Naeva-To Fight a Monster

Chapter 10

Valerian emerged from the dark corner, and Erin and Radley stood up expectantly. Polina wasn't back yet; she'd decided to visit her mother.

"Did you find anything?" Erin asked quietly. Radley was too worried to ask, himself. He had suggested new members, and it was his idea to pull Naeva into a mission before Valerian was used to this new form of travel. If something had happened to that girl, her blood was on Radley's hands.

Valerian shook his head. "Wherever she is, she managed to escape the Stream. That is all I know."

Erin sat down, seemingly in shock. Radley didn't blame her. Naeva hadn't wanted to join them for this battle, so he'd encouraged her, even demonstrated it. Even though the trip felt longer than it was, he'd never felt as though losing his grip was possible.

And now Naeva could be dead.

Valerian's phone rang with Polina's number. He flipped it open, listened for a moment, nodded, and then disappeared into the shadows again. Since this afternoon, he hadn't refused to Umbra Jump with other people, but his grip had been noticeably tighter.

They all sat in silence until Radley remembered: They'd given Naeva one of their phones. Maybe, wherever she was, she could call them?

No; that phone didn't have the rest of the order's numbers on it yet. But maybe if he called her...

He pulled his phone out of his pocket, feeling an odd combination of panic and excitement. He dialed the number of the fifth phone with shaking fingers, and to his great relief, it began to ring.

Erin watched him curiously before comprehension illuminated her face. "Oh! Good thinking, yeah?"

On the second ring, Radley heard someone pick up. "Naeva, are you okay? Where—?"

"You must be Lowly Champion," a cold, aged male voice said. "Nice to meet you, is what I would say... but I won't lie to you, Tierisch order scum."

Slowly, Radley moved his thumb to the speakerphone button. He pressed it right as Valerian returned with Polina, who was massaging her hand.

"Who are you?" Radley demanded quietly. "Where's Naeva?"

"I needn't concern you," the man said. "She's safe, at least for now. I had to move quickly to keep this machine from waking her up. Don't call again, or I'll slit her throat before she stirs."

He hung up. The Lowly Champion order stood speechless, each member clearly worried. The dial tone was the only sound in the room, aside from the wind battering the town outside. Eventually, Radley pressed the red button, cutting the sound off short.

"We need to find her," Radley said, feeling breathless. "Quickly."

"But we don't even know who that was," Erin protested.

Polina's brow furrowed. "I might have an idea," she said slowly. Everyone looked at her as she continued, "Naeva said that a Finstrese bandit had been stalking her for ages before she came to Tierisch. She sounded scared of him. Maybe she came out somewhere he could find her?"

Radley's blood froze; he hated bandit clans. Almost every one of them could use Baykok venom, which had an odd ability to bypass defenses, leaving dodging as one's only option. He'd only encountered their kind once, and it had... stuck with him.

Valerian stood up, his eyes narrowed.

"Where are you going?" Erin demanded.

He leveled his gaze on her. "I'm going to interrogate some bandits. I will find out where she is."

Erin smirked, a savage glint in her eye. "Make sure and take me with you when you find them. I want to kill that creep before he ever torments Naeva again."

Radley glanced at her. Erin had only known Naeva for a week, and she was already acting like a protective big sister. He didn't often hear death threats from her.

Valerian nodded, rage still showing through his eyes, and slipped silently into the shadows without a trace.

Polina looked down at her knees. "Please, Naeva, please be okay..."