I start pacing again, shorter laps this time, back and forth in front of him. It makes a sick sort of sense, but my mind can’t latch onto it. Harfor.Harfor. Of all people. And did the War-Father know? He must have. He moved ships. He put her on Rancor. He would have ordered this. My adopted father didn’t just abandon me at the Bluff—he ordered mydeath?
They weren’t testing my loyalty. They were just giving me a reason to stay here with the witch without me realizing something was wrong. My whole body shakes as I walk. This can’t be happening.
“I’m supposed to be dead. Everyone who lived here is supposed to be dead. Because we’re expendable,” I mutter.
The explosion’s glow has faded from my eyes, but I can still picture it perfectly in my mind.
“I’m sorry. I don't like watching civilians die, but she ordered me not to say a word.”
I freeze as his words slowly sink into my head. And then, I wheel on him.
“Youknew?”
“They mentioned it in front of me.” He shrugs.
“Fuck. You,” I say, the words practically a growl as hatred and fury kindle towards an inferno.
“I’m Enchanted. I tried to tell you, truly. A few times. But I couldn’t. The magic wouldn’t let me.”
“Then you should have triedharder,” I snap. Sava growls.
“I couldn’t.”
“We could have stopped this!” I throw my hand out towards the ocean. It’s like Harfor has shoved a gauntleted hand into my chest and ripped my heart straight out. And all along, this bastard knew it was going to happen, and if I can go on hatinghimfor itmaybe I can blame myself a little bit less for being such a blind idiot that I let it all happen.
Malkin isdead. Angar isdead.Trisven and Vrisekan and Olva and Crain and everyone elseare dead, and this useless scum knew it was happening, and maybe if I knew… maybe, if I’d known…
“I did what I could,” Roiven tells me.
“Why didn’t you domore?” I lunge forward to smack the side of my metal fist against his chest. Roiven twists away from me. Sava roars and paces towards us.
“I couldn’t save everyone.”
“You didn’t saveanyone!”The words come out ragged and my fingernails cut hard into the palm of my left hand.
“You’re alive, aren’t you?”
“Well, I fucking shouldn’t be!” My throat is hoarse. I know he can’t fight back, but I want him to, desperately. I want a bloody, drawn out brawl. I want my physical pain to match the way my thoughts are clawing through the fabric of my soul. I shove Roiven hard, and he stumbles back away from me, arms splayed to catch his balance.
The dragon growls and lunges, her head snapping down toward me as heat bellows from her mouth.
Roiven curses and tackles me to protect me from her, still tied by the enchantment. On trained instinct I throw him off, roll, and rise with my sword drawn in my hand.
“Savasaeirn!” Roiven bellows.
I brace myself for the dragon tofinallykill me and end this. But the attack doesn’t come.
The dragon shrieks as she slides back away from us. Her claws dig into the stone, screeching as they furrow and chip into the rock. She writhes, twisting. Something has her. Something is pulling her away.
Roiven takes two steps forward, then stops abruptly and falls to his knees.
The ocean is a dark, monstrous thing, and under the glow of the moon, a beast emerges from the water to wrap its tentacles tighter around Sava’s hind legs. A beast even bigger than the ancient dragon. When it rises a wave smashes out and splashes so hard against the rock a mist of disgusting fucking ocean splatters on me.
I will not suffer you to hurt what is mine, Savasaeirn,the voice in my head whispers.
All at once my panic goes quiet and my whole body stills in cold terror.
17
