But everyone else’s eyes stayed fixed on the ground.
Kallias’ mouth drew into a sharp frown. Silvered brows lowered over a glacial glare, lost in thought. Fallione had said there was no sign of anyone traveling this way.
Ahead, the mountains broke into a stretch of hills that carved a valley between the behemoths. Behind us, a long stone wall stretched between two towers carved into the stone itself, much like Sol. The guards reported silence. No activity, no strangers—nothing.
Gyrak was a shadow above, coasting through the sky, scouting farther than any Radaanian soldier might have.
Ronan had strict orders not to cross into Vellos, but I shaded my eyes against the sun, tracking his approach. Part of me hoped he’d spotted the Velli army—ready to end it. The other part wished to visit Sol, hoping it would be as it had been the first time Kallias brought me there.
But it wouldn’t be.
Clay was missing. Tallon and Egath were at large. And Gayle? I couldn’t bear to face her, not knowing what her husband had suffered for my sake.
A gust hit like a wall, staggering my horse. The wind tousled my husband’s peppered hair, and he straightened, glancing at me as if my mount’s stumble had shaken him free from thought. His mouth tightened with worry; the guarded mask slipped for a heartbeat before he blinked it away. He worried about his friend, about what this meant.
We would head toward Sol.
If they hadn’t returned to Vellos, they were still in Radaan. Unrestrained. Free to prey on the populace.
Tsunami trilled, tearing my attention back to the sky. She reveled in the wind, her long, jade wings stretched fully, tail thrashing as she searched for the next updraft to ride.
Gyrak dove, shrinking to a comet aimed at the earth. At the last second, he snapped his wings open with a thunderous crack. I flinched at the blast; horses shied, men shouted.
Ronan slid down his dragon’s shoulder while the beast bared his teeth at Kallias. Maw twisted in a snarl, the black hissed low before twisting toward me with a sniff. A grumbling purr rattled my bones as he stepped closer, lips closing over his fangs.
He reflected his rider: impatient with my husband, protective of me.
“The pass is empty,” Ronan called, hand resting on his dagger. Long legs devoured the ground in dark rider’s leathers. “No sign of a man, let alone an army.”
“How far did you fly?” I asked, pinning a panel of my dress as the wind tugged.
“The length of the pass.” He ran his tongue over his teeth, dipping his head to taunt me. “Vellos is overgrown.”
Kallias shifted, leather complaining as he gripped the reins, fingers curling as if he wanted to strangle my brother.
“I told you not to cross,” I bit out, jealousy knotting my stomach. He got to see more of that land than I ever would.
Because he disobeyed me.
He shrugged, adjusting goggles in his hair. “I took the liberty to be sure I wasn’t missing something. But it’s quiet. Normal animal sign. A pack of wolves hunting a herd of mountain goats—nothing that indicates Tallon made it through.”
A pang of loss cut through me, reverberating in bone and marrow. Clay and his goats.
“Send Orren north. Let him fly a day, then catch up with us. That way, we’ll be sure he didn’t head that direction.”
“He went south,” Kallias said, final. He pulled his stallion back, turning to his army. “Send your dragons where you will, but we ride to Sol.”
Greaves maneuvered around him to follow, leaving me alone with my brother.
“I’ll tell him,” Ronan muttered, turning on his heel.
“Wait!” I dismounted, gripping my horse’s reins as the wind tore at my clothes and whipped hair across my face. I wouldn’t let the beast spook.
He paused, a curious smile lifting the corner of his mouth. He might have been my little brother, but he stood taller than me, and that smirk—he thought he was better than me.
My hand flew, cracking against his cheek.
Gyrak shrieked as Ronan jerked, flight goggles flying across the grass. He whirled, dragon towering, neck blotting out the sun.
