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He paused at the top, looking over the chamber. It was covered in a white and golden cloth, the shape of it extremely familiar. The light within was smothered through the gifts that were wrapped around the shell, but he was almost sure.
This was a Coffer.
Pushing back the coverings, his limbs weakened, and his heart stopped at what lay inside. At first glance, it looked like a skeleton—papery skin clinging to bone.
Valen?
Draven leaned over it, deepening his examination of the figure. He wore a golden robe, hands placed neatly on his chest.
A chest that rose and fell.
Chapter Nine
Navigating through Reave’s interwoven avenues was infuriatingly difficult with a child glued to her side. Between the bouts of grumbling, sniffling, and unsteady feet, Lily’s patience dwindled quicker than she thought possible.
Skinny fingers grabbed at hers, snapping her attention and her nerves. She ignored it, but his persistence slid to the sleeve of her coat and tugged.
“My head hurts,” the boy said. “Do you have any water?”
“No.” Lily peered around a corner. Damn it! Where were they? She never spent so much time this high in the city, let alone in broad daylight. It felt like they’d been walking for hours, and she didn’t have the faintest fucking idea where they were!
“What are we looking for?” he asked.
“An airship.”
“One brought me here.”
“I don’t suppose you remember where it is, do you?” Or why you were on one from Failen in the first place?
“No.”
Of course not. She pulled him out into the street. Relax. They couldn’t be far. The upper districts weren’t as large as the lower. She’d find what she was looking for. The pair only received brief glances that were nothing to completely panic about.
In one of the instances where she pried her face from the ground to look for a landmark, she spied a pair of sunglasses resting on a ledge at the top of a landing. With a smooth hand, she snatched them by the frame, shielding them from the seller facing the opposite direction. After they passed unnoticed, Lily slipped the circular shades on.
After a few more turns and disagreements from the boy, Lily’s heart sang a quiet note of relief. Ahead of them, the street opened up to a large market square. Crowds were gathered around shop fronts, tents, and stands. A fountain spewed crystal-clear water at its center, and beyond, nearly meeting the top of the furthest buildings, was the corner of a sail.
Finally! They were so close. She stepped forward, but the boy didn’t follow. She turned back to him, confused.
“It’s really bright,” he said.
Lily angled her head to the overcast sky. The sun barely broke through the clouds, blessing the city with an ounce of warmth. Not bright at all. Maybe he doesn’t see daylight like this in Failen.
She pinched her glasses, ready to hand them over, but he shook his head.
“Those don’t belong to you.”
Funny, coming from a Hazevale. “It’ll help.” She dangled them in front of his face, but he didn’t find it enticing. “You really won’t take them?”
He shook his head, covering his eyes.
Lily suppressed an annoyed sigh. “What if I buy you your own?”
He nodded.
Lily placed a hand on the back of his shoulders and guided him through the crowd.
Amid the clamor of noise and voices in search of a stand selling glasses, they passed a stall stacked to its top with baskets filled with some sort of wriggling grub. Then a table covered with floral incense, and more than one selling medicinal tinctures, which Lily almost stopped at for herself. Not long after, she found one selling what she was looking for among other mismatched trinkets. She released the boy for only a moment while speaking to and paying the shopkeeper. Glasses in hand, she glanced to her right side, then her left.
