Rowan found me sobbing like a baby in a pool of my own vomit. Jaeger sat on his shoulder, whimpering as he perceived my distress. Rowan's eyes flicked to the mark on my shoulder and all color withdrew from his face. I braced myself for the questions, the rage. However, he merely knelt down and took me in his arms, lifting me off the ground and carrying me back to the Onyx Tower. He still hadn't uttered a word when we reached my room and he pushed the doors open.
The mattress seemed to embrace me while he laid me down onto the bed. I eyed Rowan from the corner of my eye, desperate for him to say something, but fearing his reaction at the same time. He walked around the bed, which groaned softly as his weight sank down on it. His arms snaked around me and pulled me into his hard, warm chest, one of his hands disappearing into my hair to stroke my head. I closed my eyes, purring like a cat. Jaeger crawled onto the mattress as well and curled up into a tiny ball against my stomach to share his comforting warmth with me.
Rowan stayed with me the entire night, and when I woke up screaming from yet another nightmare, he repeated the same ritual to lull me back to sleep. All without opening his mouth.
***
I would have loved to spend the rest of the Fair in bed, with Rowan's arms cradling me, but I returned from my dazed state long enough to realize that Cain would send people to come looking for me if I didn't attend the festivities. So I allowed Rowan to help me out of bed every morning and hoist me into the dress that seemed more like a shroud with each day that passed. I hadn't spoken a single word since the incident at Dominic's cage—I shuddered when the image came back to me more vividly than what my mental health could endure—but there was no need for words. Rowan and I were perfectly capable of communicating without the use of our tongues. I knew that he had long figured out what had to be figured out.
We had reached a silent agreement that there was no point in warning the rebels; they would no longer listen, not now they were so close to victory. When Ellie and Larry barged into my room, concern etching hard lines on their faces, it took them only one glance at the mark on my shoulder to realize it too.
All that mattered now was to get Rowan, his mother and the Dwarfs safely out of the city. It was the last good thing I could do for them before the world went up in flames—literally.
On the last morning of the Fair, Cain strolled into my room, his hands stuffed deep into his pockets. His eyes trailed to Rowan, who had straightened up beside me on the bed, but dismissed him just as quickly. His presence seemed to take up most of the space in the room, like a latent force of nature waiting for the tiniest spark to be unleashed. Cain's silence was a clear sign for Rowan to leave, and my friend squeezed my hand one last time before walking out the door.
Something broke inside of me then, with a cracking sound so loud that I cringed and eyed Cain from the corner of my eye, fearing that he had heard it. Rowan and I had devoted most of the night to saying goodbye to each other, since there wouldn't be time for that anymore when the bombs detonated. Yet, it hadn't been enough; it never would be. Rowan was still convinced that he could come back for me, that our separation wouldn't last long, but I knew better.
Cain smiled, extending his hand to help me get up from the bed. "We both know that you and I are supposed to spend this day together, little Sorceress, so that's why I came here. Are you ready to face the world with me?"
Taking his hand, calloused and covered in scars so light that I hadn't noticed them before, would seal my fate in more than one way. I didn't have to look up at him to see that he knew it too. As I slid my hand in his, I kept my face expressionless. My muscles protested when I stretched my stiff legs and stood up, as if they hadn't been used in centuries. I felt like a statue, flawless and serene on the outside, but empty on the inside. Jaeger flew toward us from the bed and settled into his usual spot on my shoulder.
Arm in arm, we strode out of the Onyx Tower like monarchs. The bright, warm light of the sun kissed my skin as people humbly shuffled out of our way to let us pass. We took a slight turn to the left, zigzagging between the stalls, and my heart leapt to my throat when I realized where we were going.
No, not there! Go back! Go back!
But Cain continued to lead me through the masses, our arms linked while we approached the cage that was still exhibited on a stage near the center of the square. Dominic had shrunk back to his usual position: arms wrapped around his knees and face hidden from the eyes of the world. A dark wave of magic, not meant to harm but to draw attention, rippled through the air toward the cage, causing the man inside to look up.
Exhaustion made Dominic's sunken eyes hazy and he had to blink several times before he recognized us. His lips curled up into a wolfish grin. I wondered how he still had the energy to smile. "Ah, I see you've traded up to a more powerful companion, Sorceress. Got tired of the soldier's overprotective conduct?"
The urge to dig my nails into Cain's muscular arm was overwhelming, but I resisted. Don't let him provoke you.
Cain frowned and tilted his head. "Clearly, the cage and the collar haven't done much to tame that sharp tongue of yours, Dominic." The red-haired Sorcerer flinched under Cain's disapproval, but he didn't lower his gaze. I had to give it to him: he wasn't an easy one to break. A part of me liked that despite our mutual grudge.
Dominic's silent act of defiance amused Cain, although his grip on my arm tightened for a moment. Jaeger growled a warning at him, but the Dark Sorcerer ignored him. "Ah well. If imprisonment won't work, I know a better punishment for you." He cleared his throat, cruelty twinkling in his eyes. "Dominic Ravenheart, from this moment onward, I appoint you as Kenna River's personal protector. It will be your job to keep her safe at all costs, even if you have to die to do so. If you harm her or let anything happen to her, knowingly or unknowingly, you will receive a sanction fitting for your incompetence."
Dominic's eyes widened with every word Cain said, and so did mine. Cain was right: this was the best—or worst, depending on one's point of view—punishment Dominic could receive, more effective than being locked up in a cage and displayed to the Vallinstran citizens like an exotic animal. He would be forced to protect the one person he hated with a burning passion. Me.
Every bone in my body hurt from the strain of holding my breakfast in my stomach.
Cain unsheathed the dagger hanging by his hip and handed it to me. "Make a shallow cut in both his palm and yours."
The metal felt cool beneath my fingers as I bent forward and grabbed Dominic's hand to do what Cain had told me to. Dominic's eyes bore into mine, willing me to look up and see the hatred he still felt for me, the hatred he would always feel for me, no matter how many oaths he would be compelled to swear. He didn't flinch when the blade sliced open his palm and crimson blood dripped from the wound. I repeated the same gesture with my own hand, but hesitated before sticking my fingers through the cage's steel bars.
The rational part of my brain, the part that had been formed by years and years of training with the White Sisters, begged me not to proceed, not to bind this man's life to my own. I glanced aside and Cain's amber gaze met mine. He gave a short nod. Taking a deep breath, I held out my hand and shook Dominic's, allowing our blood to mingle. My fear for Cain was still greater than my respect for the moral principles with which I had been raised.
Cain said something in Old Speech and an almost imperceptible thrill jolted up my arm, straight to my heart. The blood oath had been taken, creating an unbreakable connection between Dominic's soul and mine. It was a chain that could only be broken by speaking the right formal words in Old Speech, or by the death of one of the two individuals involved. It was a life sentence for Dominic, unless I were to release him. Which I wouldn't, not as long as he kept looking at me as if he fantasized about slitting my throat.
Dominic winced at the sight of Cain's approving smile; his master might as well have slapped him in the face. Satisfied, Cain turned to me, offering me his arm once more. "Now that that's settled, I'd like to ask you for a dance to celebrate, Kenna."
I faked a grin and accepted his arm, following him through the masses to the spacious dance floor on the eastern side of the square. Its boundaries were marked by tables and chairs arranged in an oval, where the citizens could sit back and watch the dancers over a drink. While Cain led me to the middle of the floor and put his hand on my waist, I felt everyone's eyes on us, staring and gossiping about the mysterious girl who had managed to draw Cain's undivided attention, and for once not in a negative way.
As my gaze glided over the bystanders, defying their curiosity and skepticism, I spotted Rowan at one of the tables. He leaned back in his chair and took a sip of a mug of beer, his dark eyes flicking back and forth between Cain and me. His knuckles had turned white from gripping the mug so tightly and his gaze contained a kind of possessiveness that made me want to roll my eyes. I should be the one dancing with you, he seemed to say.
I lowered my head to hide my smile from Cain, whose warm breath tickled my forehead. Yet, a great sadness ripped my chest open at the same time as I realized that this could be the last time I would see Rowan looking at me like that. Would his eyes still twinkle every time he saw me after I had spent a few months alone with the Dark Sorcerers? Would I still be the same Kenna next time we met—which I was sure would happen eventually—or would the girl he loved have become nothing more than a memory?
I risked another glance at him and noticed that Ellie and Larry had joined him, each with a mug in their hands as well. The three of them held up their mugs at me when they saw me looking, as though they were making a toast. A lump formed in my throat, blocking my windpipe so that I was left gasping for air. A last goodbye.
Cain's scent—snow mixed with the sweet, wintry smell of cinnamon—wafted into my nose while he leaned closer to whisper something in my ear, "Your Dragon keeps staring at me as if he's going to eat me, little Sorceress."
The lump vanished and I chuckled, glimpsing at the tiny black creature which still balanced on my shoulder. "Afraid, Cain?"
He threw his head back and laughed, a low, rumbling sound that caused many heads to whip around in our direction.
Yes, people, your tyrant is actually physically capable of laughing.
Cain's eyes drifted toward the Dragon, holding Jaeger's in an iron grip. I swelled with pride when Jaeger didn't back down; he even had the guts to yawn to emphasize his disinterest. An amused grin played on Cain's lips. "I'm curious to see what he will be like when he's fully grown. I've got to admit it, little Sorceress: you choose your friends well."
I know, I wanted to answer, my shoulders dropping lower with every second that passed. And still they have to leave me.
We continued to dance as one song faded out and another began, as though the world was a perfectly happy place and there wasn't a bloody war looming over our heads, only hours away from erupting. The sun crept across the sky at the speed of a snail, torturing my nerves.
My gaze landed on the blue flame flickering at the top of the Onyx Tower and my hand climbed to my shoulder, tracing the rough edges of the new mark there. It was in that moment that I saw it: an almost unnoticeable glint near the Tower's spire, as if the air had taken on a tangible form and was dancing against the black walls of the building. A protective shield.
Oh, dear.
It hadn't been there before; I would have spotted it. Cain and his Dark Sorcerers must have generated it because of the rebels' impending attack, and they had camouflaged it so well that no one would detect it unless they were searching for it. My brow quirked while I scanned the square, looking for another shield protecting the festival, but I couldn't find any. A sudden heaviness rooted my feet to the ground, my limbs turned to solid rock.
Cain would protect his towers, but he wouldn't protect the citizens sauntering about the square.
Blackness clouded my vision as panic threatened to overwhelm me. Cain put a cool hand on my back to steady me when I wavered. "Everything all right, Kenna?"
I turned my head to face him, incredulous. "Why?" I whispered with trembling lips.
His face hardened, carved out of white marble. There was no need to explain my question. "Because they need to see that their peers are willing to sacrifice them to bring down the Onyx Tower. That they're just collateral damage in a struggle for power." He smiled, cruel and appalling. "I've known about Taylor Ford's rebels for quite some time now. I guess the death of his daughter broke him and his vengeance has kept him going for all these years. Still, these so-called rebels had never attempted to organize an actual attack until you arrived in our city, little Sorceress. They must believe that you are the key to fulfilling their prophecy."
Their prophecy ... Olive's prophecy. Rowan's voice echoed inside my mind when I recalled his first words to the Vallinstran citizens after our arrival, For the city of Vallinstra is broken, but its people are not. They shall be avenged when the Tower falls.
By the Light. The rebels thought that they had to blow up the Tower themselves to regain their freedom and their city. This suicide mission ... It was all connected to that stupid prophecy.
Cain chuckled and I tried to wrench my arm free, but he tightened his grip. "If they're willing to murder their own kind to topple the Dark Sorcerers, doesn't that make them just as bad as us?" His casual tone made me want to punch him in the face.
Averting my gaze, I pressed my lips together. Those had been my thoughts as well, but that didn't mean I was willing to let innocent people die so that Cain could make a statement. I opened my mouth to tell him exactly that, but he cut me off by putting a finger against my lips.
He looked up at the sky, which had turned into a palette of blues, pinks, oranges and reds. "It can happen any second now," he muttered, more to himself than to me. "The servants will soon go down to the basement to install the fireworks and the rebels will undoubtedly be among them. At least Dominic was right about that when he decided to attack you and the soldier."
I was trembling all over now, although my legs refused to obey me when I ordered them to run away from this man, fast. I've got to stop this. I've got to do something.
As if he had guessed my thoughts, Cain clicked his tongue. "I can't let you do that." Against my better judgement, I implored him with my eyes not to do this, but he shook his head, adamant. "No, Kenna. They don't deserve it."
I gasped. "How can you say that? How can you—" I fell silent when Cain reached into the inner pocket of his jacket and fished out an envelope, sealed with the characteristic seal of the Monastery. My whole body stilled as I stared at the letter; even my heart stopped pounding for a moment. When it rebooted, it hammered so hard against my ribs that I feared it would burst through my chest and fling itself at Cain's face like a catapult. Jaeger made low growling sounds in my ear, sensing the rapid disintegration of my spirit.
"Where. Did. You. Get. That." My voice grew louder with each word, like a volcano waking up from a hundred-year slumber.
"You should have known that I would intercept every letter coming from outside this city," Cain replied, shrugging. "This particular letter arrived a few weeks ago and as soon as I saw that seal, my curiosity was piqued. And when I had finished reading it ..." He laughed softly, a sound that raised the hair on my arms. "I thought tonight would be the perfect moment to finally give it to you. So that you will understand."
Lurching forward, I tried to take the envelope from him, but he put it back in his pocket before I could do so and grabbed both of my wrists with one hand. I stared up at him, fuming. "That's mine," I hissed, struggling against his grip as I tried to remember every fighting technique that Rowan had taught me. "Give it to me!"
"Not yet," he said, turning me around in his arms so quickly that my head spun. "First, I need you to watch this."
A faint rumble coming from the Onyx Tower made the ground shake under my feet. The citizens on Sapphire Square ceased their activities for a moment to look around, confusion distorting their faces. Aware of what was coming, I reached for my magic, but there was nothing. Not a single spark. Widening my eyes, I tried to twist my neck so that I could look at Cain. However, his grip on me—both physically and mentally—was unyielding and I had no choice but to stand by helplessly as another, louder roar cut through the air.
I blinked, and the world exploded into fire and ashes.