Chapter 16
CHAPTER 16
Farron
“O h, you’re mates,” Rosalina says. Her eyes are wide, her voice shaky. She holds her hands up, stepping away from Wrenley and Dayton.
I could kill Dayton. A growl rises in the back of my throat. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell her.”
“I was going to,” Dayton says, storming up to me. “But between battling Kairyn and assisting in Rosalina’s rescue alone , there really wasn’t time.”
“Are you saying I should have been there?” I shove him in the chest hard enough for him to stagger back. “ You’re the one who told me to leave.”
Dayton shakes his head, fury lighting his eyes. His lips curl over his teeth as he snarls, “And you were so happy to run away.”
The ground shakes, and I grasp his arm instinctively to steady myself. The briars writhe beneath us and, above, some of the high glass windows crack.
“Hey, listen!” Astrid yells. “Something’s wrong with Rosalina!”
We whirl. Tears cut rivers down Rosalina’s dirt-stained cheeks. “I’m fine, r-really,” she says, staggering away from Astrid and the other servants with unsteady feet. “I suddenly feel s-so—”
Rosalina falls hard to her knees. Dayton and I lunge toward her, but a force sends me flying back, a swirl of wind surrounding Rosalina’s body.
“Rosalina!” I yell, staggering to my feet.
Her eyes are wide, and they’ve turned completely gold. Though her lips are parted, there’s no sound, only the wind breezing around her. With eerie apprehension, I realize it reminds me of Ezryn when he lost control of his magic.
There’s another rumble, but this one comes from a different part of the castle. Flavia, the castle’s seamstress, runs from the Summer Wing, a few other staff trailing behind her. “It’s collapsing! The Summer Wing is collapsing!”
“It’s my rose …” Dayton breathes, voice ragged. “I don’t have any magic.”
“Go to the High Tower,” I say, then turn to Marigold. “Do you have a list of everyone who was stationed in the Summer Wing today?”
“Already on it, boy!” she says, pulling out a slim pocketbook from her apron.
The room shakes again and screams sound from deep within the halls of Summer. Eldy holds on to Marigold’s arm, and Astrid clutches desperately to the banister.
“Dayton, go!” I round on him. “You need to protect your rose in the High Tower!”
He looks desperately from Rosalina to a few more staff running out of the Summer Wing. “No,” he growls. “I need to save my people.”
In a fluid motion, he leaps into the form of the golden wolf and bounds into the Summer Wing.
What do I do? What do I do? Panic rises within me. Flavia and other staff surround Marigold as they try to take count of everyone. Wrenley is still on her feet, watching Rosalina with an expression of fear and fascination.
Rosalina. There’s not just wind around her now, but water. Salty, briny water. Her hair tumbles around her face, wild and unkempt. A steady stream of tears cascades down her cheeks and flows into the tempest.
Her pain hits me like a wave. Pure sorrow. A deep despair echoing in her heart where a raging storm thunders. I know this pain.
I’ve felt it myself.
Heartbreak.
“Rosalina!” I cry. “I’m here. I’m here.”
But my words don’t reach her through the storm. She’s completely still. I need to get to her. I throw myself into the bubble of water and wind surrounding her. The elements rip my clothes and tear at my skin. I fall back, breathless and bloody.
Another huge quake shakes Castletree. Wrenley screams, falling to her knees, gripping the thorns in a desperate attempt to steady herself. The golden wolf rushes out of the Summer Wing with several staff members on his back and one in his mouth. He drops them in a heap before he looks down at us, forlorn. “The wing is flooding,” he gasps. “One of the staff is hurt.”
He turns just as a wave of water crashes into the main hall, pouring down the stairs in a thin layer. I look from Rosie to the staff members. I can’t leave her.
“It’s Zearia!” Astrid calls. “Her leg is bleeding really bad!”
“Put pressure on it!” Where is Ezryn? I need to protect Rosie, I need to help Dayton, and I need to shelter my staff.
I knew Castletree was weak, but how can we be losing an entire wing? Could it have been the Prince of Thorns? Did he sense Dayton’s magic was diminished and launch an attack?
Then, as if he can read my mind, a tangle of thorns sprouts in the entrance hall. The Prince of Thorns appears. But he’s not alone. His slender fingers grip tight to the arm of …
Keldarion.
“What is going on?” the High Prince of Winter growls.
There is only one way to fix this.
Fire licks up my arms as I stalk forward. “The Summer Wing is collapsing, and it’s his fault!”
I lunge at Caspian, but Keldarion steps between us. “No, it’s not.” He grips Caspian roughly by the back of the neck, pulling him close. “I know you’ve been using your thorns to keep Castletree standing. Now, save it.”
Caspian’s expression goes from startled to wistful as he stares across at Kel, then drops his eyes to the storm that is Rosie. “I can try. But it’s not going to be easy.”
“When is anything involving you easy?” Keldarion says almost softly.
Softly, in a tone I haven’t heard directed at Caspian in over twenty-five years.
“This is such a fucking mess.” Caspian stalks forward and rolls up his sleeves. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen him look so angry, his face contorted in a sharp scowl before shifting into a wide-eyed stare. His gaze is trained on Wrenley. “Housing Kairyn’s acolytes now, are we? I thought I was the only monster allowed in Castletree.”
Wrenley says nothing as she watches the Prince of Thorns with an almost bemused expression on her face.
Caspian makes it to the top of the stairs in two bounds, and his eyes widen as he stares down the corridor of Summer. He stretches out his hand, perspiration dotting his brow. “I can’t keep it standing. It’s too far gone. All I can do is buy you a little time.”
Castletree shakes, and another torrent of water rushes from the Summer Wing.
“Dayton!” I yell.
Caspian grits his teeth, thorns coming up to twine around his legs and keep him steady. He curls his fingers, lavender eyes closing.
Is what Kel said true? Have Caspian’s thorns been helping us all this time? The thought is so wild I can barely process it.
There’s a growl, and the Summer Wolf rushes out, laden with more staff. His legs shake and he collapses.
“Is that everyone?” I yell.
“I think so,” Eldy calls back, looking over Marigold’s shoulder as she makes furious checkmarks on her notepad.
“Farron, help!” Astrid is in front of me, holding Zearia. A nasty gash runs down her leg, bleeding fast.
“Lay her down.” I kneel on the ground, trying to steady my breath and concentrate on the healing magic Ezryn taught me.
Keldarion runs over to me, gaze fixed on Rosalina. “Tell me what happened.”
“Rosalina and Dayton just arrived. And … we were talking—” My words jumble as soon as they leave my mouth. “Rosalina just fell to her knees like this. I don’t understand what’s happening to her. The Summer Wing started to collapse. Dayton’s magic is so weak, perhaps that’s why.”
“This isn’t just the Summer Prince’s weakness,” Caspian snarls from the top of the stairs. “The Queen created Castletree. Rosalina’s magic is affecting it.”
“How is that possible?”
Keldarion steps toward her. “Because Rosalina is the Queen’s daughter.”