Chapter 129 Rhea
Chapter One Hundred and Twenty-Nine: Rhea
In the wake of the revelation that Haylee might have been there the night I was attacked, Nox tells me what she had done while I was gone.
How she had insisted, in a way that seemed as if there was no other logical choice, that she and Nox marry.
That they appease the council. Exhaustion lingers heavily around my mind, and yet, even as we agree to discuss it all in more detail once we are back in the Mage Kingdom, I cannot find rest easily.
The thought that Haylee had been deceiving me, deceiving Nox and Bahira, the entire time, makes me uncomfortable with anger and thirsting for a vengeance I had only tasted once before.
I manage to doze off for a little while before the press of Nox’s lips at my shoulder rouses me from sleep.
We shower again before we leave, this time painted in the soft yellow glow of early morning light.
Nox shampoos my hair and then lowers to his knees so that I can do the same for him.
I’m desperate to hold on to one more moment of just us before we thrust ourselves back into the reality we’re running from.
It starts with a kiss, soft and sweet and slow.
Then I’m delving my hands into his hair and wrapping my leg around his hip as he holds me to him, and together, we steal an intimate moment that is far too rushed.
The ride is just as arduous as it was the day before, stripping us of the ability to engage in conversation as we push the horses well into the night, only pausing twice briefly to let them drink and rest. Without the distraction, my mind wanders, collecting images and memories I’d rather forget as if they are trinkets to be shown off.
I already tried pretending that my hurts didn’t exist, and I had learned the consequences of that action.
So as we ride, I try to focus on each memory that rises.
But what I don’t account for is the guilt.
It twists and contorts each image until I’m left white-knuckling the saddle, my chest heaving with fractured breaths.
When we finally stop to rest, it is well into the night, and though we aren’t quite in the Mage Kingdom yet, the trees grow more thickly here.
Daje starts a fire as Nox and Xander guide the horses to drink first before tying them to trees and giving them sacks of grain.
Gathered around the flame, we eat a small meal of dried meat, nuts, and fruit before Xander breaks our tired silence.
“If I am to cross the border tomorrow with you, you should heal me now.” I stare at my cousin over the fire as I reach my fingers towards it to warm them.
“Why now?” Nox asks, his arms folded over his chest where he sits at my side.
“While I’m sure that we have enough resources just between the two of you to fend off a decent number of men, it’s in our best interest to avoid as much conflict as possible while crossing.
Especially if you want to handle the delicate situation of revealing that there are now mortals who can pass through the Spell.
If there is trouble, I don’t want to be a distraction for her. ”
“Are you sure you want to cross?” I ask him, tugging my cloak around my shoulders more tightly as a shiver works over me.
“No,” Xander answers honestly, tossing a small stick into the flames.
“But Brisk was right. Staying in the Mortal Kingdom is too dangerous right now. I can figure out how to get communications going again, maybe with your help.” I don’t miss how he gestures to me and not Nox.
Neither does Daje, whose eyes shift back and forth between them.
“I’m sorry, but what is the connection here,” Daje asks, a brow lifted as he points from Xander to me. “I mean, I know you are leading the resistance, but—”
“He’s my cousin,” I interrupt, glancing at Nox from the corner of my eye.
I had told him before we left the inn about who Xander was to me, and though I had seen a small flash of relief cross his face, Nox had been otherwise unbothered by the reveal.
He had cited that being my cousin didn’t absolve Xander of all he had done against me in the king’s name.
Considering it had taken me a while to trust Xander, I couldn’t exactly blame him for feeling that way.
“King Dolian had children?” Daje asks, eyes wide.
“He had a child,” Xander answers, arms folding over his chest as he stands in front of me. He wears a cloak similar to Daje and Nox, except he has the hood pulled up over his head, his onyx hair lost in the shadow it creates. “I am, for better or worse, his single bastard heir.”
“But heir enough,” I reply quietly, and Xander’s expression softens at my words. “Ready?”
He exhales roughly but nods, watching as I lift my already glowing hand.
The magic blankets him easily, and though I keep my focus on Xander, ensuring my intention doesn’t stray, I hear Daje stand and step closer, Nox doing the same.
Xander’s eyes eventually fall closed as my power pours into him, seeping beneath his skin until he is glowing with it.
I realize that this is the first time I’ve healed anyone without the ring on, and just as I begin to wonder how I will know to stop, I feel the moment Xander is healed, and my magic starts to pull back.
His veins show through the white light beneath his skin, but then that fades too.
When his eyes open again, I’m sure I see white glowing behind them, but then he blinks, and all that remains are those dark irises.
“Do you feel any different?” Daje asks, eyeing Xander like he might shift into another being at any moment.
“A little. It feels warm.” His brow furrows, a line carving between them. “And like I can take a deeper breath.”
I grin at him, grateful that my magic has done something good.
“We should get some rest,” Nox says, from behind me, his hand finding mine. “I’ll put a shield over us with my magic.”
We all make our way to wool blankets that are spread around the fire, Nox and I settling down on one together as his magical signature flares, and then we are encased in a deep purple dome that covers our small camp on all sides.
“Can you hold it while you sleep?” I ask, looking over my shoulder at him.
My heart sinks when he doesn’t answer, so I turn until I’m facing him.
“Nox, you can’t stay up all night. Why don’t we take shifts? ”
“No.” The word is spoken softly, but it leaves no room for negotiation. When I arch my brow at his curtness, he smirks before leaning in to kiss me. “I’m not going to exploit your magic,” he says against my lips.
“It’s not exploitation if I’m offering,” I counter, leaning away when he tries to kiss me again. I study his face, tracing each perfect angle before returning to his gaze. “Nox, what’s wrong?”
He looks to where our hands meet over the blanket.
“I think that your magic, Void Magic, is wonderful, that it gives you the ability to heal people. But… Rhea, when more and more people find out what you can do, they are going to want you to do things for them. And if you refuse? They’ll feel like you owe it to them to do so. ”
“Why?”
“Because if I’ve learned anything spying in the Mortal Kingdom and navigating the politics of my own, it’s that when men find a source of power, one of two things happen: Either they find a way to twist it to their own advantage, ensuring that it’s something they can wield however they want, or they fear it and find a way to destroy it. ”
I pinch my lips together, laying a hand over his chest, thinking of King Dolian and Queen Amari. “I won’t let anyone use me ever again,” I whisper, proud of the conviction of my own voice. “I promise.”
“And I’ll kill anyone before they get the chance, but I also worry that if there comes a time to say no, your heart won’t let you.”
I huff out a breath as the light from the fire behind me dances over his face.
“I was so terrified when I learned I had the magic to kill. That I could wield shadows into something so deadly that it drained another of life. If there is a way for me to help people, I don’t see why I should keep that to myself.
” It made me happy to heal those suffering from the Cruel Death, even given my circumstances.
If I could still figure out a way to help them…
“I’m not saying that you should,” he counters, pulling me closer. “I just want you to remember that there is a hierarchy when it comes to who you keep safe, who you protect. And you are at the top of that list. Always.”
Our conversation falls quiet after that, Nox encasing me in his warmth as I close my eyes and try to find sleep. But his words dance in my head the entire night, just as much an affirmation as an omen.