Page 80 of Kingdom Of Veil And Vow

Lifting my chin, I drag in a deep breath, the salt in the air stinging. I’m done waiting. Jahlee’s groan of annoyance sounds behind me as I turn and run towards the other boat tied to the ship.

“Siyala! Stop!”

“I’m going, Jahlee! Now, you can come with me, or we can sit on this stupid ship for gods know how long, watching the people we love out there risking their lives.” My chest heaves as I spin to face her, brushing a strand of pale hair from my face. “I’m tired of feeling useless. You can either help me or get out of the way.”

Inessa’s eyes bounce from me to Jahlee, and for a moment, I think my cousin might put up more of a fight. Instead, she sends Inessa to grab a few crew members to help us lower the boat into the water.

At the surprise that must show on my face, she bats her hand in my direction. “I’m not a monster, Siyala. I don’t want Kai to get hurt. And I want to help Rhea too.” We climb into the boat, my hands gripping one of the oars tightly. Jahlee follows, looking to where Inessa stands on the other side of the railing. “Watch over the ship, Inessa. You’re in charge.”

Shock and horror twist the poor assistant’s features. “What?”

Jahlee smiles widely as we’re then lowered, waiting until Inessa is out of view before dropping it. “Are you armed?”

I pat my hip, where my dagger is strapped. “Are you?”

“Duh, this isn’t the first time I’ve come to my brother’s rescue.” She doesn’t offer to show me where her weapons are or even what they are, but I suppose as long as she is confident enough in her ability to wield them, that is all that matters. “Now, when we catch up to Kai, the story will be that you overpowered me and forced me into this boat.”

“I’m sure he’ll believe that.”

We untie the tethers once the boat hits the water and begin rowing. It takes time for us to find a rhythm that actually propels us forward and around the front of the ship, the current of the ocean working against us. We immediately start searching for Kai and the others, spotting them on the beach. I recognize Lano and assume the black panther pacing in the sand is Taika. Kai stands tall centered amongst them, his large sword in hand. “At least we know that he’s okay.”

I nod, swallowing down a little of the unease brewing within me. The shifters split, Kai pointing to the east as the bear shifter and another male take off, while the others move towards the boats. Kai himself begins running to the west, his form massive even against the foreboding wall of the Spell.

“Where the fuck is he going?” Jahlee asks as she stands, waving her arm to grab his attention.

The boat rocks, and I throw my hands out to either side to brace myself. “Jahlee, you’re going to get us killed!” She drops her arm to her side, the oar falling from her other hand and hitting the boat’s interior with a loud bang. “What are you doing?” I ask, tapping on her leg with my oar. When she doesn’t move, I lean forward, calling her name again. “Jahlee, what’s wrong?”

“Kai, he—” She gasps and haphazardly collapses into the boat, her ass hitting one of the benches hard enough that she whimpers.

I look at the beach over her shoulder, but Kai isn’t there. In either direction, there is no sight of my cousin. “Where’s Kai?” Laying a hand on her shoulder, I gently turn her around, alarm flaring when tears track down her cheeks. “Where is Kai?”

“The Spell,” she rasps out, a sob following before she adds, “he went through the Spell.”

My throat constricts as I search my mind for something to say because surely, what she thought she saw was wrong. “We need to keep rowing,” I tell her, grabbing the oar she dropped and forcing it into her hands. “I will go through the Spell and find him, but we have to get to the beach first.”

Jahlee doesn’t answer but grips the oar and dips it back into the water, her movements shaky. Together, we row the rest of the way. Mere minutes have passed when sand scrapes at the bottom of the boat, and we both leap out, our boots squishing in the water and sand. I let Jahlee lead me to where she saw him cross, passing the bodies of felled sirens. The hair at the back of my neck rises as we near the Spell, and through its translucent wall, I see him. Kai lays motionless on his back, his face pale and body splashed with two different colors of blood. And he isn’t alone.

“Kai.” Jahlee’s whisper is a broken one as she crashes to her knees, a hand reaching out for her brother. I push through the Spell quickly, my hand laying over my dagger before I come to a halt just a few steps away from Kai.

A woman is curled over him, one I immediately recognize when her tear-stained gray eyes lift to meet mine. She remembers me too, and that only seems to bring her more heartache as she looks back down at Kai and cradles his face in her hands.

“He saved me,” she whispers, eyes closing before she lays her forehead against his. “Why did you do this, Kai? Why?” Her heart races in her chest, at odds with the slow and uneven beat of his.

A twig snaps in the forest beyond us, though Bahira doesn’t seem to hear it as she softly cries. I tilt my head to the side, pulling the dagger free as I track the incoming steps. There’s not just one set but two. They grow closer, the sound of two heartbeats confirming my suspicion. Chewing on my lower lip, I work to calm myself as I peer between the large trees, unsure of what I’ll be able to do against anyone with magic. Against two well-trained sirens. The air shifts, a breeze brushing past my nose and carrying with it the scent of the forest and something more, something floral. I freeze, sniffing the air again because I know that scent.

Leaves stir, the rustling finally garnering Bahira’s attention. She lifts onto her knees, eyes narrowing in the direction of the sound. My dagger falls from my hand as, from behind one of the trees, a head of honey-golden hair appears.

Xander

At the decimated city center in Galdr, Mage Kingdom

I take in the destruction that surrounds us as the last siren falls, a black spear crafted from shadow protruding from her chest. Nox doesn’t even move as he commands the spear to disappear, the shadow that made it trickling over the ground like water returning to its source. Except that it doesn’t return to him. I’m not entirely sure how his magic works, only that it is different from Rhea’s. Her shadow magic glitters as she holds it in place above what used to be a siren but is now only a pile of black ash.

I shiver, glancing to where Daje stands at my left, shock evident on his face. Okay, so he didn’t realize Rhea’s magic could do that. What had she done with her time here in the Mage Kingdom before she was taken? The warm feeling of Nox’s magic disappears from either side of my head as sound comes rushing back in, making me wince. I suppose with all of the sirens in this area dead, there is no need to magically cover our ears.

Rhea and Nox murmur under their breath, her green eyes meeting mine from where they stand at the center of the ruined city square. Unshed tears line them, her chest heaving with a deep breath as the guilt I know she must be feeling weighs her down.

“Your Majesty!” a guard calls from where he was battling a siren in front of a tavern, the business’s windows blown out and the patrons inside cautiously beginning to shuffle about.