Page 13

13

C ora had only gone out riding a few times since coming to live with the Forest People. The commune normally reserved their horses for pulling wagons when moving to a new camp or when going to trade with local villages. A few times, though, Cora and Maiya had been allowed to ride for leisure, to explore the nearby landscape outside a new campsite, or to simply exercise the horses. Before that, she’d ridden many times as a girl.

But never bareback.

Never racing through the night, her cheeks whipped by branches.

And never, of course, on a unicorn.

The ride was equal parts exhilarating and terrifying. She had to fight to keep her seat, and her inner thighs were burning within minutes. Maiya clung to her waist with all her might, her head tucked behind Cora’s shoulder. Their speed was a near neck-breaking pace. She’d never ridden so fast, not even on her most daring leisure ride as a girl. She was confident there was no way the hunters could keep pursuit.

Cora was breathless by the time the unicorn slowed his pace to a canter, then a trot. Finally, the unicorn stopped. Cora looked around, seeking signs that they were anywhere familiar. She knew the areas between camp and the hot spring caves, but other than that…

A fresh wave of panic climbed up Cora’s throat.

What if she couldn’t find her way back to the Forest People?

What if she and Maiya were lost?

The unicorn stomped his hooves in an agitated gesture, telling Cora he was ready for them to dismount. She hated the idea of being lost while the hunters could still be searching for them, but she had no right to expect anything more from a fae creature. She was lucky enough the unicorn had bothered to save their hides at all. Shifting in her seat, she climbed down and nearly fell over in the process. Once she had her feet beneath her, she helped Maiya come down far more gracefully, careful not to let her land on her injured ankle.

The unicorn backed away a few paces.

Cora turned to him with a grateful nod. “Thank you for saving us.”

Help , he relayed to her.

“Yes, you helped.”

Help , he repeated, the feeling-word tinged with urgency.

Cora shrugged. “What are you trying to tell me?”

“Cora, are you…talking to the unicorn?” Maiya asked, coming up beside her.

“Sort of,” she muttered, feeling somewhat self-conscious. “It’s more like a feeling of his that I’m picking up, and it…somehow turns to words in my mind. He keeps saying help . The same isn’t happening to you?”

Maiya wrinkled her brow and closed her eyes. She was silent for a few moments as she breathed deeply. Her eyes flew open, and her expression went slack. Maiya was accessing her Art—claircognizance. After a few moments, she gave a solemn nod.

“Did he speak to you?” Cora asked.

“No,” she said softly, “but I did pick up on something. There are more like him.”

“Unicorns?”

“Not just that. Caged ones. They’re…they’re being harmed in a way I don’t understand. All I know is they’re in danger.”

Cora looked back at the unicorn. “You want our help rescuing more of your kind?”

He tossed his mane and Cora felt an approving emotion from the creature.

Cora and Maiya exchanged a look. “We…can’t help you,” Cora said, feeling her vengeful side rebel at her words. “We barely survived what just happened.”

The unicorn’s energy turned aggravated as he raked his hoof into the earth.

Maiya sighed and faced Cora. “I wish we could help. We were raised on tales about fae like him, raised to believe we’d never see them with our own eyes. Now that we know they aren’t extinct, it makes me sick that they’re being hunted.”

Cora could sense her friend’s sorrow, her desperation. Cora felt something similar herself. She remembered Gisele mentioning that James and his companions would be leaving in the morning to join the rest of their hunting party. She recalled how he’d boasted about the impressive thing awaiting at camp, and how there were more at his next destination. Cora hadn’t taken his words as anything more than a poor attempt at seduction, but now it all made sense.

There were more captive unicorns. More tormented fae.

And they were likely all working for Duke Morkai.

Her enemy.

A spark of fiery vengeance—the same she’d felt when she’d first glimpsed the duke’s sigil—roared through her.

She tamped it down. Her conclusion was the same now as it had been then. There was nothing she could do that mattered.

And yet…

“Maiya.”

“Cora.”

Two voices sounded through the trees, one male, one female. Maiya’s hand flew to her heart. “Is that…”

“We’re here,” Cora called back.

Their names echoed again, not too far away, and they ran toward the sound, Cora and Maiya calling back with every step. Soon two figures emerged from between the trees and bounded forth.

Roije stopped as soon as they came into view, his face slack with relief. Behind him was Gisele, trails of tears marking her cheeks, sparkling beneath the light of the moon. She ran forward, breaking into a sob as she gathered Cora and Maiya in her arms. “It’s my fault. It’s all my fault,” she cried.

While Cora couldn’t help but agree, now didn’t seem like the time to say so. Instead, she said, “We’re safe.”

Gisele released them, which in turn made Maiya hobble back before she caught her balance. Roije was at her side in an instant. “You’re hurt.” He framed her face in his hands, his expression hardening when his eyes landed on the blood at her temple.

Even in the dark, Cora could tell Maiya was blushing. “I’m fine,” she said with a bashful smile.

“I can carry you,” he said, and was halfway to scooping her up before she put a hand on his chest to still him.

Just as quickly, she snatched her hand away. “It’s just a sprain. With help, I can walk.”

“You’re sure?”

“Yes.” She waved at Gisele, who wordlessly obliged, putting her arm around her like Cora had done.

“Come on then.” Roije angled his head in the direction he and Gisele had come from. “We’re not too far from camp.”

They started off, keeping a moderate pace for Maiya.

“Thank you for finding us,” Cora said. “How?—”

“The Magic of the Soil led me here,” Roije explained. “Gisele sprung upon camp looking half dead with a wild tale about getting attacked by hunters. A dozen of us went out looking, and Gisele insisted on coming with me.”

“I knew if anyone would find you, it would be Roije,” Gisele said. It was a solid bet, considering his renowned magic-aided tracking skills. Gisele’s lip quivered. “I’m so, so sorry. I never should have been so reckless.”

“Let’s just get back to camp,” Cora said, still uneasy with the thought that the hunters were still out there. She knew the unicorn’s speed had helped them outrun them?—

Remembering the creature, she whirled around.

Her heart dropped when she realized he was nowhere to be seen.

Roije turned too. “What is it?”

She looked deep into the dark woods, searching between the trees for any sign of white fur. Nothing. She was surprised at the pang of disappointment that tugged her heart. Releasing a sigh, she caught back up with Roije. Gisele and Maiya were now several paces ahead.

“What happened out there?” he whispered.

She nibbled her lip, uncertain what to say. Would he believe the truth? She remembered the idea that had begun to form before Roije and Gisele had found them.

“Can you track… anyone ? Even someone you haven’t met?”

He considered that and shrugged. “It depends. I’d never met my father, but the Magic of the Soil led me to him. His blood called to mine.”

“So, you couldn’t track a stranger?”

“If I could track them for a while by usual means, I’d perhaps be able to tune in to their essence enough to utilize magic as well.”

“How fresh of tracks do you need?”

He turned to face her, eyes narrowed with suspicion. “What is this about?”

She looked from him to her two friends. Cora returned to walking while keeping a slight distance behind them. Maiya looked over her shoulder with a questioning glance before casting her gaze ahead.

“Gisele told you we were attacked by hunters.”

He nodded.

“They weren’t just any hunters, Roije. They’d captured…” She gulped a few times, gathering the courage to say what she knew would sound crazy to him. “They had a unicorn in an iron cage. It looked starved. I witnessed one of the hunters lash another unicorn with an iron-barbed whip.”

Roije made no outward sign that he was surprised. Or perhaps it was only that he didn’t believe her.

“I’m telling the truth, Roije. You can ask Maiya. We both saw it. We—” She almost confessed they’d ridden the unicorn, but that seemed too unbelievable to admit. “I know it sounds crazy, but we have to do something. We need to stop them. We must tell the elders.”

He halted in place and faced her. “No.” His tone was neither sharp nor unkind. It was more…tired.

“What do you mean, no? This is a matter of the fae. If anyone should care, it’s the Faeryn. The Forest People might no longer be of pure Faeryn blood, but their heritage is fae, just like the unicorns. It’s a matter of magic?—”

“No, Cora,” he said, expression sagging with grief. “While it may involve fae creatures, it is a royal matter, not a Faeryn one.”

Cora took a step back, taking in his posture, his feelings of defeat that began to seep into her. “You already know.”

He nodded. “I spied the hunters on my way to camp. I saw them with their…their prey. I also saw whose sigil they bore on their coat sleeves.”

Ice filled Cora’s blood, battling the heat of her rage that always sparked when she thought of Morkai.

“Duke Morkai is too powerful. Facing him or his agents would be equal to facing the king. You know why we can’t do that.”

Cora swallowed back every argument. She knew he was right. The Forest People served no crown, recognized no king. If King Dimetreus—or anyone loyal to him—learned of the commune’s existence, knew that a group of nomads lived on the king’s soil paying no taxes, no dues…the Forest People would be hunted. Forced into modern society at best. Exterminated at worst. That was the very reason the commune swore never to get involved with royal matters. Never cross paths with agents of the crown. Never engage in anything that could draw the crown’s attention.

“Did you tell anyone?” Cora asked.

“I met with the elders this morning and told them what I’d seen. They won’t directly interfere.”

Tears pricked Cora’s eyes as she remembered the skinny brown unicorn. She could still feel his sorrow. Then there was the white unicorn, who turned his grief into rage, fought against his captors, and risked getting caught just to free one of his kind. Risked his life to save Cora and Maiya. “There must be something we can do.”

He shook his head. “You need to forget what you saw. You more than anyone need to stay away from those hunters.”

It took a few seconds to feel the weight of his words. Echoes of his earlier warning pounded through her head. “What do you mean by that? Why me more than anyone?”

He started walking again. “You know why.”

Cora stared after him. He was halfway back to catching up with the others when Cora tugged his sleeve. “Tell me what you mean.”

He rounded on her and stuffed his hand beneath his coat. When he brought it back out, a crumpled piece of paper was crushed in his fist.

“What is that?”

Without a word, he handed it to her.

Cora felt the blood leave her face as she unfolded the paper. Once she’d smoothed it flat, she squinted at what she beheld. It was hard to make out at first, with the night so dark, but soon her eyes followed the lines of black that formed the sketch. It was a female face. Long hair. Lightly rounded jaw. Almond-shaped eyes.

The paper shook violently in her hands as she stared at her own face, the likeness as accurate as her reflection. Above her head, bold letters spelled Wanted while the script below the portrait read: For the murders of Queen Linette and Princess Aveline. Reward: 500,000 gold sovas .

Sovas were the highest form of currency on the continent. The sum was considered a fortune. Her eyes fell on what was written beneath that. Wanted alive and turned over to the crown.

Cora dropped the paper and lurched a step back. “Where did you get that?”

He picked it up and stuffed it back in his coat. “In Kubera. The signs were…everywhere.”

“Has anyone else…”

“I don’t know, Cora. If these signs are papered around the other villages, I suppose it’s only a matter of time.”

She took another step back, her heart racing. She felt as if the ground were about to swallow her up.

“It doesn’t matter,” Roije said, reaching for her. “I don’t believe what it says about you. There’s a chance the others won’t either.”

She wanted to take his word for it, but she could feel the weight of everything he left unsaid. They both knew the truth. Once word got out that she was wanted by the crown, she wouldn’t be allowed to stay. Sure, Salinda would defend her. Try to protect her. But what of the others? If the Forest People were so determined to stay out of royal affairs that they’d refuse to help captive fae creatures, then they’d certainly refuse to harbor a fugitive. Worse…what if they turned her in? It would go against the Forest People’s rules, but the likeness…it was too close. When she’d first been condemned for the crime, she’d been a twelve-year-old child. No one could have guessed her current appearance so accurately. Could someone in the commune be a spy? Could they have discovered Cora’s identity and…and…

A far more reasonable explanation came to her, one that filled her with the darkest shade of dread.

No one had spied on Cora. No one had run off telling her enemies of her appearance. For if they had, why not turn her in right away? Why not reveal where to find her? No, this was a matter of magic.

Dark magic.

A mage’s magic.

Duke Morkai could somehow see her.

And if he could see her…

She glanced at Maiya and Gisele, almost at the edge of her vision. If he could see her, he could see them . All of the Forest People. If he didn’t know their location yet, he soon could. She could handle the thought of being personally targeted by the duke. In fact, part of her relished the thought. Relished the prospect of getting her chance at revenge. What she could not tolerate was putting the Forest People at risk in turn. Suddenly, her fear over her own fate shifted to that of her friends. Of the few amongst the commune who’d become as close as family.

It wasn’t enough to avoid villages. To hope her identity wasn’t discovered.

Her throat burned, eyes prickling with unshed tears, even as she forced her heart to harden. To do what she knew she needed to do. “I have to go,” she said, voice strained.

“What do you mean?”

“You said it yourself, Roije. The Forest People don’t get involved in royal matters. That ,” she pointed at his coat where he’d stuffed the Wanted poster, “shows just what a danger I am. What a danger I’ve always been.”

“It’s different with you,” he said. His voice held so much conviction she almost believed him. “Salinda?—”

“Salinda deserves better. You all do. I can’t…I can’t endanger you.” She took another step back, then glanced at her two friends again. “Tell Maiya I’m sorry.”

Before he could say another word, she turned and ran.

The sun was just beginning to rise by the time she made it back to the hot spring caves. Progress had been slow in returning, as every step was haunted by the threat of hunters, not to mention the threat of hope. Every snap of a twig, every hoot of an owl sent her stomach into a roiling mess. Half of her was terrified she’d see one of the duke’s hunters, while the other part hoped Roije was just behind the next tree—that he’d tracked her, had come to stop her.

To take her back home.

To comfort.

To safety.

She shook the thought from her head as she took a tentative step inside the cave. The commune was never her home, she reminded herself, no matter how much she’d wanted it to be. She could never be truly welcome, not with a bounty on her head. She’d been naive enough to think her past was only a threat if she confessed her identity, or if someone else was clever enough to figure it out.

She made her way into the tunnel, finding it empty. The hot spring cavern was thankfully empty too. Tension unraveled from her gut as she made her way to the boulder where her discarded belongings remained. With a sigh, she sat on the boulder, resting her feet as she donned her bodice, overskirt, and cloak. She was tempted to curl up right there and sleep, but she had to keep moving. It was already a risk to return here, but she knew she wouldn’t get far without her cloak. It had been a mild spring so far, but nights still carried a chill. As to where she’d go next…

Her lack of options nearly overwhelmed her.

She knew how to use her bow. Skin smaller animals. She could survive in the woods and feed herself, but…was survival enough?

The duke’s sigil flashed through her mind, heating her core with fiery rage.

This time, she didn’t tamp it down, didn’t shove her vengeful thoughts away. As she left the hot springs and returned to the mouth of the cave, she let her anger unfurl, let it heat her blood until a reckless, wild idea took root in her mind.

Because now she had nothing left to lose.

So what if she was only one girl against a pack of hunters?

So what if her efforts had to be small?

At least they’d be something.

If Duke Morkai could somehow see her, then it was only a matter of time before he found her. He might as well watch her destroy his machinations. And when he found her, she wouldn’t cower. Wouldn’t run. She’d send an arrow between his eyes. Show him she was the killer he’d made her out to be.

She walked through the woods, idly seeking shelter. It took her a while to realize she was no longer alone. Glancing to the side, she caught a flash of white between the trees. She stopped in place and the unicorn stopped too. They held each other’s stare until the creature emerged and stood before her.

Help , he said.

Terror surged through her, tinged with an unsettling excitement. Both emotions were wholly hers. “Yes,” she said to the unicorn. “I will help you.”