Chapter 66
Brilliant hues of blue, gray, and white swirl along the walls of ice like a breathtaking painting that I could look at a thousand times and never tire of.
We’re outside the castle walls, having just crossed over the narrow river surrounding it, and we have a plan to get in. So far, we’ve been incredibly lucky getting here undetected, but I’m not stupid enough to think this is going to be easy.
“They really are so lazy and arrogant, aren’t they? How do they not patrol the walls better?” Rhydra muses.
“Damn it, Rhydra!” Raef hisses at her. He pushes us faster through the opening I just cleared with my magic as a torch comes into sight just a little way away along the wall.
A lone soldier is patrolling the thin slice of land between the wall and the river.
When we arrived, we found that the old tunnel I used to sneak through was gone.
Someone must have discovered it at some point.
But that was a miniscule setback, because I simply carved out a new tunnel right next to it.
I crawl through as fast as I can, with all three of them behind me. I quickly check my surroundings on the other side, then hop up and let them through. Raef exits last and I seal it quickly behind him. The plan was to keep our escape route open, but that’s too risky now.
“Fuck,” he murmurs. “I don’t think he saw us.”
“Are you sure?” I ask.
“No.”
“Okay. We’ll wait right here then, just in case he did see us and clears his own way through,” Raef suggests. “Then boom. Surprise attack.” He jabs his sword through the air for a dramatic effect.
“Just for a minute,” Daegan says. “And then we need to keep moving. What if he runs to tell someone first, and they ambush us from another angle?”
“True.” Raef crouches down, his sword at the ready.
Daegan takes the other side, and Rhydra goes behind Raef.
I crouch behind Daegan, and then we wait in silence.
There’s no noise at the castle tonight. Not that there ever is.
People are usually inside at night. But still, it feels eerie for some reason.
Maybe that has to do with being back here after so long, knowing that this is no longer home.
I feel nothing as I look up at the looming dark castle.
“Why don’t I just go check really quick?” Kezra suggests.
“What if he spots you?” I ask. I know she’s quick, but seeing gold fairy dust in the air could bring more unwanted attention.
“I know how to be inconspicuous.”
“Okay. If you’re sure.”
“Be right back,” she sings in response.
I barely blink a few times before she’s returned. “The buffoon has not noticed anything around him.”
“Well, our plan to stick by the exit route is probably screwed. We’ll stick with you a little bit farther until we find a good spot to hide out,” Raef says.
“Let’s go then.” Daegan is already standing, leading the way across the massive expanse of ground leading to the castle.
We need to be fast here. I already feel incredibly exposed, even though it’s easy to stick to the darkness.
Fortunately, we don’t need to carry any torches with us that would draw attention, because there are enough light orb posts scattered around the grounds so that we can just barely see where we’re going.
This works to our advantage more than it hurts us.
Kezra sits on the pack on my back as I run so we can minimize her gold trails she leaves behind when she flies. She’s told me that she can keep the shimmering gold to a minimum, but why risk being noticed at all.
Daegan runs from one scattered tree to the next, pausing behind a few here and there to make sure it’s still clear.
We finally encounter a few more guards who are standing in the distance talking by the garden.
We’re still a safe enough distance that there’s no way they can see us in the dark, but they, on the other hand, are illuminated by several orbs nearby.
Their chatter is muffled, and we don’t waste any time trying to listen in on them. Instead, we create some distance from them while still running toward the castle.
When we reach the back entrance, there are two guards standing watch.
Daegan takes the lead, crouching down behind a wall, hiding in the shadows.
And then he charges, like a lethal beast in the night come to seek vengeance, and drives his sword through both their necks in one swing.
Blood sprays, but for once I feel completely fine at the sight.
Am I desensitized? Am I a monster? Maybe.
But my heart is pounding and my blood is hot, and they’re only standing in our way.
Daegan waits as we catch up to him just outside the door.
“Okay,” Raef says calmly. “I think this is a good spot for Rhydra and me to keep watch. Make sure our exit path to that section of the wall stays clear. It’s too risky for all of us to run through those halls. And remember, if anyone gets split up, the entire order meets back up in Morne.”
We all nod in agreement, then Daegan pulls the unlocked door open and peeks in. He motions for me to follow, and as I do Kezra finally hops off my shoulder and flies ahead. “This is my time to do what I do best,” she sings quietly. “Spy.”
Could she be detected here? Definitely. But if she sticks to the warm light orbs, her golden trails can’t be seen as easily.
They blend into the light somehow. Of course, if someone is looking closely, they could see a small fairy flying, but fairies are still notoriously excellent at evading notice.
We make it through the first long stretch of hallway undetected, encountering not one living creature, which isn’t out of the ordinary. It’s the middle of the night, so there shouldn’t be many people wandering through these halls.
I place a hand on Daegan’s arm and step ahead of him. He pauses and lets me pass. I know this place a lot better than him. And I know that just around the corner is a door that leads down to the dungeons, but I’m wondering if it’s best to stay above and save time.
I decide it’s best to stay above. It’s a far walk to my father’s wing, but it’s dark enough to sneak through the shadows, and there are many rooms to hide in and pillars to take cover behind.
As soon as the thought comes into my mind, Kezra rounds the corner, motioning for us to hide.
We slip down a smaller hallway and dip behind a stone pillar almost completely shrouded in darkness.
We wait in silence. His slow, controlled breaths match mine.
I can’t see his face, but I can feel the unusual heat from his body and catch his signature scent as he boxes me into the dark corner. We wait a little longer, until the footsteps pass and fade into the distance.
“The way to his wing is clear, even if the future is not,” Kezra informs us, popping up out of nowhere.
I glance up at Daegan, who pinches his eyebrows at her.
I laugh it off silently, grabbing his hand and leading him back to the main hall. After several more turns, an empty staircase, and long, dark, eerily quiet hallways, we arrive just outside of my father’s wing. Of course, there are two guards stationed just outside the first hallway.
His wing isn’t massive by any means. It contains his bedroom, meeting room, jewelry room, and less than a dozen other private rooms for who knows what, but there will likely be at least a few guards walking the main hallway where most of the entrances sit.
Stopping a little ways away from our destination, I whisper to Daegan and Kezra. “Should we cause a minor distraction and draw them out, or do we sneak up on them and take them out?”
Daegan twists his mouth, pondering the options, and Kezra doesn’t seem like she cares either way, giving a sassy shrug.
“There’s a small room right over here that’s basically useless,” I add. “We could hide out in there while they pass.”
“Kezra,” Daegan starts, turning to face the small fairy. “Do you think you could create a little sparkly dust that will draw them down that way?”
“Yes.”
His gaze shifts back to mine, eyebrows slightly raised.
“Yep. Let’s do it.”
“Be careful,” I tell her as she takes off.
We stick to the shadows along the sides of the wall until we reach the room, and then we hurry inside, keeping to even deeper shadows.
They won’t see us in here even with the door wide open, unless they come in looking for some reason.
If they do, they will meet their death, because there’s nothing in here for us to hide behind, and we’re on a mission.
We wait in silence once again, only the sounds of each other’s breathing filling our world for a few moments. Daegan looks into my eyes and smirks. I smile back.
And then we hear the footsteps. They’re not running, but slightly hurried as they pass by our room. We don’t waste any time. I follow Daegan out, and we sprint when we find the hall clear.
And just like that, we’re in my father’s wing. The jewelry room is only a couple of doors down, just around the next corner. There are no more guards in this stretch, but I know the room is always locked, and almost always guarded by at least one elf.
I stop so I can whisper in his ear. “We’ll have to steal the key off the guard, if there is one at that post.”
He nods, then steps in front of me. A cold look takes over his features.
But he reaches back, takes my hand, and gives it a squeeze.
I fear for what he’s about to do, but if there are people standing in our way who refuse to help us, we don’t have any other options anymore. We will get through one way or another.
Daegan stops, peeks around the corner, and gives me a nod of confirmation. There is a guard there.
We go for it.
I don’t know how long it will take Kezra to return to us, but I know she’ll find us. She always does. And we need to move fast before we’re noticed.
We stick to the shadows along the walls and columns of the very wide, vaulted hallway. It’s especially dark in his wing.
Once we get close, my heart rate begins to speed up.
Daegan reaches for something and tosses it down the hall past the guard.
The tall guard, whose features I cannot make out right now, whips his head in that direction.
He takes a few curious steps that way, craning his neck out, as if that will help him see in the dark.
That’s all Daegan needs. With a few silent, deadly strides, like an undetectable shadow, Daegan is behind the guard, pressing his knife to his neck.
A familiar move.
“Give us the key and you’ll live,” he says in a deep, deadly voice.
“Fuck you.”
And that’s enough.
With a swift swipe of his blade, blood splatters the wall and the guard drops.
Daegan leans down, searching his pockets.
I stay planted where I am, unable to feel too much sorrow for the guard, but also unable to stomach searching through a freshly dead person’s pockets.
I also don’t want to see his face out of fear I’ll recognize him.
The searching doesn’t take long. He snatches the key and moves directly to the door, wasting no time. I follow him as he unlocks it.
It’s dark inside the room. Really dark. And cold.
“Shit,” I say into the echoing room.
Daegan reaches into one of his many pockets, pulling out a small light orb that immediately illuminates a small area. Not the whole room, though, so we’ll have to stick together to look. Good thing I know exactly where the necklace that sparked my youthful envy lies.
I motion for him to follow me, and he sticks just behind me, slightly off to the side, holding out our only light source.
Once again I get the horrible, bittersweet feeling that everything is too easy, because the bright red and silver necklace is sitting on display exactly where I thought it would be, ready for anyone to grab it. Which I do.
I turn to look at Daegan with a shrug as I stuff it in my bag.
“That’s it?” he whispers.
“That’s it. He really doesn’t know of its importance.”
“Let’s get the fuck out of here before our luck runs dry.”
He grabs my hand and we sprint out of the room into the hallway that’s deserted, minus the bleeding-out body on the floor. We go back the way we came, hoping the distracted guard is still… distracted.
He’s not.
We come face to face with him as we round the corner, and the male immediately goes into attack mode, lifting his sword and raising it at Daegan, who is closer to him.
The guy has the jump on Daegan, but he’s still no match for us. I flick my hand toward him and shoot a very sharp icicle straight into his eye, throwing him off balance and causing him to drop his sword.
“Don’t kill him!” I tell Daegan as he begins to swing.
He freezes, keeping his eyes on the guard who’s wailing and pulling on the ice lodged in his eye.
“He saw us. He may have seen where we came from. The less information that gets back to your father, the better.”
“Shit.” He’s right.
As if remembering a threat still stands before him, the guard steadies his sword, arching back for a killing blow.
Daegan is too fast this time. The guard’s head falls to the floor and rolls toward my feet. I yelp, and then bile threatens to come up.
“Let’s go,” I grumble, holding it down.
We sprint along the lengthy hallway, checking around the next corner quickly before proceeding again.
Everything works out almost perfectly in our favor, minus the two murders and the few guards we evaded on the way out.
By the time we get outside, we find Rhydra and Raef, who are incredibly surprised to see us back so soon.
We don’t waste time with pleasantries or swapping stories yet.
Instead, Daegan leads the way as we sprint back through the grounds, weaving through the sparse trees until we’re at the wall.
Somewhere along the way, we’re joined by shimmering gold glitter.
While still catching my breath, I begin to form a new opening in the ice and motion for them to start crawling through. We have to be very careful we don’t encounter anyone on the other side again, though our business is done here, and the four of us could take on one pathetic elf guard If needed.
Raef goes first, then Rhydra, me, and Daegan. Kezra even comes with us to avoid showing her glow over the wall.
Our good fortune continues. The other side is clear.
After we easily cross the river, the final stretch is just ahead of us, and I bask in the feel of the air on my face as we sprint for the edge of the forest where we left our horses.
Kezra stops short first, looking at us with wide eyes, then Daegan halts, looking into the forest.
How very, very stupid we’ve all been.