THIRTEEN
Ace
"Ace." Her name broke through the foggy thoughts of a dream."Ace," the voice said again before she felt her whole body jostle.
She slipped back into consciousness firstly aware of the way her hips ached and her body swayed with the steps of the horse under her. Second, she became aware of how she was reclined back, how her head was slightly turned, and how she could feel the rise and fall of every breath Shelby took behind her. Everywhere their bodies aligned was damp with sweat.
"Ace." The voice was an irritated growl.
Her eyes finally fluttered open. She quickly realized that at some point they'd veered off the dirt path that led between towns and had taken to smaller trails that ran through the forest floors leading to the wall that surrounded Pasia. She'd expected it but she was still surprised as she gasped when she caught sight of the large looming monstrosity before them.
Stone was stacked on stone, all of it black, looking more like a curse than something that was supposed to help them. It stretched up over the sky. Her mouth went dry. Slowly, she peeled herself off of Shelby, wiping a hand across her mouth where spit might have dribbled out.
"You drooled on me," Shelby said.
Okay, so spit definitely dribbled out.
"Sorry, you must have lulled me to sleep with your lack of entertaining conversation." She leaned forward squinting as she saw motion along the wall. Full armored bodies that paced back and forth or clustered in smaller groups. Ace went rigid. "There's guards." She looked harder. "Everywhere."
"I know. That's why I woke you. What should we do?"
Ask them nicely? Sylik suggested.
If that was supposed to be humorous, Ace was finding it sort of lacking. The gods could entertain someone's mind but they couldn't control them. Not since humans had free will and all that. So they might be able to keep someone distracted but she doubted they could just waltz right up there unnoticed or even come right out and ask it. The answer would be no. The answer would probably also be a swift stabby-stab right in the heart with a sword.
Come now, you can come up with something better than that, Greshta pushed.
Apart from slaughtering them with her newfound holy fire, I think asking might be the best option, Sylik said.
In what world? Greshta practically gasped. What you should have done is snagged a soldier on his way to his shift and worn his armor. Impersonated them.
Now that was an overused trick. Ace rolled her eyes. It was too late for that and she had no interest in using whatever thing was inside of her. She wasn't even sure she could easily call forth the holy fire.
Sylik was rolling with laughter at Greshta. Prompting her to ask, Well, does anyone else have a suggestion?
Apart from batting her eyelashes, not a clue, Mina said softly.
We are the god and goddess of beauty and nourishment this is not our expertise, Nathalian confirmed. Perhaps you should be asking Judia. She is the goddess of war after all.
Judia had never spoken to Ace. Not once had Ace been certain she'd heard that voice.
Judia is still banned from speaking. You know that! Greshta growled.
Banned? Banned from speaking to who? The world? Me in particular? Ace thought.
Judia was the goddess who broke our oath of silence to you. Judia told you Shelby's desires. Gave glimpses of who he was and why he desired it so much. No deed like that can go without punishment.
Shelby held the reins and the horse had come to a stop. Ace glared up to the sky dotted with clouds. "You’ve got to be kidding me." She wanted to shout it but managed to let the words come out in a hiss. You're telling me the only reason I was able to convince Shelby to help me was because the goddess of war assisted?
"What?" Shelby coughed.
Ace twisted in the seat to look at him. "Long story, but I'm sure none of it is a good thing."
If the goddess of war was coming out to play then Ace had to wonder if her and Shelby's deal had been a turning point for the human world, for the Fae, and what felt like the brewing of war. Brewing had to be the wrong word for it though because this war had never stopped. There had been a year of what some considered peace, but that was more like a brief pause in this wicked game the Fae and human queens were playing.
Don't get lost in your thoughts, Bedesh warned just as Ace's hair was picked up by the rush of wind and the cursed whistle of a loosed arrow that tore past her.
Shelby's hands wrapped around her waist, tugging her back against him, only narrowly helping her avoid another arrow. "Shit." His voice was a rough growl in her ear that stirred up the nervous flutter in her stomach.
Men stepped forward through the trees. They were dressed much differently than the men in black shining armor that almost blended in with the wall but were still the queens’ guardsmen nonetheless. These guards were in head-to-toe blacks, browns, and greens that blended with the forest around them. Even their faces were smudged with streaks of the colors.
"Don't move or I won't miss again," a man snapped as he walked to the horse.
Ace pointed her face down, trying not to make eye contact with them. The scar on her neck burned. Shelby's grip on her tightened, squeezing her breath from her lungs. Blinking brown eyes came into Ace's view as the man stepped up to the horse and pulled the reins from Shelby's hands. He paused as he caught sight of Ace.
"What in the fuck is this?"
"What is it?" a man farther away shouted.
"Orange eyed freak with a crazy mean looking scar." He tipped his head. "Come to think about it, did we get word of a pair that looked a little something like this fleeing from Queen Sienna's castle?" He didn't wait for confirmation as he snapped his fingers. "Get the girl. She can be brought before a queen. The man can be taken to be hung for the Impelling."
Hands were on Ace, fingers digging into the fabric of her clothes and tearing at her skin. She was already twisting. Already reaching. Begging. Shouting. Ace was moving to reach for Shelby as he was tugged in the opposite direction from the horse. Of all the hands on her, his hands were the only ones she wanted to stay.
His grip slid from her waist until he was holding onto her by one hand clasped around her forearm. A guard had his arm wrapped around her waist tugging while another was stretched between them picking Shelby's fingers off of her one finger at a time. The horse between them whined and stopped before bolting away and leaving nothing but air between them.
"NO!" she shrieked as they pried the pair apart. "Shelby!" Ace twisted enough, wiggled against the guard’s body, that she was able to swing an elbow into his gut. He hissed at the hit but his hold didn't loosen.
Ace wanted to reach for that thread of holy fire inside of her. She wanted her sword of blazing light to appear in her palm but then they'd know she was something more. Even with that reservation, she reached for that feeling, but it kept moving out of her reach. She couldn't cling to her holy fire.
Blue light was flicking in Shelby's palms, coming and going as his concentration waned. His face snapped to the side, spit flying from his mouth as a guard's fist collided with his chin. His figure, his magic, was growing smaller as the men pulled her away. Even then, Ace remained a whirlwind of flailing limbs. She dug her nails into every bit of skin she could find; she wanted them to hurt .
"It's going to be—" Shelby tried to call to Ace but guards descended upon him, so many bodies, too many. Another punch took the words from his mouth. White cuffs were snapped into place on his wrists.
Ace's stomach plummeted. She knew those cuffs. She'd heard about them but never seen them in person before. Bone bindings. Chains made from the bones of warlocks long since gone, enchanted to keep those bound from having access to their abilities.They were cutting him off from the one thing he could protect himself with.
Shelby’s expression fell as he took in the sight of his wrists. Ace could see the way his mind dove into dread. The exact moment he knew he wouldn't be able to fight back.
Acid was creeping up her throat, creating a scorching trail that tore out of her in a shout. She swore she could breathe fire with the way everything inside of her peaked while they wrestled her arms in front of her.
An icy, smooth shackle clamped down on her wrists. Cold fingers took hold of the fire within her and doused the flames until she couldn't feel the holy fire. Until she couldn’t feel the gods. Until she couldn'tfeel anything.
Those fiery orange eyes snapped down to her hands. Her fingers were already curling into fists. White bone wrapped around her and kept her from throwing any more punches. That acid turned to bile.
Bones. It was one thing to be brought back from the dead but an entirely different thing to have someone else's skeleton fastened around her wrists. It was almost like holding hands with the dead. She shuddered as the gifts from the gods dimmed, as she felt her strength diminish with it. It was like her senses were muting, she was becoming weak. Or maybe she was just becoming totally human for the first time since she was brought back.
"But I'm not a warlock," Ace whispered more so to herself. These shouldn't do anything a regular cuff couldn't do.
"They work just as well on demons," a guard hissed, his breath smelling strongly of onion and garlic sweeping across her face.
If Shelby hadn't been incapacitated then he probably would have laughed at that. Maybe Ace was a demon, but could demons wield holy fire? She really doubted it.
"Move." The man set Ace down, shoving his palm into her back.
Pain cracked up her body from her knees as she crashed into the dirt unable to even catch herself with the bone bindings on. Hands were on her before she could put the effort in to right herself. Ace gritted her teeth as she was pulled upright by her elbow and her shoulder began to ache, feet dragging against the ground.
She could see Shelby not far away, being led in the same fashion. His attention kept being split between Ace and weaving through the last of the trees until they made it into the clearing.
The wall was so much taller than it even looked from the distance Ace and Shelby had watched it. It stretched up and up until Ace thought her neck might snap in half from how far she bent back to see it. Black stone glistened like dark jewels in the sun. It sparkled though there wasn't anything but rock. Magic? The spell that kept the Fae from the Pasia borders? A broken spell if that's what this was.
Men dressed in black, somehow surviving the heat up there, looked down as their friends in green and brown pointed us to a covered wagon that had blended in with the wall. Every step Ace took was stiff as if she was subconsciously trying to keep from walking any farther.
Moisture pooled in her palms. The sensation of breath was hot against her neck. Fear was lurking. After every heartbeat was the stutter of nervousness, of knowing she was out of control. Not once as they came up to that covered wagon was she concerned for her own life. Death was not a worry she had, not when she'd been made from it. She feared for Shelby. She feared being alone.
Shelby was shoved into the wagon first. His tall frame being pushed and folded till he fit into the cramped space, shoulders hunched and cuffed hands settled between his legs. The world swayed around Ace as they forced her to a stop. Her heart beat in her ears.
Hands gripped her waist, readying to heave her up into the wagon—Ace's body jerked back. She blinked and the wagon was moving out of reach and she was…she was on a horse. There wasn't time to gasp or yell as she was hoisted upright, her body colliding with another.
Ace twisted. Shelby was standing in the wagon. The guards pointing swords in her direction or shouting at Shelby to sit. Behind Ace, holding the reins and keeping her from falling off of said horse much like Shelby had done was the man with orange eyes. His shoulder length brown hair was blowing back behind him. He smiled softly as Ace looked at him.
"You went through all the trouble of coming, I'd hate for that to be a waste." He purred into her ear even as arrows whizzed past them.
"We can't leave Shelby! We have to go back," Ace shouted. The whistle of wind picked up in her ears.
"He can take care of himself," the man confirmed before he yanked the reins and aimed the horse directly for the wall.
"No. Stop—Oh gods!" Ace shrieked as an arrow nearly nicked her arm and sunk into his. He merely grunted before he pulled it out and his skin radiated with an unearthly glow. The glow extended from his skin forming an orb that surrounded them and the horse. Arrows bounced off it.
Ace could only hope that they'd bounce off the wall too as they rode straight for it. They were going to crash and die. He was going to ram both their bodies into the stone and Ace wouldn't have to worry about completing any tasks from the gods. She'd be with the gods again. Splattered against the wall. This was not how she wanted to die.
She squeezed her eyes shut as tightly as she could. Any second she'd be gone.
But then she wasn't.
The wall came and went like a gust of icy wind, blowing her hair back, and knocking the air out of her lungs. She tipped back into the man’s body, and his biceps flexed pressing his arms tighter around her. Wet warmth touched her right arm.
Ace cracked an eye. Blood. He was bleeding on her. Oh great.
Then she opened the other eye and wished she'd just gotten crushed by the wall instead. Trees rose up as high as the wall, if not higher. It wasn't just their impressive height that made Ace shudder, it was their color. Black. The trees looked like standing charcoal but they oozed shiny red. They bled crimson sap.
So it wasn't just the stranger that held her whose blood she had to worry about, it was the forest's too. The horse was still carrying them into the ominous woods, protected by the glowing white light, and it didn't stop until they were at a distance no arrow could reach.
"Sorry about that," the man said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief. The fabric that had torn around the arrow opened with the movement and though red stained the linen top underneath it his flesh was whole. He dragged the handkerchief across her arm dabbing up the blood.
"Who are you?" Ace blurted. "Why are you like me?"
He laughed and the noise was too nice, too full of sunshine, joy, warmth, and all the good things Ace could think of. "I suppose that would be a good place to start." He cleared his throat and Ace felt the vibration of it against her back. "My name is Rehan Bailey. And you didn't think you were the only person brought back to fix the imbalance now did you, love?" He chuckled again.
"Love?" Ace coughed. "Don't call me love."
"What should I call you? Beautiful? Darling? Sweetheart?"
She tried to turn and get a good look at him but none of the angles were good enough for her to meet his stare. She could see his smile though, a big toothy grin that sparkled in the light. Gods above, how was he so perfect? Like an angel. Which was what Petu had called her, so she immediately shoved that idea right out of her head.
"Don't call me any of that crap!" Ace rushed to say.
"Well, do you have a name then?"
"Ace." She pursed her lips and set her gaze straight ahead.
"And a last name…"
"No last name."
"Well, Ace No-Last-Name, it's nice to finally meet you. Sorry about your friend back there."
"Shelby. His name is Shelby." Her already deflated spirit somehow shrunk even more. The distance between them and the wall was growing by the second and Shelby had been left behind. Shelby was in a wagon soon to be sent to the capital for him to be tried for the Impelling. But unless the Impelling was really just some version of having a stick up your ass then Shelby didn't have it.
"Is Shelby Mr. No-Last-Name?"
"I'm not sure that is any of your business."
Rehan was laughing again. The sound was much like that of his voice, melodic and in perfect pitch. Ace tensed and Rehan's laugh came to an abrupt stop.
"Am I making you uncomfortable?" he whispered.
"Well, I mean you literally just stole me so I would have to say yes."
His hold on her loosed and he tipped back giving her the smallest bit of space he could offer. Ace held her breath but he didn't do anything other than give her what he could in the space between them.
"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I did not mean to make you feel that way. Can I do anything to help ease the feeling?" His tone, pacing of his question, all of it felt…genuine.
Maybe he was just a good liar.
Ace held up the cuffs. "This would be a good start."
The horse huffed as Rehan pulled on the reins and they came to a stop. Ace turned and Rehan leaned over her, bringing with him the scent of honeysuckle. He even smelled good, damn it. Rehan grunted as he undid the cuffs and tossed them to the ground.
"I'm more than happy to get those terrible things far away from us."
The bone bindings had been on Ace for a matter of maybe minutes but her wrists still felt raw as she took turns rubbing them. A sharp breath filled her lungs as everything rushed back to her. The power of the gods hit her so hard pain struck behind her eyes. Her limbs were no longer weak. Her mind was no longer empty.
So glad they finally found each other, Greshta sang to herself.
She was never meant to be alone. I agree, Sylik confirmed. A beautiful match, right Mina?
Mina didn't respond at first. There was a beat of silence before she chimed in. There was a time I thought they were perfect for each other.
Was. As if that was no longer the case. Ace was apt to agree. This man…Rehan had kidnapped her! Well…he'd also saved her. Perhaps it was both. Yes. It was both. Kidnapping and saving.
Rehan shifted on the horse behind her, carefully picking the reins back up and nudging the horse forward. He cleared his throat. "The gods can be, um, very vocal."
Her spine stiffened so fast that Ace almost jolted right off the damn horse; she would have too if it wasn't for Rehan's arms that caged her in. "Did you—can you—"
Were the damn gods in his head too? Even worse…could he hear exactly what the gods had said to her?
"Um, yes. I can hear them too. Pretty freaky at first but you get used to it, I suppose."
"And you heard what they said to me? Just now?"
"Oh, you mean the whole dialogue of how we were created to be together in life? How I’ve been born from death to help you and be your partner for as long as we both shall live. Again." His chuckle this time was more nervous. "Mina might have changed her mind about us then. I have a theory that has something to do with Mr. No-Last-Name."
"Shelby. His name is Shelby." Ace lowered her head into her palms, cupping her face. "You know the guy you left to be killed. We have to go back for him."
"We really, really can't. I'm sorry, Ace."
Her eyes burned. She pressed her fingertips into her eyes refusing to let herself cry. She'd hardly cried over anything since coming back to the land of the living and she had no intention of doing so in front of Rehan. Even if she wanted to. Even if every cell in her fucking being needed to be near Shelby. The part of her that was missing.
Literally.
The two of them ducked under the low branch of a tree. Red droplets threatened to catch on their clothes. Now that she was free, it took everything in her not to swing on the man and try to get back to the wall. Ace wasn't arrow proof like Rehan had been. She didn't know how he'd used his holy fire to do that. Maybe they each had their own gifts.
"I could teach you," Rehan said, startling her out of her thoughts.
"Teach me?" she sputtered.
"How to extend your holy fire like that."
She was really turning around in the saddle now. Twisting her body so intently that her spine popped.
"Why don't you just…" Rehan picked up Ace's leg gently guiding it over the horn and the horse’s neck as Ace grunted. Once she was side saddle, he picked up her other leg and forced it between them until she was fully facing him. He'd done it so quickly too.
"What in the names of the gods!" Ace said through clenched teeth. Rehan was already grabbing her thighs and pulling her tightly against him. Their hips aligned and as the horse walked, they rocked against each other. Her cheeks flooded with heat.
"Isn't this better? Now we can see each other."
"I wouldn't say this is better," Ace whispered as she was finally able to really get a good look at his face.
He was young, that much was clear but there were clear wrinkles around his eyes and when he grinned at Ace, smile lines creased his cheeks all the way to his ears. She wasn't sure if someone could smile too much but she was certain that he probably did.
His eyes searched her face, the vibrant fire filled eyes that matched hers. His skin was a lighter shade of bronze as if time in the sun was the only reason he was as dark as he was. Dark brown hair blew back over his shoulders as he tipped his head, watching Ace with patience she'd never been able to master. All in all, he was handsome.
"I can read your thoughts." His lips twitched but he held that wide grin. "I thought I should probably share that with you."
"Then you'll already know that this position you've put us in is highly inappropriate."
"Only if you want it to be." His voice deepened.
Ace crossed her arms. Stubbornly, she leaned away from him, the horn of the saddle digging into her back. "How can you read my thoughts?"
"As you know we both contain some holy fire. Though I speculate you may have more than me." He was staring into her eyes, examining her soul. Ace hated how vulnerable it made her feel and scowled. "It connects us and the gods. You just have to figure out how to tap into it."
"How long have you been…alive?"
"A little under a year."
Ace's mouth pinched, her brows pulling low. "You haven't even celebrated your re-birthday and you already know more than me?"
Rehan hummed. "Re-birthday? Is that what we are supposed to call it?"
"Re-birthday, Born-Again-Day, I haven't quite figured out a good name for it yet." Ace cut a hand through the air. "That's not the point!"
That's because while you were running around Maipeg eating sugared treats, stealing grimoires to play with magic, and finding out how fast you could run away from the queens' guards he was practicing, Greshta interjected a little more aggressively than Ace thought was necessary.
Rehan's gaze widened a fraction before he continued on as if they hadn't both heard the goddess snapping at them. "I was secluded for quite a long time. My job was to assist you with killing the queen. I'd been instructed to stay put until you were actually ready for the job. Once the gods told me you were ready, I made my move."
"That all sounds very calculated."
"It was." He nodded.
"Where are we going now?" It would be helpful if Ace could read his thoughts. Maybe she wouldn't have to ask so many questions.
"Duck." Then his hand was on the back of her head, his fingers curling into her hair, as he pulled her down against him. He leaned back, smushing her face into his firm chest.
"What are you doing," she said, though her words were garbled against the white linen of his shirt. A light layer of sweat made his shirt damp and it soaked through to her cheek drawing out a grimace.
"A branch." The words rumbled against her face just as another tree limb passed over them.
The moment his hand let go of her face, she sprung back up. "Why do I feel like you purposefully steered us under that branch?"
"I didn't, but I could if you're just really enjoying being so close to me."
Ace flicked her gaze up then down him before it settled back on his face. He was kind, she supposed, and he was attractive, but that didn't make his face any less punchable. She tried to make that thought as loud in her head as possible. If Rehan caught any of it he didn't show it.
"We are going to the Fae camp. We are almost there actually. Look through those trees and you'll see glimpses of their tents." He pointed behind Ace but she didn't turn to look.
"Just look through these evil looking trees." Ace mocked him.
"They're called blood trees."
"Is it actual blood?" Oh gods, another reason she wouldn't want to be anywhere near here. Trees that actually bled…this was like something out of a nightmare.
He shrugged. "The gods have never given me a straight answer and according to the Fae King, the trees took root after King Rome was killed and the Fae were forced out of Pasia. They think that it's the real blood of all those whose lives were lost in the war."
"Even more creepy."
"Creepier than being brought back to life?"
Ace weighed the options for a minute and finally agreed. "Blood trees are scarier but I'm also desensitized to the whole coming back to life thing."
"Want to swap death stories?"
Just as quick as her cheeks had heated the blood was draining from her face. She tipped even farther away from him, thinking about the likelihood of her dying if she ran away.
"Never mind." Rehan bit into his lip. "Immediate reaction. That's a no from you. I'm sorry, I assumed since you said you were desensitized that you'd be okay with it."
"It's the coming back to life that doesn't bother me. The dying…that is different." She didn't want to think about that part. That's the bit that held all the pain, emotion, and damn betrayal. She'd never spoken a word of it aloud and maybe if she never did then it would remain distant and unreal.“I don’t even know you. You’re a stranger.”
"That's okay. We are here anyway." He wasn't looking at her anymore. He was watching behind her, the smile slowly slipping from his face.“And we won’t be strangers for long.”
The horse came to a stop and before Ace could even turn around to look at the camp a hand appeared at her side. When she looked down she was greeted with sharp jagged teeth, bright blue eyes, and pointed ears underneath a glistening silver crown.