Chapter 18 Power Strange and Terrible
Power Strange and Terrible
Laitha.
She said the name like I should have heard of her. When it became obvious that I hadn’t, her smile shifted, her expression becoming curious.
“You’re not from this place,” she said, stepping closer to me.
“I should have guessed—it’s unlikely you would have escaped our notice for so long.
” She looked me up and down with interest, lingering on my legs.
“You’re wearing trousers. Do women usually wear trousers where you’re from?
” Her eyes snapped up to my face. “Are you a woman? I suppose I shouldn’t presume. ”
My face flushed. “Yes, I’m a woman.”
“Well,” she said dismissively, “It makes no difference to me what you are or what you’re wearing. That’s not why you’re here.”
“Yeah,” I said, sarcasm tinging my words, “I figured that wasn’t why you kidnapped me.”
Her mouth quirked. “I can see why you would view it as a kidnapping. I prefer to see it as self-preservation. You can’t trust strangers, not in these woods.” She stepped even closer. “The question is, can I trust you?”
“That depends,” I told her honestly.
Her smile widened, softening her again. “You’re forthright. I like that. Continue to be forthright with me and this will be easier for both of us.”
What would Siera do here? I asked myself. Probably pretend to play along until she had a better idea of her enemy. Because despite her smiles and her lighthearted tone, I was still very aware that this woman was not my friend.
“Let’s start with something simple,” she said. “Tell me your name.”
I wasn’t going to give this woman my real name, but I knew if I hesitated too long I’d give the lie away.
“Pearl,” I told her, giving my rarely used middle name.
“Pearl. How perfect.” Her unsettlingly pale eyes slid over my face, probably looking for some sign of deception, but thankfully, she didn’t seem to find any.
“And where have you come from, sweet Pearl? How did you come to be here?” Her voice was smoother, silkier now—it sounded almost nothing like the terrifying wind-whistle I’d heard back in the woods. How was that possible?
“Where exactly is ‘here’?” I asked.
Her head tilted slightly to the left. “You don’t know?
Does that mean your presence here is an accident?
Or are you simply suffering from some sort of memory loss?
” She scanned my body again before returning her pale eyes to mine.
“That was quite the powerful display back there. Perhaps you’ve overwhelmed yourself.
I’ve heard of it happening, on rare occasion.
” She gripped me by the chin, angling my face this way and that.
Her touch sent a bright little shiver through me, like a tiny shock of static electricity.
“But how did someone so powerful escape our notice for so long? That is the true question.”
“I…don’t know,” I answered, which was mostly the truth.
She released my chin. “No games, Pearl. I want us to be friends. I suppose you’ve realized this by now, but it’s dangerous for you to be on your own, powerful as you are. You need an ally. And a proper teacher.”
“And I’m assuming you’re volunteering?”
“I see it as my responsibility,” she said.
“There are few of us in this world who can wield essence the way you and I can. Those who are weaker will always try to use us, with no care for our own wants or needs. We must look out for each other, you and I.” She stepped closer again, her eyes going soft, almost pleading.
“It is a lonely world for women like us,” she said.
“We must not give away our power.” She opened her lips as if to say more, but something stopped her, and her mouth dropped into a frown.
“There’s something…different about you,” she said, more to herself than to me. Her hand came up, cradling the side of my face, again causing those pleasing little shockwaves of shiver. “It’s not your power, it’s…” She appeared to be at a loss for words. “Why do you feel so strange?”
I didn’t have an answer for that. But before I could be forced to start awkwardly babbling, we were interrupted by a chorus of shouts from outside.
Her hand fell away from my face and she spun around, going straight for one of the slits in the tree trunk that looked out across the little camp. She let out a string of curses, her voice sounding once more like a violent wind forcing its way through dead branches.
“LAITHA!” Boomed a deep, familiar tone that made my heart sing. “RELEASE HER!”
Octavian. He’d made it through the portal, and now he’d come to rescue me.
Laitha had gone rigid.
“It’s true, then,” she said, again more to herself than to me. She spun around, pale eyes locking on me with renewed interest.
“How are you connected to them?” she asked.
I opened my mouth to give her some bullshit denial, but she cut me off.
“Don’t lie to me, girl. I heard you call Prince Alastor’s name when we grabbed you. And now all three of them are outside.” She crossed to me in two strides. “Who are you, and what have you done?”
Outside, Octavian bellowed her name again. And there were other shouts, too, and the sound of metal on metal, blades clashing together. A mild itch was spreading across my skin.
Laitha let out another curse, then glided past me to the door of the tree. The itch on my skin intensified as she swept outside.
She’s going to do something terrible. I’d managed to raze an entire section of the forest without even trying. If this woman was as powerful as she claimed, then what could she do with skill and intention?
I couldn’t stop her. I had no idea how to tap into that power again, and as long as my wrists were still bound behind my back, I couldn’t even open the door and go after her.
But I could warn the brothers.
“WATCH OUT!” I screamed, even as the shivery itch in my skin continued to build. “SHE’S—”
The door to the tree slammed open, chips of bark flying everywhere.
On the threshold stood Radven.
“Come on,” he said, beckoning to me as he watched the camp over his shoulder.
The moment I was within reach, he grabbed my upper arm and ran, around the tree and away from the camp.
I stumbled along with him as fast as I could, while also trying to see what was going on behind us.
The camp was in chaos. Most of the tents had been slashed to bits, and half a dozen unconscious—or dead—bodies lay on the ground.
In the middle of it all stood Octavian and Alastor, back to back, their swords swishing through the air in surprising harmony.
Some of Laitha’s men and women still fought, but none could even get close to touching the two brothers.
And then there was Laitha. She stood just beyond all of the fighting, her hands outstretched with her palms to the sky.
And her eyes—even from this distance I could see there was something unearthly about them, something that made even their usual paleness seem normal.
The shiver in my skin was building with shocking speed.
“Rad—”
“Come on. Quickly,” he said, still dragging me along as fast as he could.
“We can’t just leave them!”
“They can handle themselves,” he replied, but even he sounded a little uncertain.
He didn’t let that slow him down, though, and I sensed his increasing impatience at my slowness. When I tripped over a root, he grabbed me and threw me over his shoulder.
And then he sprinted.
“Hey!” I started to protest when I was over the initial shock of being flung about like a sack of potatoes. What was it with these people and throwing me around? Since meeting them, I’d spent half my time hanging upside-down.
It wasn’t the most comfortable position, but Radven was definitely faster than me, as well as less likely to trip and fall flat on his face. With my wrists still tied behind my back, it would only have been a matter of time before I stumbled over another root and broke my nose.
Radven darted through the trees, me bouncing on his shoulder, and as far as I could tell through the veil of my hair, no one was following us. For a rescue, this was actually going pretty smoothly.
And then I was blasted in the face.
That was the only way I could describe it—a blast—even though I wasn’t struck by anything physical. It was more like a shockwave, starting at my head and shooting all the way down to my toes, a shiver so strong it knocked the breath right out of me.
Even Radven stumbled and stopped, looking back in the direction from which we’d come.
“What was that?” I asked. I was honestly shocked that I wasn’t writhing in intense pain after being hit with that. A faint shiver lingered on my skin, that was all.
“Someone just manipulated a very large amount of essence back there,” he said. “We just felt a ripple.”
“Was that Laitha?” I said, panic rising. “Did she… What do we…?” If that blast of essence or whatever had been directed at Octavian or Alastor, there’s no way they could have survived.
Radven was already turning away, continuing through the forest.
“What are you doing?” I demanded. “We have to go back!”
He ignored me, picking up his pace and carrying me even further away.
“Stop!” I said. “You can’t just leave your brothers! We have to go help them!”
“And do what, exactly?” he launched back without breaking his stride.
“I… I don’t know. Something. They’re your brothers!
” And the only reason they were even in danger was because they were trying to help me.
If there was even the smallest chance that they were still alive, we needed to do something.
After everything we’d been through these past couple of days, I couldn’t believe that Radven was so heartless he would just leave them.
But that was apparently exactly what he intended to do, because he showed no signs of stopping. Up ahead, I could hear the sound of rushing water through the trees.
And what could I do? Even if I managed to break free of Radven’s grip, I wasn’t very useful bound up like this.
But if you return to Laitha, I thought, maybe you can convince her to stop.
To let them go free. Laitha was obviously deeply interested in me.
If Octavian and Alastor were still alive, maybe I could convince her to stop her attacks by agreeing to stay with her willingly.
To let her teach me, or whatever it was she wanted to do.
“Alastor and Oak can handle themselves,” Radven said, as if he could read my thoughts. “They’ve survived worse.”
I wanted to believe him, but my gut said otherwise.
Up ahead, the trees opened up to reveal a small river about thirty feet across. When we reached the bank, Radven set me down on my feet once more.
“We have to go back,” I said again, refusing to give up.
Radven gave a single shake of his head. “We have a plan. And they trust me to do my part. We need to trust them.”
Despite the confidence of his words, though, I caught his glance back in the direction of the camp. He was worried, too, even if he didn’t want to admit it.
“What if you’re wrong?” I asked.
Radven looked at me, as beautiful and dangerous as ever. His expression was brutal.
This man has been through more than I can ever know, I realized, looking into his forest green eyes. This was a man who’d seen more risk, and danger, and death, than I could even imagine.
“We trust them, and we keep going.” he said firmly. “Don’t even think of trying to escape.” And then, despite the hardness in his eyes, his lips broke into a wicked smile. “I’m afraid you’re stuck with me for the time being, butterfly.”