Page 99 of Shadow Queen
Where should she start? Naavi trusted her to keep the secrets of the Wild safe, and she would, but she wouldn’t deny Mikael an explanation. A real one.
“Did you get them? Your memories?” he asked.
She shook her head. “No,” she whispered. “They’re gone. Forever.”
His brows drew together. “But you weren’t made to forget again?” Like he was.
“No,” she said again.
He looked at Alexander. “Was he?”
She didn’t want this to be about Alexander. “It’s complicated. My father had a deep friendship with the Wild. It’s where he took me to protect me during the war. It’s where I was all those years, and it’s why I don’t remember. My memories were lost when I was hidden from the seers.”
His eyes drifted back to Alexander. She kept silent about Alexander’s power, whatever it may be. There was already enough mistrust for him.
“They blame Kharav for my father’s death,” she continued. “There’s still a lot of animosity.” She took his hand. “But they saw you differently than they had before and gave a small mercy and healed you.”
He thumbed the mended injury to his shoulder.
“Although,” she added, “if you return, they’ll kill you. So I… wouldn’t recommend that.”
He smiled sadly as he cupped her cheek in his hand. “I’m sorry,” he said softly.
“Thank you for bringing me. It was… a significant risk for all of you. And while I don’t have what I came for, I do havesomeanswers. And I’m incredibly grateful for that.”
He kissed her. “It was worth it then.” He turned and pulled a roll from his saddle and laid it near the fire. “Sleep,” he told her. “We’ve a long journey back.” Then he left to tend his horse.
Norah sat on the bedroll, but she didn’t lie down. She couldn’t sleep. Caspian offered her the rabbit, and she ate it slowly as she watched Mikael, who now stood off in the distance, almost blending into the darkness.
Soren came to the fire and dropped down on a large rock nearby. She still felt his scowl upon her. She’d tell him more when he wasn’t so angry, which would be a while.
Mikael drifted back toward the fire, but as he moved to sit by Norah, they were interrupted by a sound in the night. They jumped to their feet, and Mikael and Caspian pulled their swords. Soren drew up his axe, and even Alexander staggered to his feet.
Norah looked around, but she couldn’t see in the darkness. Her pulse quickened. They should have put out the fire. What else lurked about in the shadows, unseen? She was tired of the constant battle, the constant threat of danger. She wanted to be home. She wanted to feel safe.
A shadow stepped out of the darkness.
Norah let out a breath as she grinned.
Sephir.
The mare had returned. The horse tossed her head with a nicker, and Norah ran to her, throwing her arms around the animal’s neck.
“I didn’t think I’d see you again,” she told her as she exhaled a sigh of relief. “And I also thought you might have been a monster.”
Caspian chuckled, a little embarrassed as well. “That horse is not what I was expecting either.”
Norah couldn’t help but laugh herself. Even Soren gave an amused snort. For once, there was a good surprise.
Chapter twenty-eight
TheUruwelcomedthemback in celebration, and Tahla’s relief at their safety was palpable. Norah smiled, grateful for friends who cared so deeply.
Caspian followed Norah to the large central fire, where she sat on a large elongated rock. Tahla took a seat beside her.
“I’m so happy to have you back safely,” Tahla said. “Tell me of it. Tell me of the Wild.”
Of course she’d be curious about it—home of the spirits they had so much reverence for. But Norah had been trusted with its secrets, and she would keep them. Still, it was harmless to share some things. “It’s a magical place,” Norah told her, remembering its beauty. “But dangerous. And as you said—unwelcoming, even to Northmen. Once you step into the trees, you’re at their mercy, and they have little of it.”
