Chapter 20
Sebastian
I push out a breath as I lean against one of the large rocks. It isn’t the most comfortable position, but it does give me a clear view of the road that winds down from the mountains…from the Ice Court. This is where it feeds into the court through its narrowest entry point.
If the queen is coming from the Ice Court, this is the path she’ll take. It’s the fastest route. Any other way would add at least half a day to her journey. I’m guessing that since she wants to get here so quickly, this is where she’ll enter. I pray I am right.
Queen Snow almost never leaves the Ice Court. She has mostly remained behind her walls of ice and enchantment, surrounded by legions of guards. Always protected. Always watching through her cursed mirrors.
This is a huge opportunity, one I have to take.
She’s coming here, to my court, and she’ll be traveling light.
The distance between the Ice Palace and the Shadow Court is vast. To cover it in the time Belen described, she would have needed speed over strength.
Fewer guards and provisions. A smaller retinue moving fast and hard across the deadlands.
They’ll be tired when they arrive. Horses spent. Guards weary from days in the saddle.
It is the closest thing to an opportunity I will ever get.
I close my eyes, reaching inward. The magic is there. It has always been there, even when I didn’t know it existed. Even when Snow’s curse had me believing I was human.
My power has been growing for many sun-cycles. Building and building with no outlet, no release. Even though I’ve used it once since, I didn’t unleash its full force. I couldn’t.
I almost killed everyone that night. I just managed to pull it back.
This time will be different.
This time, I won’t hold back. I won’t try to rein it in or force it into submission. I will open every gate and let it pour out of me with everything it has. I will become a weapon.
The guards will die. Many of them. Perhaps all of them.
And more than likely, so will I.
I’ve made my peace with that. The letter I left with Julienne says everything that needs to be said. Belen will know my wishes. Namely, with no other heirs to the throne, that I would like for him to rule should I not make it. I know that he will pick the right successor.
Taking Snow on in such a manner isn’t a good plan. It’s barely a plan at all. It’s a fool’s mission born of desperation and rage and the knowledge that Snow cannot be allowed to continue.
If I succeed, the realm will be free, and therefore I have to try.
I shift my weight, easing the stiffness in my legs. The sun is climbing higher. Beyond the shimmer of the barrier, the deadlands stretch out in their muted, rotting gray. It’s a stark reminder of what Snow has done to this world.
I settle in and wait some more.
Time passes slowly. The road remains empty.
Then I hear hooves coming from the opposite direction.
My body tenses. I press myself lower against the rock, peering through the gap.
A small group of riders appears on the road, their horses at a steady lope. They pull them up to a walk, just before they reach my hiding place. They’re shadowfae guards out on patrol, or perhaps they have been sent to intercept the queen.
“I still can’t believe it,” one of them says. “They caught the performer, and we weren’t a part of it,” he grumbles.
My body tightens, and I squeeze my eyes shut for a second.
“I know what you mean,” the other says. “It could have been us. We were south just last night. Why couldn’t she have tried to escape then?”
“I wish she had.” He sighs. “I hear she put up quite the fight. They think she might be a witch or a hybrid half-breed, or perhaps a mixture of both.”
“Are they taking her back to the castle?” his companion asks, taking up his reins a little.
“Yes, they’ll lock her up until the queen arrives. I don’t envy her. I’m sure she’ll end up being executed for her actions.”
“She shouldn’t have helped that deserter,” one snorts.
The first guard swears under his breath. “And we missed all of it.”
“I know. The bounty on her head is considerable. The lads who brought her in will split it among themselves.” He sounds bitter. “While we’re out here riding patrol on an empty road.”
“It’s not fair,” the other whines. “We’ve been searching for days.”
Their voices grow fainter as they ride on, still complaining. The hoofbeats fade until there is nothing but silence.
Something twists in my chest at the thought of Isla tied up and on her way to the castle. She will be tortured for information. If that doesn’t kill her, she’ll be executed.
My hands curl into fists at my sides, and my jaw clenches tight.
She was trying to escape. Just as I told her to. She took the coin, a horse, and the supplies, and she tried to make it out of the court. And they caught her.
Why didn’t she stay longer?
Last I heard, she was planning to stay a while until the tension died down. What changed?
I squeeze my eyes shut. The anguish is sudden and fierce, far stronger than I expected. I see her face behind my eyelids. Those wide, expressive eyes. The way she looked at me when I told her I couldn’t take her with me.
I can’t involve myself. I can’t risk everything to try to save her. I can’t!
Then again, she rescued me twice by breaking the spell and then breaking me out. And I repaid her by sending her off alone into a court crawling with guards who were looking for us both.
Gods’ bones.
I press my forehead against the cool rock. I need to focus on my plan. This is the only chance I’ll ever have. If I abandon my position now, if I leave to go after Isla, I risk everything. I could get caught. I probably would.
I wrestle with myself, my jaw clenched so tight it aches.
Then another thought creeps in. A darker one.
What if this is a trap?
It would be the perfect strategy to draw me out. Dangle the bait and have me attempt a rescue. Then the queen would have me alive and in chains. She could use me to lure the other Lost Kings out of hiding.
It’s exactly the kind of thing Snow would do.
I turn it over and over in my mind, searching for the angle, the deception.
But then I think of Isla and of the possibility that she’s innocent. That she’s exactly who she says she is. That she more than likely helped me not because of some grand scheme, but because it was the right thing to do.
What if she’s innocent and I leave her to die?
Could I live with that?
I already know the answer.
“Dammit all,” I mutter under my breath.
It is against my better judgment. Every instinct I have is screaming at me to stay put. To stick to the plan. To let her go.
I can’t.
I grab my waterskin and what remains of my food. Then I slip out from between the rocks, keeping low as I scan the open field. I wait a few long minutes to make sure that all is clear. The road is empty in both directions.
I need to move fast. They said she was being taken back to the castle. If I can intercept them before they reach it, there will be hope.
I’m on foot. I’ll never catch them like this.
I think fast, retracing my journey from the cabin. The route I took through the forest. The edge of the court where the farms sit tucked between the trees.
There was one. A small homestead I passed in the dark. I remember the low fence of a paddock. The shapes of two horses standing quietly in the moonlight. The dark outline of a barn.
It’s not far, so I run hard through the trees. If I am quick enough, I will be able to make it back in more than enough time to intercept Snow. Time is not the issue; getting captured is. I need to be very careful.
I keep to the tree line, running hard until my lungs burn.
I push through it.
The homestead appears through the thinning trees. The paddock beside it is fenced with rough-hewn rails.
Two horses stand inside, their heads lifting at my approach. One is a sturdy bay mare. The other is a smaller chestnut. Both look well-fed and rested.
I slip over the fence, speaking softly. “Easy. Easy now.”
The bay regards me with calm, intelligent eyes. She doesn’t shy away as I approach. I reach out, letting her nose my hand.
“Good girl,” I murmur.
After a quick inspection, I find a bridle hanging just inside the barn. I take a look around but can’t find a saddle. This will have to do.
I go back to the mare and slip the bit into her mouth, quickly doing up the buckles. She accepts it without complaint. I carefully lead her out of the paddock and vault onto her back.
She’s solid beneath me. Broad-backed and steady.
I urge the mare forward, and she responds immediately, breaking into a smooth lope. Then I head south.
I push the mare faster. She’s no warhorse, but she’s willing, and she’s strong. Her hooves eat up the distance as we ride hard along the road. I have to go slower once I reach the general vicinity of where I figure they should be.
It isn’t hard to find them since they’re a rowdy bunch, filled with the excitement of a shared bounty.
There are seven shadowfae guards on tall, dark horses. And among them, a smaller figure. Isla is bound and hunched in the saddle of a horse being led by one of the guards.
My chest tightens, and my blood turns hot with anger.
I lean forward over the mare’s neck and kick her into a gallop.