Chapter 6
ARIEL
I stood there, dumbfounded, as Eldrien put his palm to his chest and swore an oath against an enemy that wasn’t. As he spoke, my mind drifted down a darkened road of ominous possibilities; one where I considered that his revelation might be the very thing that Kaplyn had been truly worried about me learning in Anemosia. That his history with my mother had been far different from what he’d let on. But I shook those ideas from my mind because they made no sense, for myriad reasons.
Which left me wondering how I should react to Eldrien’s words.
Thankfully, Shayfer interceded again. “As Ariel said, the fae—including Lord Kaplyn—will not be an issue. For now, at least,” he said, casting me a reassuring glance. “He has no reason to suspect this is where she’s gone.”
“How can you know that?” Eldrien asked.
Shayfer turned that charming grin of his on the leader of the Minyades, and I watched the tension in his cerulean blue wings dissipate. “Because I was Kaplyn’s trusted advisor.” That got Eldrien’s attention. “But it’s more than that,” Shayfer continued as I looked on, marveling at his ability to navigate this shocking accusation without hesitation. “I learned that the Nychterides harbored three Minyade prisoners in Daglaar. From them, they learned of the Aima Kori ’s existence.”
Eldrien’s brow furrowed. “Why would they have gone to Daglaar when they knew Ariel was imprisoned in the Midlands?”
An excellent question indeed.
“I believe they were lured there by General Kade,” Shayfer said without skipping a beat. “Given his connection to Ariel’s father, it would make sense that he might be an ally in freeing her, and that could have been used against your brethren. Kade used the Minyade prisoners as sacrificial pawns in his attack on Kaplyn to get Ariel. By the time Kaplyn realized what was happening, it was a bloodbath—and we used it to our advantage.”
“As Kaplyn’s most trusted warrior, I was sent to personally guard her,” Hemming added. I whipped around to find his expression stone cold as he lied through his teeth as easily as Shayfer had. “Which was exactly what we knew would happen.”
“Given Kaplyn’s arrogance, he will, at worst, think we’ve been taken by the Nychterides,” Shayfer added. “At best, he’ll think we were killed and disposed of.”
Eldrien’s eyes narrowed as they shifted back and forth between the males flanking me. “And the Minyades were sacrificed as a piece of this plan?”
“It was necessary to keep up the fa?ade,” Hemming replied unapologetically.
The fire that sparked in Eldrien’s cool blue eyes was undeniable.
I edged forward and placed a gentle hand on Eldrien’s forearm to draw his attention. “Who were they?”
He lowered his gaze to mine. “Two were the only men remaining from my father’s council. The other, my cousin.”
I tried to picture the males I’d seen in my father’s prison—the one who’d held a blade to Sophitiya’s throat—but all I could recall were weak, feeble voices and bodies without faces, which roused a strange sense of guilt deep within me.
They’d given their lives for me, and I could barely remember them.
“Let the tolling of the bell draw all here tonight,” Eldrien announced loudly to the crowd that had gathered around us. “We will celebrate the return of the Aima Kori and all who sacrificed their lives to assure that end.”
While the Minyades cheered his proclamation, I leaned in close to him. “I am sorry for those who were lost. For your loss…”
A sad smile graced his angular face. “It was not in vain.” He then turned his attention back to Shayfer and Hemming. “Our celebration is also of your sacrifice in returning Ariel to us. It is no small thing to betray your own, and for that, we are grateful.” Shayfer gave a small bow in response while Hemming gave the slightest nod of acknowledgement. “If you’d be willing to indulge my curiosity, I would love to know why you chose to risk your lives to free her.”
The two shared a look before Shayfer flashed that endearing smile of his once again and said, “it was impossible not to once I grew to know her.”
“And her promise to make you her right-hand man didn’t hurt,” Hemming muttered under his breath loudly enough to be heard—as was obviously intended to reinforce the ruse.
“A fair point, Hemming, and one I never hid from you.”
Eldrien turned to the warrior at my side. “And you? What were your reasons?”
“My reasons are my own,” was his only response. And the harsh way in which he delivered it said there would be no expanding on it. Ever .
As silence stretched out between them, a small, low laugh escaped Shayfer. The warm tenor slowly grew until it seemed to wrap itself around our group and ease the growing tension. “Oh, Hemming, your stoic nature never ceases to amuse me.”
“I’m glad I could contribute to the entertainment this evening.”
His deadpan delivery only amplified Shayfer’s outburst until even Eldrien cracked a smile in response. “Is he always this way?” he asked as he began to chuckle.
“Yes,” Shayfer replied. “Always.”
“Well, his somber nature cannot put a damper on this evening. It has been a long time since we’ve had a reason for joy in Anemosia. Ariel, would you like to come with me to meet your people as they prepare for the festivities?”
At that, I smiled. “Of course. We all would.”
“We have little to offer, but what we have is yours. And after tonight, all that should change.” The light of hope shone in Eldrien’s eyes, and though I didn’t share his optimism that my very arrival would fix things, I had no intention of snuffing it out.
“Might I recommend not putting her anywhere near the food preparation?” Shayfer said as he fell in step with Eldrien. “She was put on kitchen duty once, and…well…it never happened again after that night.”
I looked up at Hemming and found a whisper of a smile tugging at his lips. “For good reason,” he called after Shayfer. The spy winked over his shoulder as he and the curious leader of the Minyades led the way into the crowd milling about the congregation space.
I just stood there, wondering what the night would bring. What truths would be uncovered. What answers would be revealed. And what information about my mother’s and my past would complicate both even further.
HEMMING
W hile the Minyades prepared for the celebration, Ariel made her way through the crowd with Eldrien beaming at her side. Everyone she passed looked at her with a reverence that was beyond comprehension, and anxiety brewed deep in my gut. She was more than just their returned royal—she was their savior .
And that fact drove my concern for her and apprehension of them further still.
By the time we found ourselves around the fire with Eldrien and his entourage from earlier, hundreds more Minyades had arrived. News of her return had traveled quickly, thanks to the chiming of the bell, and with each bright-winged one of them that came to pay their respects, I was set further on edge. I knew that after all Ariel had witnessed since we’d set foot in Anemosia—the destitute and desperate land that was her birthright—her emotions would leave her vulnerable to manipulation. Her judgment was often clouded when it came to things she felt strongly about, because her heart was big and pure and often overrode her rational mind.
A trait I equally loved and feared.
“Your people are elated to have you back home,” Eldrien said, smiling at her over the edge of his glass. “You represent a new future for them—a symbol of hope.”
The way he spoke those words made me wonder if he’d carefully curated them. I gently placed my hand over the sheath strapped to my leg as I glared at him through the flames that separated us.
“Can I ask you something?” Ariel replied with a note of hesitation.
“Of course.”
“This curse…how did it bring down Anemosia?” She practically winced after the words left her mouth. “I mean, I just can’t imagine the amount of destruction it would have taken to reduce something that used to be lush and vibrant to what it is now.”
Eldrien’s cup slowly lowered as his expression sobered. “Though I was very young then, I, too, remember a time when our lands were fertile and full of life. Which means I also remember when that gave way to pestilence, famine, and death. And it all happened so quickly. The drought came first, wiping out our farmlands to the west as far as the Midlands border. It killed off all the livestock and vegetation, which forced all that lived there to the coast. The overcrowding was a strain on our remaining resources, and my father did all he could to manage the crisis as it unfolded, but it proved an impossible task once the sickening struck.”
“The sickening ?” Shayfer asked, true confusion in his tone.
“A wave of affliction and disease that spread like fire along the coast, killing without prejudice. It was horrific…” Eldrien paused for a moment, a tortured, faraway look in his eyes as he stared at the fire. “My mother was the first of my family to succumb. I remember her kissing me goodnight as she tucked me into bed; her lips felt feverish against my forehead and she was pale, but I was too young to think anything of it. The next morning, I found her in her bed, her limbs blackened with death, her eyes as red as blood as they stared up at the ceiling, unblinking. For as long as I live, I will never be able to erase the sight of her from my mind.”
“Eldrien,” Ariel said, her voice cracking on his name, “I’m so sorry?—”
“Next to fall were my three older sisters, the eldest of whom died with her unborn child still filling her womb. My father was away at the time, working tirelessly to sequester the sick; to close off our remaining cities and villages in an effort to contain it. But its hold was too strong by then, its claws dug in too deep. He died alone, just outside the city walls, before he could teach me how to rule in his stead—or the details of the curse that plagued Anemosia.” Eldrien scoffed as he shook his head. “When it all began, he thought I was far too young to share his burden. Such a cruel irony that his misguided attempt to shelter me left me to shoulder it all alone.”
“But you’re not alone now,” she said softly.
“No,” he replied with a smile, “I’m not.”
The silence that drew out among us was broken by the sound of high-pitched voices causing a disturbance in the distance, and I turned to see the trio of boys from when we arrived arguing with one of Eldrien’s men. He was blocking them from coming closer, and they were none too pleased about his interference.
“We want to see the Aima Kori !” the eldest shouted in frustration. “Move, you overgrown oaf!” He reached his spindly arms toward the much larger man and gave him a shove. Though it proved futile, I couldn’t help but admire the boy for it all the same. Given the annoyed look on the guard’s face, he did not share my sentiments.
The moment he snatched the child by the arm and yanked him close to admonish him, I was on my feet, blade in hand. “I would rethink your course of action where the boy is concerned,” I called out, doing nothing to hide the threat in my voice. The fair-haired Minyade glared back at me in challenge, but released the child. He took a step back, allowing the boys to pass, and the eldest muttered something to the guard as he made his way to me, his younger brothers in tow.
He pinned narrowed, wary eyes that shouldn’t have belonged to someone no more than ten on me and repeated himself. “We want to see the Aima Kori .”
“And you shall—once you tell me why.”
His younger brothers peeked out from behind him, fear in their tiny faces, but his gaze held fast as he stared at me as though I couldn’t destroy him with a flick of my wrist. “We have a gift for her.”
“A gift?” Ariel said. I heard the familiar fall of her footsteps as she walked up to join us. “How very thoughtful of you three.”
“Show it to me.”
My demand was met with a scowl, but he reached behind his back to his brothers. When his hands reappeared, they held a plate made of woven twigs and sea plants. Atop it rested a blackened fish that had spent only a minute too long on the fire.
“We went fishing right after Eldrien announced that there’d be a celebration tonight,” he said as he reached the offering toward Ariel. “We wanted to bring you something.”
I felt Ariel stiffen next to me, and I stifled the desire to take her hand in mine.
“That was hours ago,” she said softly. “You’ve been gone that whole time?”
He smiled up at her, pride beaming in his eyes. His brothers, comforted by Ariel’s presence, edged out from behind him. They, too, could not help but let the elation they felt in that moment play out in their grins.
“Do you like it?” the middle child asked, his voice so quiet I had to strain to hear him over the din of the celebration.
She reached over and ran her fingers through his ragged hair, smoothing it as a mother would. “This is the most beautiful fish I have ever seen, and I am so impressed with you for catching it.”
“Eat some,” the youngest urged. He bit his lip nervously as he waited in anticipation.
Ariel stood motionless as her gaze dipped from the meager fish to the boys before her that were little more than skin and bones. Her hesitation was painfully apparent even to the younglings, and I watched as their elated expressions slowly fell away, knowing full well the pain that kind of rejection bred.
I gently took her elbow in my hand and leaned in to whisper in her ear. “You cannot refuse their offering, though I understand why you wish to.” She turned to me, tears brimming in her eyes again, and I squeezed her just a little harder. “Let them have this moment, Ariel. It will mean more to them than a meal ever could.”
The truth in my words took a moment to settle, but I knew it had once she squared her shoulders and swallowed her rising emotions. She turned back to the boys and smiled before she grabbed nearly half the fish and put it in her mouth. Chewing slowly and deliberately, she relished the sacrifice the children had made for her, honoring them in the process. And with that one act, she secured their adoration.
“Do you like it?” the youngest asked as he looked up through his lashes. His tiny green wings wrapped tightly around his sides as though he was girding himself for her reaction.
Slowly, she crouched down in front of him and took his hand in hers. “It was the most delicious bite I’ve ever taken.” She smiled wide, and he mirrored her in an instant. “Would you like to taste it to see if you agree?” Before he had a chance to reply, she held out a piece before his mouth. The poor boy licked his lips at the sight of it.
“ Doret ,” the eldest brother warned, “that’s not yours.”
“But I am not familiar with the fish that swim these shores,” Ariel countered. “I’d like you all to tell me how you feel this offering stacks up against the other fish you’ve caught and cooked before.”
“Alred,” the little one whined, “it smells so good…” With no warning, he plucked the fish from Ariel’s fingers and stuffed it in his mouth. His eyelids rolled closed as he chewed it, and a little moan of satisfaction escaped him.
“I’ll take that to mean it’s as good as I said?”
The middle one took a step closer. “Could…could I try a bite too?”
“No, Filsen. Don’t?—”
But it was too late. He’d already snatched a bit from the plate like a starving man and swallowed it whole.
Ariel reached the final bit toward the eldest, Alred. He weathered the temptation like a seasoned warrior, but hunger was a formidable foe, and even he, with his admirable resolve, caved eventually. While he enjoyed the morsel, Ariel looked back at me, a sad smile on her face. “Perhaps they should be allowed to join us for a while. Such an offering is deserving of as much, don’t you think?”
The middle boy, Filsen, gasped at her words, while the youngest threw his arms around her and squealed. Had my answer not already been yes, it would have been after their reactions.
“Of course.” I gestured back to where the others sat looking on, and the boys took off running toward the fire, dancing around it as though that single bite of fish had replenished them after a lifetime of malnourishment. Their glee was reflected in Ariel’s expression, though I could see the sadness lying just beneath it in her eyes. It said that their strife was now hers, and I knew that she would not rest until they no longer suffered.
And as my gaze shifted to Eldrien, who watched her return with an unsettling keenness, I couldn’t help but wonder if he hadn’t orchestrated the whole thing to meet that very end.