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CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT

Ryker

The exit the servants had created emerged onto a hillside overlooking the river around the earl’s property. The water formed the earl’s moat, but it still flowed past the castle and toward the Revenant Woods, half a mile from the earl’s property.

The tails of the livestock grazing in the distance swished as three of Tempest’s moons illuminated the rolling hills before us. Screams didn’t pierce the air, but I didn’t know where we were in comparison to the ballroom; we might be too far away to hear them.

We’d been lucky not to encounter anyone else while trying to leave, but that luck might not hold out. Standing at the tunnel’s edge, I tried to open a portal, but we were still within the earl’s portal ban.

I had no idea what was above us and didn’t want to emerge into the open, but we had no choice. We couldn’t stay here.

I reclaimed Ellery’s hand, and we slipped away from the tunnel. Keeping to the side of the castle, I pressed my shoulder against the large, gray stones used to create its base while we edged further away.

We would eventually have to leave the protected shadows of the castle, but I hoped to find a more sheltered area before we did so. While I wished he’d find somewhere else to go, Callan followed us.

When we got to an area with a rocky outcropping only thirty feet away from the residence, I left Ellery standing in the shadows while I slipped away and down toward the rocks. The arrow holes in my thighs throbbed a little, but they’d fully closed and didn’t hinder my steps.

As I moved, I kept my attention on the castle but didn’t see anyone above. They’d built it up from a steep, downward hill in this area.

They’d erected a one-hundred-foot section of foundation before starting the main base, so everything was even. The foundation towered over the land, but there were no windows throughout the foundation. Craning my head back, I glimpsed windows, but they were so high up they didn’t have a view of me.

When I waved to Ellery and Callan, they eased away from the protection of the foundation and descended toward me. Once they reached me, we inched further down the hill, keeping to the rocks to use them as shelter from view.

From this far down, I wasn’t sure anyone would recognize us if they saw us, but I wasn’t willing to take the chance. And even if they didn’t recognize us, they would send guards.

At least, this far from the castle, I could draw more of my lightning. If I had to use it, there was no guarantee I could kill everyone who would see me with Ellery.

That was something I’d have to deal with if it happened.

The further we moved down the hill, even with the stones surrounding us, the more likely someone would spot us from a window. By now, they must have suppressed the rebellion, and the focus would shift to discovering who was behind it. That should keep everyone from looking for stragglers for a bit, or so I hoped.

Every twenty feet, I stopped to try opening a portal, but they always failed. It was only a matter of time before the earl’s portal ban ended.

We’d traveled a few thousand feet from the castle when I finally succeeded in opening a portal. I waved Ellery through the opening before turning to look at Callan.

I contemplated leaving him behind to find his way through a portal of his making, but he’d saved Ellery, and she’d be upset if I did. Besides, he’d seen too much of us , and I couldn’t have him wandering free with that knowledge until I knew what happened here and where he stood.

I stepped back and waited for him to enter before following him through.

We emerged in the Revenant Woods, near where I often met Ellery. The songs and sounds of insects and other night creatures filled the air as a carnivore roared in the distance.

Callan jumped a little at the sound and edged closer to Ellery as he glanced nervously around the forest. He gripped his sword a little tighter as he paled.

“Not used to the woods?” I asked him as I closed the portal.

“No,” he replied. “I always went out of my way to avoid this place.”

“If they discover you were part of the rebellion, you’ll have to get used to the forest.” I shifted my attention from Callan to Ellery. “Open a portal into your manor so I can take you home.”

“You should go back. You’re risking yourself for me.”

“Always.”

“Ryker—”

I clasped her nape and kissed her forehead. “Open the portal, Ellery. I’m not going anywhere until you’re home.”

I didn’t plan on going anywhere right away either, but she didn’t have to know that. I had to return, and the sooner, the better, but I’d ensure she was okay first.

Ellery sighed before using her hands to open a portal. I let her and Callan go through first before following them to emerge in the downstairs hallway of her home.

“Stay here,” Ellery said, “while I close the drapes.”

When she vanished, Callan dropped the remnants of her skirt on the floor and ran a hand through his sweaty, blond hair. It stood out at odd angles around his pale face.

I took in the barren walls while waiting for Ellery to return. There hadn’t been many decorations in this section of the manor, but the ones here had added a sense of warmth that made the manor more inviting. Their loss was palpable.

Callan shifted uneasily and kept shooting me nervous glances while we waited for Ellery, but I didn’t acknowledge him. It took a few minutes before Ellery returned from the direction of the kitchen. She must have wound her way through all the downstairs rooms before returning to us.

My fingers clenched and unclenched as I took in her bruised face, torn dress, and bedraggled hair. The makeshift bandage on her arm didn’t fully cover her healing cut.

This never should have happened to her. I scowled at Callan, who shrank away from me.