Chapter 46 #2
“You came here to kill them,” I said, my words filled with quiet disbelief.
Slowly, so slowly, Sidrick abandoned his efforts and turned to face me. The instant his deep mahogany eyes hit mine, I knew the truth.
Tarrin and Kaelun tensed by my sides.
“Wait,” Tarrin said, his voice lethal. “This was an assassination mission—and none of you felt the need to inform us?”
Sidrick didn’t answer, and of course he didn’t. He couldn’t. But the apology in his eyes let me know that he’d argued in favor of telling us.
“Who?” Tarrin demanded.
I let out a humorless laugh. “Both of them. That’s why Caius spared both of his commanders. One for Wymond. One for Thaddeus. Isn’t that right, Sidrick?”
The war Caius’ third waged against himself was evident, his mind raced in every which direction to explain, only he couldn’t find a way around the gag order his oath demanded of him.
Kaelun stepped up to his older brother, and the hurt that marred his features made him look younger as he looked up at Sidrick. Then, whispering more to himself than us, he said, “It’s true.”
“Kaelun, I’m sorry,” Sidrick said, reaching for his brother, who pulled away.
“Is there anything else you’ve kept to yourself that you can tell us?” Tarrin asked, and I didn’t miss how tight his jaw clenched, which meant only one thing—he was running out of patience.
The summer fae lowered his head before answering, and my heart sank. “I…” He stumbled over the word, then looked up, as if forcing himself to offer us the respect we deserved. “I don’t think I can valen anymore.”
“Sidrick!” I shrieked, but Tarrin lifted a finger to silence me. I saw then that he’d shifted from a man asking for answers to a commander demanding them so he could assess the situation and plan—regardless if he liked the information he received.
“Anything else?” The question laced with a low warning.
“No.”
“Okay then,” Tarrin said with a calm born of practice.
“We’re still a good eighteen hours of straight travel away from the border.
That’s without breaks, assuming you don’t deteriorate further, or that beasts don’t magically erupt from the ground.
With you and Ny unable to valen, Kaelun limited to teleporting two of us to a place he’s seen before, and the very real possibility that Wymond would show up if we pulled that ripcord, it essentially takes that option off the table.
And while I wasn’t keen on being in Artton’s place before, I’m certain I don’t want to be tortured for information on a dual assassination I know utterly nothing about—other than that it exists.
Now, take off your damn base layer so we can patch you up so we can get the fuck out of this gods-forsaken land. Okay?”
No one argued. The truth was, between my revelation and Tarrin’s stark words, we were in trouble. Big trouble.
“I need help getting my shirt off,” Sidrick admitted, then turned so his back was facing us.
I gasped, bringing my hands up to my mouth to muffle the sound. His back was ruined. I stared in horror as blisters of black puss popped, only for his fae healing to swoop in and create a new one in its place.
“Fuck me,” Tarrin gritted out.
I reached for a blade and braced myself as I stepped forward to cut the tattered garment free, knowing there were scrap pieces of fabric that had mended deeply into tanned flesh.
“No,” Tarrin said, stopping me before he dropped his bag, pulling out a small blade.
“I’ll do it. Neither of you needs to see this.
Go find a place close by to eat and rest for a bit while we take care of this. ”
Sidrick glanced over his shoulder at his brother who’d stopped breathing. “That’s an order, soldier.”
Kaelun nodded, the movement languid, like he was caught in a trance.
“Come on,” I whispered to him and gripped his arm, turning him away from the grisly scene.
“Thank you,” I heard Sidrick say to Tarrin as we walked away.
“Don’t thank me yet.” There was a shuffling noise, then an audible crack of wood snapping. “Here,” Tarrin said. “You’re going to want to bite down on this. I’m not going to lie, it’s going to hurt.”
Seconds passed before Tarrin asked, “Ready?”
Knowing we’d never be able to get out of earshot, I needed to distract him, and the bushel of violet heart-shaped berries would do the trick. Letting go of him, I reached down and quickly grabbed a few, then went to pop them in my mouth.
“Lady Nyleeria!” he exclaimed, slapping the berries from my hands. “Those are death shade berries and extremely poisonous.”
A fact I was well aware of. There wasn’t a human berry’s origin, use, or toxicity level I hadn’t known.
Outside of court politics and anything I could learn about the spark, I’d made it a personal mission to commit fae berries to memory just the same.
I needed to be prepared in case I had to run away from the Summer Palace and live off the land.
A sudden shockwave hit me as I realized I’d stopped planning to leave, though I couldn’t quite place when it’d happened.
Perhaps it was when the carefree spirit looking at me now blew into my life, his unbridled optimism somehow allowed me to trust him and those he loved.
Kaelun was my senior by many, many years.
But there was an innate innocence to him that had died in me long ago, and I hoped with all my heart that this journey wouldn’t steal his light.
“Oh,” I said, chest to hand, pretending as if I were shocked.
“Thank you. I just wanted something fresh, you know?” I didn’t have to pretend on that point.
Sure, I’d grown up living on cured meats during the winter months, but living in the Summer Court with its vibrant life and fresh produce at every turn had spoiled me.
“Here,” Kaelun said with a soft smile. “You can eat these.” Stepping past the berries he’d just saved me from, I followed him as he meandered through this plant and that until stopping before a massive bush that was taller than me, sporting an assortment of perfectly round berries the size of a rosebud in shades that mirrored a rainbow.
I’d seen it drawn, but it was a sight to behold, and I couldn’t help but openly gape.
“The colors,” he said as he popped a red one into his mouth, “indicate their flavor. The lighter the color, the sourer it is. The middle range”—he grabbed a vibrant green one and ate it as he continued—"is sweet.
And these ones"—he pointed to the indigo and violet varietals—"lend themselves to more savory spreads, like beans. "
“Fascinating,” I said and plucked a red one.
Tentatively, I brought it to my nose, though I could smell very little through the thin membranous skin that protected the fleshy fruit underneath.
Putting it in my mouth, the berry was flavorless on my tongue as it rolled back.
Squishing it between my molars, saliva flooded my mouth and my face puckered before I spat it out.
“Gods, Kaelun. That’s sour. How were you able to eat that with a straight face? ”
He laughed in earnest. “Oldest trick in the book,” he said, slapping his knee.
“Jerk,” I said, pushing his shoulder before reaching up for a sweeter berry to negate the overpowering flavor that lingered on my tongue. “Umm, much better,” I crooned, enjoying the sweetness of the green berry that reminded me so much of the ones that grew wild back home.
“Personally,” an unfamiliar male voice said from behind us, “I prefer the blue ones. They have just enough sweetness and make a fabulously rich spirit.”
Slowly—hand sliding out daggers—I turned to the stranger who stood with his arms crossed, shoulder resting against a massive tree like he didn’t have a care in the world, and a smug, self-satisfied smirk on his face.
“Hello, little mouse,” he purred as he pushed off the tree.
“We’ve been looking everywhere for you.”
Recognition dawning, my mouth went dry as I stared at Wymond’s fourth-in-command.