I nod, walking past without another word. He scurries after me with a set of keys. "What does he look like?"
"Sheis small. Dark hair."
"Her?She'sthe Shadow Commander, my lord?" He says, handing me four keys. I ignore him and leave the foyer, walking along arched lantern-lit hallways. Racks of spears line the walls, the air thick and heavy. It’s gone midnight, and each cell is pitch black.
The Shadow Commander’s cell is easily identifiable. It has three extra chains binding the door shut. No one trusts her, and she picked the locks on the first one despite an extensive search showing no sign of any tools on her.
"Renna," I say, rattling the door before unlocking the first padlock. I can see her shadowy form sleeping on the floor in the dark. She looks small. "Renna," I say, louder now, as I pull the first chain off the bars, moving onto the next padlock. The chains rattle loudly but she doesn’t move. "Renna," I call for the third time.
I pull the second chain off and toss it into her cell. It hits the ground beside her head, but she doesn’t so much as move. Concern creeps down my spine. I remove the third thick chain, unlocking the door to her cell and pushing it open despite the hinges arguing in protest.
"Renna." I stand in the doorway. She doesn’t move, and in a sickening moment, I realise that I can hardly see her breathing in the dark. I flash my hand over the lamp on the wall, whispering an incantation that floods the cell in a dim warm light.
My heart skids to a halt.
She's fucking dead. She can’t be dead. An unexpected shard of icy dread prickles my spine.
I clear the space between us in a fraction of a second, turning her over. Blood runs out of her mouth, nose, and ears, pooling on the floor beneath her. I put two fingers on her neck, finding a pulse, and I swear to the gods I’ve never felt relief like it.
"Renna," I say, sitting her up against the wall. "Renna, fucking wake up." Taking her chin in my hand, I open her mouth with two fingers, letting blood flow down her chin.
She chokes awake with a startled jolt, opening an eye. “I—I’m dead. Am I dead?"
"No, not dead. Fuck, Renna. What happened?"
"I'm sick ag—again," she whispers, closing her eyes once more.
"No, stay awake," I order, putting her elbows on her thighs and sitting her forward to open her airways. "Cough again, gently."
She chokes, and I angle her head differently until steady breaths start leaving her mouth. "How long have you been sick?"
"I don't know what day it is," she mumbles, quietly.
"Wednesday, early morning."
"Twenty hours?" She offers, fighting consciousness. Dark lashes flutter shut. "I need Onyx and Stellan. They know what to do."
"Fuck, Renna," I whisper, my chest tight. My pulse is thundering, and it feels alien because it’s been years since anything or anyone has been able to elicit that reaction from me.
I pick her up and sit her on the bench, covering her face with her hood. I leave the prisons, ignoring questioning looks from the guards as I slide her onto my horse and ride us back to the palace. Thankfully it’s the middle of the night, so I am granted a reprieve from the crowds of the public who usually follow my every move.
“Stay awake,” I murmur, my lips against her temple as I carry her up my private stairway into the palace and over the threshold into my halls. I put her down on my bed, calling for Talyn and Onyx. The other one of their little trio, I just cannot stand.
Onyx runs in not ten minutes later, skidding through the doorway. He must be one of the few people who gets as little sleep as me. He’s awake and already dressed in black leather training gear.
"Ren," he breathes, rushing over and taking her hand in both of his. He looks downright terrified, tilting her face up to check her bleeding. "I tried to come and see you. I fucking tried, I swear. The prison guards wouldn't let me in."
"I'm okay," she whispers. She’s not lying to look tough, I realise. She’s lying to protect her brother’s sanity. "I'm okay."
Lynna breezes in, shrouded in a silvery glow in a long white ballgown. Her infatuated bodyguards follow behind her and lift the iridescent white cloak from her shoulders. She slides all her diamond rings off her fingers, handing them off to Threnne, the head of her security, who pockets them for her. As ever, she likes to make an entrance, but I cannot resent her. Bright turquoise eyes meet mine and she smiles slightly. "Talyn is coming. He's on his way from the Western Lakes.”
I nod by way of response as she accepts a gold hair clip from one of her guards, putting her hair up out of her face. “I don’t know why you call me here, Rex. You can heal as well as I can,” she says, in an ancient form of Forest Tongue that few left on earth can speak. She washes her hands in a bowl, stepping over to Renna, a warm smile on face.
"Hello, Commander Renna. My name is Lynna," she explains, her tone soft. Her pale skin glows beside her white hair, and by the look on Renna’s face, she is enraptured. She raises a dark eyebrow, her eyes wide with awe, like her sickness is now long forgotten.
"Holy shit. I think you might be," she pauses for breath, "the most beautiful person I—I’ve ever seen in my life. Do you just…look like that? Is that what you look like when you wake up? Or is today just a particularly good day for you?"
Lynna lets out a bright laugh, rows of straight white teeth on show, and I swear to the fucking gods I see Renna fall in love with her.
