Page 13 of Stormvein (The Veinbound Trilogy #2)

“We need a plan, Ellie. Recklessness is more likely to get him and us killed. Remember that.” Varam’s voice holds a quiet warning.

I nod, although I’m not sure I agree. Every plan so far has failed. But I keep that to myself, and follow him and Mira back through the passages to the central part of Stonehaven.

The council chamber is already filling when we arrive. Varam moves to the head of the table, Lisandra and Mira flanking him. As the last Veinwardens file in, he raises his hand for silence.

“The Vareth’el lives.”

The chamber erupts. Questions fly from all sides, skepticism and hope battling in equal measure.

I watch as Lisandra stiffens. She’s standing perfectly still, like a soldier at attention, but I can see the tension in the line of her shoulders.

She’d been so sure I was wrong. Now she must face a room full of people learning that the Shadowvein Lord, the man she insisted was dead, that we should not try to find, is alive.

“We have confirmation from an Authority captain,” Varam continues when the initial shock subsides. “Lord Torran survived the encounter at River Crossing. He was captured by Sereven’s forces. And right now, he’s being transported to Blackvault, where they plan to purge him of his power.”

Horror ripples through the room at these words, but it’s quickly replaced by determination.

“When do they reach Blackvault?” Tarn, the stronghold’s head scout, asks.

“No more than two days,” Varam answers. “They’re heading toward the southern mountains. The captain we captured was sent ahead to prepare the prison for Sacha’s arrival.”

“So, we need to intercept them before they reach the prison.”

“Exactly.”

“How many guards?” another fighter asks.

“Twenty of Sereven’s personal guard.” It’s Lisandra who answers.

“What about Sereven himself?” Tarn asks.

“Not traveling with the transport, according to the captain.”

“We need to leave as soon as possible. Every hour matters now.” Mira’s voice is quiet.

Varam unrolls a map across the table, pointing to a narrow passage between two peaks.

“We will hit them here. Glassfall Gap. There are cliffs on both sides, barely wide enough for two horses abreast. The transport will be forced to slow, possibly even go single-file through the narrowest sections.”

“We split into two groups.” Mira points to positions on either side of the gap. “Archers on the high ground here and here. The rest form a blocking position at the southern end of the gap.”

“How many fighters?”

“Who will lead?”

“What are the risks?”

Questions come from all sides.

“Fifteen fighters.” Varam decides after a moment’s thought. “More than that becomes unwieldy in the narrow pass. Fewer, and we risk being overwhelmed.”

He begins naming the most experienced, the most skilled with bow and blade, the best scouts. I hold my breath, waiting for my name, but it doesn’t come.

“And me,” I say when he finishes. It’s not a question.

Varam’s eyes meet mine. “Your ability is still unstable.”

“I’m not staying behind.” I step forward, releasing my grip on the light, allowing it to brighten.

“Your power would give away your position,” Lisandra points out. “We need the element of surprise.”

“I can suppress it.” I close my eyes briefly, breathing deeply, and the light dims again.

I’ve made progress over the past week, but complete control still eludes me.

She doesn’t need to know that, though. “For long enough to spring the ambush. And when the fighting starts, my power might be exactly what we need.”

I look around the room, meeting every stare in turn. “He wouldn’t ignore anything that could help if any of you were in his place.”

My voice is steadier than I feel. Inside, fear and doubt tangle with desperate hope. I don’t know if my abilities will help or hinder. I don’t know if I’m strong enough for what’s coming. But uncertainty doesn’t matter now. Sacha needs me, and I refuse to fail him.

Lisandra’s lips press together, and she draws in a breath. That’s all it takes.

“If you don’t let me go with them, I’ll follow once they’ve gone.”

Varam sighs. “Okay, but you stay hidden until the attack begins. If we lose the advantage of surprise, we lose everything.”

I nod. I couldn’t bear to be left behind, to wait and wonder whether they’d succeeded, whether Sacha was safe.

“We leave in an hour. Pack light. We need to travel fast. We have less than a day to reach the gap and prepare the ambush. If you’re not ready when we go, you stay behind.”

As the council disperses to prepare, I remain at the table, staring down at the map, at the tiny mark indicating Glassfall Gap. That narrow strip of land between mountains is where we’ll make our stand. Where we’ll fight to save Sacha.

If we’re successful, we’ll get him back. The thought is almost too much to comprehend after days of mourning him, of being the only one who believed he might still be alive.

“You were right, Ellie. He survived the crystal.” Mira touches my arm. “Now you have to trust that he’ll survive until we reach him.”

“He better.” My fingers find the ring hidden beneath my tunic. “Or I’ll never forgive him.”

The ghost of a smile touches her lips. “None of us would.”

Back in Sacha’s quarters, I close the door and lean against it, giving myself a moment to process everything.

The room still smells faintly of him. That peculiar scent of night air and something indefinable that clings to his clothes, his sheets.

I’ve been sleeping here since we returned, surrounded by his things, refusing to believe he was gone.

He’s alive.

After being the only one desperately clinging to hope while everyone else mourned, I have confirmation. The relief is so profound it drives me to my knees. A sound escapes me—half laugh, half sob—and silver light floods outward, bright enough to catch on every surface.

My arms wrap around my waist. He’s alive, but he’s a captive.

He’s being transported in chains, powerless, on display like a conquered enemy.

The same man who controlled shadows with a gesture, who moved through darkness like it was an extension of himself, reduced to a captive, bound and displayed like a warning.

What will they have done to him to ensure he couldn’t escape? What condition is he going to be in when we find him?

Rage rises in me, hot and clarifying. The Authority, Sereven , will pay for this. My power responds, deepening to a colder gleam. Something is realigning within me, something that’s been changing since River Crossing. Since his familiar merged with me.

But there’s no time for that. I have less than half an hour to prepare for a rescue that might not succeed. One that might cost more than his life if we get it wrong. I know that Varam will leave without me if I’m not there waiting for him before the hour is up.

The mist stalker glides to my side. It makes a sound—not quite a growl, not quite a purr—that vibrates through the air.

I pull out Sacha’s ring from beneath my tunic.

The black stone seems to absorb the light around it, creating a pocket of deeper darkness even against the glow emanating from my skin.

When I slip it onto my finger, it adjusts to fit despite being sized for Sacha’s larger hand.

Another small magic, another connection to him.

For a brief moment, I feel something odd. A connection, a resonance that can’t be explained by logic. Like a distant heartbeat synchronizing with my own. The shadows in the corners of the room seem to deepen, to reach toward me. I close my eyes, focusing on that tenuous connection.

“Are you still there?” I whisper to the shadows. “Is part of you still with me? Hold on. If you can hear me, please hold on. We’re coming for you.”

The mist stalker makes that strange sound again, and when I open my eyes, its form has changed subtly. More defined edges, deeper coloration, a presence that feels increasingly substantial. As if my certainty, my determination, strengthens its manifestation.

Maybe I’m imagining all of this. Maybe I’m not. All I know is that ever since we got back to Stonehaven, something kept telling me that he survived. Now I know I was right.

“Soon. We’ll find him and bring him home.”

I have to believe that. I have to think he’s strong enough to endure until we reach him. The alternative is unthinkable. I’ve seen his strength, his stubborn will to survive twenty-seven years trapped in that tower. If anyone can hold on against impossible odds, it’s Sacha Torran.

The mist stalker presses against my side, and I rest my hand on its head. Together, we’ll find him. Together, we’ll tear apart anyone who stands in our way.

One night. One desperate ride through the darkness. One chance to save him before he disappears behind walls designed to contain his power. To destroy it. To destroy him.

I look down at my hands, at the light, at his ring now claiming me as surely as I’m claiming him.

We can’t fail. We won’t.