Chapter 47
Aurora
Idon’t think anyone sleeps. Soren tosses and turns all night, which is unlike him. I lay in bed for what seems like hours before finally deciding I’m not likely to sleep.
I creep from the bed, throwing on a thick sweater that falls to my knees.
I slip from our room and start walking down the hall before I realize I have no idea where I’m going.
No destination in mind. The hallways are dim and quiet as I reach the landing and make my way down the stairs.
Although I imagine everyone is struggling to sleep, I don’t want to be caught wandering aimlessly around the palace in the dark.
When I reach the ground floor, moonlight floods in through the double doors of the gardens. They call to me and I slip into the chilly air.
While at one time I would have feared being alone outside in the Northern Shadows at night, there is a calmness that beckons me. Despite my preference for sunshine and daylight, there’s always been something captivating about night and the possibilities it shrouds in darkness.
I walk toward the pergola covered in moonflower vines. Their petals are open to the night as if drinking in the pale moonlight, filling the air with their musky floral scent. As I stand beneath them, admiring their simple beauty, crunching footsteps on the garden pebbles causes me to spin.
My hand flies to my chest, but I blow out a breath when I realize it is Camryn. “Oh my god, you scared the shit out of me!”
She laughs. “I love it when you cuss. I’ll do it again just to hear your potty mouth.” She lightly smacks my shoulder before her face turns serious. “Couldn’t sleep, either?”
“Nope.”
She sighs and tugs her thick shawl tighter to her chest. “Yeah. I can’t help but feel like something is still missing.”
She gives me a weary look before shrugging her shoulders at the sky.
“You’re the one the king prophesied about.
The one to lead the rebellion and defeat him.
Then there’s me—a Dreamer who he wants to use as a puppet to create a new realm from his pool of magic.
” Her eyes stare into the distance. “Wow, I can’t believe the words I just said. ”
I exhale. “I know. And I keep replaying what Maeve said about how light can cast out the darkness. Are you the darkness?”
Camryn’s eyes widen. “Fuck I hope not. But, if by some chance the king gets his hands on me, do whatever it takes to kill me. I don’t want to have any role in harming the people I love or anyone else.”
“Camryn…” my voice drops low.
“No, I mean it. Promise me, Rory. Promise me you won’t let me fall into the hands of evil.”
I glance at my friend, tears filling my eyes at the prospect of doing what she’s asking. “I promise,” I whisper.
Camryn and I embrace for several moments until her voice disrupts the silence. “What’s that?” I pull away to see her scrunched face before I turn in the direction she’s looking.
Behind me, just beyond the gardens, is a dark grassy knoll that slopes down into darkness. My brows pull together at the vast emptiness, but then a flicker of light catches my eye—a soft glowing orb of light hovers above the highest point of the hill.
I look back at Camryn. “I don’t know. Should we be concerned?”
She weaves around me and starts shuffling toward it. “It reminds me of magic I’ve seen before that led me to where I wanted to go. When I wanted to find Caelum.” She turned her head back toward me. “But you can see it, too?”
“Yes, I can definitely see the ball of light.” I follow behind her as she walks up the hill.
At the crest of the knoll, the ground descends into a forest that blankets the base of the mountain.
I glance over my shoulder at the darkened palace.
“I don’t know, Camryn. Maybe we should get someone to come with us. ”
“What are you, five? We are two powerful half-fae bitches. You can shoot fire from your fingers, for fuck’s sake. Come on.”
“We’re technically half-fae descendents,” I mutter under my breath as I follow her down the hill.
We walk for several minutes, following glowing orbs of light as we stumble down the mountain. The woods grow denser, and I’m sure we will get lost in the wilderness until we halt outside a small cave, an orb slowly pulsing in front of its entrance.
I shiver at the sight of a cave. Fucking caves.
“I’m not going to lie to you, Rory. I’m a little scared but also seriously amped. I feel like Lara Croft.”
I blow out a breath. “I guess there’s no turning back now.”
“Onward, ho,” Camryn huffs before slapping me on the back and she’s swallowed by the darkness.