Chapter 31
I ’d begrudgingly slid back on my filthy clothes. I only needed to swim to the small patch of land that held the tree. After that, I’d be back on solid ground, and I didn’t intend to conduct my search half naked. I hadn’t put up a fight about being the one to swim out to the tree. Not because I was thrilled with the idea, but because the place I most wanted to investigate, Alandris would never fit. His height and broad shoulders had won him the battle.
It had been near impossible to spot, but I’d caught a faint flicker of metal beneath one of the tree’s large roots. There was a small gap between the roots and the dirt below—the perfect hiding spot for the mystery item. If I maneuvered myself underneath the roots, I would be in a position to get close enough to snatch whatever it was I had glimpsed. At least, I had convinced myself that it was possible. Now that I was actually attempting it, my confidence was waning.
“Is everything working out?” Alandris shouted from across the water.
I yelled back a quick confirmation, resulting in tiny specks of what I hoped was only sandy dirt to drop into my open mouth. No talking, then, I decided.
Choking on the gritty texture, I continued to squeeze myself underneath the tree, inch by inch, as the surrounding roots grew closer and closer. I didn’t have a fear of enclosed spaces, but the dark and damp underside of the tree was enough to make my pulse race. There were worse ways to die, I supposed, than being flattened by a giant tree as it caved in. Not many, but surely at least a few worse ways.
A hair’s breadth separated the tips of my fingers from the metal object I’d now come to realize was only the decorative corner plate of a wooden box I’d not initially spotted. Another precarious shimmy allowed me just enough reach that I was able to wrap my hand around the small box. No larger than the standard book, it was the perfect size for the item we sought, and I hoped it contained just that—the Fae’s flower.
I yanked the box toward my chest, carefully adjusting my grip so that I wouldn’t lose my hold as I crawled my way back out from under the roots. Shoving the box above my head in triumph, I shouted, “I’ve got it! I knew I saw something!”
Alandris tilted his head, examining the object. “Peculiar. Don’t get it wet! ”
I scrunched my nose, silently cursing him. I’d volunteered, yes, but that didn’t mean I was happy about it. My eyes were stinging, dust and dirt having fallen past my eyelashes. I was once again coated in a myriad of unknown substances, and I was soaked from my chest down. Thankfully, most of my hair had escaped the water, but the tangled mess of mud and grime it had turned into meant that I would have to fully immerse my body in the pool again as soon as I carried the box back to Alandris.
It was a quick swim, even with one arm raised, keeping the box safe and dry. The moment my feet touched dry ground, I thrust the box into Alandris’ hands. “Wait for me.”
“You look…” A mischievous smile crept onto his face.
“Don’t,” I warned.
“Delightful,” he finished with expertly crafted innocence. “I won’t open it yet, so go ahead.”
I was filthy and eager to get clean, but I spared enough time to give him a glare that could rival a devil’s.
By the time I’d finished up and redressed, Alandris was sitting on the ground, legs bouncing with impatience. He only removed his eyes from the box long enough to ensure I’d taken a seat beside him. “Shall we?” he asked, but didn’t wait for a response. “This thing is pulsing with arcane energy. I’m surprised you didn’t recognize it the moment you picked it up. It appears to be magically locked.”
I looked over the box with a more discerning eye than I’d initially given it. It seemed perfectly normal to me, even now. “Are you saying you can’t open it? ”
Alandris grinned. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
He fiddled with the box like a child playing with a brand new toy, amusement sparkling in his eyes. He traced symbols I didn’t recognize onto the top of the box with his finger. Light glowed from the marks as the last one took form.
“I wasn’t aware you possessed that kind of magic,” I observed. “I’ve only ever seen you utilize the elements. Fire, exclusively, for that matter. What else are you hiding? Hm?”
He laughed. “I have quite a few more tricks I could demonstrate. At the Consortium, they would never accept a mage, let alone an Arch Magus, who was only good at one thing. Pity they made me study all manner of magic when I had a clear affinity for one. I complained often. Hated botany… as you know.” Alandris looked at me only briefly before turning his attention back to the strange box. “Though I suppose these minor magics have found their use today. Lyandril would shove it in my face if he saw me now, utilizing that which I claimed I never would.”
He froze, the thought of the male he thought he’d known, the mentor he thought he could trust, clouding his eyes and taking him to memories long since passed. “Well, never mind that. It was a simple lock.”
I scooted closer to him, buzzing with anticipation. If he opened the lid any slower, I was going to whack him with it. “Alandris,” I groaned, knocking him with my shoulder.
At last he pried open the lid, revealing a crumpled note, and the prize we’d been hunting for all along. Carefully rested inside, in impossibly pristine condition, was a small, glowing blue flower, similar to a rose, and cut at the stem. Not a petal missing, the flower appeared frozen in time. Beautiful. Unnatural. Perturbing enough that I didn’t feel the relief I should have in seeing it. An unruly discomfort washed over me—a sense that this box should have never been opened. And for the first time since I’d fought off the men who’d attacked me, the thing inside of me stirred.
That isn’t yours to touch. Put it back where you found it.
The whispers were angrier than normal, an underlying emotion there, that if I didn’t know so well myself, I would’ve never recognized. Fear.
I ignored the voice, turning my attention to Alandris, who was equally awestruck by our findings. “Is it magical in nature?” I questioned.
He brushed a gentle thumb along one of the petals. “Hard to tell exactly how, but yes. Definitely.”
“And the note?”
He plucked it from the box and held it out in front of us. “It is in the language of the Fae, it seems. Your time to shine.”
Stop! Put it back. NOW.
I shook my head, as if that would stop the vile voice from echoing between my ears. The sudden jerking motion caused Alandris to turn his head in question, but I dismissed his concern with another shake of my head before taking the paper from his hands. “Well, let’s see. With any luck, we may find out why this flower is so important to Amorphael. ”
The symbols, upon first glance, were only incoherent squiggles and shapes. As I concentrated, they gradually organized themselves into a language I was able to understand. I began to read the note aloud.
My beloved,
I give to you a piece of me in the purest form. Only to you would I entrust something so precious. The world is ours. You will see soon the truth of my words. There is nothing I would not do for you.
Yours, Z
An exasperated chuckle broke through the silence left behind in the wake of the words. Alandris spoke in disbelief, “She truly sent me on a lover’s errand? She sent me to fetch a gift?”
“It must be something more.”
He pondered this, calming. “Yes, I suppose it must. I don’t take Amorphael for the sentimental type. It must possess some form of power. Something.” He twirled the short stem between his fingers. “I owe her this—the flower—but I do not owe her my secrecy of the knowledge of it, nor that note. It is the perfect leverage.”
“Leverage for what?”
My confusion was met with a satisfied grin. “My next bargain. Amorphael will help us free you in exchange for our secrecy of what this flower means to her.”
I pursed my lips. “Or she will kill us for having the gall to threaten her, and then it won’t matter if we know her secret because we will be… dead. ”
Alandris narrowed his eyes playfully. “You know, Nairu, I succinctly remember a time when you were too shy to call me an idiot.”
Holding in my laughter, I crossed my arms in front of me. “First of all, I wasn’t calling you an idiot. Eager to die, definitely, but not an idiot. Second of all, just because I never said it doesn’t mean I didn’t think it to myself. And third of all, I thought you enjoyed my teasing.”
“I do enjoy it.” He raised a brow, humor laced with challenge. “I assume you have a better idea, then?”
I didn’t. Not entirely. But I needed something to show for all of my bravado, so I gave it my best effort. “A threat will not work when she could so easily murder us. She is an immortal Fae who has likely lived much longer, and seen much more, than either of us. She has a well of magic at her fingertips. So! What would appeal to her more than anything? Something she has never come across before.”
“You think she will help us simply because she has never seen anything like your circumstance.”
“I do.”
Try as you may, I will always be with you. I am the reason you live. You are nothing without me, sick, frail thing. She cannot save you.
Pain shot through my head—a deep, pulsing ache that set my nerves on fire. I gripped the sides of my head, sucking in a sharp breath. My vision grew spotty and blurred as I brought one hand down to brace myself against the hard ground. A tiny whine slipped through my lips.
Alandris’ hands were on my shoulders in an instant, steadying me as he scanned my face. “Nairu? What is happening?”
“We’re on to something, I think.” I ground my teeth, pushing through the pain. “He—it-it doesn’t like the idea. That means we’re right.”
Another jolt of agony laced through me, as though in reply. I leaned forward, curling my knees into my stomach, bracing myself for the next shock. The monster couldn’t torture me for long. Unless I utilized my magic, it seemed unable to force itself inside of my head for too much time at once. It was the aftermath that was harrowing. Feeling it’s whispers in my ears long after they’d passed.
“You’ve been hearing it… not just in dreams, but while you wake.”
I nodded, keeping my head down, tucked into my chest.
“Is it getting worse?”
I start to nod once more but hesitate, questioning how honest I should be. In that moment, my decision was made for me—my hesitation was enough of an answer for a man who knew me too well.
“We should get some rest. As soon as we link up with Kaz and Zorinna, we can head back to Nil’Faerith to deliver the flower.” Alandris made to stand. “Wait here. I will prepare our beds.”
The sounds of him rifling through our bags and preparing our bedrolls were enough to distract me from my pain if I focused. I counted his every step, breathing in and out with his movements until I became numb to the sensation. It was only once I had calmed down enough to open my eyes that I looked up to watch him work, the dim light stinging my sensitive eyes. He’d quickly prepared everything and was in the process of lighting a small fire. I forced myself up and stumbled over to where my makeshift bed awaited so that I could crawl under the covers.
Alandris continued to pace our campsite, sparing the occasional glance in my direction, failing to notice I laid awake, watching him.
After I’d watched him circle enough to make me dizzy, I spoke up, startling him out of his daze. “You need not fret so much. I am stronger than I look.”
His steps came to a halt, and his eyes met mine. “I know that. I know you are strong, but it doesn’t make it any easier to witness you in pain.”
If I wasn’t so weak from the headache, I would’ve jumped up from my bed to argue, but my body wasn’t as tough as my mind was at the present moment. I beckoned him over to sit beside me instead. “We are nearly there, Alandris. I have more fight in me yet. I will not let this power inside of me consume me so easily.”
He nodded, but I could tell his unease still lingered in the furrow of his brow and the tensity in his jaw. My earlier outburst had frightened him, worried him in a way I never had before. In a way, I could not assuage with pretty words and promises. As much as I needed to convince him I had what it took to persevere, I needed to convince myself, too.
“Will you lay beside me?” I asked, leaning my head back to stare up at the cavernous ceiling above, alight with glowing flowers, though none as beautiful as the one we had tucked away.
“I should keep watch.”
I gripped his hand to stop him from leaving. “Please. For a couple of hours, we should both rest.”
His eyes landed on mine, and I could tell that a battle was raging in his mind. Seconds dragged like minutes as I waited for his response. “Fine. A couple of hours.”
I knew he wouldn’t truly sleep, not with potential threats all around us, but I was satisfied with the fact that I’d at least gotten him to rest his body. I supposed I wouldn’t be getting a decent rest now, of course, not with those bright blue eyes locked onto mine, and his arms curled around me in a way that made my heart race. But I could fake it, for his sake.
I leaned into the heat of his embrace and closed my eyes, listening to the steady inhale and exhale of his breath. Though I made efforts not to, fighting my eyelids for dominance, I eventually succumbed to my exhaustion and fell asleep.