Page 138 of Scorched Earth (Dark Shores #4)

LYDIA

After Agrippa departed to kill two birds with one stone, as he described it, she was left standing with Killian and Finn in awkward silence.

“Teriana asked me to tell you good-bye,” Finn finally said. “The Maarin intended to meet on the water to finalize her plans, and she didn’t want them to do so without her.”

Not a full day back together and they’d already been separated again.

Lydia sat down on the sofa, pressing her hands to her eyes because her friend was who she needed right now to help calm the chaos of emotion in her chest. Slowly mastering her composure, she lowered her hands.

“That makes sense. In truth, I’m not certain how much liberty Helene intends to give me.

She needs me to secure this contract with the Cel, and to play along, I’ll likely have to remain imprisoned in my room until we’ve played this as far as it can go. ”

Finn wrinkled his nose, then said, “Well, at least you know that Teriana is getting things done while you’re stuck here drinking lemonade and resting up.”

She gave the boy a flat stare, and Finn laughed. “Sorry, Lydia. I know you’d rather be out there doing good works and the like, but hopefully you’ll be able to endure your imprisonment in Seldrid’s fancy house, with a full belly and servants to do your bidding.”

“Finn…” Killian’s tone was exasperated. “Enough. Why don’t you go to bed? It’s late.”

Finn snorted. “Nighttime is when I hold court, Killian. Sleep is for the day.” He bowed low. “On that note, my subjects await.”

“Be careful,” Lydia warned. “I do not want to save you twice.”

Finn only laughed and disappeared out the door.

Killian wavered in the tension between them then abruptly said, “There’s something I need to do. Stay here.”

Lydia’s stomach hollowed as he disappeared, because she’d hoped that they might resolve their argument. Might find a way to dispel the tension between them, but instead, Killian seemed content to allow the gulf to grow wider.

Tears burning in her eyes, she circled the luxurious room. Trailing fingers over the velvet cushions and silk coverlets, examining the oil portraits of seascapes, and sipping at water made sharp with lemons. Go to bed, she told herself. Get some rest.

Except the thought of getting into the massive bed alone only made her feel worse. This was her first night back in Serlania, her first night back with Killian, and she did not want to spend it away from him.

Tap.

She twitched, her eyes going to the window.

Tap.

Frowning, she went to the glass and opened it, only her god-marked reflexes preventing her from getting hit in the face by a pebble. In the gardens below stood Killian and Finn, both of them cloaked in black, the lanterns that normally lit the space conspicuously dark.

Pulling back the hood of his cloak, Killian lifted his face to the light from her room and mouthed, Let’s revisit old times.

Understanding flooded her veins, and Lydia clapped a hand over her mouth to silence the giddy laugh that tore from her lips. Turning away from the window, she went to the door and opened it. “I am to bed,” she told the guards. “Please no interruptions. It has been a trying day.”

“Yes, Marked One,” one of them said, and Lydia closed the door and flipped the lock. Turning all the lamps down low, she retrieved a dark cloak from the wardrobe, then went to the window.

Scanning the gardens to ensure no one was watching her darkened window, Lydia sat on the edge and then let herself drop.

Killian caught her, then pulled her into the deeper shadows of some hedges.

“Finn will distract the guards,” he whispered.

“Then we’ll go over the wall. Run straight across the street and into the alley. ”

Lydia grinned. “All right. But we can’t get caught.”

His hand skimmed down her back, and her hollow stomach filled with butterflies. “I spent a lot of time in this house as a child, Lydia. Trust me, I know how to sneak out.”

They watched as Finn sauntered over to the nearest guard, showing the disinterested man some treasure he’d no doubt stolen from Seldrid. They watched, waiting for the guard’s attention to perk, and then Killian whispered, “Now.”

He caught her by the hips and lifted her. Lydia rolled over the wall, landing on the far side with far more grace than she had in their days in Mudaire. Killian landed next to her, silent as a cat, and they both sprinted toward the dark alley across the street. Moments later, Finn joined them.

“So this is how it is going to go,” Finn said, and Lydia smiled to see him returning to his usual spirits. “There are quite a few blighters in my kingdom, and I know where they tend to gather. I’ll point them out. Killian will catch them. Lydia, you’ll… do what you do. Are we clear?”

“Yes, Your Grace.” Lydia dropped into a smooth curtsy. “We are yours to command.”

Though it was too dark to see his face, she sensed the boy roll his eyes. “Enough of that. Follow me and don’t draw attention to yourselves.”

They wove through the alleyways of Serlania, and while Lydia was swiftly turned about, Finn and Killian both seemed to know the city like the backs of their hands.

It had a much different feel than Mudaire, the air heady and warm and mercifully smelling of sea rather than blight.

The buildings were lower to the ground, walls whitewashed and roofs made of terracotta shingles.

The alleys and roads were cobbled but rough, mortar worn away by the heavy rains mercifully common to the region.

On every corner were rain barrels, and fountains sprayed water at the intersections of major streets.

Most people were abed and asleep, but voices and music trickled out from establishments where people gathered, Mudamorians clinging to the good things in life despite their circumstances.

Serlania had many parks and gardens, but all were full of the tents of refugees, as were many of the alleys.

Finn moved through them with total confidence, and while Lydia spotted more than a few undead among the living, she said nothing, trusting that Finn had a reason for taking them so far afield.

They approached a bridge over a small creek, and Lydia picked out the glowing forms of children on the creek’s banks, all huddled together. But not all of the moving shadows were alive.

“Wait here,” Finn muttered. “I’ll lure one of them out.”

“Won’t they know that you’re not one of them anymore?” Lydia asked softly. “Won’t she have warned them?”

“They’ll know,” he answered. “That’s why this will be so easy.”

Lydia’s pulse thrummed as Finn strolled away from them, heading toward the gathered children and calling out a greeting.

“We have to assume Rufina will know it’s me bringing back her blighters,” she whispered. “She’ll know that means we are not as imprisoned as we are pretending to be. What if she tells Marcus?” Sudden uncertainty of whether this was a good idea filled her. “Maybe we shouldn’t do this.”

“Your ability to bring back those who have succumbed to blight makes you valuable,” Killian murmured. “Not just to us, but to the legions when they inevitably face Rufina. Why would she reveal that information to Marcus when she wants you dead?”

“He wants me dead, too, and I don’t think my ability to bring his men back to life will be enough to counter that desire.”

“Maybe.” Killian’s hand rested against her back, his palm warm through the fabric of her clothes. “But is that a risk Rufina is willing to take for the sake of a handful of blighter souls? Or is it better to stay silent over what you can do until he destroys her greatest threat?”

She leaned against him. “Not just a pretty face with a sword, are you?”

Killian huffed out an amused breath, his hand sliding lower over her hip. Then he tensed. “Here they come. He’s got two. Are they both dead?”

“Yes.” A boy and a girl, both several years younger than Finn.

“If I restrain the boy, can you manage the girl?”

Lydia nodded, and they slipped through the shadows toward the trio.

Defeating the Corrupter’s hold on them was no easier than it had been with Finn. Like being thrown into a fighting pit and battling for her life each time, every second agonizing. Each victory ecstasy.

She slumped against Killian, breathing hard even as she heard the shouts rising in the neighboring buildings, which had shuddered each time she’d knocked back the Corrupter. The two children were alive, but both wept in Finn’s arms.

“We need to go,” Killian whispered. “Soldiers will be coming to investigate. And not all the blighters are children—some are a much greater threat, and Rufina will have them hunting us.”

He handed something to Finn. “You know where my house in Serlania is? Take them there. I’ll arrange for provisions. Go!”

Finn took hold of both children’s hands and they bolted into the night.

“Can you run?” Killian asked.

“Yes.”

He caught hold of her hand and led her at a sprint through the alleys of the city, away from the rising commotion. Away from those who sought their death.

And Lydia had never felt more alive.

As Killian drew to a walk in a mercifully empty alley, both of them breathing hard, Lydia wrapped her arms around his neck. “Kiss me.”

He was already moving. Lifting her even as his lips claimed her, and Lydia wrapped her legs around his waist as her back pressed against the wall.

Tonight was what she’d needed. A visceral reminder of the truth that had always burned in her heart: They were united and nothing in this world would ever pull them apart.

No words were needed, only breath and touch as he slid her skirt up to her waist, weapons falling to the ground with a clatter as she unfastened his belt. He claimed her, promising her with his body that she would always be his. That he would always be hers.

And as the first hint of dawn warmed the midnight skies, they held each other close. Not in the luxury and safety of a High Lord’s manor but in the gritty danger of the streets, the lives of all those they’d both sworn to protect drifting around them.

“It’s better if they think we are at odds,” he whispered against her throat. “Then they won’t question our intent.”

“By day, we are separate.” She could barely get the words out, pleasure still rolling over her body.

“But after sunset, you are my mine.” Killian’s grip on her tightened. “We’ll go to war every night to reclaim those stolen from us, and after every victory—”

“—I will have you,” she finished for him. “Every night, for as many nights as we have left.”

Because the front lines were not just before Teriana’s ships or Dareena’s dams. For Lydia and Killian, the front lines were here.