A Soul for Vengeance (24 page)

“Got it.” She draped the chain around her neck, wincing at the sting of magic against her chest, and followed Parros out of the shop. It had been the easiest swipe she’d ever performed. Almost too easy.

As they made their way back to Thao’s in the same duck-and-run manner from the previous night, she blamed the growing sense of unease that clawed at the back of her mind on the magical pendant. She shook off the way her stomach tied in knots and ignored the little voice that told her to go back to the beach, telling herself she’d be much more comfortable leaving tomorrow after the rain stopped.

But when she rounded the last corner, she skidded to a stop.

A dozen Thallian soldiers surrounded Thao’s home, the fiery glow from their lanterns casting sinister shadows on it.

Parros grabbed her and pulled her back out of their sight, but it didn’t stop her from hearing what went on. The loud thump of furniture and the crash of broken glass could be heard by anyone on the street. Neighbors cracked open their shutters to see what was going on, but none of them dared exit their homes. No one was willing to risk their lives to save their neighbor.

She crouched behind a barrel and peered over the top to see what the Thallians were doing to Thao. Shouts came from inside the home, but several minutes passed before one of the soldiers shoved him out into the street. Thao landed face down in a puddle, the water ruining the fine velvet doublet he favored.

A soldier with a gold braid adorning his uniform stepped forward and yanked Thao up by his hair. “Where are the rebel leaders?”

Thao’s moustache twitched as he tried to smile. “What rebel leaders? I have no idea what you’re talking about, Major.”

“And you’re willing to die to protect them?”

Zara’s breath hitched. She’d taken care to leave Thao ignorant about so many things, but he still knew enough to destroy them all, including the fact she was expected to be back at his home any minute now.

Thao held his gaze, his expression somber as though he already knew how this would end. “I cannot tell you what I do not know.”

The major threw his head to the ground and kicked his chest. “Then you will pay for their actions.” He held up a crumpled piece of paper and shouted to those gathered on the street, “Let it be known that this man was caught engaged in the act of rebellion against Thallus. Such behavior will not be tolerated and will be punished to the fullest extent of the law.”

The lantern light flashed on the polished blade of an executioner’s ax rising above the heads of the soldiers. Zara’s heart stuttered. A bolt of lightning streaked across the sky. Her body lurched forward to save her friend, a scream rising from her throat. A hand clamped around her mouth as the thunder clapped. It pulled her into a darkened ally right before the ax swung down. The clang of metal on stone reverberated through the street, and a deep ache filled the hollows of her chest.

“There’s nothing you can do, m’lady,” Parros whispered in her ear, holding her back against his chest. “Thao was willing to risk his life for our cause, as we all are. But if you go out there now, you’ll only suffer the same fate, and the prince will never get his pendant back.”

A sob choked her throat, and tears ran down her cheeks to mix with the falling rain. She couldn’t help but feel responsible for his death. Less than an hour had passed since he bid her good luck on her mission. And now, the cruel hands of fate had cut the string of his life short.

Parros’s arms pressed the pendant into her chest, reminding her of why she was here in the first place. The mission came first. She huddled against the knight while soldiers dispersed and her grief bled out of her system. The minutes ticked by slowly, tracked by the low toll of the bell in the center of the city. The storm let up, and the rain turned to drizzle. Her joints protested when she decided it was safe enough to head back to the beach. The log was still blessedly there, and her body was already too numb from the night’s event to even notice the frigid water.

They swam past the point where the waves crashed into the shore, hugging the coastline under the log until they’d cleared the city walls. The dim light of dawn was breaking through the clouds by the time they pulled the log out of the water and trudged up onto the beach. Her weary body sank into the sand. The nearest shelter they could trust was over two hours away. It would be so easy to fall asleep here and let the Lady Moon decide if she would ever wake up. But she had to complete her mission.

She turned to Parros, whose blue-lipped expression matched her own. “Let’s keep going. If we stop now, we’ll never make it back.”

He nodded and crawled back to his feet, grunting with each movement. Icicles coated her cloak by the time they reached the half-collapsed barn where they’d hidden their horses in the cellar. The earthen walls buffered the air from the cold outside, and the fire Parros built in the iron stove chased away the last shiver that clung to her exhausted frame.

Zara had no idea how long she slept after that. It could have been days since she had no window from which to tell the hour. Images of Thao’s head rolling down the street toward her with accusation glowing from his dead eyes tormented her dreams. Her chest burned with guilt, and failure lodged in her gut like a lead weight. But it wasn’t until her body started shaking that she opened her eyes.

A bright glow illuminated the cellar. Parros leaned over her, the old kinght’s eyes uncharacteristically wide. His finger trembled as it pointed at her chest. “The necklace.”

Zara grabbed it. A shock of magic snapped the last traces of sleep from her. The light came from the mirror side of the pendant, swirling around the rim as though it wanted her to follow its lead. She traced the border with her finger, and the surface of the mirror blurred for a few seconds before revealing a face utterly unlike hers.

The woman in the reflection had hair the color of sunshine and piercing blue eyes. Her features were both delicate and pronounced, as though they’d been carefully sculpted for the finest porcelain. Her lips parted. “Where’s Kell?” she asked.

Zara held her breath. It was the yellow-haired witch.

“Who are you,” the witch demanded, her eyes forming dangerous slits, “and what are you doing with Kell’s pendant?”

Would it be possible for the witch to strike at her through the pendant? Zara tried to release the necklace and end this conversation, but her fingers remained latched to it. She swallowed past her fear and replied, “I’m Lady Zara Cordello, and I’ve retrieved this pendant for Prince Kell to return it to him.”

The harshness faded from the witch’s face, and her brows peaked. “He lost it?”

“It was taken from him when the Thallians captured him.”

“Kell was captured?” The witch’s voice rose to a squeak, her already pale skin turning a sickly gray. No matter what Kell had told her about his relationship with the witch, it was very clear that Arden still cared about him. “Is he safe now?”

Visions of the major pressing Thao for information flashed through Zara’s mind, and a shudder gathered at the base of her spine, working its way up through her shoulders. “Yes, he’s safe for now.”

“But you said he’d been captured? How did he escape?”

“I rescued him.” Pride puffed out of her chest, and confidence seeped back into her soul. “And when he asked me to find this pendant, I did.”

“So he wanted to speak with me again?”

She closed her eyes to absorb the stab of pain that pierced her chest. “Yes, he did.”

“Oh, thank the Lady Moon he’s alive and well.” The color returned to the witch’s cheeks, giving her an oddly pretty appearance. Now Zara could see why she’d held Kell’s attention for so long. “Please, tell me what’s happened to Ranello.”

“As if you cared.” The words slipped out before Zara could stop them, their bitterness born from months of strife. The scene behind the witch revealed stacks of leather bound books, gilded sconces, and large picturesque windows with sunlight streaming in. “There you sit in your comfortable little world while the rest of us battle for our survival.”

A green light flashed in the witch’s eyes, and her lips thinned. “I don’t pretend to know what you’ve been through, but don’t pretend you know anything about my circumstances.”

“All I know is that I’m here, hiding in a cellar, and you’re there in your palace.”

“They tell me nothing here. What have the Thallians done to Ranello? What have they done to Kell?”

A sob choked her throat as Zara tried to give words to everything that had happened since the Thallians had invaded. The death, the hunger, the chaos, the enslavement of her people. The loss of her father. The wounds that scarred her abdomen and ruined her chances at a happy future with Kell. “They’ve destroyed everything.”

Pity slackened the witch’s mouth, and she looked away, her own chest heaving with emotion. “Is that why Kell wanted to speak to me again?”

Zara nodded.

The witch remained quiet for a moment, her lashes fluttering. The she drew in a deep breath and said, “Then tell him I will be there as soon as I can.”

The image became distorted and then faded, plunging the cellar back into darkness. The pendant fell from her hands, jerking to a stop when it reached the end of its chain. Bittersweet joy filled Zara. Arden had agreed to help them. She’d return to Kell, and he’d forget about their brief affair once he had his yellow-haired witch back.

Zara pulled her knees up to her chest and focused on breathing in and out at a slow, calm pace.

Arden could give Kell what she couldn’t.

All would be as it should.

Chapter 20

Arden held the pendant long after her reflection had replaced Zara’s. Her mind whirled from the news. The Thallians had conquered her homeland. Kell had even been hurt. And she’d known nothing about any of it.

At least she knew the reason why Kell never answered her summons. He’d lost the mirror, but by some stroke of luck, he’d have it again soon, and she could lay some of her worries to rest.

She held no reservations about returning to Ranello to help Kell, but she also knew she couldn’t do it alone. She’d need the help of a god if she wanted to drive the Thallians out. And that meant making peace with Loku. She lifted her shields just enough to hear his voice again.

“So now you come crawling back to me?”
He spat the words at her.
“Why should I help you when you’ve been too stupid to realize they’ve been duping you the entire time you’ve been here?”

“What do you mean?”

“There’s a reason they haven’t bothered to teach you Elvish. Just take a look at all the letters on your father’s desk.”

Arden crossed the study and peered at the stack of paper and the incomprehensible combinations of slashes and swirls that covered them.
“You can read this?”

“Am I a god, remember?”

“Then what do they say?”

Loku laughed.
“I’d be more than happy to teach you a little spell that will translate everything for you. Of course, you’d have to release some of your restraints on me.”

There was always a catch. The last few months had only proven to her that Loku was willing to manipulate her for his own means. What if this was another attempt to take over her body again?

She stared at the letters, trying to find something familiar in them, and seeing nothing. She sighed and loosened her restraints on Loku a bit more.
“Fine.”

Magic rippled along her spine, but she clamped down on it before it reached her shoulders. She could hear the pout in Loku’s voice as he said,
“You’re no fun anymore.”

“You should’ve thought about that before you tricked me into coming here.”
She tapped the pages.
“Now, back to the letters.”

A heavy sighed echoed through her mind.
“Very well. It’s simple, really. Touch the page and order the words to be translated.”

“That sounds ridiculous.”

“Do you doubt me before you even try it?”

“You haven’t given me much reason to believe you lately.”

“Ah, my little Soulbearer has finally cut her teeth, and it’s very enticing indeed.”
The sensation of fingers caressing the back of her neck stopped her breath.
“Think of the fun we could have once we get back to Ranello. You, me, and the glorious chaos of destroying the Thallians.”

Images of the earth rolling under the feet of an army filled her mind. The ground opened up and swallowed them whole, their screams making her pulse jump with a mixture of joy and terror.

“Yes, Arden, see how simple it could be once we get you home. I’m sure your prince would be so grateful. He was always much more appreciative of you than Dev.”

Pain wiped out the images when Arden heard Dev’s name. She’d be going back to Ranello without him, and the idea of that opened up a new level of vulnerability. She’d grown so accustomed to him following her every move over the last year that it seemed strange to be planning a trip without him at her side.

But nothing could be done about that now. He’d made his choice, and she needed to focus on the task at hand. She followed Loku’s vague instructions, splaying her fingers along the bottom of the page and channeling her magic toward the words. The ink lines trembled at first, then turned to liquid and flowed into new shapes as though the ink were fresh and being directed by the hand of an invisible scribe. New words appeared on the page, ones she easily recognized.

She scanned the contents of the first letter. The Empress was ordering Varrik to secure the contents of the castle in case Thallus tried to invade Gravaria next. The second letter from Arano described how the Thallians were using something called kokalla to enslave the Ranellians and asked her father if there was a suitable treatment for it.

But it was the third letter that turned her blood to fire.

She should’ve recognized the heavy strokes as Dev’s handwriting. When the contents were translated, she read it again to make sure she hadn’t misunderstood the contents.