Page 97 of Queen’s Gambit

I climbed onto his back, and when he rose, the world was suddenly much smaller and less terrifying. My thoughts drifted to Rey, to Siras, to my friends and the Dark Fae soldiers following me. Were they in the town trying to find me, or still on the road?

Where should I go first?

I closed my eyes, weighing each choice as a heavy burden. Even as my heart pulled me to Rey, I decided against it. I needed to stop my friends from getting hurt trying to retrieve me and free Siras before the Tangrian clergy executed him as a scapegoat.

I wished I knew how.

‘You’re a Vila’s daughter surrounded by trees. Think!’ I sneezed at a gust of wind and brushed away the hair and dry leaves blown into my eyes.

The bies rumbled, rubbing his antlers against tree bark, and I thought of my father. His spirit was locked in a majestic oak, alive in the strange way trees always felt alive to me.

‘Guide me,’ I whispered, then let my power drift into the land, into the trees. The wispy tendrils of life spread, touching everything around me.

‘Find the dwarf, the human and the Dark Fae,’ I said, creating intent with my magic, picturing Tova and Irsha—their bodies, their scent, even their Aether—until a complete portrait of my family formed in my mind.

The treetops shifted, rustling. The will of the many pressed upon me, slow, patient, unyielding.

Then the Aether lit up like a beacon.

The bies leaped forward and raced at a terrifying speed, the trees lifting their branches as we barrelled through the Piran Swamp. I didn’t interfere or steer him astride. The creature, so closely connected to his home, knew better how to interpret the clues. All I needed was to stay alive and not fall as the wind whistled past my ears.

The sun had risen when we burst into a small, sleepy camp, heralded by the angry shouts of the guards trying to stop us.

‘Stand down or pay the price! Where is your commander?’ I shouted when the fae’s dark magic condensed around us, threatening to lock me in a web of death.

‘Drah’sa, what the fuck?’ Tova stepped from a tent, his eyes fixated on the snorting bies.

‘Where’s Irsha? Did he go to town? Did you make the key?’ I rasped, sucking in lungfuls of air.

‘No, he didn’t go to town,’ Irsha said, emerging from the other tent with the Dark Fae commander in tow. ‘I was planning to when I saw Siras escorted away and robed Tangrians shouting, “find that bitch.” Caused some trouble, did you?’

Seeing them both unharmed, relief hit me so hard I swayed. My grip on the bies’ fur tightened, making the surprised beast turn to me, lowing plaintively.

‘It’s alright. I need to talk to them,’ I scratched him between the ears. ‘Do you have a healer?’

The entire camp looked on with the same dumbfounded expression until an older fae stepped forward.

‘My lady, those creatures are dangerous. Please send it away, and my men will tend to your wounds,’ the captain said.

‘Shaggy won’t hurt anyone,’ I assured, patting the beast’s back. ‘Some arsehole shot me with an arrow. Did anyone see where they took Siras?’

‘Svarog’s bollocks! And she called it Shaggy,’ Tova grunted and gestured to his tent. ‘Come on, let’s patch you up. We need to keep it away from this pile of meat and bone. What if it goes feral from the blood?’

I pointed to the beast’s side covered in my blood.

‘If that were a problem, he already would have.’

After making sure my new mount was safe, I followed the four men inside. As soon as the flap closed behind us, I ripped away the makeshift bandage, showing my wound. Irsha’s fists clenched when I bit my lip and hissed while the fae cleaned the wound. Fae healing was potent, and I had to clench my teeth on a rag when he removed the arrow and chanted my flesh together.

My pained whimpers were too much for Irsha. The assassin stormed off and returned with a handful of fae clothing.

‘There, change, and I’ll burn those rags,’ Irsha said, blocking the entrance after the healer left.

Tova rolled his eyes and headed to the corner. When he returned, he carried a bloodied bundle and placed it on his travelling mat.

‘Before you ask… I made two,’ he sighed.

Even though I knew what it was, I still swallowed hard before unveiling the bloody, rune-carved femoral bones. Tova pointed to the wax seal on one end.