The Crow King's Wife (29 page)

“So you think following the story is the
better path. I can’t say I’m convinced it is. It sounds cruel to me
and I don’t think Zoey will react well to anything that was done to
Karalea.” Finn said with a sigh.

“Caleb Faulklin is a fully anointed priest of
Lutheron.” Seth informed him quietly and watched as Finn’s
expression shifted from hesitation to concern. “Zoey will recognize
the story before I ever reach the nightmares. I have faith in her.
It is possible she may be stubborn, but she will come to me before
she allows others to suffer as the villagers did in the story. She
has to come to me. It’s the only way I can save her. I didn’t tell
her the secrets of how to sustain herself, and I won’t. She needs
me to provide for her or she will corrupt herself in the gathering.
The key to Undrae survival is Life energy Finn, and I can’t let her
kill for herself. It would darken her soul every time she had to
kill to survive and I’m not sure she would even do it. I think she
would rather starve herself or worse than kill someone to gather
life energy.”

Finn had paled at his words, and he wasn’t
sure if it was the mention of Lutheron or the explanation about
Undrae. Grudgingly he nodded and let out a long slow breath. “Do
what you must then, but be careful. If Caleb is everything you
describe than I have a feeling he is our enemy. I don’t know why
Lutheron hates me, but he certainly appears to, and I’m sure that
will extend toward those that serve me as well.”

“It doesn’t matter if Lutheron hates me.
Ryvenken does. I’ve killed two of its former masters and it never
forgets. If I show myself before him, Caleb will attack.” Seth
replied quietly. With a faint smile he leaned forward to the table
and plucked a book from the stack. With a casual glance he examined
the worn leather cover then glanced back toward the bard. “Summon
your storyteller back and let’s devote the next few hours to your
research. I’d rather my mind be in a brighter place before I go
face Jala. If we work swiftly maybe you can have something
impressive built when I bring Legacy back to visit you.”

Delvay

“If I never see another Spell Hawk it will be
too soon.” Dray grumbled as the ship finally landed. He looked much
paler than normal and it took him several moments before he seemed
to trust that the ship was going to remain still. With a heavy
breath he unclenched his hands from his arm rests and glowered at
Shade.

Zoelyn smiled faintly at the reaction and
rose unsteadily from her seat. Neither Shade nor Grim were unnerved
by the flight, but she shared Dray’s opinion fully. The storm had
been bad enough with wind buffeting the ship like a sparrow, but
Shade had seemed intent on testing his skills at every moment. She
hadn’t even realized a Spell Hawk could move so swiftly, but it had
barely taken them four hours to reach Delvay. Four
gut-clenching-terror-filled hours of flying through canyons, trees,
and skimming across the ocean so close she was certain that the
waves were brushing the bottom of the ship.

Her attention flicked to the front of the
ship as Grim rose from the co-pilot’s seat and headed for the door.
He seemed perfectly at ease, as did Shade, but she wasn’t certain
she could walk on her shaking legs and Dray still hadn’t chosen to
stand.

“Welcome home.” Shade smiled brightly at her
as he followed Grim to the door. He paused as he noticed Dray’s
scowl and gave her a questioning look.

“We aren’t used to Spell Hawk travel.” She
informed him quietly and to her embarrassment there was a quaver in
her voice.

Shade nodded in understanding and smiled
brightly at both of them. “Lucky you. I’m the best pilot there is.
At least you didn’t have to deal with a rookie. That would have
been terrifying with the weather we had to face.” There was a
scampering noise from behind him as the goblin crawled from under
his pilot seat and hurried after him. The creature paused long
enough to sniff both of his hands making certain that Shade didn’t
have food before rushing to the door and disappearing through it.
“Walking stomach.” Shade muttered with a faint smile.

A low growl rose from Dray’s throat with
Shade’s casual dismissal of the flight. The goblin may have
succeeded in distracting Shade, but it hadn’t worked on Dray at
all. The Blight stood from his seat finally and continued to glower
at Shade. “I would have liked to have had time to speak with Grim
on the flight. Instead I found myself grasping the seat like a
child and trying to keep my panic from overwhelming me. Was all of
that truly necessary?”

“Got here quick didn’t we? Time is precious
today, I don’t have much of it to spare.” Shade returned with a
shrug and followed Grim down the steps from the ship. “I think we
should speak with Neph and see what information he has on the
Rivasans. I’d like the information we have to be as current as
possible before we face them.” Shade said as he stepped away from
the ship. His voice grew fainter as he walked and Zoey pulled her
attention slowly back to Dray.

“Are you really going to go with them?” She
asked quietly. Even with anger clouding his features Dray seemed
far too young for the mission Grim was going on. His tan skin still
held the shine of youth and his hazel eyes were clear and
innocent.

His anger faded at once with her words and he
gazed around the ship once before looking back at her. A rueful
smile curled his lips and he nodded slowly. “Maybe that’s why Shade
flew the way he did. He was trying to guarantee I didn’t get back
on his Hawk.” He mused in a soft voice.

Zoelyn smiled faintly but shook her head
slowly. “I don’t think he even realized he was scaring us. I was
watching him as he flew for lack of anything better to focus on. I
guessed that as long as he didn’t look alarmed I had no reason to
be alarmed, and for most of the flight he had an expression of pure
joy on his face.”

“Then it’s true. He is insane.” Dray grumbled
and rubbed the back of his neck. He glanced toward the open door
and then back to her with a questioning look. “Why are you
hesitating? You are home.”

A faint chuckle escaped her lips and she took
a hesitant step toward the door. “It seems stupid to be afraid now
doesn’t it?” She observed softly. Turning back she shrugged at Dray
and leaned against her seat. “I’m home, but I can’t admit to anyone
I’m home. They would kill me if they knew what I truly was. Then of
course there are the memories. Remembering them and seeing them in
my mind isn’t the same as actually seeing the place it occurred. I
have good memories of my brother, but very little about the city
itself is pleasant.”

“Why not stay with Jala then? You know she
would have found a place for us.” Dray sighed. The expression on
his face was almost one of understanding, but she knew he couldn’t
quite grasp what she was saying. It was simple to him, if you
didn’t like a place, you didn’t go there.

“It’s not a matter of where I want to be,
Dray. It is where I need to be.” Zoelyn frowned as she spoke the
words. There didn’t seem any other way to convey the feeling that
had been in her gut for weeks. She needed to be at Delvay and it
was more than just a longing for her brother.

“Zoey c’mon please.” Shade called from beyond
the ship. She could hear both impatience and understanding in his
voice, and knew beyond a shadow of doubt that Shade knew what she
was feeling better than anyone else did. Neither Grim nor Dray
could understand what it meant to go home and know you wouldn’t be
welcome. Grim was avoiding home to save Micah’s secrets, but if he
were to walk into Lord Elijah’s throne room he would be welcomed as
a returning hero, and from what Shade had said of ,Onvalla Dray
would be just as welcome were he to return to the Blights.

With a long slow breath Zoelyn stepped from
the shadowed interior of the ship to the bright sunlit afternoon
and gazed at the high stone walls of the city. “Valemuir” She
breathed the city’s name as her eyes roved over every detail of her
home taking silent stock of everything that had changed in her
absence. Each repaired stone told her the story of the Rivasan
attack and she shuddered. She heard Dray step down behind her, but
didn’t glance back at him. Her eyes were locked on the city
searching for signs of movement, but there wasn’t any. There should
have been soldiers in the yard and snow cats on the ledges, but she
couldn’t even find the shadowed forms of guards watching the gates.
The entire place seemed deserted.

“Neph doesn’t have enough people left to
maintain the outer city.” Shade explained as he watched her. “It’s
not all abandoned, just this part. They stay in the inner city now
and focus their numbers on guarding it.” He promised as he started
toward the massive gates. His goblin scampered out of the nearby
brush and hurried after him muttering growls and clicks as it held
various objects up to him in an attempt to get his attention. To
its obvious dismay Shade was ignoring it, and just as a human child
would the goblin redoubled its efforts nearly tripping Shade in its
attempt to get him to accept a dirt covered rock.

“Thank you.” Shade muttered as he unwillingly
accepted the gift examined it quickly before tossing it over his
shoulder away from them all. The goblin let out a squeal of dismay
and immediately took off after its prize. Shade glanced after it
and shook his head slightly but didn’t slow his steps.

Sympathy for the creature distracted her for
a moment and Zoelyn watched it in silence. Its actions had reminded
her of Legacy when he had found a new type of bug or something
equally disgusting to fascinate him. Just as Jala typically did
Shade had blown off the interest and continued with what he saw as
truly important. She considered approaching the goblin to admire
the rock but quickly decided against it. While Legacy typically
reveled in her attention she doubted the goblin would. The creature
seemed fascinated with Shade, and only Shade. It tended to growl at
anyone else that approached it, and she wasn’t entirely certain
that it didn’t bite.

Grim cleared his throat to catch her
attention as he shifted his backpack to a more comfortable position
on his shoulder. With a casual nod ahead he motioned for her to
follow Shade. He seemed on guard despite the deserted look of the
place. She felt rather than heard him fall into place behind her
and Dray and knowing he was behind her eased her nerves a bit. It
wasn’t that she was expecting an attack. It was the fact that he
was still willing to protect her. After their talk in Merro she had
wondered if Grim still considered her a friend, and now she knew he
did.

Her steps slowed as they crossed the
courtyard. She could remember the last time she had trained at
swords there with such clarity. It had been right before her failed
attempt at running away, right before her father had killed her.
She didn’t even realize she had stopped completely until she felt
Dray’s hand on her arm. He was watching her with concern and she
tried to smile reassuringly, but she could tell by the look on his
face that it was a botched attempt.

“Why don’t we go back to Merro?” Dray
whispered and there was a note of pleading in his voice.

“RenDelvayon is dead.” Grim said flatly from
behind her and she felt a steady weight in the small of her back as
he urged her forward. “Everything he said, and everything he did is
a memory. You are looking at your past.” Grim turned her gently
from the courtyard as he spoke and she found herself staring at the
massive wooden gates set in the cliff face that were obviously
newly constructed. The wood still gleamed with fresh varnish and
the sigil of house Delvay stood out brightly with fresh enamel.
“Look toward the future instead.” Grim suggested quietly and gave
her another gentle push to urge her after Shade.

Shade had already reached the gate and after
a quick examination he stepped back. “No smaller doors and no latch
for this one.” He observed loudly then glanced over his shoulder at
his companions. “I suppose knocking might work.” He mused
hesitantly.

Between the obvious thickness of the barrier
and the stone walls they were set in Zoelyn had her doubts if
anyone inside would hear a simple knock.

“If only I had a battering ram to knock
with.” Shade said with a smile. He raised an eyebrow as Grim moved
past them all and walked purposefully toward the gates. Silently
Grim dropped his backpack beside the stone wall and tossed his coat
down over the top of it. Flexing his arms he examined the gates
quickly before setting a hand to each near the seam in the center.
“Oh look, I do.” Shade added dryly as he took a hasty step back
toward Zoelyn.

“Shouldn’t they have sentries?” Dray asked
quickly as it became more obvious that Grim had no intention of
knocking. The Arovan had already set his heels and Zoelyn could see
the muscles in his back tensing.

“They should, and probably do. I wouldn’t be
surprised if Neph were on the other side of that door laughing at
us, or using us to test his defenses.” Shade sighed. “Do you want
some help with that Caleb?” he called in a louder voice.

Grim ignored the offer and focused on the
doors as he applied pressure against the seam at one point and then
raised his hands a bit higher and repeated the process. He had
moved his hands four times before he seemed satisfied and Zoelyn
watched in fascination as he planted his feet once more. The
muscles of his back strained against his shirt as he put his full
strength against the gates.

The entire area fell silent and she realized
with shock that she had been holding her breath. Both Dray and
Shade seemed just as captivated as Grim increased the pressure on
the gates. Nothing happened for a long moment and then the air
filled with the sound of groaning wood. Several loud pops resounded
through the courtyard followed by a resounding crack as the gates
pushed open. Traces of light flashed across the sigil that had been
carved into the gates and Zoelyn gasped as the sparks centered on
Grim and danced across his hands. She knew it was the magical wards
that had been breached and most likely ones that were intended to
be lethal, but Grim seemed unfazed by the magic. Still silent he
stepped back from the gates and flexed his fingers before picking
up his coat and backpack once more.