27. Maren
27
Maren
T he ravine at our side opened into a canyon, wide and deep. As access to water, it served its purpose—though it was steep, the ground loose. Dangerous to climb down without sure and cautious feet.
I climbed down anyway, descending to the river while Kye waited with the horses. He might have taken the task on by himself, hauling heavy pots of water up the hillside. But I was the more experienced fisherman, only failing to make a catch when fish weren’t in the water.
Still, the instinct to hide my tail from him kept me cautious.
Resting over the tops of our bedrolls, we stared at the fire, too tired for conversation. It had been our hardest day of riding; the flat ground had begun to slant upward. But sighting Kriska that morning left the sharp feeling of a dagger between my shoulder blades, and even as I sat mesmerized by the dancing flames, something in me itched to return to the road even as my eyes threatened to close.
According to our map, a town was close by, the last before we reached the mountains. The forest had cradled us away from prying eyes, but signs of people had begun to emerge. Footprints in the mud. A half-rotten shoe. Threads of frayed rope, discarded along the forest floor.
Another few days and we’d reach the Sylus Mountains. As long as nothing went wrong.
Poking at my salted fish with a fallen branch, my eyes drooped. It wasn’t yet dark; the pale sun still claimed the sky. But the warmth of my blankets called my name.
I glanced across the flames at Kye, his skull face paint only beginning to wear away, and wondered if exhaustion claimed as much of him as it did me. An arm wrapped over his bent knee, he leaned against his bedroll, intent on his knitting pattern. He’d almost finished our scarves. Beside him, the ball of yarn bounced gently in the grass as he pulled the woolen thread. Somewhere behind us, Kolibri hurled an admonishing nicker at Sero.
“If you need to sleep, I can take over the fire,” Kye said, routing a thread over the tip of his needle with a finger.
“I’m fine.” I lifted the edge of the filet, scrutinizing the pink flesh. “I think it’s almost done anyway.”
“Smells good.”
“Don’t lie.” I lifted the pan from the flames, setting it in the long grass. “You hate fish.”
He smiled without looking at me. The scarf he knit hung from his hands, its finished mate, my scarf, laid flat over his thigh. “I never lie.”
“Just half-truths, then.”
“When have I told a half-truth?”
“In Leihani when you made me think you were some pompous miner’s son.”
“I am some pompous miner’s son.”
“It’s a half truth.”
His mouth twitched. “Did you ask if I was a prince?”
I snorted. “No. Would you have told me, had I thought to ask?”
He cut his yarn with a flick of his knife, tying it off and tossing me the blade me to sheathe in my boot. “Probably not.” Delving into the fish with our single fork, I shook my head and stole the first bite, offering him the utensil. He took it from me, aiming it thoughtfully in my direction. “But the point is, I’ve never lied to you.”
I nodded as I chewed, watching him stab the fish for his own bite. “You still have secrets, though.”
Golden eyes flashed to mine as he passed the fork back. “Some.”
My heart thudded softly as I considered what to say next. Fine—he didn’t have to share everything with me. Mihauna knew he was entitled to keep things to himself, though the idea sent something aching in my chest.
“I got myself stuck in the channel,” I said, suddenly driven by impulse. Kye’s eyes flickered to mine. I licked my lips. “I didn’t realize I’d gone so deep.”
“But you did get stuck.”
“Yes, but…” I bit my lip, my stomach performing a nervous flip. “The current dragged me down. I got stuck in underwater caves—” I broke off a piece of fish for him, wondering whether to gloss over what I’d found deep under the surface. “There was something under the water. It attacked me. When I finally escaped the cave, there was no time to slowly ascend. I needed air.” I glanced away, stomach clenching at the thought of claws ripping at my skin.
His brows pinched together, not bothering to glance at the fork as he took it from my hand. “What was it?”
I exhaled. “I don’t know. But you were right. Whatever it is, there’s something down there.”
He opened his mouth to voice a thought, and something whistled over our heads.
It passed us in a flash, too quick to make sense of what it might be. But our eyes instantly met, and I knew well enough. We scrambled, halfway to our feet—a second arrow soared past Kye’s cheek. He flinched away, twisting into a low dive over the ground, then jumped back up in an instant, a hand ready at the hilt of his sword, eyes scanning the direction from which the arrow had come.
“Get to Kolibri.”
Wooden walls. Rope around my tail. Sour breath along my cheek.
My pulse ravaged my own ears, my heart lost in a sudden flurry. I spun away, sliding on my heels as a glass bottle soared past my nose. It stuck the compact ground beside me, a mushroom of heat blooming across my back, my hair blowing past my shoulders and into my face at the sudden cloud. Fire devoured the ground in an instant, seared into the soft rubber of my boots.
Wooden walls shrinking, shrinking, shrinking—
Hands chained to the wall, Kye choking across from me, glittering silver disappearing into his neck—
Ahead, Kolibri gave a roar of terror, but we’d hobbled her for the night with a loose rope. The mare bucked her hind legs as Sero pawed the ground, white tail flicking with agitation.
I squeezed between them, knife ready to cut Sero’s hobble first, my hand reaching for his lead. Kolibri roared again, her eyes wide, body wild. She reared—or tried to. The hobble tied between her legs tripped her, and the mare fell heavily to her side. I scrabbled to help, abandoning Sero’s ties. Her hooves kicked madly, forcing me to step away to avoid being struck. Somewhere behind us came the shatter of glass and the explosion of fire.
Water pouring in, filling the cabin—
Drowning, drowning—
Kye’s hand grasped my arm, whirling me around. I reached for him, relief thick in my throat, and his scent hit me.
Musky and thick like stale rum.
The wrong smell.
His hair was black instead of chocolate brown, his beard too long, the grip of his hand too hard, the color of his teeth like tar. Anger wrapped around his mouth as he pulled me to him, and I would have been certain I’d never seen him before except—
His eyes. I knew those. Piercing blue, shaking with fury.
In the instant it took me to realize Captain Kriska held my arm, he lifted his open palm and blew white ash into my face.
It burned into my eyes, sticking on my tongue and the back of my throat as though I’d swallowed sparks from a fire. I screamed, wrenching back to frantically wipe whatever it was away—but my breath cut short. My vision blurred.
It burned. Everything burned. Fire sizzled into my skin, burrowing into my lungs. The world lost color, bright light seeping in from every direction as my knees gave out from under me. He released my arm and I dropped to my side, face slamming into mud. A few feet away, Kolibri’s hooves continued to thrash, shredding grass blades apart.
I tried to crawl. My skirt bunched between my legs. My throat seized, squeezing tight, and I realized I was suffocating. My heart bludgeoned my rib cage, pounding in agony as my airways tightened.
I might have thrust my face into the flames. My lips and chin blistered. Foam gathered in my mouth, thick like paste. My arms curled involuntarily into my torso, elbows bent tight, wrists locked at odd angles.
“Time to go, malá ryba,” Kriska said, dragging me up by a catatonic arm and against a saddle.
I gasped for air, begging my lungs to inflate. They didn’t. Sunlight ravaged my senses, searing into me when I opened my eyes. Thrust across a horse’s shoulders, Kriska climbed on behind me. I turned my head, trying to escape the assaulting sun.
Wooden walls and wooden floors.
I called water to my fingertips—but the moisture in the air didn't answer.
The water didn't hear my plea, as if Kriska had silenced me so thoroughly even the thoughts in my mind were bound and tied. As if I’d eaten—
Shield weed. He'd blown the ash of shield weed into my mouth.
He pushed my arm away, and I might have been no more than a wandering insect for all the good it did to fight as he kicked his horse into a gallop. A hand anchored my back, holding me down. My ribs clanged against the pommel, head rattling with each stride.
My legs spasmed, muscles jerking unintelligently. The sensation traveled up my body, balling my fingers and locking my jaw. A shudder consumed my limbs and spine. I screamed at my lungs to open. But everything in me had turned to stone, fire eating me alive in slowly ripening torture.
Metallic clashes reached my ears, a distant ring over the dull thud of hoof beats.
Somewhere behind me, Kye screamed my name.
I didn’t have the breath to yell back. My eyes rolled into the back of my head. And suddenly, the sunlight stopped hurting.