Trinity (37 page)

Skaric
clenched his teeth. “
Was
. Vali… why weren’t you with
Berend?”

Vali shrugged. “I didn’t want
to wait around until he killed me. Are you going to come back with
me willingly or do I need to use force?” Skaric began to shake his
head. Vali carried on. “Unlike you, I’m capable of using my magic.
We both know that I could kill those two before the Guardian gets
anywhere near me. So… it’s your choice. I’ll spare their lives if
you come back with me.”

“
I’d like to
see you try.” Nidan’s voice was a low growl. His entire body was
tense, ready to close the distance and strike the nyxus
down.

“
Are you
blind?” Kiana asked. “Can’t you see what’s around you? Can’t you
see why we’re here?”

Vali still didn’t look.

He knows the
pathways are there but won’t acknowledge what it
means
. “We’ve all been lied to.” Skaric
spoke slowly. “Ysia is still alive. She wants Miale to be restored…
not killed repeatedly.”

Vali’s jaw trembled as he
clenched his teeth. “Liar.”

Skaric got to his feet and
tried to put a hand on Vali’s shoulder. The nyxus flinched away.
“What good would lying do me, Vali?”

“
You shouldn’t
have run,” Vali said.

Skaric shrugged. “Maybe not.
But I did and I don’t regret it.” He caught Kiana’s stare as he
spoke; her smile stirred up warmth in the pit of his stomach. “Let
us do want Ysia wants us to… let us restore Miale… then I’ll come
back with you.”

“
Skaric!”
Kiana shook her head fiercely.

He ignored her and searched
Vali’s face for a hint of what the nyxus was thinking.

“
Let you
restore our mortal enemy…” Vali said slowly.

“
It’s not like
that… Miale was
never
our enemy.” Skaric wiped his hands over his face. He didn’t
know how to make Vali understand.

Vali looked away from Skaric
and gazed around the room. He gestured towards the mirage of the
pathways, ghostly souls and the vortexes. “What is all this?”

“
The gateway
to death. Ysia’s realm.”

Vali peered at
Skaric. “You can
prove
that Ysia isn’t dead?”

Skaric nodded hesitantly. “I
can take you to the pathways.”

Vali’s expression became
instantly distrusting. “How?”

“
I can channel
Ysia’s magic.”

“
You’re a
nyxus.”

Skaric shook his head. “Not
anymore.”

Vali ran his hand through his
beard thoughtfully. “This is insane.”

“
I know.”
Skaric tried to touch Vali’s shoulder a second time, but the nyxus
stepped back. Skaric’s face became taut with tension as he stared
solemnly at Vali. It was too recently that he had been the same,
shying away from the slightest touch.
I
don’t ever want to be like that again
.

“
If I let you
restore Miale… I’d be a traitor, too.”

“
It’s what
Ysia wants.” Kiana said.

Vali snapped his head round to
stare at her. “Is it? How do I know that?” He looked back to
Skaric. “What I do know is that our people want Miale dead.”

Skaric chewed
his lower lip. “And yet you said you’d let Kiana live,
if
I went with
you…”

Vali shook his head and turned
away.

“
Maybe he was
bluffing,” Nidan said. “I should end this charade now.”

Skaric held his hand out again.
“Vali is my friend!”

“
Was.” Vali
swung round again. “You gave up that right when you betrayed
us.”

“
We’re going
round in circles,” Nidan said, moving closer to Vali; the nyxus
turned to look at him. “Surrender and I’ll let you live. Carry on
threatening Kiana or Skaric and I’ll kill you. I don’t care how
powerful you
think
you are, I’m pretty sure I can kill you first.”

Taking advantage of the
diversion, Skaric put his hand on Vali’s shoulder and willed them
both into the pathways. The now familiar lurching feeling came and
went. Bitter coldness seeped into Skaric’s limbs. In the physical
world, he could see the shrouded forms of Kiana and Nidan shouting
at him, but he couldn’t hear them and didn’t want to.

He stared at
Vali. “
Now
do you
believe me?”

Vali was visibly shaking as he
stared around. A soul brushed past him and he yelped. Skaric caught
hold of Vali before his friend fell from the pathway. Skaric gaped
at Vali; he had never seen his friend show any trace of fear
before.

“
I’ll give you
two choices,” Skaric said in a dangerous tone. “Let me restore
Miale, and I swear I’ll go with you to my father. I’ll accept
whatever punishment he chooses, even if that means my
death.”

Slowly Vali turned his head to
stare at Skaric. His cold stare had turned fearful. “Or?”

“
I’ll leave
you here.” Skaric hoped that his voice sounded determined enough.
He doubted he could actually go through with his threat.
“Forever.”

Vali dropped to his knees.
“This is insane.” He buried his face in his hands.

Skaric crouched down. “I know.
But I’ll have time to explain it all to you on the journey home… if
you’ll let me.”

“
Let you…”
Vali lowered his hands. The colour drained from his face as his
pupils narrowed to pinpricks.

“
I know it’s a
lot to take in…” Skaric’s voice trailed off as Vali shook his
head.

“
This is a
trick… it has to be… How can everything we’ve ever known be a
lie?”

Skaric couldn’t answer him no
matter how much he wanted to.

“
That glow
around you…”

Skaric looked down at his
hands. The brilliance of his soul was almost blinding in the
darkness thanks to Hakon. Strangely the silver light in the centre
of his chest burned even more fiercely than before. “My soul.”

Trembling, Vali nodded slowly.
“Make me your prisoner.”

Skaric drew in a sharp breath.
“What?”

“
I
can’t
let
you
restore Miale.”

Skaric stared dumbly at his
friend.

Vali stood, breathing heavily.
He raised his hand. “Take me prisoner so you can restore Miale, or
stand there like an idiot and let me kill you.”

Skaric grimaced and took hold
of Vali. “When we’re finished, I’ll keep my word. I’ll come back
with you.” He didn’t wait for Vali to react before willing them
both out of the pathways.

Immediately, Nidan was standing
behind Vali, his sword tip at the back of the nyxus’ neck.

“
Tie his hands
so he can’t target his magic.” Skaric was aware of how weary his
voice sounded. He watched in dismay as Vali allowed himself to be
bound. Skaric looked away. Perhaps there really was no hope for the
Wolves.

Chapter
Twenty-Five

It was dark when Kiana woke.
The silver pathways leant the hall an eerie half-light. Kiana
presumed that Nidan hadn’t slept. He was standing, leaning against
the wall so that he could see out of the double doors and watch
Vali at the same time; he was obviously expecting trouble. Not long
before Nidan had watched Skaric with the same distrustful stare.
Kiana raised an eyebrow as he glanced over in her direction.

Nidan smiled. “Old habits.”

Kiana wrapped his cloak around
her shoulders as she stood. She was cold, tired and so hungry her
stomach ached. On top of that Vali’s presence was making her
nervous. She didn’t care that his hands were tied: he was still a
threat; he was still her enemy. Her body shuddered at the memory of
hiding from the Wolves; she could clearly recall the fear clinging
to her like a death shroud because of fanatical men like Vali.

Kiana looked
at the mage. He was staring at the pathways, his eyes haunted and
his expression torn between acceptance and denial.
Skaric looked like that once
. The skin beneath Vali’s eyes was dark; it was obvious he
hadn’t slept. Kiana’s gaze dipped to his bound hands. Being
restrained hadn’t stopped Skaric from using his magic. She shivered
and forced herself to raise her gaze again, meeting Vali’s. There
was a malevolent darkness nesting in his eyes that had never been
present in Skaric’s. Vali had the potential to be dangerous. Kiana
didn’t trust him or like him.

She began to play with the edge
of the cloak, picking at a thread of wool that had worked
loose.

“
Careful or
you’ll unravel the whole cloak.” Nidan said.

Kiana forced
herself to smile before pivoting on her heels to stare at Miale’s
mind. The golden bird stared at her mournfully from the pathways.
“I just want to get this over and done with.” Kiana felt colder
even though the temperature hadn’t changed. She glanced sidelong at
Vali, wondering if it was safe to talk freely in front of
him.
I have no choice
. “What will happen to me, Nidan?” She didn’t look at him; his
silence made her shiver. “Miale’s soul and mind
have
to be joined… what if I’m
dragged into her?” Kiana breathed in, embracing the icy air that
filled her lungs, and turned to face Nidan. His lips were taut and
drained of colour; he dipped his head so that he was only half
looking at her. “I’ll die, won’t I?”

“
No.” Skaric’s
voice was full of determination; Kiana hadn’t even realised that he
was awake. “I’ll separate Miale’s soul from yours. That’s why Hakon
sacrificed his soul.” Skaric stood, his expression awkward and his
gaze dipped.

Why won’t you look at me?

Skaric’s chest
shuddered as he inhaled deeply. “But we have to make Miale
whole
first
.”

Nidan pushed himself away from
the wall, shaking his head. “Didn’t you hear what Kiana just said,
Skaric? If you make Miale whole first she could be absorbed into
the goddess.”

Kiana’s sharp
breaths sounded loud in the silence of the vast hall. The souls of
the dead stomped past her. Thoughts of joining them flooded into
her mind. She clenched her hands. She didn’t want Skaric to be
right, but he was. “Miale’s soul
has
to be joined to her mind first.
If not, it will be swept away into the gateway and be lost
forever.”

Nidan crossed the distance
between them and placed his hands on her shoulders. “It’s too
dangerous, Kiana.”

She met
Nidan’s frightened stare. “It’s the only way. I won’t let myself
get lost. I have too much to hold on for.”
I hope
. She glanced past him at
Skaric.

Skaric kicked at the dusty
floor and turned away. Pressure formed behind Kiana’s eyes in
response to Skaric’s seemingly nonchalant reaction.

Nidan stared
at her thoughtfully. “I’m going to… check the castle and make sure
we’re alone.” He turned to Skaric. “Can you keep an eye on
him
?” Nidan jerked his
thumb towards Vali.

Skaric looked at Vali for the
first time that Kiana had noticed. “He’s not a threat. We have an
agreement.”

If Vali
wanted us all dead, then we would be.
She
narrowed her eyes as realisation gripped her.
You’ve agreed to go back with him, to die. I won’t let that
happen.
She frowned at Nidan. “Berend is
dead. The Guardians have no idea where we went…”

“
The
mage
found us. Maybe there are more Wolves
out there. Besides: old habits!” Nidan winked at her and mouthed,
“Tell him.” Then he tapped the underside of her chin. “Don’t do
anything until I get back. All right?”

Kiana nodded and watched him
leave the hall. She wasn’t sure how Nidan expected her to say
anything private to Skaric when Vali was in the room watching their
every move. She hated the way he stared at her as though he were
sizing her up, wondering how to kill her. Her mouth downturned with
the awareness that she was not scared of him. Too many people had
wanted her dead for too long. She had spent too much of her life
living in fear to let Vali’s presence trap her in fear.

Turning her back on the mage,
Kiana tried to ignore Vali as she took a faltering step towards
Skaric. “Skaric?”

He was still refusing to look
at her. “I won’t let you down.”

She smiled. “I know you
won’t.”

Skaric looked at her from the
corner of his eyes. “You need to free Miale’s mind.” A flush of
pink stained his cheeks.

“
I
know.”

He nodded and looked away
again.

Kiana took another step
forward. “Skaric… I…” Her palms felt foolishly clammy.
“Skaric…”

Skaric stepped past her. “I
need to talk to Vali.”

Disappointment flushed Kiana’s
cheeks. She wanted to say something to stop Skaric walking away
from her; instead, she clamped her mouth shut and said nothing.

She watched as Skaric walked
over to Vali and pulled the mage to his feet.

“
Have you had
time to think?” Skaric said. “Have you had time to realise we’re
telling the truth about Ysia and Miale?”

Kiana could
tell by Skaric’s tone that he desperately wanted Vali to believe
him. She wondered how close they had been. The mage did not reply.
Both men stared at one another—an impasse that neither seemed to
want to break. Eventually Skaric turned away. The dismal expression
on his face made a lump form in Kiana’s throat. Suddenly, she
understood: Skaric
needed
Vali’s forgiveness.