Chapter 18
The rest of the morning went by in a blur of barely heard lectures and scribbled notes. Yeah, I was supposed to be putting all my effort in, but all I could think about was Zeed.
His stunned expression, the unmistakable hope that flashed across his face when he’d realized it was me and Ellie. Where had he been all this time? Home with his family? That seemed less and less likely the more I thought about it.
Had Typhon known and kept it a secret? Maybe he’d trained Zeed away from Neverthorn?
Dozens of questions flooded my brain and by the time the lunch bell rang, my head was pounding as I sprinted for the library.
I found Fable crouched behind a towering pile of books and she bolted upright when she saw me.
“Thank the goddess,” she hissed, yanking me into a bone-crushing hug. “Harlow, you have no idea how hard it’s been pretending everything’s peachy all dang morning.”
“Trust me,” I wheezed, returning the hug even though I was sure she’d broken a rib. “I’ve got a pretty good idea. And it’s Hannah.”
She pulled me into a nook that smelled like dust and clutched at my arm in a death grip.
“Okay, spill. What the hell is Zeed doing here?”
“No clue.” I leaned closer. “But it’s definitely him. I grabbed his hand, felt his emotions. He recognized me…Fa…Fiona. We got him back.”
“What a relief.” She let out a breath, her shoulders slumping. “I was starting to wonder if he was . . .” She left the words unspoken, but I knew exactly what she meant.
Dead. We’d all begun to think the same thing, even if no one wanted to say it.
“Same.” I glanced over my shoulder to check for any eavesdroppers. “He was nervous, a little confused, but seemed truly happy to see me and Ellie, and he wasn’t acting. If he came as bait or something, he’s not on their side willingly.”
“Okay, but what’s the plan now? We grab him, right? Snatch him and get him someplace where we can talk alone?” Her eyes were uncertain, as if she didn’t really want to do a snatch and grab, no matter what feelings she might have for him.
“I don’t know if we need to resort to kidnapping, but yeah.
We need to get him away from Typhon.” I dug a hand into my bag and pulled out the stones that were for Zeed and Liam, along with a new one I’d found in the courtyard for Fable on my way to breakfast. “Easiest thing to do is make a new stone for him when you make yours.”
She took the stones, pausing as her brow furrowed. “Cat caught me alone for a minute yesterday. She said we were using the stones we gave you to communicate, and that my old one was giving off weird vibes or something?”
‘Weird vibes’ was one way to describe it.
A chill skittered down my spine at the memory of the sheer hell I had gone through. “It was like . . . I can’t explain it.”
That wasn’t true though, I could describe it. It felt like she was dying a slow, torturous death, and that she knew it, but couldn’t stop it from happening. But I wasn’t about to say that out loud. No need to freak her out.
“My guess is that it had something to do with going through that damn gate. I’ve been feeling kind of weird since then, too. Maybe it messed with the magic somehow.” I shrugged, trying to brush it off.
She nodded, her face clearing. “I guess that’s possible. Okay, no worries. I’ll make new ones for both of us as soon as classes are done for the day.”
“Liam, too, if you can manage.”
“No problem.”
“Thanks, Fabes. Seriously, you’re a lifesaver.”
“Yeah, well, right back at you. It’s been so weird being apart . . .” She jerked back and held up a finger. “Oh! I almost forgot!” She leaned close again, her voice dropping to a whisper. “Speaking of lifesavers – I think I found something big on the Grym Dunaras.”
I blinked at her. “Wait, seriously?”
She grinned, eyes shining. “I spent hours reading last night in the library – no curfew is amazing – and tracking its path through history, along with the Morrigan’s.
Whispers about where the pieces might have been hidden over the years.
Based on everything I’ve read, I have a strong suspicion that there’s still one here, Harlow – Hannah. Somewhere in Heathermoor.”
Everything Typhon had told me about the Grym Dunaras during the games, I’d passed on to Fable on the journey here. The first night everyone had crashed out early, and just she and I had stayed awake to keep watch.
About how the legendary witch ‘the Morrigan’ had been fearful when she felt Arthur was becoming too much of a threat with Excalibur at his side.
The Grym Dunaras had been her answer . .
. a weapon to keep him in check if the need came to pass.
But her weapon had been too powerful. A battle between Arthur and the Morrigan had ensued and, unlike the whimsical written version the Dims in the Unlit world had woven into quaint fairy tales, this one had rocked the foundations of the world.
In the end, Arthur was defeated, Excalibur had been banished, and the Morrigan had shattered the Grym Dunaras into four pieces, spreading them out across the globe so something like that would never happen again.
The Senate had found a piece, and that shard of the weapon was set into the blade of a sword.
They’d given it to Heronius but, as strong as he was, he still couldn’t control its magic.
It was enough to bring Nocta out of hiding, though, and he killed Heronius, stealing the shard for himself.
Did that mean he would be even more powerful now?
If he dared to use it, and so far, he hadn’t.
I shuddered at the thought of my father being even stronger than he already was.
We would definitely need something like that on our side if we were going to win, but the rest of the relic had never been found. And now Fable was telling me that there might be a piece somewhere here . . . in Heathermoor.
I felt like she’d slapped me with a brick.
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
“Not even a little. Liam is gonna freak when we tell him.”
“Did someone say my name?” Liam’s murmur cut through the quiet, making both of us jump. He stepped into the narrow space between two shelves with a smug grin. “I felt my ears burning.”
“Don’t sneak up on me, I could have sent a rune right into your face,” I whisper-shouted, smacking his shoulder.
Of course, I hadn’t been even close to doing any such thing . . . but maybe if I kept working with Thalienne I would have the ‘look ma, no hands’ skill set soon.
Liam glanced around and pulled us even deeper into the shadows.
“Sorry, but we gotta move fast. I have news.” He turned to face me.
“I got in touch with the contact in Lairg who might know something about the kraken coin.” His fingers brushed against mine, warmth and connection centering me.
“You and I will meet outside the main gates at eight tonight and head over. I’ve got a good feeling about this. ”
“Perfect.” We were finally getting somewhere. “And Fable’s got some news, too.”
Fable filled him in about the Morrigan’s potential treasure hidden at Heathermoor, and the two of them started scheming, their excitement palpable.
“Uh, guys?” I raised my hand. “Dead woman walking here, remember? Maybe one legendary artifact at a time, with a focus on the one that has the power to kill me in the next few weeks? Kraken coin first.”
“Exactly!” Chirped Calypso from my bag.
“Sorry. It’s been a banner day, though. Look at us! Zeed’s alive and well, and we’ve got leads on both the Grym Dunaras and the kraken coin. We’re finally catching some breaks,” Liam grinned.
It was like a ghost had walked over my grave; I went cold, a shiver rippling from the base of my spine.
“Why would you say that out loud?” I demanded with a groan. “Talk about a jinx.”
Liam tugged a lock of hair hanging over my eye. “No such thing. At least, not unless someone puts one on you. Which is why you need that class that Sage Thalienne will be teaching you every Friday morning.”
That made me feel exactly zero percent better, but I tried not to kill the good energy flowing around me. “It really is Zeed, by the way. I’m sure of it.”
I gave him a quick rundown of what’d happened in Mallachtan’s class earlier.
He clapped his hands. “That’s great news. And his Quirk! That’s amazing and makes sense why he passed out.”
He hadn’t let go of my hand, but he spoke more to Fable. “We will meet with my contact tonight to discuss the kraken coin and then put out a message to the others.”
“And after that?” Fable scrunched her eyebrows. “What next?”
“I know a place where the whole group of you can meet up in the next couple of days. It’s a risk, but I think everyone will feel better if you all get to see Zeed and assure yourselves he’s okay.
A few more days will also give us a chance to see if we can get those last Quirks popping for Ross, Caterina, and Fable here. ”
Fable nodded and I followed suit. “Okay. Let’s fucking do this.”
My heart swelled as I stepped outside of the library into the hallway, the little black cloud over my head disappearing.
Liam was right. Maybe, just maybe, we were going to be able to pull this off . . . as long as him saying how great it was going out loud hadn’t, indeed, jinxed us.