Chapter 5
Lana
With the safe house empty, we didn’t dare linger for longer than necessary.
We agreed to rest for the remainder of the evening, even if it was only for a few hours.
Besides, Raya still hadn’t fully recovered, a fact worrying us as each hour passed.
Jax settled Raya in an upstairs room, hovering over her like a worried mother hen. Storm and I slept on couches downstairs, just in case anyone decided to appear. I don’t think he ever truly slept though.
My mind refused to stop spiraling so I could rest. I replayed the moments in Mount Legion, unable to let go of the simple mistake I’d made trying to protect the amulet. How could I have been so foolish as to let my blood touch it?
How different would things have been if I had taken just a moment to think?
No.
If I let these thoughts consume me, I’d live forever in pain.
I could not belittle myself anymore. What was done had been done and none of us could afford to look backward.
We had overcome greater odds before as a unit.
We would do so again. Together, we’d find a way to get Kade back and keep both of our kingdoms safe.
Only once in these few hours did the desperate tug of wanting to be close to Kade have me reaching for the door handle to leave the safe house and return to his side.
The devastating weight of missing him pressed against my chest, even though it had only been a few days.
I badly craved the warmth and weight of his shadows.
Their sweet smell of faded rainstorms and crisp morning air.
The sting of burning metal met my fingertips and I yelped, suddenly realizing I had reached for the doorknob. Storm grunted from his blankets a few feet away. “Serves you right.”
“I’m sorry,” I whispered, but he didn’t answer. He didn’t have to.
With Storm’s magic sealing me into the house, I finally allowed exhaustion to win, and my eyes closed before I even hit the makeshift bed.
It felt like only minutes passed before Storm shook me awake. I found him and Jax sitting in the living room of the abandoned home, waiting for me. Raya hadn’t appeared yet.
True to her word, Opal left two baskets of food on the step shortly after sunrise.
I hadn’t realized how hungry I was until we devoured the bread and cheese in mere minutes.
My stomach growled, begging for more. We planned to save the dried sticks of meat for later, but we each snuck a piece when we thought the others weren’t looking.
Jax managed to find several apples and other small pieces of fruit in a storage cabinet. They were still fresh, so the refugees who were once here couldn’t have left too long ago.
“Where would they have gone?” I voiced the concern we were all feeling.
Jax shrugged as Storm sighed, running a hand over his face. “Maybe the quake scared them and they went to the next safe house.”
“We should keep going. They can’t travel quickly with the children and elderly, and they’d most likely go to the safe house closest to the void,” Raya said as she entered the sitting area.
The color had almost returned to her cheeks this morning, and her voice had returned to its usual timbre.
She walked with a little more confidence, even placing a hand on my shoulder in silent greeting before sitting next to Storm.
“I’m glad you’re okay,” I whispered to her as she passed.
“We have another three-hour ride before we get to the next safe house,” Jax started, before biting into his apple. “They’ve set up a small encampment. Make sure your weapons are accessible, just in case something is amiss. Does everyone understand? We don’t know what will be waiting for us.”
Storm stood and nodded. “Keep close together and your magic at the ready.” Turning to me, he said, “Except you. Do not use your magic unless it is absolutely necessary.”
Tits and daggers.
If my look could shoot blades, it would.
I started to speak but was promptly cut off.
“You still do not know how to use it properly, and until we’ve had time to train you, it could be more of a danger than an asset.
Fates know we don’t need you destroying anything more than necessary with your light. ”
I crossed my arms and let out an exasperated grunt. “I’m pretty sure that untrained magic saved your ass last night.”
“Be that as it may, Princess—” Jax started.
“Queen,” I countered with a wink I knew he’d be proud of.
He chuckled, and the nervousness I felt finally started to ease now that we were getting back to ourselves again. “Fine, Your Most Esteemed Royalness. Let’s try not to die just yet, okay?”
“It would be my greatest honor not to die on your watch.” I rolled my eyes and leaned down, touching my toes, stretching my legs. It would be another hard ride, and my muscles already ached.
Storm retrieved the horses, who had rested in the stable behind the house all night. Onyx rubbed his nose against my shoulder, huffing a breath of hot air in my face. “Well hello to you too.”
Stroking down the neck of the creature soothed the anxious energy thrumming within me.
With everyone mounted on their respective horses, Jax turned to face us again, Raya seated in front of him once more. “Ready?”
After a nod from each of us, we left.
Guilt pooled low in my belly as the city structures disappeared behind us, fading into barren land.
I prayed to the Fates the citizens of Canyon City would remain unharmed by the crazed dark ones threatening them.
Just another reminder that we needed to make this right.
That more than our lives depended on figuring out a way to destroy Thames and the reign of darkness ravaged upon us.
We would be back and ensure Opal was repaid for her kindness, not only yesterday, but for everything she had done to help protect those threatened in Mysthaven.
We would repay all those who dared to stand against Thames, and Kade’s father as well.
Atheria would be reunited and stronger than ever before.
We rode silently except for the hooves beating on the land, the only sound in the miles stretching around us.
I watched Raya and Jax as they took the lead.
Raya sat straighter, her slim braids plaited tightly down her back.
With her strength returning, I felt more inclined to ask her to contact Ian again once we stopped at the safe house.
We had to let them know as soon as possible that we were all right.
The passage of time seemed never-ending as the landscape around us didn’t change. Wide dusty crimson dirt pathways, spiky green plants, and the same wind-shaped trees were seen for miles. It was a wonder Jax even knew which direction to go, everything looked so similar.
An eerie feeling of dread suddenly permeated the air.
Breathing became more difficult, the desire to return to Kade multiplied tenfold.
I swallowed the lump in my throat fighting what my body knew was right.
The others must have felt the change, too, because Jax slowed us to a walk.
A tension grew, so thick we were practically swimming through it.
“Shh,” I cooed at Onyx, leaning down and stroking his mane. “We’ll be okay, sweet boy. Almost there.”
Jax sniffed the air, using his shifter abilities to discern what the change might be. He looked back at us and shook his head from side to side before he continued cautiously down a narrower path lined with bramble bushes.
“The safe house is just on the other side of this—”
A cry in the distance cut Jax off.
We all halted, searching around for a sign of what might be coming. Storm pulled his sword out.
Another cry reverberated around us, a scream of absolute terror. Something or someone was in distress, and it was coming from the direction we were traveling.
Bolting from their spot, Jax and Raya took off at breakneck speed. Storm and I followed fast on their heels.
The number of shouts and shrieks echoed louder the closer we got. Anxiety crept into my veins as my heart beat so hard, I could hear it pounding in my ears. My hands trembled in anticipation of what we were about to see.
Coming through the final pathway of leafless trees, we all stopped abruptly.
The dark ones were everywhere, attacking innocent civilians who scattered through an encampment surrounding a larger stone home. The enemy hunted them down with reckless abandon. Fear and anguish laced the air.
Jax leapt from his saddle and shifted into his panther form, bounding toward the battle ahead. Storm hurled hand-sized balls of fire across the morning sky, targeting the backs of the dark ones. A distraction for Jax to take them out while their clothes began to blaze.
Raya repositioned herself in the saddle, and I called out her name. She turned, looking at me with a steadiness I hadn’t seen from her since before Dargan’s demise.
“I’ll be okay,” she said to me. “Whatever happens, take care of yourself and get to the void.”
“You will not do anything reckless,” I ordered, as if she’d ever listen to a command I’d give her.
“If anyone should have to sacrifice themselves, it should be me for the pain I’ve caused.” Her eyes lowered in shame.
I steered Onyx closer toward her. “For what it’s worth, Raya, I really like you.” I drew my dagger from the sheath at my thigh. “But I never took you for a martyr. Where’s that badass take-no-shit warrior I admired so much? Haven’t you figured out you’re so much more than what Dargan did to you?”
Her eyes filled with determination and she tightened her grip on the reins.
“We’re in this together. I refuse to allow you to believe you’re anything other than worthy. Now let’s go save your people.”
A genuine smile graced her lips. “For what it’s worth, Lana,” she said, nodding, “I might actually like you too.”