“Yeah.” I couldn’t lie to her. Not about that. Aaron had a complete death wish if he actually wanted to see the fae up close and personal. “Caleb’s sprite… what the fae did to it… it’s unspeakable.”
Lana swallowed, her eyes skittering to Moric then back to me.
“What?”
Moric shuffled, uncomfortably. “Caleb told us… He said you spoke to the fae.”
“The fae spoke tome,” I clarified. “Caleb heard exactly how much the fae want us dead. What we did to them to warrant their violence, I don’t know.”
“Is that what the fae told you? Because Caleb didn’t understand what he said. He said he spoke a different language. That you did too.”
“What? We spoke in Grilish.”
“That’s not what Caleb said.”
“Well, Caleb was out of his mind. He’d just seen his sprite get eaten.” I only knew Grilish. There was no way I had understood and spoken another language.
Moric and Lana nodded their agreement, but they did not look convinced. I didn’t know what else to say, so I made up an excuse and slipped out of the sparring room, the weight of their gazes boring into my back as I exited.
I banished all thoughts of the fae and the third Trial as I walked to the dorms, intending to find Calendula. I owed the shadow sprite so much more than I could ever put into words.
Calendula was snoring softly on a hammock of her own making when I stepped into my room. She stirred when the door closed, blinking sleepily up at me.
“Lirah?”
“Hey.” I smiled softly.
“Kilian found you, then.”
I sat on the bed beside the desk. “Thanks to you. Calendula… I don’t think I’ll ever be able to repay you for what you did.”
She waved a hand idly. “It was nothing.”
“Kilian told me you flew the Green Sea. That is no ordinary feat.”
“I am no ordinary sprite. Need I remind you, I am descended from Mirau Titan. Of course I can fly the Green Sea.”
“Regardless. Thank you. I know you’ve grown tired of forming bonds with mortals over the decades, but I’m so grateful for what you did for me.”
Calendula sniffed delicately. “I guess I don’t want you to die.”
A smile tugged at the corners of my lips. That was as much emotion Calendula would bestow upon me. But I knew she would not have flown the Green Sea if she did not love me.
“The Rite is tonight,” I said. “If I don’t make it, I don’t want you to be angry.”
Calendula rose from her hammock and puffed her chest out, the folds of her midnight dress ruffling. “But I will be. I did not fly the Green Sea for you to die, Lirahna. Youwillsurvive.” And there was such command in her voice that, despite the overwhelmingly awful odds, I believed her.
I would do my best. For Calendula.
For Kilian.
And for me.
CHAPTER 24
The sound of beating war drums met me before Kilian did. He rounded the corner as I slipped out of my room. I was dressed warmly and armed to the teeth, although I most likely would not need blades where I was going. My hair was braided into a tight crown around my head, and I had said my goodbyes to Calendula. I was ready.
“Sounds like we’re going into battle,” I said.
