Page 47 of Omen of ice
He holds up a small rabbit. “It took six years, but I finally did it.”
I cross to where they stand, bending down to inspect the pitiful creature hanging limp in his grip. It’s a little breed of rabbit I’ve never seen before. Long black ears and pinkish fur. Several sets of wicked-looking red fangs peek from behind tiny white lips. “Took that down all by yourself, did you?” I clap slowly. “Good thing you still have all your limbs.”
He rolls his eyes and laughs. “It’s a Verreza. They only come out of hibernation on the eve of the solstice, for nine or ten hours.”
“Catching and eating a Verreza is said to bring good fortune and health to the individual,” Kopic says with pride. “They’re extremely rare. In my six hundred years, I’ve only caught two.”
“They’re rare, and your answer is to slaughter one?” I frown.
We’ve surmised the link is strongest between us during amplified emotional situations. I can’t feel him constantly, but during times of heightened emotional responses—like when he was drinking—I felt it all. Now, Valen’s excitement over the small rabbit allows me to feel the cool fur in his hands, the dry, crusting blood on his fingers. I can almost taste his elation over the kill, but I also feel my own regret. Senseless slaughter of a creature—especially one so rare—seems stupid. “Have you asked yourself why they’re so rare?”
Valen sets the creature down on the table by the door, and I can tell he feels what I do. My intention isn’t to dampen his excitement, but I can’t help the way I feel.
He looks to the paper in my hand, then turns back to Kopic. “I need to talk to the Aphelian for a minute.”
“I’ll have this prepared.” Kopic takes the animal carcass. “If I leave you two alone, there won’t be any bloodshed, right?”
The last time Valen said we needed to talk, I threw a half-full decanter of wine at his head. It was justified. He’d suggested I start wearing a new uniform. Something moreFae.
“There’s nothing sharp in the room.” He grins. “We’re good.”
Kopic nods, then offers me a slight bow before disappearing through the doorway with the dead rabbit.
“The answer is yes. It’s exactly what you think it is.” I stand and wave the paper back and forth.
The small, fanged rabbit is forgotten, and a new emotion—hope—floods between us. “Well? What did she say?”
“She thinks she can fix it.” Reading Levina’s words lifted a massive weight from my shoulders. When I sent the message, I wasn’t sure there’d be a fix. Or, if there was, the specifics could be lost to time. It’s been centuries since we used a sigil like this. No one even remembers them. Thankfully, Levina pored over our oldest books when she was young. She soaked in as much of the lost knowledge as possible, saying once that paper was fragile but human memory passed from one to another was endless.
His head tilts back, and relief floods through me—both his and mine. “Thank the Gods.”
“But we have to meet her in Ventin Peaks.”
His eyes narrow. “Ventin? Isn’t that an old, untethered town in the south?” He snatches the parchment from me and skims the message, his brow furrowing. “She estimates the journey to taketwo weeks?”
“Give or take.” I’m not thrilled about that part, either, but if it solves our problem, then it’s worth it. Plus, Valen needs some time away from the estate. He never says anything, but I know he fears his aunt coming to him for another donation. I understand because I fear it, too. With each passing day, he’s gotten edgier and edgier. It’s starting to affect us both—which triggers the link more often. He tries to hide it, but I know he feels guilty about it. Every now and then a wave of it hits me, so strong that I need to focus or I’ll topple over.
“You think she’s right?” He stares at the paper as though he’s trying to see some kind of hidden message in the text.
I snatch it back from him. “I think if anyone can do it, it will be Levina. She’s truly magnificent. The most revered priestess we’ve had in decades.” Still, a part of medoesworry. What if she’s wrong? What if something she does makes this worse? “The question is, are you going to be able to leave?”
He keeps his expression neutral, but I can tell—by both body languageandthe link—that he’s concerned. “You’re worried Orbik won’t allow me to take the journey.”
“You said it yourself—he keeps you where he can see you. Fear for your life and all.” The words drip with sarcasm, and I know Valen hears it, too.
I don’t trust the Winter Lord one bit. There’s no way he’ll let Valen—or, more to the point, Valen’smagic—scamper off without a fight. The question is, will it be a fight we can win? My loyalty is to Valen, but waging war on the entirety of the Winter Court won’t go over well with anyone. Things have been quiet recently, but I feel like I’m always on guard—if not watching for attackers, then protecting him from his own family.
Valen says he trusts his uncle’s motives, but I’m not sure that’s the whole truth. There are little things. Small, almost unnoticeable tells. The way Valen stiffens whenever Orbik enters a room, or the cold, unimaginable terror I feel from him in the dead of night as he sleeps. I can’t see his nightmares, but some nights, the chill of them—the utter desolation—steals the air from my lungs and has me waking covered in sweat.
My palms tingle, and when I look up, Valen’s fists are clenched, digging his fingernails into his own palms. He catches me watching, then glances down. Regret fills the space between us. “Oh. Sorry. I didn’t mean—”
I ignore the sting in my own palm and snap my fingers in front of his face. “Focus. What should we do?”
“My first instinct is to sneak away.” He shakes his head. “But that won’t work. We wouldn’t get to the gates before being spotted. I think we only have one choice…” There’s a flicker of hesitation through the link, as if he’s bracing himself for my reaction. “We need to tell my uncle the truth.”
…
“Let me be sure that I have this clear.” Orbik sits on his throne while Liani hovers like a shadow behind him. It’s impossible to miss the look of accusation, of hatred, each time her gaze lands on me. “You were attacked at the village and told no one?”
