Page 43 of Stormvein

His words wash over me, bringing clarity to the chaos of emotions that threaten to overwhelm me. I’ve witnessed the cruelty of this world firsthand now, not just heard about it. I’ve seen it with my own eyes. Fury tastes like blood in my mouth.

I touch Sacha’s hand, trying to find a place that hasn’t been damaged.

“We’ll get you somewhere safe,” I promise him, then lift my head to search out Varam. “They knew … somehow they knew we were going to be here.”

Mira stiffens beside me. “That cannot be. No one would?—”

“How else would they have known where we’d be?” I hold Varam’s eyes. “You can’t tell me it was a coincidence that those soldiers came from behind.”

“No one would betray us like that.” Mira’s protest doesn’t sound as confident as she wants it to. “No one who knows what the Authority is capable of.”

“Wouldn’t they? You said it yourself at River Crossing. Someone told them then. And now this? A conveniently captured captain, carrying the exact details we needed?”

Silence follows my words, and then Varam straightens.

“We need to find somewhere to shelter for the night. Once we’re safe, we can assess our position and Lord Torran’s health. Tomorrow, we’ll consider what to do about Stonehaven.”

We manage to construct a stretcher from cloaks and branches, and parts salvaged from the wagons. The fightersmove carefully, trying not to worsen Sacha’s injuries. I stay at his side. The light under my skin somehow pulses in time with his laboured breathing.

The mist stalker holds its place beside me, watching the cliffs.

When they lift Sacha onto the stretcher, his head lolls, slack and unresponsive. No flicker of awareness. Strange metal bands encircle his wrists, cruel restraints that bite into his skin, odd symbols carved into their surface. The skin around them is raw and blistered, as though the metal itself is burning him.

“Those restraints.” Mira follows the line of my gaze. “The captain mentioned they were special. Something about containing his power.”

“That must be how they’ve kept him helpless since his capture. Along with whatever that crystal did to him,” Varam says. He sighs, looking around. “We need to move. They will return eventually, with more reinforcements. They’re going to want him back.”

The mist stalker growls low in its throat when I tense.

No. They won’t have him. Never again.

“Where?” The question bursts out of me. “If we can’t go to Stonehaven …”

“We need to find shelter nearby. Set up camp somewhere defensible, and treat his wounds as best we can.”

“In the wilderness? He needs ahealer.”

“We have basic supplies, and whatever we can salvage from the convoy. It will have to be enough until we can move him safely. There’s a cave system half a day’s travel from here. We’ve used it to hide from patrols before, but ...”

He doesn’t need to say anything else. Sacha might not survive a longer journey. We have no choice but to take shelter, and do whatever we can with the limited resources at our disposal.

Chapter Ten

ELLIE

Even an offered hand can become a blade.

Wisdom of the Wandering Sages

We needto get out of here as fast as we can. Every second we remain at Glassfall Gap increases the risk of being discovered. The few Authority soldiers who escaped are going to come back at some point, either with reinforcements or to recover anything they’ve left behind that they deem important. Namely, the man they were transporting.

I force my gaze away from Sacha’s body on the stretcher, and look at the mountains rising up around us, my mind trying to process what we should do next.

“What are we going to do? Dragging him behind the horses will cause more pain.”

Varam kneels beside the crude frame we’ve fashioned, his fingers testing the bindings.

“We’ll have to carry him. It won’t be comfortable, but it isn’t worse than that thing.”