Page 36 of Oaths & Vengeance (Realm of Zadrya #1)

Darrow

I needed to speak with Aella. A wiser man would have sent a sebeska with a message, but I couldn’t help taking advantage of the one night a year when it would be easiest to infiltrate Therress.

The spell of solstice night took over everyone except the border sentries.

They wouldn’t be a problem either, with the way I planned to reach my wife.

My sister and I had just finished visiting my Aunt Durelle and having dinner.

She was long past the age when the celebrations interested her, so she was happy to have us over instead.

We chatted and kept her company until nearly midnight.

Since she didn’t get many visitors, and I didn’t want to infiltrate Therress until after magic rose to its highest, we didn’t leave right after eating.

Instead, we chatted and played cards until she’d had enough of us.

“Are you sure about this?” Faina asked, raising her brows skeptically.

We stood a short distance outside my aunt’s home. Since she lived at the edge of the Sobaryan Mountains, we couldn’t get much closer to Therress from the Veronnian side.

I gave my sister an imperious look because she shouldn’t doubt me after all this time. “We won’t have to fight anyone, and if you do your job, no one will be concerned with us.”

“Yeah, but this is going to drain you, Dare. You’ll be more vulnerable.”

“I can still fight, if necessary,” I said, trying to be patient with her. As twins, we tended to be protective of each other.

Of course, she had no idea that I often used my secret ability for the king’s tasks.

She would throw a fit and worry if she found out, and I had pledged to tell no one until matters hit a certain point, but I knew what I was doing.

True, it would drain me most of the way, but I’d planned this out carefully, so I’d have a small measure of power if an unanticipated situation arose.

“Fine.” She took my hand. “But if we get killed, I’m going to be really angry with you.”

I didn’t bother responding to that. Instead, I concentrated on a forest located between the Sobaryan Mountains and the Salmar River in Therress.

Gripping Faina’s hand tightly, I pushed my magic to that point.

We became weightless for several seconds before our feet touched the ground again.

It was a strange sensation to dematerialize and then become whole once more, but I’d grown used to it over the decades.

Faina immediately let go of my hand to retch on the ground.

I snorted and turned away from my sister to give her privacy.

A variety of pine trees, along with the occasional mistarr tree, surrounded us.

We were a couple of miles from a border village I attacked with the Veronnian army nearly twenty years ago.

Since I could only teleport to locations where I’d physically been before—flights with sebeskas not counting—I had to choose a place that would get me more than halfway to Ivory Castle.

Now, we would stop for a couple of hours so I could regenerate my powers before I took us the rest of the way.

“Ahhh,” Faina said, straightening. “Now I remember why I’ve never been jealous of your inheriting mother’s gift and not me. That way of traveling is dreadful. You are going to owe me for this, brother.”

I could have gotten myself most of the way if I hadn’t brought her, but I needed my sister’s abilities to put everyone to sleep while I spoke to Aella. The plan was to get there and back without anyone the wiser.

“I already told you I’d owe you a favor,” I said, pulling a canteen from the pack I’d brought and handing it to her.

I’d anticipated her body wouldn’t handle it well.

Also, I’d need to eat at breaks during the journey, as using this ability multiple times would take a heavy toll on me.

By the time we reached Darynia tomorrow morning, I’d have to sleep for nearly a full day.

It was one of the reasons I only used teleporting if I could do it with little chance of being caught.

I didn’t like being vulnerable or anyone outside of a select group knowing I could do it.

Even then, all my contacts had sworn a blood oath to never speak of it.

Faina handed the canteen back to me. “Why can’t you just send a message? You know she’s going to be with Cam tonight, and you do not need to get in the middle of that.”

How could I explain the driving need to see my wife after handing her over to Lord Morgunn less than a week ago?

I’d had her in my grasp, but only a shell of her true self.

She was still under the sleeping spell when I last saw her.

With each day that passed since she’d returned to Therress, the urge to see her and make certain she was doing well grew stronger.

Also, I was still frustrated with the role she played in attacking Parvayn. We’d lost many good, innocent people from that. Catching Aella off guard tonight would be part of her punishment while also informing her of my plans to get revenge on Therress for what they did to Verona.

Faina and I took turns napping during the two hours we waited for my powers to return.

A few creatures tried to creep up on us during my watch, but I quickly discouraged them.

I was grateful when it was time to get moving again.

The longer we sat there, the more my mind turned to what Aella might be doing at that moment with Camden.

My overactive imagination didn’t do me any favors, but surely, I didn’t feel jealousy.

I’d never experienced such an emotion in my life. What did I care if she slept with another man? Yet, I found myself disturbed by the thought and wanting to ensure it never happened again.

Our next stop would put us at a thirty-minute walk from our destination. I’d never been to Ivory Castle because the risk was too significant, and there were wards on the lord’s keep to prevent teleportation there. That didn’t mean I couldn’t get close, though.

Long ago, when I developed my spy network, I’d snuck into Therress with Jax.

He’d used his invisibility to hide us whenever we came near guards.

We’d traveled to a forest between Maradeyn and Lord Morgunn’s home so that I’d have a private place to meet with my contacts.

While my friends didn’t know about my specific dealings with the king, they assisted with my information gathering within the realm .

Jax had helped me obtain several other points throughout the land for the same purpose, and I’d been using them ever since.

Teleporting did have a downside aside from the power drain, though.

I couldn’t see if anyone was there before I arrived.

More than once, I’d had to draw my sword right away and kill the witness so they couldn’t alert anyone.

As I gathered my powers once more, I hoped I wouldn’t have to do that tonight. As long as my sister had time to put them to sleep, it shouldn’t become necessary. That was my other reason for bringing her.

We touched solid ground in another dark forest with slightly shorter trees than the previous one, but the brush was much thicker.

The place I’d selected was a small clearing, nowhere near any homes or even a stream that might attract animals and fishermen.

I’d never seen anyone other than my spies at this location, making it one of the safest to use.

Once more, we sat down to rest. I didn’t dare begin the journey to find Aella until I regenerated most of my power so I could leave quickly afterward.

In the meantime, my sister and I shared the cheese and rolls I had brought, with me taking the larger portions due to my increasing hunger.

I would have to consume a whole feast once we got home and then sleep for at least twelve hours, if not more.

The solstice magic began pumping through my veins soon after eating, turning me hard and frustrated.

We’d taken an herbal concoction at my aunt’s home to dull the effect, but my heavy use of power was causing it to wear off more quickly than usual.

My skin itched with the need to find my wife and have my way with her, but I knew that wouldn’t be happening tonight.

I began to wonder if it had been a good idea to see her after all, but it was too late to turn back now.

After fifteen more minutes had passed, I stood. “Let’s go.”

“Finally. I’m ready to get this over with and go home,” Faina said, rising and brushing off her pants.

I checked the map to locate Aella’s general direction and then headed that way. We moved carefully, winding our way through brush as we tried to find animal trails to follow. Once we came closer to the celebration, we slowed further to scan our surroundings .

Some fae were so busy they never looked our way.

Faina left them alone since it hardly seemed fair to put them to sleep while they were in the middle of their pleasure.

Only when they weren’t busy or looked directly at us did she knock them out.

Two men and a woman were going to wake up in a very awkward situation, all because one of them faced us as we passed.

It would only last for half an hour without my sister maintaining a magical hold on them, but that would be more than long enough.

My ring grew warmer as we drew closer to Aella. “She’s just up ahead.”

“I’ll stay back and make sure you’re not disturbed,” Faina said, stopping by a tree.

She had a look of concentration as she touched the minds of everyone within a hundred feet of her.

This part of the journey would push my sister to her limits, but she needed a good challenge now and then to keep her skills sharp.

Of course, she’d leave Aella and Camden alone, as we’d previously discussed.

Since she knew both of them, she could recognize them, though I had no idea how that worked for her.