Page 86 of Lady of Starfire (Lady of Darkness #5)

Gathering the supplies close to her once more, she cleaned it out and applied a new dressing before searching for food and the waterskin.

She worked Razik’s cloak around her shoulders, her torso still bare from the waist up, save for the band around her breasts.

Then she forced herself to get up and walk around a bit while she chewed on dried meat and nuts, her stomach revolting a little at the food.

Small bites. Protein for energy. Little sips of water to rehydrate. Just like before.

Only he had been there taking care of her before.

He’d never made it obvious that’s what he was doing.

He had this way of taking care of her without her realizing that’s what he was doing until long after he’d drawn her into some stupid conversation and she’d eaten half a piece of chocolate cake.

It was annoying and foolish and the only way she’d ever let a male care for her in that way. That he’d figured that out so quickly …

She bit off another piece of meat, and her gaze fell to the Source Mark on her forearm. She brushed her fingers over it, chewing slowly. So many Marks on her skin, but none as important as the one she was about to give herself.

Her knees beginning to tremble told her she was pushing herself too much, and she made her way back to the packs, lowering back to the ground.

She dug through Razik’s items she’d dumped all over the place, finding a grey tunic that she managed to get on after a few minutes of hissing and cursing.

Taking another drink of water, she let fire flare in her palm, calling forth an item from a pocket realm.

A black ashwood scion.

The end turned bright red as she heated it. She wished she had some alcohol to steady herself. She’d like to say it was from the trauma of the past few days, but she knew it wasn’t. It was nerves and anxiousness at what she was about to do.

Propping her left hand atop a stack of various items, she bent forward and began to work.

At least her Earth ties were good for something, allowing her to be able to bestow the Markings of the Fae.

And when she was done, sitting back and letting out the breath she’d been holding, the Mark swirled along the back of her hand and down her thumb.

She’d given that Mark to only three other people.

She’d never expected to ever be Marking her own skin with it.

Taking the Mark without a companion mark was a risk.

It wasn’t lost on her that nearly a year ago she’d been arguing with Sorin about this exact thing when they’d stood in the back room of a tavern in Baylorin, the Fire Prince demanding she give him this Mark.

She’d told him he was an idiot for doing this.

That about summed up this plan, she supposed. Complete idiocy.

Sucking in another shuddering breath, she murmured the Claiming Rite. The Mark flared brightly, and then her breath caught in her throat as she felt Razik’s anguish down the twin flame bond. Physical pain, yes, but so much more. Anguish about …so many things. His father. His past. Her.

Razik.

Something stirred down that bridge between their souls, but until he had the Mark, it wouldn’t be complete. It wouldn’t initiate the Trials. But it had to do something. Sorin had found Scarlett this way, so it clearly worked.

She closed her eyes, concentrating on that stirring.

Raz, give me something to find you.

Cave.

Godsdamnit. Fucking cave? That’s all he was going to give her?

We’re in the mountains, Razik. I need more than that. Something useful.

River.

She tipped her head back in frustration. If they were near the Tana, then they had a Traveler with them. There was no way they could have made it down the mountainside otherwise.

She was so fucked.

And she needed at least another day. Without a Healer, the shirastone wound wouldn’t heal properly.

Her magic would never get to its full strength.

She’d need to be strategic about how she fought when she found them.

More weapons than magic, which meant taking out as many as she could before they realized she was there.

Eliza rotated her shoulder, trying to keep it from getting too stiff, eyeing two vials she’d set off to the side.

They were two tonics she was saving, but gods, taking one of them was really godsdamn tempting right now.

The tonic was a powerful, pain-numbing potion.

It was usually given to someone to help them sleep while healing.

She was saving it to take when she started out to find Razik.

Tomorrow.

One more day of rest, or it would all be pointless.

Curling up beside her small fire, she whispered down the bond, I’m coming .

“Fucking son of Silas,” Eliza muttered as she slid down an embankment.

She caught herself before her face hit the rocky ground.

She wouldn’t have felt it. Just like she couldn’t feel the pain from her shoulder that should be crippling her at the moment, but she was certainly going to be feeling it when the tonic wore off.

She prayed to Anala she wasn’t doing irreparable damage.

When she’d woken up, the sun had just crested the horizon.

She’d slept nearly another entire day, but an early morning start was perfect.

She’d sent a few things to a pocket realm before she’d taken the tonic.

Once it had taken effect, she quickly donned clothing that actually fit her, along with her leathers.

She had a number of weapons strategically strapped to her, but not as many as usual.

She didn’t want to be weighed down by them as she traversed the mountainous terrain.

Some weapons she sent to the pocket realm, but she didn’t trust that in case she got hit with shirastone again and was unable to access them.

She’d tried to reach Razik down the twin flame bond again, but there’d been nothing this time.

She knew he still breathed, but that was about it.

So she’d started down the mountain, feeling the tug of the bond guiding her as she went.

At this rate, it was going to take her three days to reach the Tana River at the base.

It was mid-afternoon when the bond began to hum a little more violently in her chest, as if it sensed Razik nearby. But that couldn’t be right. She wasn’t even halfway down the mountainside. What if she’d been reading this stupid bond all wrong? Had she just completely fucked this all up?

The sound of voices had her scrambling behind some larger rocks, ducking behind them as two seraphs came into view. They’d been with Varlis. Not the one with wind gifts, though. She didn’t know what kind of magic these two seraphs possessed.

“Where is the backup that was promised to us two fucking days ago?” one grumbled. “I cannot keep the dragon out much longer.”

“You keep that fucker knocked out cold, Ramses,” the other seraph griped. “He nearly tore my entire godsdamn wing off. That can’t be healed in this realm. I have to wait until we can go back to—”

“It is not as if I have a plethora of Fae up here to keep my magic wells filled,” the other interrupted with a snarl. “Varlis should have let us keep the female to feed off of.”

Eliza shifted slightly, trying to get a better view of the two. Sure enough, one’s left wing was almost completely shredded. Her lips curled involuntarily into a sadistic grin as she studied Razik’s handiwork.

“He completely fucked this up. Too shortsighted about the female. The Fae here are undisciplined,” the injured one grumbled. “Allowed too much freedom.”

“Once this is over, that’ll change,” came the response as they kept moving out of sight.

She waited, not wanting the sound of her boots on rock to give her away. She was surprised they hadn’t scented her. Then again, she’d been sleeping in Razik’s clothing. She probably smelled like the dragon they were keeping unconscious.

She rolled her eyes at the thought of smelling like him.

After a few minutes, she rose from her crouch, moving silently along the same path the seraphs had followed.

She’d thought of killing them both right there, but she needed them to lead her to wherever Razik was.

If the one was using his gifts to keep Razik unconscious, they couldn’t be far.

It explained why he wasn’t giving her more down the bond.

She went a little farther until she realized there was a ledge ahead that dropped off to …somewhere. Dropping to her stomach, she once again thanked the Witches for the tonic that allowed her to crawl on her belly and not feel her shoulder. She made her way to the edge and peaked over.

And saw a massive black dragon curled up.

The bolt was still in his wing, splayed out and lying lifelessly on the ground.

His other wing was tucked back along his sleek black scales.

His eyes were closed, no sapphire orbs glowing brightly.

The way his neck was curled and head sitting, she couldn’t see if the bolt they’d struck him with in the chest was still there.

But there were pools of blood beneath him, whether from the bolts or the damage he sustained when he’d fallen from the sky.

The fury that filled her blood was the song of death itself.

Dead.

All these fuckers were dead.

That grin tipped on her lips again.

Until she heard the wings rustle behind her.

Flipping onto her back, she found the seraph with the wind magic standing over her. Keres. That’s what Varlis had called him. He’d obviously used his gifts to conceal the sound of his movements.

“Valiant effort,” Keres said with a sneer.

He strolled casually forward. “Varlis said we didn’t need to monitor you, but you didn’t become the general of a powerful Court for no reason, did you?

I imagine even in this world, it requires more than spreading your legs to reach such positions of power. ”