Chapter 29
Chapter
Twenty-Nine
TATE
Ara is quiet and monosyllabic for the rest of the day, and if possible, she avoids me even more. Maybe I shouldn’t have pushed, but when I saw her reaction to Jen touching me, I didn’t stop to think.
I don’t want to stay away anymore. I can’t. Her reaction gave me hope, and I’m determined to explore it. But I have to eliminate the threat first. It might also be my only chance to get closure, now that we are out of the trials.
I don't know why Silence helped me, but I hope whatever his interests are, they’ll sway him to help me again.
Instead of going to the spider's house myself, Daeva keeps an eye on it and trails Silence once he leaves. I catch up to him two streets down.
With the precautions he took last time, I don’t make the mistake of approaching him again and use my gift to address him from afar instead.
At my voice next to his ear, he whips around, looking more shaken than I have ever seen him before.
He glares when he spots me, and I suppress a grin.
So he's not as unflappable as he always seems.
My initial request for help is met with reluctance.
“Why would I help you with this?” he asks, while continuing down the street.
“You spoke of interests last time, and I thought maybe it would be in your interest if I eliminated the threat.”
He sneaks a glance over his shoulder.
“What is your plan?”
I elaborate my plan, which essentially comprises of offering myself as bait to draw the men out. If Silence leaks information about a meeting with me in a dark and quiet corner of Telos, I hope they can’t resist making a move.
I rely on their desperation after weeks of no progress to bring them out and make them careless.
“It's risky,” he replies.
“It's my risk and not yours.”
“You just want me to leak information, nothing else?” After some contemplation, he agrees, and I'm about to turn away when he adds something that lets my blood run cold.
“They found a dead rider not far from here this morning, a blond woman.”
My thoughts instantly jump to Ara, but I saw her this morning.
“When?” I breathe
“Early, just after sunrise. It wasn’t her.”
The weight that falls from my shoulders has me nearly floating up. Of course, it's not her. She’s heeded my warning so far and hasn’t gone out alone again. But still, for a second, I wasn’t able to breathe.
“I just thought I’d let you know.”
“How do you know it wasn't her?” I ask, still puzzled why he’s showing so much interest in all of this.
“I checked.” That’s his scarce answer before he turns onto another street and vanishes from sight.
I turn back to the academy, my thoughts already spinning like wheels on a chariot, planning the upcoming encounter.
What I'm doing is dangerous. I’m well aware of that. There are a lot of variables I can't control, but I’m also out of options. I need the threat gone, especially now when another sky rider—a blond woman—has turned up dead.
The coincidence is too big.
I have a date and a time. Now, I just need to make sure that no one else gets involved. I have to think of a good excuse for Jared’s sake. Otherwise, he’ll come, and there is no way I’ll risk getting Nan’s second son killed, too.
Once I’m back at the Aerie, I check my armor, sharpen my swords, and contemplate writing letters to Ara and Jared. There is a very real chance that I won't come back. But writing notes feels too much like planning for it, so I don’t.
I do not doubt that my enemies will show tonight. For them, there is a kingdom to gain after all.
Finally, there is nothing left but to count the hours until it's evening.
“I flew over the address you gave Silence,” Daeva tells me. “The alley is too small for me.”
“I know, beautiful,” I tell her. “I won't risk you.”
“That is such rukhshit,” she explodes and continues to curse me for the next two hours before giving me the silent treatment for two more. We are barely back on speaking terms when I make my way back to Telos’s center.