Chapter 22
Dozens of questions filled Varum’s mind and nearly fell from his tongue. He managed to hold them back, only because now wasn’t the time to delve into that. Kalyani was being cagey enough about where she lived. She wouldn’t divulge anything personal now.
“Have you noticed those two elves, or others, while you were swimming?” Nirav asked.
She shook her head and nervously took a drink of water.
“That doesn’t mean they didn’t see you.” Varum met Nirav’s gaze. “They could’ve followed her to shore.”
Nirav pulled a face. “That’s what I was thinking. And they breached the surface to see her.”
Varum slid his gaze to Kalyani.
“That means they know where the others live.” Kalyani used the table to get to her feet. “I need to warn Rohan.”
Nirav lifted his face to her. “It may already be too late.”
“I refuse to believe that. You both promised to release me. I need to get home. Now,” she implored.
Varum caught her gaze and tried to reassure her. “We will.”
“When?” she pressed.
Nirav pulled out another map and unrolled it, laying it on top of the first. Varum watched Kalyani study it. She was smart. It wouldn’t take her long to realize it was a map of the trench.
“I’ve been considering how to get you out,” Nirav said. His lips flattened briefly as he sighed. “It isn’t going to be easy.”
Varum pointed to a location on the right. “What about here?”
“The currents shifted three days ago. You’ll never be able to swim through that carrying Kalyani,” Nirav said.
Varum nodded. “Right. I forgot. It’s a good thing I didn’t try to come through that way.”
“What about here?” Nirav asked and tapped a location to the south.
That was no good either. “Additional sentries are patrolling there because of an increase in shalorin. What about here?”
Nirav gave a quick shake of his head. “That would take you too close to Assembly Hall.”
“Then I go back the way I brought Kalyani in.”
Nirav sat back and released a breath. “We’ve already established that it’s too out in the open.”
“That only leaves one option,” Varum said.
Kalyani looked between them. “I take it by your expressions that it isn’t a good choice.”
“There are considerable dangers,” Nirav said.
Varum stared at the map, tracing the direction he would need to swim with his eyes. “I’ve taken that route before.”
“Not carrying someone while using your magic. You barely made it home, taking one of the easiest routes. You won’t make it to shore using this one,” Nirav replied.
Kalyani dropped onto the sofa. “What do you mean he nearly didn’t make it?”
“It was nothing,” Varum stated.
At the same time, Nirav said, “The cost of using his magic to keep you from being crushed by the pressure sapped his strength. Had both of you been out any longer, you’d both have died.”
“Oh,” she mumbled in shock as she flattened her hands together before holding them between her knees. She clearly had no idea it had been that close for both of them.
Varum squeezed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. “Kalyani needs to get home, and we need to get her out of the city. The sooner, the better. I understand the dangers.”
“I don’t think you do,” Nirav replied, his voice clipped with worry. “It’s a miracle you reached the city in the first place.”
Fear bracketed Kalyani’s mouth as she asked, “Are you telling me I can’t leave?”
“I got you here. I’ll get you home,” Varum promised.
Nirav slammed his hand on the table and lifted silvery white eyes to Varum. “Wait until the currents shift again. You can swim inside them then, and they’ll spit you out safely on the other side of the trench.”
“How long until they change?” she asked.
Varum dropped his head. It was the safer option for him, but also for Kalyani. The sight of her distress in wanting to return to her family made him think of all the times he’d waited for his parents to come for him in his youth.
“How long?” Kalyani repeated.
Varum lifted his head and met her gaze. “Three weeks.”
She deflated, as if every last bit of hope had been sucked out of her. “Oh.”
One word, whispered in a voice filled with despair.
And yet that one word wrecked him. He never should’ve brought her to the city.
It was the first time he had made such an error, and the impact continued to ripple outward.
How many more would be affected by that one choice? He was almost afraid to find out.
“We leave tonight,” Varum stated.
Nirav straightened and started to speak, his face mottled with anger, but he held his tongue when Varum cut him a look.
“I can’t ask you to risk your life like that,” Kalyani said.
Varum shrugged. “You’re not asking me to do anything. Besides, I’m responsible for you being here. I gave you my word that I would release you once you gave me everything on the Masters. I’m merely holding up my end of the bargain.”
“This is reckless, Varum.” Nirav shook his head in disgust. “You’re never so careless.”
“I’m righting a wrong.” He hoped Nirav would leave it at that, because there wasn’t anything else to say on the matter.
Varum returned his attention to the map.
“I’ve been thinking about how the Masters are using ships to move some of the abducted.
It would help if we knew where they were taking them.
Maybe after I return Kalyani, I’ll do some looking around. ”
Nirav pushed back to sit straight against the cushions. “What about your job?”
“I’ll take a few days’ leave.”
“Varum—”
“Enough. I’m doing this,” Varum announced. “Help us or don’t but stop trying to change my mind.”
Nirav dipped his chin in defeat. “I’ll cover for you here, then. There is a better map that shows that area of the trench. I’ll go get it now.”
Varum stared at the floor once his friend had left. It never felt good to fight with Nirav. It occurred so rarely that Varum was always left shaken by it.
“Is it as dangerous as Nirav says?”
For a moment, he had forgotten that Kalyani was in the room. Varum looked her way and nodded. “It is, but I’ve swum it before.”
“Not using your magic to protect someone, though.”
“You don’t need to worry. I’ll get us through.”
She looked around nervously. “What exactly is dangerous about it?”
“The trench is wide, as well as deep. Right now, we’re along one wall of it.
There are coral outcroppings and rock formations.
The area we’re going to is a narrow section known for its rapidly changing currents that move alongside each other.
If we get caught in one, it could toss us against the coral. ”
“And?” she pressed.
He shouldn’t have been surprised that she would want to know everything. “Shalorin call that area home.”
“Shalorin?” she asked with a frown.
“They’re serpent creatures that live within the coral. They’re very aggressive and highly toxic. One bite can kill.”
Her dark eyes widened. “We’ll be dodging currents and shalorin?”
“I will be.”
“And what will I be doing? Won’t it help if I’m swimming, too?”
Varum shook his head. “I need to be able to swim without worrying about you.”
“Surely, you aren’t actually thinking about carrying me?”
“I am.”
Her mouth fell open in shock. “That’s ridiculous. I’m a good swimmer.”
“Maybe. But you’ve never faced these currents or the shalorin. Not to mention, my magic will be surrounding you. It’s easier if you’re against me.”
“That’s going to make it harder for you.”
He found his gaze drawn to a curl brushing her jawline. “I can do it.”
“Would the other way be better? The one three weeks from now?”
“A tad easier, aye.”
She pressed her lips together and looked away. “Three weeks.”
“There’s no need for you to wait. You need to return, and the longer you’re here, the greater the chance you’ll be discovered.”
Varum opened the door after Nirav knocked and announced himself. His friend rolled up the other two maps before laying out the new one. The three of them leaned over the table, peering at the detailed drawing of that section of the trench.
“Where are we coming from?” Kalyani asked.
Nirav tapped on the map. “We’re here. The eastern, outermost building of the city.”
“This may be a silly question, but why can’t we just swim up?” she asked.
Varum braced his hands on the coffee table. “It isn’t silly. You have no way of knowing that Tarangarh is heavily patrolled, especially the area directly above us.”
“Since you two can’t take that route, Varum will swim you both along the wall, angled toward the surface for a period before he’ll need to dive several meters to get around the dangerous currents,” Nirav said. “Those currents aren’t easy to navigate, and they change in a blink.”
Kalyani’s frown was deepening as Nirav spoke. “How will we tell where the currents are?”
“I’ll be able to see them,” Varum said.
She tilted her head to the side. “You can see them?”
“It is something all Sea Elves can do. How do you think we navigate in the water so well?” Nirav asked.
“Anyway, he’ll have to go under the strongest section and then swim between them in order to get to the gap in the rocks.
The problem then becomes the shalorin. They live among the coral and are fed by what the current brings to them. ”
Kalyani tucked her hair behind her ear. “And once we get through that? Are we safe?”
Nirav shot her a halfhearted smile. “The worst part will be over, but Varum will still need to swim through the trench.”
“And all the while, I’m just supposed to sit there and let you do all the work?” Kalyani asked him.
Varum looked up from the map. “You are. When we get a safe distance away, where I know the sentries won’t see us, I’ll head toward the surface. Once the pressure is safe for you, I’ll withdraw my magic and let you swim on your own.”
“Then I’ll take you to my brother. But that means you’ll have to come onto land.”
Varum hadn’t thought about that. It would be his first time stepping onto soil while breathing air. If Nirav could do it for five years, he could manage it for a few hours. “Do you think your friends will talk to me?”
“They will after I assure them that you aren’t with the Masters.”
Nirav rubbed a hand along the back of his neck. “They’ll be cautious, and Rohan will likely take offense that you took his sister.”
“I’ll plead my case,” Varum said. “If that’s all, we need to prepare.”
Nirav climbed to his feet. “Are you sure I can’t talk you out of this?”
“You worry too much. I’ll be back before you know it,” Varum said and clapped his friend on the shoulder.
“What about you?” Nirav asked Kalyani as he turned to her. “How are you feeling?”
She gave him a warm smile. “Much better.”
Varum was concerned that she was still weak, but he would be doing most of the swimming anyway. He watched her talking to Nirav, his gaze drawn to her mouth. He’d had the opportunity to kiss her, and he had let it slip through his fingers.
It was foolish for him to wonder what her lips tasted like.
She was a human and not allowed in Tarangarh.
It wasn’t as if they could ever have any kind of relationship.
Whatever reckless behavior had led him to bring her here was coming to an end.
He’d take the information he got on the Masters and ensure that his people were safe.
Maybe one day, Kalyani’s face would fade from his memories.