 |
 |
I practiced stopping time for most of the night. Even after the others had gone to bed, I continued to practice, stopping and starting Marth’s snores until my own eyelids grew too heavy to keep open.
I was the first to wake, a chill shuddering through me that had nothing
to do with the cold morning. My stomach spiraled, and I sat up, hugging my knees to my chest.
“It’s going to be okay,” a gruff voice said.
Lorian’s eyes met mine. His eyes were still a little hazy with sleep, his jaw dark with stubble. And his hair was ruffled in a way that made me drop my gaze.
“You don’t know that.”
“You get to believe anything you want. Why would you choose to believe you will fail?”
“It seems so simple when you put it that way.”
He stretched, and I got to my knees, pulling Galon’s cloak tighter around me. Soon, we would be separated—likely forever. At some points in our journey, I’d longed for this day more than anything else. Now that it was here, I didn’t know how to feel.
I took a deep breath. “You said once I mastered my power, you’d tell me why I still have it. Why people like me are hunted.”
Lorian cocked his eyebrow in a way that told me in no way had I
mastered my power.
I glowered at him. “Please.”
He gave me a slow smile. “Since you asked so nicely. Come closer, and I’ll tell you exactly how your lives have been altered, your destinies stolen.”
Given that I was desperate to hear his explanation, I complied.
“You believe the gods favor the king? Believe he is powerful because he has been blessed?” He shook his head. “Every time a mother hands over her child’s precious gift, Sabium takes most of it for himself. The gods play no part in your people’s suffering. What need do they have for more power?”
It was as if his words had stolen the air from my lungs. My lips were so numb, my mouth so dry, it took several moments before I could form words.
Maybe…maybe it was the king’s only option. He’d needed our power to protect us from the fae…
“He uses that magic to protect our borders,” I said.
Lorian gave me a pitying look. “Yes. But he still gives power to his councillors to keep them loyal. He gives it to the priestesses to ensure they continue the Takings. He gives it to his guards so they can hunt those whom he considers corrupt. And he keeps much of it himself.”
I couldn’t breathe.
“My father…” I licked my lips. I didn’t want to ask. Didn’t want to know. Because I might not be able to handle the answer.
Lorian was watching me with those inscrutable eyes of his. “What is
it?”
I forced myself to swallow around the lump in my throat. “My brother
is a healer. If he’d kept all of his power, would he have been able to…”
“To save your father?” He gave an elegant shrug. “Perhaps. At least for a time.”
I had no words for this feeling. It was worse than betrayal. Greater than rage. It burned through me with no end.
“How…how do I still have my power, then? How does Asinia?”
Lorian stretched out his legs. “Eons ago, this world was divided into four kingdoms. Two human kingdoms called Eprotha and Gromalia. The fae kingdom in the south. And to the west—across the Sleeping Sea—was a
kingdom filled with people who had once been wholly fae but had split from their people during the Long War. They became hybrids, mating with humans and producing offspring with unique powers of their own.”
When I could speak again, I sucked in deep breath. “The hybrid kingdom was on the Barren Continent?” There was a reason no one traveled to the Barren Continent. Nothing grew there. And any ships that attempted the journey never returned.
Lorian smiled. “That continent was never barren. No, the hybrid kingdom was beautiful.” His smile faded. “When the hybrid kingdom was invaded, many of its people traveled north, to the mountains. Some fled across the Sleeping Sea on merchant ships or winged creatures, landing on this continent where they crossed the Asric Pass. Hundreds of thousands died. Those who lived made it to cities and villages on this continent. And they’ve remained hidden ever since.”
All I could hear was a dull ringing in my ears. My instinct was to refute him. To believe he was playing with me. But it made a sick kind of sense.
“How come the…hybrids… How come we’re not discovered during the Taking?”
“Your power does not belong to this kingdom. It’s not Sabium’s to give away to the gods, and it’s certainly not his to keep and share among his court.” Lorian’s eyes had turned icy, and his voice was tight with banked fury. I almost shivered. But he seemed to regain control, his voice evening once more. “The oceartus stones may take all human magic. But that’s not how they work for hybrids.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re more powerful than humans and your magic is very different. At a hybrid Taking ceremony, the magic is taken, the stone glows, and the priestesses warble their prayers, but the seed of hybrid power remains deep within you. And it replenishes and grows as you age.”
I stared at Lorian. Did I trust him? He’d lied to me over and over again. But at least those lies had been for a reason. I had no illusions about my ability to withstand torture. If I found out just what the mercenaries were planning when they murmured to each other out of my earshot, those plans would be at great risk.
And while he’d lied to me…even terrified me so I would use my power, his strategy had worked—regardless of how awful it had been.
He had no true reason to lie to me now. At least, none that I could see.
If he was telling the truth, I wasn’t corrupt at all. My power was different because I was different. Part fae. A hybrid.
I swallowed. “I know you know more. Things you’re not telling me.” “An understatement. You want to learn more about the history of these
lands? About the king? See if you can find a narminoi.” “What’s a narminoi?”
“Their power is the power of knowledge. Unlike Marth, who can look back a few days, perhaps a few years if he is at full strength, narminoi can look back centuries if they choose. And they are unable to lie. Not about the past. The king has hunted them all these years, until only a few of them remain.”
The more I understood about my power, the history of this kingdom, and the royal family, the greater the chance I could free Asinia and find my brother.
“How will I find a narminoi?”
One dark eyebrow kicked up in that infuriating way that made me want to slap him. “I’m sure you’ll manage.”
Rythos yawned and sat up. “Some of us were trying to sleep.”
Galon was already getting to his feet. “We don’t have time to sleep.” He eyed me. “One last lesson before we leave. The others can ready the horses.”
Lorian pushed his blanket off himself and slowly stood. “Today, you need to wield your magic the way you were born to use it.”
My chest constricted at the thought of what was to come. If I’d been alone, I might’ve leaned over and hyperventilated.
Lorian just gave me that look he gave me when he’d set an impossible task and was expecting me to complete it. “It’s up to you to coax it out. To make it do what you need. Your problem isn’t a lack of power. It’s a lack of control. You’re terrified of your power, and a part of you doesn’t truly believe you have what I’m saying you have.”
I opened my mouth, but he was already walking away.
I wanted to sit with my thoughts for a few hours. To come to terms with the fact that King Sabium had been lying to us. All of us. Even worse, his father, his father’s father…all of them were liars, all of them stealing from their people in the worst way. The blood was pounding so loudly in my ears, I almost missed Galon’s next words.
He was standing in front of me, holding out his hand.
“You can think about what Lorian just told you later,” he said. “Time to stretch.”
 |
|
Galon pinned me to the ground. I struggled, but it was no use.
He glowered down at me, clearly impatient. “You know what to do here.”
I did know. Wiggling one leg out from under us, I shoved my knee against his chest and and pushed.
“Take your hands off me.” A familiar voice cut through the clearing.
I froze. My eyes flooded, my throat tightened, and then I went wild, scratching and clawing for my freedom.
Galon cursed and rolled off me, but I was already sitting up. Across the clearing, Marth held Tibris in a headlock—my brother’s face already swollen and bruised.
“Found him spying on us,” Marth announced.
Was Tibris truly in front of me? Or was I imagining it? I glanced around at the mercenaries. All of them had gone quiet, and all of them were watching my brother closely.
“Let him go, Marth,” I demanded. Marth just looked at Lorian, who was already getting to his feet.
Lorian nodded and Tibris straightened.
My brother looked like he’d aged five years. He wore a rough beard, his clothes dirty and unkempt. He stalked toward me, dropped a small pack at my feet, and positioned his body in front of mine, a long knife held ready in his hand.
“Run, Prisca,” Tibris ordered.
“Friend of yours, wildcat?” Lorian crooned.
“Don’t talk to her,” Tibris snarled. “Pris, go.”
Lorian slowly stood. He moved like a predatory cat, his gaze now solely on my brother.
I unfroze and shot to my own feet, darting in front of Tibris. My brother cursed as Lorian’s gaze dropped to me.
“A lover come to rescue you from our…embrace?”
Was that why he was acting so strangely? “No, you idiot. This is my brother.”
Some of the malice left Lorian’s expression, and I threw my arms around Tibris. My eyes slid closed, and I just basked in the feel of him. Alive.
I took a deep breath and opened my eyes. “They’re not hurting me, Tibris. If anything, they’ve protected me. That one—” I stepped back and pointed to Galon “—fished me out of the river after Mama threw me in.”
I didn’t mention Lorian had abandoned me directly after that. But I squinted my eyes at him so he’d know I hadn’t forgotten that part.
The corner of his mouth twitched.
Tibris gave a small bow of his head. “In that case, thank you for keeping my sister alive. But we’re leaving now.”
Lorian went still, and I watched as he pondered my brother, clearly deciding how much of a threat he was to his plan to sneak into the city.
I knew what Lorian did to people who got in his way. I shot him what I hoped was a threatening look. “We need to talk,” I told Tibris. “Come with me.”
Tibris allowed it, and I led him over to the huge boulder by the river.
Hopefully the noise of the water would drown out our conversation.
Tibris stared at me for a long moment. I stared back. It was as if we were memorizing each other’s features. And then I was in his arms, tears rolling down my face.
“Mama?”
He tensed, and I felt him shake his head. “I’m sorry.”
I shook with fresh sobs. I’d known. But some tiny part of me had hoped anyway.
“I thought you were dead,” I admitted against his chest. “I told myself you’d make it—that you were smart, prepared. But…”
“I know exactly how you felt,” Tibris said. “I told myself the same. But I didn’t see how you could’ve survived. Mercenaries? Really?”
I laughed. And then I cried some more.
When I had no tears left, Tibris slowly released me. “I have so much to tell you, I barely know where to start, although I know you suspect some of it. Those notes from Vicer weren’t just a way to keep in touch.” He gave me a faint smile.
I rolled my eyes. “I had a feeling that was the case.” “Vicer always knew you still had your magic.”
My mouth went dry. “He did?”
Tibris sighed. “If there’s one thing Vicer does well, it’s observe. He noted how tense we both were at the ceremonies. How protective I was of you. And how I insisted you learn to fight. You’d get this…hunted look in your eyes whenever anyone talked about the Gifting ceremony. Vicer watched closely over the years, and he figured it out.”
“Did he blackmail you somehow?”
“No. Vicer’s ruthless, but he would never…” Tibris glanced away. “Shortly after he got to the city, he began to send those notes you were so curious about.” He nudged me, and I attempted a smile. “In the villages, we’ve always been told that the gods favored many of the city residents because they were more pious. Vicer learned that wasn’t true at all. Councillors and courtiers favored by King Sabium have the most power, followed by families who’ve shown loyalty over the years.”
I took a deep, steadying breath. “Lorian told me some of this. If you’d had your power…if we’d been favored, Papa might still be alive.”
Tibris swallowed. “Yes.”
“How did you escape? What happened in the village? And how did you find me?”
“One of my friends told me what had happened. His warning gave me enough time to run, and my contacts helped me stay hidden. I went from inn to inn, searching for rumors of a woman traveling alone. One who might look desperate. Then I heard a barmaid laughing about a woman who’d been traveling with five men, servicing them all. She’d overheard one of the men say your name.”
My cheeks flamed, and I winced. “It’s definitely not what it sounds like.”
“Good. I didn’t even like the thought of you with Thol. Five
mercenaries…”
I squinted at him and he laughed, but the amusement instantly disappeared. His considering look told me he was wondering if I could handle whatever he was about to tell me.
Finally, he took a deep breath. “Prisca, it’s bad.” “Tell me. Quickly.”
“After you disappeared, and after Mama was… After she died…” His voice turned hoarse, and he paused for a long moment before continuing. “They began to question anyone close to us. The king’s assessor performed Testings on all of our friends. All of our neighbors.”
My face turned numb. “I know it was Asinia. I saw her on the list.”
Tibris closed his eyes, as if he couldn’t look at me, couldn’t stand to watch me while he broke my heart.
“She tried to run, but they caught her. They killed her mother and took Asinia to the city.”
My knees hit the dirt. Asinia’s mother. The woman who’d always had a kind word, an extra plate of food.
Of course she was dead. I’d seen what had happened to Lina’s grandparents. And I’d chosen denial over reality once again.
Asinia and I were both motherless now. Only, I’d been free this entire time, and she’d been grieving in a dank, dark cell, waiting to die herself.
“Prisca. Please.” Tibris’s voice was pained. “What did you do?” Lorian sounded livid. “Don’t touch her,” Tibris snapped.
I was vaguely aware of being lifted, of huge arms wrapping around me. I could hear my brother shouting obscenities, could hear Galon’s sharp voice, but all I could see was Asinia’s laughing face as she teased her mother in their kitchen.
When my vision cleared, I was being held several inches above the ground, the side of my face pressed to a huge, familiar male chest.
Tibris was standing a few feet away, his expression incredulous as his gaze flicked between Lorian and me.
I patted Lorian’s arm. “I’m okay,” I said. “You can let me go.”
Lorian slowly released me, and a small part of me mourned the loss as he stepped back. “We need to move soon, while there are fewer guards on the gate.”
In other words, I needed to pull myself together. I nodded.
The mercenaries resumed packing up the camp. Tibris wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “I’m sorry. I wish I didn’t have to tell you. Wish it could be different.”
I looked up at him. “I’m getting Asinia out. Will you help me?” I asked.
My brother sighed. But he’d obviously known this was coming, because the hint of a smile curved his mouth. “Of course I will. But we have to be smart about this. You think no one’s tried to free their friend or family member before?”
“I know. But she’s all alone. Her mother is dead, and she’s all alone. Oh gods, Tibris.”
“Shh.” He held me and rocked. “We’ll go to the city. Vicer will help us.”
I pulled away. “And what exactly is Vicer doing?”
He lowered his voice. “He’s a rebel, Pris. The people in our kingdom shouldn’t have to live this way. So he’s fighting back.”
“And you are too. That’s how you managed to find me.” “Yes.”
A rebel. My kindhearted, healer brother. Now that explained how he’d managed to stay on the run long enough to find me. Those contacts of his weren’t just friends he’d trained with.
It also meant Tibris knew what I was. Mama had never mentioned kidnapping Tibris, and he wasn’t a hybrid, which meant we likely weren’t truly related.
“What are you thinking, Pris?” “Do you still love me?”
He burst out laughing. “Now that I know you’re a hybrid?” “That…and the fact that we’re not technically siblings.”
His smile dropped. “Don’t be ridiculous,” he snapped. “I don’t care who you are or what you can do. You’re my sister. Even when you’re being strangely insecure.”
It was my turn to laugh. But Tibris’s expression was still serious. “I’ve known you were a hybrid for years. And I’ve been planning your escape. Vicer agreed to help me get you out.” He rubbed a hand over his jaw. “I should’ve talked to you about it. It’s your life after all. But I wanted you to enjoy being normal for as long as you could. When you started trying to read Vicer’s notes, I knew it was time to tell you everything.”
He knew?
All this time, when I’d thought I just wasn’t pious enough for the gods, when I’d created and discarded plan after plan, Tibris had been making plans of his own?
It felt like a punch to the face. Betrayal and misery lay like a stone in my gut.
“You should’ve told me. I was planning to try to steal an oceartus stone.
I was going to follow Kreilor.”
The blood drained from his face. “You were what?”
“I was desperate, Tibris. I’d just seen Lina’s grandparents slaughtered.
Do you think I wanted to watch that happen to you?”
He just frowned at me, obviously still wrestling with my plan.
I was so fucking happy to see him, and yet I wanted to punch him in the gut. Siblings.
I put my hands on my hips. “I barely slept, Tibris. Sometimes, I couldn’t keep my food down. I started losing my hair. Occasionally, I’d do everything I could to not think about what would happen to us, and I’d fantasize about staying in the village. But most of the time, I could barely get out of bed because I was so fucking afraid.” My throat ached, and I fought to get the rest of it out. “And you were making plans. Plans that could’ve given me hope.”
Tibris’s eyes gleamed bright. He was quiet for so long, all I could hear were the low murmurs of the mercenaries as they saddled the horses.
Finally, he took my hand. “I don’t know what to say. Sorry isn’t enough, Pris. You…you seemed to be doing okay. I didn’t know you were struggling that much. But I should’ve asked. And I should’ve told you I was working on a way for us to get out.”
“Don’t lie to me again.” “I won’t. I promise.”
I blew out a breath. I needed to let it go. We had to focus on what was important. Asinia. “You truly think Vicer will help?”
“Yes. But Pris, I don’t think we should tell your mercenary friends what we’re planning.” He said it carefully, like he was expecting me to protest.
I rolled my shoulders. I trusted the mercenaries in this, at least. They were cagey and secretive and would lie to me whenever they felt the need. But they didn’t want me dead. Still, we were about to separate. There was no need to tell them.
“I agree.”
Lorian gestured imperiously from across the clearing. I nodded at him. “We need to go.”
Tibris eyed me. “Go where?”
“Lorian’s been teaching me to use my powers. We made a deal—he got me this far and now it’s my turn.”
“Your turn to do what?”
“I’m going to freeze time for everyone but us at the city gate. I need you to listen to everything Lorian says and move as quickly as you can.”
Tibris’s mouth dropped open. “We’re ready,” Galon called.
“Pris. Are you sure about this?” “I am. It’s going to be okay.”
If only I believed that. My mouth had turned watery, my hands shook, and I was suddenly ice-cold. This was it. Everything now relied on my tenuous grasp on my power.
Tibris reached out and squeezed my shoulder. “My horse is tied just off the trail.”
Lorian had already mounted, and he held his hand out for me when I approached. My hand slid into his, and he helped pull me up into the saddle. I tensed. I hadn’t even considered riding with my brother. I’d grown so used to Lorian’s huge body surrounding my own, to the strange comfort I found in his arms, I’d automatically turned to him for that comfort.
“I’m glad you found your brother,” he said as we all filed out of the clearing and toward the road. “You’ll be able to start a new life together.”
“Mm-hmm.” I wasn’t quite as used to lying as Lorian was, so I kept my tone noncommittal.
“Prisca.”
Lorian held the reins in one hand and caught my chin in the other. “Whatever you do, make sure you get on a ship. Soon.”
“I will.” I met his eyes as I said it, and he searched my face. With a brisk nod, he let me go, spurring his horse on.
I would be on a ship soon. Just as soon as I freed Asinia.
Tibris was already waiting on the road. He gave me a nod, but his eyebrows had lowered. “How exactly is this going to work?”
“You’ll soon see,” Lorian said. He squeezed his thighs, and then we were galloping toward the city.
We rounded the bend, and the gates appeared in the distance. My stomach swam, a metallic taste flooded my mouth, and my heart kicked in my chest.
“Harness your fear,” Lorian reminded me. “Now.”
I reached for my power and tugged with everything in me.
All movement at the gate stopped. It was suddenly eerily silent.
Except for Tibris, who was cursing, his eyes wide as he gazed over his shoulder at me.
“Go!” Lorian roared.
We hurtled past the line of people, stretching hundreds deep. Past the thicket of trees on the right, where beggars held out their tins and enterprising merchants sold fruit and water. Past the guards, who’d surrounded an unkept man with blond hair, their hands on their weapons.
My power wanted to slip from my grip. I held tighter, refusing to panic. Lorian’s words ran through my head as he pushed his horse faster.
“It’s up to you to coax it out. To make it do what you need. Your problem isn’t a lack of power. It’s a lack of control. You’re terrified of your power, and a part of you doesn’t truly believe you have what I’m saying you have.”
I loosened my grip on my power. And then I reached for more.
You’re mine, I told it.
It was heady. All these people, the birds in the trees, the horses, all of them were frozen because I willed it.
Wait.
Not everyone was frozen.
The blond man who was surrounded by guards had turned his head. I jolted, almost losing my grip on the thread of time.
I’d never seen that before. Lorian had occasionally managed to shake off my power earlier than most, but even he had been caught when I’d aimed that power at him.
The man was watching us. Likely, he would be able to give an excellent description to the guards. My heart attempted to thump right out of my chest.
“Who is that man?”
Lorian said nothing. Likely, he couldn’t hear me over the sound of hooves on stone. “Hold on!” he yelled.
I looked over my shoulder. The man winked at me. And then we were in the city.
“Who was that man?” I gasped out as we rounded a corner, and time resumed.
I wasn’t bleeding from my nose this time. And I wasn’t blind. Progress. “Who?” Lorian slowed the horse.
“The man at the gates. Time stopped for everyone but him. He winked
at me.”
Rythos must’ve overheard, because he smiled. “Sounds like you have some relatives in the city.”
“What do you mean?”
“Time magic is in the blood.”
My heart pounded in my chest. My mother had said I had family here.
Was that man truly related to me?
Tibris gave me a look that said this would be yet another thing we would discuss later, but he was already eyeing the mercenaries. “Time to say goodbye,” he said.
Something twisted in my chest.
“We’ll escort you to the docks.” Galon’s voice was gruff.
“No need.” Tibris shook his head. “We need to sell my horse and buy supplies. Thank you for everything you did for Prisca.”
That was my brother. Unfailingly polite, even when he’d likely been daydreaming about stabbing Lorian since the moment he’d met him. Fondness made me beam at him. I’d thought I’d never see him again. And now, he’d help me save Asinia, and then we’d find a new life in a new land.
What about the others like you? Will you leave them here to die?
I buried that thought beneath the reality I was actually living. I was just a village girl with a bounty on her head. One who could stop time for mere moments.
We all dismounted, and I reached for Marth. We couldn’t afford to spend too much time here. But I needed to say goodbye. “Good luck,” I told him. He wrapped me in a hug, one hand a little too low on my back. I’d miss this lech.
“To you also.” For the first time since I’d met him, Marth’s expression was grave. He pulled away and nodded at me, moving over for Cavis.
“Wherever you go, I know you’ll have a good life,” the quiet man said. “Thank you. I hope you get to see your wife and daughter soon.”
“So do I.” He gave me a faint smile, and then it was Rythos’s turn. “Get over here.”
My eyes burned as he embraced me. A sob left my throat.
“None of that, darlin’. My people believe there are those we are meant to have in our lives. We’ll see each other again.”
“P-promise?” “I promise.”
Galon cleared his throat. I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand and laughed at his pained expression. I’d seen men with broken limbs look more comfortable.
Surprisingly, Galon’s discomfort with my tears helped. I gave him a shaky smile, and he reached out and ruffled my hair.
I brushed more tears off my face. “You want your cloak back?”
We both glanced at the cloak, now filthy and riddled with holes from being dragged along the ground due to its excessive length.
Galon’s mouth twitched. “You keep it,” he said. “Thanks.” Tears welled up again.
A look of fresh discomfort crossed his face. “You’re welcome.” He stepped back, gesturing rather desperately for Lorian to take his place.
It was odd, considering a part of me knew I couldn’t fully trust this group of mercenaries, yet they had kept me safe. They taught me to use my magic, trained me to defend myself better, and—in their own ways—prevented me from falling apart.
Despite their secretive nature, I’d miss them. Even Lorian.
He stepped into Galon’s place, looking at me as if he were memorizing my features.
“In another life,” he said, his eyes dark with meaning. It felt like a promise. I took a shaky breath, feeling it too. That maybe in another life, we were meant to be different people, and we would have been those people together.
“In another life.” I forced a smile. His gaze dropped to my lips.
Then he buried his hand in my hair and pressed his mouth to mine.
