Chapter 20
20
C allum was taken away. So were Tristen and I. Tristen was still shaking with rage over whatever he had seen in Callum’s mind. I felt like I wanted to scream and shake everyone’s secrets loose, but I was in the dark. I was sick of it.
As I was thrown back into my cell, the guards were stonefaced as I shouted after them to bring me to Tristen, to bring me to answers, to tell me what would become of Callum—but my cries went unanswered by the dark.
I paced the length of my cell, my body sizzling with anger.
What had Tristen seen in Callum’s mind?
What had become of Callum?
And why, godsdammit, could no one fill me in on the details of my past?
I must have been pacing the better part of the night, because by the time the guards had shown up at my cell and thrust a bundle of clothes and boots at me, I knew it was time.
The third trial.
Luckily, the guards had disappeared for enough time for me to change into what they had handed me. The tunic was simple, cut at my waist and flowing softly around my body. The pants were tight-fitting and lined with leather. The clothes were paired with the black riding boots I slipped into, and I hoped that my past included being able to ride a horse without falling off. That would be an embarrassing way to die in a trial.
The clothes came with a pouch that I attached to my waist with a belt. It was empty, save one gold coin. What the coin was for, I wasn’t sure, but I kept it in the pouch just in case. A cloak had been delivered as well, black and lined with fur. Looks like our journey would be cold.
As I was led into the silo floor by the guards for roll call, Cassandra was already waiting for us.
As we arrived in the semicircle, another guard calling our names one by one, I saw the last prisoner get hauled out to join us.
Callum.
Two guards held onto him, fury sparkling in his eyes as he now wore iron bands on his wrists and ankles—marking him, like Tristen, as one of the more powerful magic wielders.
Tristen, standing closest to where Callum was to join the semicircle, raised an eyebrow. “Looks like someone didn’t get his beauty sleep.”
Callum shook off the guards holding him with impressive strength, took two strides toward Tristen, and decked him in the face.
Tristen staggered backward, and a hush settled over the prisoners as I held my breath.
Tristen recovered quickly, straightening up to reveal a red mark on his jaw. He leaned away from the line of prisoners, spitting out some blood on the floor. Then, he turned back to Callum with a dark glare.
“I’d like to see you actually try and kill me in the trials, Commander ,” Tristen taunted. “Or did you lose your precious title for involving yourself in matters that didn't concern you?”
“Why wait for the trials? Let’s settle this right now,” Callum said, his expression promising death.
“My pleasure,” Tristen said.
“Boys,” Cassandra’s voice lilted over us. “You really want to keep the rest of us waiting?”
Callum stiffened, but backed down from Tristen. “Soon,” he promised.
Tristen just shrugged. “I’ll be waiting.”
Cassandra watched as Callum got in line, a smirk twisting at her lips as if she reveled in seeing Callum’s demotion. “As you all know, Commander Callum Wells has joined your ranks for the remainder of the trials.”
Murmurs swept down the line of prisoners, a few deep chuckles and cheers confirming that more than one prisoner would like the opportunity to put the Commander in the ground. My blood ran cold at the target that was growing on his back.
Cassandra continued, the prisoners going quiet once more. “Today, you will begin a pilgrimage to the Temple of Orsi—the temple I reside in when I’m not ensuring order here in Ashguard. It will take you two moons to arrive, and myself and my priestesses who serve the Order of the Serafim will greet you at the temple to take you to the Oracle. The trial is straightforward. If you survive the journey, follow the rules and arrive when called to answer the Oracle’s question—you’ll get to ask a question of your own. Then, you’ll be permitted to return here and await the next trial.”
“That’s all?” Rachelle challenged, her eyes narrowed. The rest of us held our breaths at Rachelle’s outburst.
But a sly smile crept across Cassandra’s full mouth. “The only road to the Temple of Orsi is through The Foggy Forest, of course.”
A hushed silence fell over the prisoners once more.
“Each of you have received a map in your saddlebags along with basic supplies and a gold piece as an offering for our goddess. Horses have been prepared for your journey. No guards will be accompanying you, as the third trial is already underway. May Illumia be with you,” Cassandra said and turned away.
“ May Illumia be with you ,” murmurs repeated back to her, but it was clear whatever was in The Foggy Forest had everyone rattled.
As Cassandra disappeared down a hallway at the far end of the silo, she snapped her fingers and at once all of our magic-dampening bands dropped—unleashing our powers yet again as the third trial officially began. The guards followed her, leaving us alone on the platform as it started to rise to the surface.
Callum turned to Tristen, his eyes flaring with an urge to fight, but in a few strides, I slipped myself between the two men, facing Callum.
“ Stop ! Stop this,” I said, pushing Callum back. Surprised, he yielded a few steps.
His eyes flickered down to me. “He’s done this?—”
“What did he see in your mind, Callum?” I said. But it wasn’t a question. It was a demand .
Callum’s eyes flickered back up to Tristen. “He’s trying to drive a wedge between us. Don’t you see that?”
“What did he see?” I seethed.
“Why are you questioning me, Saffron? After all I’ve done for you? All I’ve sacrificed? I chose to enter these trials. Chose to lay down my life for you. I did this all for you,” Callum said, his voice softening. “Don’t you see that? I’m here to protect you.”
“Don’t you realize what you’ve just done?” I said, my heart breaking even as Callum’s calloused hands gently cupped my face. “ You’re in The Ash Trials . Only one of us can survive. Which means you destroyed the one shot we had at a future together.”
“Tristen would have killed you if I hadn’t made my choice.”
My breath hitched, and I fought back tears. “He wouldn’t have. I told you to let down your shield last night, but you didn’t listen. You betrayed me. You betrayed us .”
“Then it will be an honor to die by your side,” Callum said, solemn.
His words gutted me. I stared at him, the certainty in his face. I felt my heart twist further, but my anger still burned. “I don’t want you to die. I want you to tell me the truth.”
Callum stared at me, searching my expression. “I need you to trust me.”
Again, that phrase. But I didn’t want to offer up blind trust. I was already in the dark, already lacking any bearing of who I was. I wanted answers.
As the platform reached the surface of the island, the prisoners around us jumped into action. Beyond the platform’s edge, a group of horses awaited us with full saddlebags of what I assumed were supplies for the trip ahead. The rest of the prisoners scattered, racing to claim a mare—and get as much distance from their bloodthirsty fellow contestants as possible on the road to the temple.
Callum grabbed my arm. “Saffron. Do you trust me?” he asked again.
“You shouldn’t be here,” I said.
“What do you want me to say? Because I’ll say it,” Callum said, holding me in place on the platform as the rest of the group started mounting their horses. “I’m here for you .”
But how could that be true when his anger had gotten the best of him last night? Tristen had goaded him and he had taken the bait.
Before I could reply, Tristen strolled back over to us, holding the reins of two mares. One was white as snow, the other as dark as night.
“Looks like it’s the three of us left, and only two horses. Want to ride with me, Saffron?” Tristen’s smooth voice asked, holding out the reins of a stallion with a shiny black coat. I hadn’t even heard Tristen step away to get the horses.
Tristen held his hand out for me. His posture was cool, unruffled. As if Callum’s boiling rage and my simmering frustration hadn’t affected him.
“If you can’t tell me what Tristen saw in your mind, then I need some space,” I told Callum.
Callum just shook his head.
So I took Tristen’s hand.
“Don’t,” Callum seethed, but I was already walking with Tristen over to his horse.
“Come find me when you’re ready to explain some things,” I said, and I felt Callum’s eyes bore holes into every place where Tristen’s hands were on me as Tristen reached around my waist and effortlessly hoisted me atop the black horse.
“See you later, Commander ,” Tristen said, winking at Callum, and slung himself behind me on the horse.
As we rode away, I caught Callum clenching and unclenching his fists, murder in his eyes.
I made one grave miscalculation when I agreed to ride with Tristen to spite Callum. Tristen’s body was so close to mine. As the dark mare trotted in between the towering trees down the twisting forest path, I was aware of every inch of his strong body that pressed into me as his arms cradled the reins in front of me, his arms lightly draped over my thighs. I tried to remain upright, keeping my back straight to maintain a respectable distance from this confusing, arrogant, and despicably handsome man— but, as my muscles ached, I slowly found myself leaning back into him, trying not to note his distinct pine and spice scent and how good his arms felt around me.
“Enjoying the ride?” Tristen said, and I could feel the rumble of his voice through his chest as his lips were just so close to my ear.
But his wedding band gleamed gold on his left hand. “So what does your wife think of you being here, flirting with me like this?”
Tristen chuckled. “Her jealousy rivals the bloodlust of the realm’s most vicious armies.”
“What is she like?”
Tristen was quiet, and I pivoted slightly on the horse to see his expression. He was deep in thought, a faraway look in his eyes. Then, he looked down at me and smiled—not a smirk, but instead a beaming smile that took my breath away.
“She is my reason for being,” he said quietly. “There have been several moments in my life when I nearly lost every part of myself. But then I met her. She became as vital to me as the air I breathe. She isn’t my world. She’s my universe . Stars bow to her courage, and she has made innumerable sacrifices for those she cares about. Her kindness is a sea that sweeps away the wreckage that others bring to our shores. I would be nothing without her.”
The words washed over me, and it was my turn to be silent. The way he spoke of her—it was clear he worshipped her. A piece of me felt… bitter about it.
Was I jealous?
Oh, come on—I couldn’t be. Tristen had proven to me that he couldn’t be trusted, and he was already deeply in love with this mysterious woman who was waiting for him on the other side of the trials.
That is, if he was the one who won.
If I won, then she would become a widow. That is, if I could even kill Tristen—it seemed unlikely, though not impossible.
I wouldn’t think about it— couldn’t think about outliving Tristen and Callum and Rachelle. Without them, I would be alone again in the darkness of the world, with just the void to keep me company.
One step at a time.
“You’re quiet,” Tristen mused. “I’d expect you’d be more at my throat today.”
“I’m just glad you and Callum are too far away to try and kill each other,” I said.
“It was his fault he chose to enter the trials. He signed his own death warrant.”
“There can truly be only one winner?”
“That’s what the Isle of Embermere has fated in all of the past Ash Trials, yes.” Tristen’s voice was soft.
I felt a pang in my heart. “I don’t accept it.”
“Oh?”
“There must be a way to change things,” I said, a boldness simmering within me. After days of straight fear and emptiness, this feeling was… new.
“There she is,” Tristen said.
It was my turn to twist and give Tristen a questioning glance. “Oh?” I asked, echoing him.
Tristen smiled at me, but shifted his gaze to the forest in front of us. The sunny day had given way to clouds, and even as morning bled into afternoon, it looked like it could be a cold fall night headed our way.
“I lied. About you being The Lord Killer,” he offered.
“I figured as much,” I grumbled.
“You’re actually much worse than that death dealer,” he said, but there was an edge of teasing in his voice.
I reached behind me for the hilt at his belt and whirled to him, placing the dagger at his throat. “Say that again, I dare you.”
He chuckled, his eyes heating. “Careful, princess. You’ll give me the wrong idea if you keep reaching for what’s near my belt.”
I glared at him. I turned forward once more, but still held his dagger, sliding it back into its sheath. “I’m keeping this as payment.”
“Might be helpful to have in this next trial,” he said.
“What do you know?” As we rode deeper into the woods, I felt as if the air had stilled, and I waited for his response.
“The Order of the Serafim. Has the King’s… pet told you about them yet?”
I rolled my eyes. “ Callum is not the King’s pet.”
“Of course he wouldn’t want you to think that.”
“If you two want to whip ‘em out and measure, I’m sure there’s a ruler in one of these saddlebags,” I said haughtily.
Tristen reached down and tilted my chin to bring my gaze up to meet his.
“Do I look like a man concerned about something like that?” His voice was sinful and hot. “I assure you, women have never had a problem with me in that area before.”
I shivered, but not from the cold. Tristen noticed from the low chuckle I felt rumbling in his chest and I glared at the forest ahead.
“Tell me about the Order,” I snapped.
“Well, since you asked nicely,” he said with humor in his voice. “Everything known about the Order of the Serafim is just a rumor, as they’re shrouded in mystery. The priestesses live here on the island all year—and they are the only ones who are undisturbed by the island and its power. Their Oracle isn’t human, though, so don’t take the riddle lightly. The cost of answering it wrong will likely be your life—or worse.”
“What can be worse than death?”
“Just answer the riddle correctly and you won’t find out.”
“Great,” I said, trying to keep my tone light, but my stomach twisted. The afternoon began to grow darker as the clouds passed over the sun. I found myself leaning a bit further back into Tristen, craving his warmth. A shred of comfort. “Aren’t you tired of all this death?”
“More than you could ever understand,” he said. I fell silent as we rode deeper into the woods.