Do you have any intuitive abilities? Like your mother?

I don’t have any special abilities.

I’d told Jon the truth. My mother said, even as a young child, she could sense things. She described it like subtle déjà vu, as if fragments of the future overlayed the present, making reality slightly surreal. She tried many times to help me evoke her sense of clarity, moments where patterns and outcomes became visible in a way they hadn’t before. But I’d never experienced a rush of adrenaline or a calm knowing as she described. After Mom had been trained by a woman in Boston, she’d been able to turn those moments of clarity into predictions of the future. Me? I couldn’t so much as guess what I would eat for dinner, even if I went grocery shopping myself. I was a mood eater, so even if I bought grilled chicken and lettuce, I’d find myself down the street at our local bar for a cheeseburger, salad be damned.

Tossing everything I’d learned so far around my head, thankful I didn’t need to hold on for dear life since we were riding at a more reasonable pace, the only logical conclusion I could come to was that nothing made sense.

Most especially, given all of the confusion and uncertainty of this world, the pervading sense of peace that periodically settled over me. How could I belong here when everything felt so confusing and uncertain? Yet every time I had that thought—one urging me to escape, to find a way home—another pull, nearly as strong, told me to stay.

I hated silence. It made me uncomfortable. “Were you two lovers?”

Mevlida! Seriously?

I’d relegated that particular thought to the bottom of my list of questions, so of all the things to pop out of my mouth, that was not the most pressing matter at hand. Not by a long shot.

Kael seemed to think it was a strange question too. He turned sideways, so I could see his profile. Although most of me had no desire to step foot in Gyoria, I was also really curious to see if the others looked like him. Or was Kael a prime Gyorian specimen? Not that it mattered.

“We were not… lovers. Though I find it intriguing, given your current situation and our visit to Hawthorne Manor, that is the first question you would ask.”

Yeah, join the club, buddy. Time for some major spin on the situation. “I only asked because it surprised me that she sided with you over a fellow human, especially given your distaste for my people.” I tried to sound nonchalant. “I figured you must have been together, in that way.”

And then it occurred to me…

“Wait. Do Elydorians have sex? You seem mostly human-like but…”

At that, Kael laughed. Actually laughed, the sound surprisingly pleasant.

“Yes,” he finally answered. “We have sex. Would you like to see how it compares?”

Was Kael actually teasing me?

“No thank you,” I said, even if that wasn’t 100 per cent true. I obviously would not act on it, but pretending I wasn’t attracted to him was just silly, despite the fact that Kael and his kidnapping put the red in red flag.

“So why did she help you?”

“Issa’s father was a powerful nobleman. Unlike the other clans in Elydor, the humans are divided, each noble holding sway over their own territory with no single ruler to unify them. Nearly ten years ago, a sickness plagued the humans, one as fierce as any that had torn through Elydor. Her father fell ill first, and then her mother. Issa herself came to my father, begging for his aid.”

“Why would she do that, knowing your father hates humans?”

“Because she was desperate to save her parents. The human physicians could not find a cure and advised her that the only hope was use of Gyorian aevumite, a stone known for its healing properties if used correctly. My father denied her request.”

Bastard. Of course he did.

“I’d been the one to escort her to my father. And though she was a human, because of the callousness of his rejection and Issa’s courage in coming to him in the first place”—Kael sighed—“I secured a bit of aevumite and followed her toward Hawthorne Manor.”

To say I was in shock was an understatement. “You tried to save a powerful noble family? Against your father’s wishes?”

“I did. Though it obviously did not work. Issa was named as her father’s successor, and her status in Estmere as keeper of the border in this region was secured. As you saw, she is as much a warrior as those who serve her, a necessity in these parts. Issa prefers not to leave her fate to others. I’ve trained with her, and admire her as much now as I did when we first met.”

So many questions.

“What did your father say when you did that?”

“He named my brother as successor, despite being the second-born son.”

Holy shitballs. “He disinherited you?”

Kael was quiet then. Obviously this was a sensitive topic, with good reason.

“He did.”

“Yet you still serve him?”

“I serve Gyoria and must respect the will of its king.”

I didn’t know if I should admire Kael or be appalled at his loyalty to a man who clearly did not deserve it. That kind of blind devotion could be dangerous, and yet, it was strangely admirable too.

New topic.

“So the two of you stayed friends? Seems strange, given your history. And her beauty.”

There, I said it.

“Issa is very beautiful,” he said. “But the son of a Gyorian king could never partner with a human noblewoman. Bedding a woman like Issa, without any intention of partnering, would be a dishonor to her.”

Well then. I guess one-night stands weren’t a thing here. Or at least, not with a noblewoman. It was all very… medieval.

“Is partnering like marrying?”

“It is.”

I’d have asked more questions, but we stopped suddenly. Kael put up a fist, which, I supposed, was his caveman way of telling me to be quiet. I didn’t see or hear anything. After passing through the same open meadow as yesterday, Kael turned in the direction of a forest, the path we rode a narrow one. No strange animals, yet. Just really pretty trees, and lots of them.

“They move away from us, heading north.”

“They?”

“Riders, far ahead.”

“And you can hear them, so far away?”

“No,” he said. “An Aetherian could, as they are able to manipulate sound waves. But I can feel them in the ground below us.”

I assumed we would begin to ride since the riders were headed away from us, but instead Kael turned to me once again. He looked at my hair. I’d put it in a low braid—a pony seemed somehow at odds with my attire.

Kael slowed us to a stop.

“What? Why are you looking at me like that?”

Kael’s eyes lowered to my own.

“I thought maybe I was imagining things, but in the sunlight… your hair definitely looks lighter today.”

I pulled my braid forward. Sure enough, it looked almost as if my natural color was coming through. When I was little, I’d looked like a normal girl, except—and there was no good way to describe it—my hair was a pearly white. Teased for as far back as I could remember, I’d always hated it. When I was old enough, my mother allowed me to dye it blonde, as I’d been doing ever since. It usually took a good four weeks to start peeking through and I got it colored just before we left for York.

Lyra.

Her hair had been shades of silver and white, tinged with blue, a striking feature that was hard to forget. Air clan. White hair. It made sense.

Holy. Shit.

Act cool, Mev. Do not let him see your panic.

“My hair usually does this in the summer, turns really blonde. Strange it would happen now. Maybe your sun is stronger than ours.” I tried to sound nonchalant, despite the fact that I could hear my own heartbeat in my ears. If my natural white came through anywhere, it was at the roots. This definitely wasn’t normal. But then again, this Dorothy wasn’t in Kansas anymore.

He continued to stare at me.

“Don’t we need to be somewhere?”

I was tempted to smile at the utterly droll look he gave me, but at least Kael did spur us forward once again.

For some time I watched the landscape, dreaming of how I might escape. Trying to ignore the fact that Kael must work out an awful lot, from the feel of him.

But mostly, I really didn’t want to die.

Hating to ask, knowing he’d pay me lip service, I finally did anyway.

“Kael? Will you promise not to let your father hurt me, like you said to Isolde?”

I didn’t plan to be around when I met his father, but just in case, I’d get any assurances I could at this point.

“You have my word, Mia,” he said, without turning back. “And a Gyorian never goes back on his word.”

“Even to a human?”

“Even to a human.”

I’d take it. As if I had any other choice.