Chapter Ten
I stood on a balcony of the tall, lean building that housed the leaders of a movement that was against the Wizard Council. Many wizards and Sentinels from all the havens had band together to save the Mystiks. Emily had joined us in Greyhill, bringing the recipe for the vaccine and cure. Nineteen hundred and seventy-two cures had been administered to those with advanced symptoms of the disease. Their bleeding sores had stopped, and their extremely high fevers subsided. The ones we couldn’t save, their organs had failed and their deaths were painful.
The crowded buildings prevented me from seeing any countryside. I wasn’t even sure if there was one or not. Small walkways cut through the beautiful brick structures, and rope bridges stretched from building to building. The sky was more purple than blue. Smoke puffed from chimneys, and the noises from the roads below rose in murmurs to our fifteenth-story flat.
I tightened my grip on the shawl one of the curers had given me, absentmindedly rubbing the raised scar on my cheek. I had to find out what had happened to Jaran and Lei—and Carrig. Arik had said they took him.
Who were they?
A group of birds flew in a circle just outside the window. They were beautiful with their winter-blue feathers and bright red beaks.
Nick. We had searched for him for months. Every lead we’d received led us nowhere. His loss was like a wound that never healed—gaping and painful.
He has to be okay.
My dreams about him the last few nights felt real. He was in the dark. Cold. Scared. When it got too much for him, he’d scream out my name, and I’d wake up.
I was getting restless. With my wounds healed and the curers having enough of my blood to make more of the antidote, I was ready to go. Ready to find my friends. My father.
I hated leaving Bastien without saying goodbye, but I didn’t want him stopping me or getting caught. I turned and walked back into our dorm-like bedroom.
Bastien lay on his bed, his bare chest rising up and down. The silky pajama bottoms provided by our host kept slipping down his waist, like they were right then, exposing the V-shape line just below his abdomen. He looked so peaceful when he slept, which wasn’t often lately. He’d spent late nights delivering provisions and cures throughout the covens. I carefully lifted his keys off the pile of his clothes on a chair beside him, placed a note I’d written him on top of his jeans, and tiptoed to the dresser.
Emily’s bed beside mine was a mess. She never made it. Demos’s was perfectly made—I could probably bounce a quarter off it. They’d left an hour ago for breakfast. I was meeting them there after I got Arik out of his cell. I’d convinced them that I had to go alone. If caught, I’d be the only one arrested, not all three of us.
If I was going, it had better happen fast, before Bastien woke. I had to stop hesitating. But the sight of him sleeping there, so peaceful and gorgeous, made it tough to leave.
Just go already.
I slipped on my leather cargos and long-sleeved tee. Darting glances at Bastien, I grabbed my boots and trench coat and crept out of the room, easing the door shut behind me with a faint click. Quickly and quietly, I finished dressing and hurried down the hallway.
The glass elevators ran on the outside of the buildings, and not wanting anyone to see me disappear to the basement, I decided to take the stairs. The lower level of the building was where they housed prisoners, which was only Arik at the moment.
I hoped Emily would be able to follow through with our plan.
Two guards looked up as I came out from the stairwell into the basement, a little breathless and very determined. One of them was a Laniar with a pronounced underbite. The other looked human, with thick eyebrows and hardly any hair. Both didn’t look scary enough to stop an attack if there was one.
It took a few seconds to catch my breath before talking. “I need to speak with Arik.”
Another guard came off the elevator. She had thicker arms than my thighs and her black hair was pulled back in a tight bun.
“Do you have permission?” the guard with thick eyebrows asked.
I handed him the note from Bastien that I’d spent hours forging.
He studied it while the woman guard watched me curiously.
Does she suspect something? If I avoided eye contact, she’d get suspicious. So I kept my eyes on hers until she conceded to our stare war and crossed over to a chair. “You need a break?” She directed the question to the Laniar.
“Yeah, I could use one.” He went over to the elevator and pushed the button.
Eyebrows finished scrutinizing the note. “All right. This way.” He led me down a narrow hall to a barred door. Arik lay on a cot, one arm resting above his head and the other on his stomach. “Don’t be long.”
Whatever they used to clean the hall and rooms made the place smell like basil or some other type of herb.
“Can’t I go inside?” I asked.
Arik sat up at hearing my voice.
“Sorry, no one is allowed in with the prisoners. I’ll give you your privacy. You have ten minutes.” His boots clanked back down in the direction we’d come.
“What are you doing here?” Arik pushed off the cot and came to the door. He looked tired. His hair was a mess, and his face and arms smudged with dirt.
“We don’t have much time,” I said. “So please listen and try to see things differently.”
“Differently than what, precisely?” His tone sounded harsh, but his accent made the words seem soft.
I sighed and grabbed the bars. “You know. How you see things. Stop putting all your faith in the council. You don’t always have to follow their orders. Not when they’re wrong.” I glanced down the hallway to make sure it was still vacant. “Listen, only Uncle Philip knew where I was going that day I went to New York. Veronique said her spy told her I was there.”
His eyebrows pushed together. “Are you saying High Wizard Philip arranged to have you murdered?”
“I’m not saying that. I hope it wasn’t him… I just don’t know. Maybe he told someone on the council, and that someone sent Veronique after me.”
He rubbed the back of his neck.
“Okay,” I said. “I know I’m not going to convince you here, but I am breaking you out. You can go back to Asile. Protect Royston and the others.”
“Gia.” He grabbed my hands, squeezing them tight around the cold bars. “Come with me. You don’t belong in the middle of this.”
“I was born to be in the middle of this,” I said. “Please, promise you won’t let anything happen to Royston, and you won’t try to escape. You’re the only one I can trust to protect him. We’re the same, you and me. I know if you promise to do something, you’ll do it.”
He released my hands. “We’re the same, all right. Both stubborn in our beliefs. I can’t convince you the right thing is to go with me, and you can’t convince me what you’re doing is right.”
“You’re wrong, Arik.” I unclutched my hands from the bars. “I wish you could see that. There’s too much at stake. Too many lives at risk.”
He stared at me for several seconds. His brown eyes were cold. “I won’t try to escape, and I will protect Royston at all costs. That’s all I can promise you. Now, perhaps you should execute your plan before the guard comes back.”
I removed Bastien’s keys from my bag.
“Perhaps she should,” Bastien said from behind me.
I dropped the keys and spun to face him. He was leaning against the wall, kicked back as if there wasn’t anything wrong with this situation. And he probably had been listening to everything I’d said to Arik.
“I…um…” I didn’t know how to respond. He’d caught me red-handed. So I settled for, “Don’t sneak up like that.”
The collar of Bastien’s distressed leather jacket was tucked inside, and his shirt was wrinkled. He must’ve dressed quickly to chase after me. He combed his fingers through his dark brown tufts several times to tame his serious bed-tossed hair.
Bastien pushed from the wall and strolled over to me. “You’re not as quiet as you believe yourself to be.”
I picked up the keys. “You’re not stopping me.”
“I don’t plan to,” he said and took the keys from me. “Did you think I would? Is that why you didn’t include me? I thought we trusted each other.”
“I do trust you.” We locked eyes, and I hoped he could see the sincerity in mine. “I didn’t want to risk you getting caught. You could lose your position in Couve.”
“I believe my position is already compromised. Arik knows my role in distributing the cure.” His steely blue eyes lingered on my face. “I’m in this with you. With Demos and Emily. With the covens and those in the havens who are on our side. I won’t let you face the storm without me. If you fall, I fall.”
His words caused a fluttering in my chest. I knew he would take a fall with me. He proved it when he couldn’t pull me out of that trap into the Somnium and, not wanting me to face the barren wasteland alone, jumped in with me.
“All right,” I said.
Bastien found the key he was looking for, inserted it into the lock, and opened the door. “So what are we doing? What’s your plan?” He glanced at me before his eyes landed on Arik.
A look passed between Arik and Bastien—one of disdain or distrust.
“We have to get to the outbuilding,” I said, pulling their attention from each other. It was a lie. We weren’t going to the exit. I couldn’t tell him the real plan with Arik there. “Emily and Demos are waiting for us at the bakery.”
“Right, then, lead the way.” Bastien stepped aside to let me pass, then Arik.
We walked single file through the narrow passageways between the brick buildings, with me at the front, Arik in the middle, and Bastien behind us. The stones were ancient, and the bottom of the structures had mud stains, which made no sense, since there wasn’t any dirt to make it. We ended up on a cobbled road not much wider than the passageway.
“See how the doors of the buildings are all higher than the walkways?” Bastien answered the question he knew was playing in my head. “When the river overflows, it rushes through the streets. That’s why there are rope bridges overhead.”
“Does it flood a lot here?” I glanced back at Bastien. He wore a deep frown on his face.
“Yes, and we should hurry.” He pointed up at the sky. “See those dark clouds? It doesn’t take long for the rivers to flood with the heavy downpours here.”
Arik glanced up. “Surely we have plenty of time. It hasn’t even started to rain.”
“This coven is unique,” Bastien added. “It happens in a flash. You don’t see any villagers about, do you? They know.”
“Well, we’re here.” I pounded up the five steps to the entrance of the bakery where Emily had instructed me to meet her and Demos. The rusty bell on the door jingled, announcing our arrival.
Demos and Emily were sipping steaming liquid from chipped mugs. The remains of their breakfasts stained the thick, white plates on the table. Emily paused mid-sip and glanced our way.
“What took you so—” Her gaze landed on Bastien. “What’s he doing here?”
“He’s helping. We definitely could use a wizard on this quest.” I rested my hand on the back of Emily’s chair. “Demos, you and Arik better get going before the rain starts.”
Arik shook his head. “He can’t go with me. I’ll arrest him the moment he sets foot in the library.”
Demos let out an exasperated breath. “Oh, come on. Really?”
I was about to give Arik a swift kick in the butt.
Bastien must’ve noticed my frustration. He came up to my side and lightly brushed my hand with his. There was a spark between our fingers, and I wasn’t sure if it was from the worn-out carpet I’d just crossed or the strong connection I felt between us. He was going with me on my search for The Red. He didn’t know where, but he was going without hesitation, just as he’d done when the trap had pulled me into the barren Somnium. He’d held on, regardless of the outcome for him. And he wouldn’t let me do this alone.
“You’d really do that?” The surprise in Demos’s voice matched how I felt when Arik had said I’d be an enemy to the Wizard Council for delivering the cure to the Mystiks.
Arik’s eyes slid over Bastien’s and my hands before darting to Demos. “You went against a direct order and you tied me up. That’s imprisonment. Because I’m your leader, it’s most certainly mutiny as well. I have agreed to protect Royston, but I go to Asile alone.”
“Blimey, you certainly can hold a grudge, can’t you?” Demos picked up the linen napkin in front of him and wiped his mouth with it. “Why let insignificant things like my disobeying and binding you ruin our friendship?”
Arik pressed his lips together as if he were trying not to smile at that. “This is quite serious. Don’t test me. I won’t hesitate—”
“Enough,” I said, cutting him off. “Emily will go with Arik. Demos, you come with Bastien and me.”
Emily perked up at that.
I continued. “Unless you’d lock her up, too.”
He stared at Emily for a long moment. The tightness in his jaw loosened as he watched her. “I suppose I wouldn’t. She isn’t of our world and only aided you. Most likely, she didn’t know of the Wizard Council’s orders.”
“I didn’t tell her about anything.” I hoped Emily would go along with that story.
“That’s right,” Emily said. “I just took care of her at the house in Jamaica Plains. When we were attacked, I ended up with her in the Fey realm.”
“I don’t need a babysitter,” Arik argued. “She isn’t even able to jump on her own.”
Bastien stuffed his hands in his pockets, his eyes going from me to Arik. “I wasn’t let in on the plan. But possibly, there’s another reason Gia is adamant someone goes with you.”
“There is,” I said. “To make sure he returns to Asile.”
Demos removed some silver cuffs from the pocket of his trench.
Arik eyed them. “Cuff locks? You mean to use them on me?”
I gave him an unsure smile, worried he’d lose it on me. “It’s only until you’re in Asile.”
“You know I can come right back here.” He glared at me. “With guards.”
“We’ll be gone before you return,” I said. “And what are you going to do? Arrest all of Greyhill for getting the cure?”
“I see,” he said. “And I’m to jump with Emily, hands bound?”
“Pfft.” Demos fidgeted with the cuffs. “You could master the gateway blindfolded and with your feet tied.”
Arik raised his chin. “All right. I just want out of here.”
“And you’ll protect Royston?” I added.
“I promised I would.” Arik offered his wrists to Demos. “What are we waiting for? Put them on so I can leave already.”
Demos clamped the cuffs on Arik’s wrists and waved a hand over them. The cuffs glowed blue, securing Arik’s wrists in front of him.
I grasped Emily’s elbow, led her over to the pastry display case, and whispered, “Give this note to Cadby. Whatever you do, don’t let Arik see it. I know you still like him, but please don’t cave. Our lives depend on it. Both worlds depend on it.”
Emily frowned, took the note, and leaned closer to me. “I may like the guy, but he’s completely wrong on this. And I’d never let Nana down. She told me to help you, and I will.”
“Thank you,” I said. “Stay with Cadby. He’ll keep you safe. Okay?”
Arik was staring at us, so she just nodded. Demos placed his trench coat over Arik’s shoulders to conceal the fact that he had the magical cuffs on his wrists.
Demos held out a steel ring to Emily. “Put this on your pointer finger. If he tries to run or leave you behind, you only have to pull your finger in to stop him. To move him, point in the direction you want him to go. He won’t be able to resist the magic.”
She slipped it on her finger and grinned. “I’m going to like this.”
“I bet you will,” Demos said and laughed.
“Can we go already?” Arik growled.
Bastien opened the door. “By all means. I’ll be happy to see you go.”
Arik pushed by Bastien. He didn’t look back, just stomped out.
After Emily and Arik had exited the café, I felt a sudden rush of regret. He’ll never forgive me. How did we get to this place? A place where we were fighting on opposite sides of a battle. A place that broke my heart. And a place from which there was likely no return.
Just then, Bastien glanced at me, a crooked smile on his face that made my heart stutter. “Now, what about that plan?”
Right. Back to business.
“Do you have a window rod?” I asked.
Bastien nodded.
“Great. Have your guards leave Greyhill and meet us in the library.”
A round, stout woman with graying hair pulled away from her face stood behind the counter. Flour caked her floral apron, the grin on her face welcoming.
“Have you forgotten the rain?” Bastien removed his window rod from his jacket pocket and pulled the two pieces apart. A screen ignited between them. “I can do this walking. I’d feel much better if we get out of here before a flood hits.”
“Yeah. Let’s—” I looked over at Bastien and caught a glimpse of someone passing outside. Though the window was made of thick glass and a little distorted, I knew that hair and that walk.
I pushed past Bastien on my way out. The old door stuck a little when I yanked it open, the bell attached jingling angrily. My boots slipped on the last step down, and I righted myself.
He was a ways down the passageway, looking from side to side as if he were searching for someone. It was only his back, but I knew him almost as well as I knew myself. We’d spent nearly fifty thousand hours together since he was born. A perfect image of him was burned in my memory.
Nick?