Chapter 92
CHAPTER NINETY-TWO
Ryker
When I visited Samael last week and told him we’d decided it was time to open a portal out of Tempest, he wanted to know how we’d do so.
I informed him that the baron’s youngest daughter had agreed to open it, and Scarlet and Callan were going to Dragonia to meet with the queen of the shadow realms.
It would probably be best, given my history with Brokk and Kaylia, if I went with them, but although Ellery was safe here, I couldn’t leave her or Lillian.
Ellery was far from weak, and our daughter had proven she could protect herself too, but Lillian was still a newborn, and while Ruby would help with her, I didn’t want to leave my family.
I wouldn’t miss a single day with my daughter. She was already growing and changing so fast.
What Scarlet, Callan, and Samael were doing was for the good of Tempest, and I wanted the best for this realm, but I’d sacrificed so much for it already.
I wasn’t willing to sacrifice time with my wife and daughter too.
Callan, Scarlet, and Samael were strong and capable; they would succeed in this.
Instead of traveling with them, I wrote a letter for Brokk and Kaylia. I included details that only the three of us, and Tucker, would know.
Tucker also could have gone to Dragonia with them, and he’d offered to do so, but he’d also admitted he didn’t want to leave Georgie behind. The boy was still struggling with the loss of his parents, and Tucker didn’t feel right leaving him in someone else’s care.
Georgie witnessed his mother’s beheading, and while I didn’t know if he’d seen his father’s death too, I suspected he had. The child craved stability, and Tucker leaving would devastate him.
Ianto hadn’t offered to go; he wouldn’t leave the children or the orphanage, even if it was only for a few days. The children finally had some semblance of normalcy back in their lives, and he wouldn’t disrupt that.
Scarlet and Callan had eagerly volunteered to go. Ruby and Luna weren’t happy about it, but they didn’t stand in their way.
Upon learning about their journey, Samael offered to go, even though he hadn’t yet completed his sentence… or maybe because of that fact.
“I’ve met Orin before,” Samael had said, speaking of the queen’s brother-in-law. “I wouldn’t consider us friends, but I know the dark fae.”
“Would he remember you?” I’d asked.
Samael shrugged. “I’m not sure. We ran into each other a few times at some of the gambling halls and bordellos in the outer realms. I also met King Colburn once, before he was king of the dark fae and shadow realms, but he wouldn’t remember me.”
I’d rubbed my beard while studying him. “What good would your knowledge of Orin do us?”
“If he sees a familiar face, it could help ease any doubts they might have about your travelers.”
“Orin might not be in Dragonia.”
“True, but if he is, I could help. Besides, you know I’m an excellent fighter if something goes wrong. You’ve trained them well, but three is stronger than two.”
“True,” I murmured.
Sensing my weakening, Samael pressed his advantage. “Have Scarlet and Callan been to another realm before?”
“Callan has. He was a traveling minstrel before we were trapped here.”
“I’d forgotten about that. And the girl?”
“She’s never left Tempest.”
“Has the musician ever met anyone in the royal family?”
“Not that he’s said.”
“It’s up to you and the others, of course, but I can do more good out there than I can in here.”
“And what’s to keep you from running away the second you leave Tempest?”
“Nothing,” Samael answered honestly. “But what would you lose if I ran? I have nowhere to go, no carisle, and no allies. Besides, everyone here would probably prefer to be rid of me.”
“True, but there’s nothing to stop you from gathering allies and coming back with an army.”
Samael chuckled. “I’m glad you think me capable of doing so, but we both know that would take far more carisle than I could ever raise. Besides, no one’s going to come here to take on two lightning bearers, gargoyles, and a forest full of creatures begging for blood.”
Three lightning bearers. But I didn’t tell him that. So far, Lillian had only revealed her ability to the gargoyles, and I suspected that’s the way it would stay until she had better control over it.
“The poltergeists are pretty irritated they don’t have anyone to stab anymore,” I said.
Samael had strode forward and grasped the bars of his cell as he spoke. “My sentence is almost over. If they succeed in getting Tempest open to the realms again, I’ll just leave then anyway. At least this way, I’ll be out of your hair sooner.”
“I’ll have to run it by the others.”
“I can be of help again, Ryker.”
“And what would you get out of it, aside from an early release?”
Samael’s eyes were unfocused as he stared at a spot beyond my shoulder. Eventually, his gaze returned to me. “Maybe a chance at redemption. You forget Tempest is my home too. This is the realm where I was born and raised, and I love it. I know you understand that.”
I did understand that. “What kind of redemption do you seek?”
Samael’s hands slid up the bars and back down when he shrugged. “The kind that might allow me to live here in peace.”
Samael was an arrogant prick whom I still didn’t trust, but I sensed the truth in his words. “I’ll speak with the others.”
It had taken a lot of debate, many arguments, and more yelling than I cared to ever endure again. Eventually, by a margin of one, the representatives of Tempest voted to let Samael go to Dragonia.
However, they stated that if he ran and we successfully reopened Tempest to travel again, he would be hunted and slaughtered on sight. They’d promised a large bounty on his head.
Samael agreed to the terms and now stood to the side of the small crowd that had gathered to say goodbye to the travelers. He watched as Callan and Scarlet were hugged, kissed, and stuffed full of supplies.
Not too far away, the orphanage children screamed and laughed as they played. Dust flew up from beneath their feet as they ran around the front of the building, out to the road, and on to the backyard.
“We’ll probably only be gone for a couple of days,” Callan reminded Luna as she shoved apples into the bag strapped to his back.
“I don’t care. You should bring enough food to last at least a week,” she said. “You have plenty of carisle too, right?”
“Yes, Luna,” Callan sighed.
“Maybe I should come with you.”
Callan gripped her chin and lifted her head so she had to look at him. “Stay with the children and Ianto at the orphanage. They need you more than me. You forget, I’ve traveled through many of the realms. I know what’s out there, and it’s a lot safer now that the Lord is dead.”
Luna bit her bottom lip before nodding, but her gaze remained wary as she shoved another apple into her brother’s bag. Callan didn’t try to stop her.
I couldn’t help thinking that, while he’d traveled the realms before, as had I, we had no idea what was out there anymore. Yes, the Lord was dead, and Dragonia—as well as the shadow realms—was under the rightful rule of an arach again, but it had been a year since we had any outside contact.
Before, we’d had visitors from other realms to bring news, and amsirah returning from their journeys. It had been a long time since either had happened.
Queen Lexi and King Colburn had brought stability and peace to the realms, but maybe that had changed over time. I hoped not, and I didn’t see how it could have, but nothing was impossible in the shadow realms.
I wouldn’t let Ellery know that it made me a little nervous to send the three of them into the unknown. However, while they couldn’t open a portal out of Tempest, they could open one into it. Other immortals couldn’t enter Tempest, but if anything went wrong, they could return home.