Chapter 3
Three
Hayle
Avalon flushed so red that I was fairly sure you could see it in the darkness, even without my night vision. Zier Tarrin leaned against a tree, and though his expression was flat, I saw the mirth in his eyes.
Avalon let out an exasperated sigh. “Of course you’re here. Why would my luck change now?” she muttered to herself, and I tried not to laugh. She put on a pleasant mask and turned to face the Baron. “Baron Tarrin, your guard suggested you’d like to see us?”
“Please, call me Zier. I insist.” He was definitely teasing her now, and I watched as his lips curled as she grimaced. Vox had accused me of being animalistic many times, but you’d have to be blind to all five senses not to sense the pheromones that buzzed between the two of them.
I understood; Avalon had this endearing strength about her.
She was captivating in a way I didn’t fully understand.
I’d put it down to our Soul Tie connection, but it was more than that.
She had a light about her that emanated even in the darkness.
I was surprised she didn’t have dozens of men trying to steal her from us.
As if he realized their prolonged staring was veering wildly into the sphere of impropriety, Zier cleared his throat.
“I’ve secured you a small boat that will allow you to navigate the coastline, without raising too many alarms. It looks a lot like the small fishing vessels produced in Ovl, so you should be able to sail through there unseen in the crowd of other boats.
It may be snug, though.” He looked at the group of us, including Alucius and Braxus, and Quarry, who seemed to be completely at ease in Lierick’s arms. He was tucked into the small sling we’d acquired to ensure we could move him without injuring his wing further.
I grinned. “Not to worry. We can all spoon.”
Iker raised his hands. “Leave me out of the spooning. I’ll cuddle with the hounds on the floor instead.”
Alucius huffed at the very idea.
“We appreciate your help, Zier,” Lierick said quickly. “And your discretion.”
Nodding solemnly, the older man ushered us through the woods.
“The Baron of the Third Line has a lot of faith in your cause, and your group in general. I’m not sure I entirely understand his willingness to stand with you, but Viktor Taeme has always been a level-headed Baron, who believes in the safety and happiness of his Line.
I don’t believe he’s blinded by his Heir being in a… relationship with Avalon.”
“My father loves every single member of our Line like they’re his own child.
That’s how the Third Line operates. We are family.
” The rest of the Lines had never understood that the loyalty we felt to each other was the real magic of the Third Line.
Aside from maybe the Twelfth Line. “He wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize the family’s health and happiness, unless he thought it was beneficial for us all. ”
Zier nodded, but the group was silent, only the sounds of our footsteps echoing through the woods.
Well, Avalon’s footsteps. Most of us had been trained to walk lightly, and I was fairly sure Vox was actually walking on air, just above the forest floor.
If Avalon noticed she was the only sound in the woods, she didn’t say anything.
The trees eventually gave way to another clearing, which dropped off into darkness. We were standing at the edge of a cliff. I looked over at Zier Tarrin. If I was going to kill us all, this was where I’d do it.
And we’d followed him blindly, like ducklings.
Vox was watching him out of the corner of his eye, but Lierick didn’t seem worried.
I broke the silence. “Well, if you came here to throw us off a cliff in an ambush, you better get to it. There’s five of us, and there’s still a party you have to attend,” I joked, though there was steel beneath my words if you cared to listen.
Zier clearly did. “If I wanted you dead, I’d send a crossbolt through your window as you slept.
I don’t miss.” He stepped up to the edge of the cliff.
“The boat is moored in the cove below. It’s inaccessible by foot, but I figured that if you have a convenient Heir strong in First Line magic, a little thing like accessible paths wouldn’t matter.
This will get you out of Eaglehoth and away from the coastline, without ever having to go through the main bay. It’s the best I can do for stealth.”
Vox nodded solemnly. “Thank you, Baron Tarrin. Your assistance will be remembered.”
Zier’s eyes drifted back to Avalon, who was looking at the cliff edge nervously. “If it comes to it, know that the Eighth Line sides with you and your cause. But the rot in the Conclave goes a lot further than Feodore Vylan. You won’t have an easy time of it.”
Lierick nodded. “We understand.” Reaching out, he shook hands with the Baron. Vox did the same, before moving toward the edge.
When it was my turn, I couldn’t help but flex, shaking a little too firmly. Zier didn’t flinch. I grinned and winked. “We’ll be seeing you.”
Avalon stepped forward, her hand out to shake. “Be safe, Baron.”
He lifted her hand to his lips, brushing a kiss across her knuckles. “Call me Daddy Zier,” he teased, making a laugh burst from my chest, while Avalon groaned into her hands.
“I’m so embarrassed,” she muttered. “I’m so sorry.”
Zier smiled, and it was so at odds with his usual solemn countenance. “I’m not. Be good, Avalon Halhed.” He looked around the rest of our group. “Until we meet again.”
He disappeared silently back into the woods, and I fanned my face. “Damn, that guy knows how to smolder.”
Punching me in the arm, Avalon scowled. “You’re on my shit list now. I hope you enjoy spooning Braxus and Iker on the floor.”
I pouted, though it kept sliding into a grin. “Aw, Avie, I was only telling the truth.”
Rolling his eyes, Vox picked us all up in bands of air. Avalon let out a little squeak of surprise, but she was used to being in Vox’s air ribbons now. Shit, so was I. It was wild how quickly you became used to something that would have been unconscionable mere months ago.
Lierick and Iker looked uncomfortable, though, which I could understand. This was the same power that had murdered their ancestors years ago. Being at its mercy, in the hands of someone as powerful as Vox, must have been like acid on their nerves.
Ignoring their discomfort, Vox placed them gently down the base of the cliffs beside us. Iker shook his head. “Powerful, isn’t he?” he muttered, and I wasn’t sure it was a compliment.
As Vox drifted down through the air like he was a fairy princess, I whistled between my teeth. That was definitely a flex.
“If you’re done showing off…?” I asked lightly, indicating the boat moored just off the rocky cliff. “We should try and get out into the open sea before the sun rises and people realize we aren’t in our beds.”
There was a small rowboat overturned on the shore, and we pushed it into the water.
Vox picked Avalon up and placed her inside, but the rest of us fended for ourselves in the waist-high water.
The hounds paddled out to the rowboat, and I boosted them in.
Lierick was holding Quarry high above the water, and Avalon grabbed him, settling him against her chest.
We didn’t need to row as Vox used water and air to propel us toward the darkened boat.
Thank fuck Lierick and Iker were sailors, because my talents lay on solid ground.
Or in the bedsheets. The two Second Line guys boarded first, then I urged Avalon up the small ladder that hung down the starboard side of the boat.
“Is this the wrong time to tell you that I get seasick?” she muttered to me, and I laughed.
“No backing out of it now, Avie.” I leaned up and bit her juicy ass cheek that was just there, right above my face. I was a simple man, who enjoyed simple pleasures. “Though I’m happy to climb down and back up again if you want.”
“I’m going to dump your horny ass in the ocean if you don’t hurry it up, Taeme,” Vox grumbled from the rowboat below.
Avie’s cheeks pinkened, and I grinned. No regrets. “Grumpy bastard.”
Lierick and Iker were already doing something on the bow of the boat, and as soon as I slid up onto the deck, I grabbed the bags to take them below.
Stepping down into a galley, I placed the bags on the long bench seats.
Avie was wobbly, so I held her hand as she descended, carefully carrying Quarry.
“Let’s take the captain’s cabin. The three of us can share.”
Opening an empty drawer, I helped her place Quarry inside. It would be a temporary nest for him while his wing healed, though he was already looking peevish about being forced to rest.
It’ll be okay. I’ll take you up on deck as well. You won’t be stuck down here forever. Use the time to heal, so you can fly with the sea birds, I told him, and he fluffed up, letting out a disgruntled noise. Don’t worry. I can’t do it yet, but one day, I’m going to snap Eugene’s arm for you.
That made my little murder bird happier.
A trickle of trepidation slid down my spine, but it wasn’t my own. I turned to my beautiful mate and pulled her into my arms. Holding her close like this, I could feel the gentle shake in her bones.
“I would never let anything happen to you. I love you, Avalon Halhed, with every single cell in my body, and I’ll stand between you and every person in Ebrus who’d harm you.”
She stroked her cheek across my chest, snuggling closer for comfort, even if she didn’t recognize that’s what she was doing. “I know. But who’ll protect you? Who’ll protect Vox and Lierick? My friends? The Goddess picked the wrong person. I can’t even save myself, let alone the world.”
I doubted the Goddess had ever been more right in her choice of champion, but confidence in her abilities was something Avalon would have to gather for herself.
“You’ve already saved Vox, and me, and we’re two of the most stubborn bastards in all of Ebrus.
The rest of the country will be a piece of cake. ”
She laughed, holding me tightly. The boat lurched, and I guided her back up to the deck. We all stood at the rail, watching the cliff side get smaller and smaller as we set out into the eerie darkness of the open ocean, into a future that was just as murky.