Page 108 of Queen of Shadows and Ruin

Then she’d return her focus ahead and stare at the back of Raja Abishek, wishing she could burn him to ashes with the heat of her glare. Ahead of him tromped the mountain man. She’d heard Abishek call him Catana. She remembered the king saying Kishore was meeting with the clans. Was this the reason? What had they been promised in exchange for their help?

She peered up at the night sky and swirling gusts of snow. She could just make out the stars and the glowing moon. On either side, the mountains stretched so high the peaks were lost to her sight.

She tried reaching Rabin as they walked, forcing her mind towards his. She’d glimpsed that tiny shimmer earlier. She was more sure than ever that she hadn’t imagined it. So, while she was forced on this trek, she tried to use her time towards something useful. With her teeth gritted against the cold, she folded her mind inwards, searching for him in the layers of her subconscious.

There, she spotted something again. The faintest sparkle, like a firefly trapped in wax. She tried to reach for it and snag it with her mind, but it slipped away, and she was once again left with nothing. She looked over her shoulder again, meeting Rabin’s gaze. His brow was furrowed, and she wondered if he’d felt it.

Finally, the path leveled off, and they found themselves atop a small plateau with an opening on the far side. Catana led them towards it, ducking his head as they passed out of the wind into a dark tunnel.

Zarya could have wept with relief when the howling cut off. There was the sound of a click and the strike of a flint, and then, a moment later, Catana held up a lantern. He hung it on a hook jutting from the wall.

“Ekaja will handle the rest,” Abishek said, gesturing behind him and waiting for her to march along the line and reach the front. She disappeared into the darkness, and another hanging lantern flared to life a moment later.

They continued winding deeper into the tunnel as the sound of the wind faded and the temperature grew a few degrees warmer. After walking for another minute, they entered a tall, wide cavern with a dark firepit in the center.

Ekaja sent out a tendril of fire, and they all watched it catch the logs as the heat of the flames immediately warmed the air.

“We’ll rest here for the night,” Abishek said. “And continue our journey tomorrow.”

“To where?” Rabin asked, but the king turned on his heel and stalked towards the tunnel.

“Ekaja, Kishore,” he said. “With me.”

Zarya watched them leave as the second mountain man entered and crossed the room. He crouched next to his companion, and they began speaking in low voices in their own language.

Zarya stumbled over to Rabin, who opened his arms and wrapped her in his embrace. She held onto him tightly, wishing she could just let go and cry until she had no more tears left.

But they might not get a chance alone like this again.

“Did you learn anything from Ekaja during the ride?” she asked.

“Nothing Abishek hadn’t already said.”

She stared about the space and the darkened tunnel where the king had disappeared a moment ago.

“They’re not even worried about us escaping,” she said.

“Where would we run?”

“You could shift?”

“That’s magic, Zarya,” he said. “If what Kishore claimed was true…”

“How bad could it be?” she asked, already knowing it was stupid even to hope.

“Zarya, we are not testing it on you.”

“Fuck!” she hissed. “They have us completely trapped. With just a few ominous words, we have no idea what might happen.”

Rabin’s mouth flattened into a line. “I mean… I think that’s the point.”

She huffed. “Clearly.” She clutched the fabric of his coat. “What are we going to do?”

“Look for an opening,” he said. “They’ll make a mistake at some point. That will be our opportunity.”

“That’s not much of a plan,” she said. “Especially since we can’t communicate in the mind plane.”

“I’m aware,” he answered dryly.