Page 25

Chapter

Twenty-Five

My heart pounds as I take in Harek’s physical condition. I have to move quickly to free him, but seeing my best friend in such bad shape is worse than a punch to the gut. I’d rather take a beating than for him to be like this.

Lys moves toward him, and that’s all it takes to snap me out of my stupor.

I run to Harek. Chains bite into his wrists, etched with faintly glowing runes. His breathing is shallow, but he lifts his head as I kneel beside him.

“Stay still.” I draw my blade.

His eyes widen. “I hope you know how to use that thing.”

I almost smile, but my throat tightens instead. “Try not to get yourself captured next time.”

The warded metal resists at first, but my blade flares faintly, then it slices through his restraints like cutting butter. The runes flicker and die one by one.

As the final chain falls away, Harek slumps forward.

My father catches him, bracing him upright. “We need to get out of here. Now.”

Behind us, deep in the tunnels, the howls return. Closer this time. The pack has found our trail.

Lys glides forward, unnervingly calm. “They’re regrouping. The longer we stay, the more difficult your exit will be.”

I sling Harek’s arm over my shoulders as we half-carry him toward the narrow passage behind us. His weight presses against me, but somehow he manages to keep pace.

“Can you walk?” I ask.

“Yes. I’ll never let them see me crawl.”

I still let him lean on me, but he slowly takes more of his own weight on himself.

The tunnels squeeze tighter as we retreat, the walls vibrating with the low pulse of returning wolves. The oppressive weight of magic still hums through the air, but it’s weaker here. Less suffocating. It continues to improve as we slip deeper into the side passages Lys charted.

The faint scraping of claws echoes behind us. The wolves are closing in.

Einar throws a warded sigil across a narrow passage after we pass, sealing part of the tunnel behind us with a low pulse of blue light.

I’ll be happy if that buys us anything more than a few precious seconds. I doubt we’ll get even than that.

The unseen presence from earlier still lingers. I feel it trailing behind us like a cold breath against my spine. The passageway opens at last into a hollowed breach in the southern ridge, moonlight slicing thin across the exit.

My bones turn to rubber with relief. We’re free. Almost.

We break into the open air as the first shadows emerge behind us. The wolves don’t follow into the open. Not yet. We have to keep going. Can’t risk even a moment of rest for poor Harek.

We make it just past the ridge before we stop. It’s far enough to catch our breath, but not far enough to feel safe.

The trees stand like silent sentries, silvered in moonlight. The mountains’ jagged outlines press against the dark.

Harek leans against a boulder, breathing heavily, the bruises across his ribs darkening. His shirt is torn. Blood stains the collar. But his eyes are sharp again. My best friend is returning quicker than I expected.

Relief washes through me, and I want to throw my arms around him. But that will have to wait for later.

He turns to me, more color in his face. “I have to find my parents.”

I blink, startled. “Now?”

“I saw them running. If they’re still out there?—”

“You’re in far worse shape than them. You’re barely standing! If you saw them running, then I’m sure they went for help.”

He forces a grim smile. “I’m growing stronger by the minute, and I need to see them. Surely you understand. What would you do if it was your mother?”

He has me there.

I glance at Einar and Lys for help, but they’re far enough away they can’t hear our conversation.

This isn’t their decision, anyway. It’s Harek’s. And as much as I want to put my foot down and stop him, I can’t.

Harek looks at me again. “We’re safe now. That’s what matters.”

I step closer. “You’re what matters.”

Something flickers between us.

But he shakes his head. “Not if I let them die.”

The words sting more than I expect them to. “You don’t have to do this alone.”

He looks down, his voice lower. “I need to do this, Eira. And I can’t ask you to come with me—not with everything else going on. You focus on breaking your curse. I’ll be back to help with that as soon as I can. I promise.”

My hands tighten at my sides. “This isn’t just about your parents.”

“No.” His gaze sharpens. “It’s about yours, too.”

That stops me cold.

He continues, softer now. “Whatever this curse is, whatever you’re unraveling, I can’t help you if I’m two steps behind. Let me do this one thing.”

The tension between us stretches, tight and silent.

We’ve stood side by side through more than most. And yet here we are again. Diverging paths, different fears and battles.

I nod, relenting. Emotion I can’t quite face bubbles in my chest and up to my throat.

He takes my hand. Squeezes it briefly before letting go. Then he disappears into the trees with the kind of grace only a born tracker carries.

I don’t watch him go away. If I do, I might run after him.

Once I’m sure Harek is gone, I glance over at my father and Lys. They’re talking, and from the bits of conversation the breeze carries, I piece together that they’re eager to get back to Courtsview and update the scholars and rebels on what just happened.

We’re so close to my siblings, I can’t return to the crumbling fae city. I need to see and talk to them.

Make sure the rogue pack members haven’t gotten to them.

Besides, I have no idea what Leif is up to now. What he might have planned for them.

I glance back at Einar and Lys, who are still deep in conversation. Then I dart into the woods and head toward Skoro. Toward my siblings.

One of them calls my name, but I don’t stop. Don’t even slow. Only steal another glance back as I quietly peel away from our planned route.

Einar doesn’t look surprised. Lys raises an eyebrow but says nothing.

Good. Trying to stop me would be pointless. I turn, cutting through the trees, allowing the forest to hide me from their sight.

The path winds quiet and familiar, yet the closer I get to my former home, the more something feels off. It seems dimmer. Quieter.

But no enemies appear, nobody attacks.

When I reach the place I grew up, the town sleeps beneath the weight of whispered suspicion. I easily slip in a side door in the town wall, now used to sneaking in and out—something I never knew was possible when I lived here.

When I reach the farmland nestled beyond the tree line, my pulse thuds in my ears. An old wind chime still clinks against the eaves, but its sound is off kilter.

I sneak in quietly.

Brynja sits by the door reading. Her face crumples the moment she sees me. “Eira!”

She pulls me into a side room without a word. Runa is curled near the hearth, clutching a worn quilt, her eyes heavy with something that isn’t sleep.

“She’s having visions again.” Brynja frowns.

Runa lifts her head. Her pupils are wide, her voice barely a whisper. “They’re worse now.”

I kneel beside her. “What did you see?”

Runa clutches my hand like it’s a lifeline. “A city swallowed in flame. A crown broken in two. And you…” Her eyes shimmer. “You were bleeding light. But the light turned into fire.”

My throat tightens. I smooth her hair back and kiss her forehead.

“I won’t let anything bad happen. I’m working hard to find answers.”

Brynja doesn’t look reassured. She watches me from the shadows of the room, arms crossed, worry etched deep into her face. “They’re talking about you. Saying you brought this darkness and you’re the reason the wolves returned. That you cursed the land.”

I go still. “And you?”

Brynja hesitates. “I know you wouldn’t hurt us, but I don’t know what the world might do because you exist. I hate that for you. I wish I could do something, but I can’t.”

The words slice deeper than any blade. “And I don’t want you to. All I want is for you—all of you—to stay safe. That’s your only job.”

Runa clings tighter to me. “Don’t leave again.”

I stay a moment longer, just long enough to let the warmth soak in. “You know I have to, sweet girl. I’m doing this for you all.”

A single tear slips down her face, and my heart shatters. I pull her close, holding her tightly.

Heavy footsteps sound on the stairs not far away. I recognize them.

Gunnar is on his way down.

I’m no longer afraid of him, but I can’t risk him seeing me and taking out his rage on my siblings.

Quickly, I kiss Runa on the cheek then slip back into the dark.

I know now I’m not just hunted. I’m feared.

And maybe the townsfolk are right to be afraid.