CHAPTER NINETEEN
No sign of pursuit. From either Rogam or the Fae. We flew under the cover of darkness. It was amazing how much distance you could cover soaring through the sky. Not like traveling by carriage at all, where every passing caravan or bump in the road seemed destined to slow you down.
I clung fiercely to Corvin, trying to stay warm despite the plummeting temperature. We needed to fly high to avoid detection. Up above the clouds, there was no avoiding the cold night air or the goose bumps it raised across my chilled skin.
As we left the manor behind, I wondered whether the Fae had arrived yet, demanding their bounty.
How would Rogam explain our escape? Would they take their disappointment out on him?
I pushed Rogam to the back of my mind, not planning on spending another moment thinking about him after the way he treated us, after he tried to kill us.
At some point, I began to doze against Corvin’s chest. When I awakened, guilt filled me.
I’d had the luxury of sleep, and he did not.
It didn’t seem fair, so I resolved to remain alert.
“Please. Get some sleep,” Corvin said almost as soon as my head lifted off his chest, his lips a soft murmur against my hair.
Taking him up on his kind offer, I stopped fighting the heavy droop of my eyelids, letting sleep find me once again.
The next time I awoke, the sun was just beginning to rise.
Corvin spoke up. “I need to take a break, rest awhile.” He swooped lower and lower, bringing us closer to land.
We touched down nearby a forested area. Since we had flown all throughout the night, I guessed we were already well past the outskirts of Tardide.
Corvin must be exhausted. I made to separate from him, but he kept his arm around my waist, gently resisting my attempt to pull away.
Confused, I tilted my head up. I thought that maybe he was waiting to release me until we made sure it was safe, but he wasn’t surveying the scenery; he was gazing intently down at me.
Without speaking, he placed his forehead against mine.
I went still, my whole body focused on that single shared point of contact.
We stayed like that for a moment, heads touching in a soft embrace.
Eventually, he pulled away. “I’m glad we’re safe now,” was all he said. “Me too—”
That was when we heard the screaming.
Abruptly, it ended—an eerie silence left behind in its wake.
Corvin and I exchanged a tense look. “Someone might need our help,” I said wearily, part of me secretly hoping he’d suggest we fly away instead.
But like me, Corvin turned toward the forest at the sound of someone in distress.
“Remind me never to visit Kothia again,” he muttered darkly, pinching the bridge of his nose and vanishing his wings.
“I think it came from that direction.” I nodded in agreement, and we took off into the woods.
Another scream rent the air, piercingly shrill.
We picked up our pace, keeping to the edge of the forest. We didn’t have to worry about losing the trail because the screaming continued at regular intervals.
I frowned, puzzling over its strange cadence.
The screams weren’t coming from just one person either—a frightening cacophony of voices reached our ears.
Could an entire village be under attack?
We rushed out of the trees and into a meadow.
Having mentally braced myself for danger, it took me a moment to accept what we had actually stumbled upon—a celebration.
A large gathering of townsfolk sprawled before us, happily feasting, drinking, and dancing.
The women were all dressed in white gowns.
In that respect, I fit in perfectly. It was the dancers who were responsible for the screaming.
They twirled around and around, completely uninhibited, accompanied by the steady beat of multiple drums—thudding, thudding, thudding to a primal climax.
As the music reached a fever pitch, the women screamed with wild abandon, lifted off the ground by their partners, backs gracefully arched, legs extended in an elegant line, faces turned skyward.
The men took up the mantle next, their screams a fierce reverberation.
The dancers weren’t screaming in terror; they were screaming in exhilaration.
Across the meadow, people lounged in the grass, watching the dance. We stood at the tree line next to some tables where meat, pastries, and kegs of ale were freely available. Much simpler fare than Rogam had served us at his manor. And all the more appealing for it.
A woman sauntered over to the food. “Been out for a tumble in the woods?” she teased, taking in the sorry state of our clothing, her voice wavering somewhere between amusement and gentle rebuke.
I flushed crimson at her implication, smoothing out my rumpled gown.
“There’s still time to get in another dance before the sun fully rises,” she advised with an encouraging smile.
She half turned to leave, plate of food in hand.
“The screaming—it’s an homage to the banshee warriors?
” I asked hastily. She turned back toward us.
“First time visiting? It’s our custom. Today is the day when Vefrila first thought to pray over a relic of her female ancestor for help, becoming the earliest known banshee warrior.
Unlike Vefrila, we don’t scream to vanquish our foes.
We scream to vanquish something in our lives.
Something we need to release, or let die, so to speak.
” Having finished her explanation, the woman walked away, quickly disappearing back into the crowd.
“Should we stay awhile?” I asked Corvin, inching closer to the table.
“We might as well,” he replied, grabbing a plate. “You’re wearing a white dress after all.” His eyes lingered on my ill-treated gown, smudged with dirt. “More or less.”
I scowled at him. “You try keeping a white dress clean.”
A cheeky grin lit up his face. “Fair enough. If only we hadn’t taken that tumble in the woods…”
I laughed, despite myself. “I wish that’s all we’d done.”
Corvin’s grin grew wider. “You wish we’d taken a tumble in the woods?” His tone was teasing, though I thought I detected a hint of genuine curiosity lacing his words.
But I simply said, “You know what I meant,” sidestepping the unspoken question between us.
“Do I?” he countered. I saved myself from answering by preparing a plate of food. There was no point contemplating tumbling in the woods with Corvin when it was possible his debt was fulfilled now, when it was possible I might not see him again after we returned home.
“Where should we sit?” Corvin asked, pausing at the edge of the crowd.
“Let’s watch the dancing,” I responded, heading toward a small hill overlooking the festival.
We took a seat next to one another, close enough that our shoulders brushed. Nobody paid us much mind. Apparently, we didn’t look all that out of place. It was fortunate the festival drew visitors from out of town. Doubly fortunate my white gown fit the dress code.
Companionably, Corvin and I sat together, eating our fill and gazing out over the dancing.
At first, I flinched at every scream. It didn’t take long, however, for my body to respond to the hypnotic thudding of the drums. For it to crave the sway of the beat.
For the screaming to seem almost natural.
For it to stir something within me—calling me toward the same release.
“What are you thinking about?” Corvin asked, setting aside his finished plate.
I kept my gaze fixed on the dancers, staring straight ahead.
“I’m wondering what you would scream about.
If there’s anything that you…that you wish you could give up, like that woman mentioned.
At least—” I cleared my throat, swallowing past the lump forming there, trying to keep my voice light.
“At least you’ve fulfilled your debt to me now.
No need to worry about that anymore. Or visiting my island again… ”
Corvin stiffened, and I became aware of his eyes on me.
“I can still feel the debt between us,” he whispered.
“I don’t know what it’s going to take.” He nudged me gently with his shoulder.
“But you’re not rid of me yet. Partners in crime, remember?
Unless you’d rather not see me again? You might be able to release the debt if that’s what you wanted.
You probably wouldn’t even have to scream about it.
” Was it wishful thinking, or did he sound miserable too?
And why hadn’t he mentioned that before, that I might be able to release him from its payment?
I tore my gaze away from the dance, turning more fully toward Corvin.
“No!” I cringed, the word coming out more forcefully than I’d intended.
“No, that’s not what I want. The thought just crossed my mind that our…
relationship…will inevitably come to an end.
That you’ll leave for good once you’ve fulfilled your debt to me.
” The words came spilling out in a rush. There. I’d said it.
Corvin leaned forward, so close I could feel his breath against my lips. “Elvira, I promise not to disappear on you once this debt is fulfilled. That was never my intention. Not since I first saw you in the mirror.”
I stared at him, not realizing how much I needed to hear those words until he’d spoken them. He didn’t intend to vanish from my life. “You think we could truly be friends then? Even when it’s over?”
Corvin stared at me intently. “I think we could be many things.” My heart raced in my chest. Was it normal? To look at a friend and feel like you couldn’t breathe?
“I still don’t know who you are,” I reminded him—a soft challenge.