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“You said if she had the backing of tribe Bryonica, but what if she had the backing from any tribe?”
“Any tribe will do,” Bastian agreed.
Helly furrowed her brow. “Why do you ask, Fordham?”
“A thousand years ago, the twelve tribes and the Society sealed my people away and named us the Dark Court. We claimed House of Shadows for ourselves. Under the ruling of the council, the House of Shadows was recognized as a tribe of Alandria.”
“So?” Lorian asked impatiently.
Fordham looked directly at her as he said, “Then, Kerrigan can join the House of Shadows.”
Kerrigan’s mouth hung open. Was he offering her a way out? Through his tribe? It didn’t make sense. She’d never thought he would give her something like this.
“No half-Fae would ever join the House of Shadows,” Lorian said with a laugh.
“It wouldn’t make sense,” Audria agreed. “Bryonica is safer for her.”
Bryonica didn’t see her. Fordham saw her. And Fordham was risking the wrath of his own people by making her one of them. He was doing it for her and no other reason. The out she needed to step away from her own worst nightmare.
“I accept,” she said.
“Kerrigan, no,” Helly gasped.
“I urge you to reconsider,” Bastian said. “You don’t know what those people are like.”
“I know what Fordham is like,” Kerrigan said. “And that’s good enough for me. I’m joining the House of Shadows, and I will bring my proof to the council meeting. So, be ready.”
Kerrigan felt powerful as she made the utterance, sealing her fate with Fordham’s, but then she smelled the smoke and heard the screams that filled the air.
52
The Smoke
“It’s begun,” Lorian said with dread in his voice as he stared at the skyline.
Kerrigan whipped around and saw the waves of smoke coming off the south side of the city.
“That’s the Artisan Village!” Audria cried next to her.
“What’s happening?” Sinead gasped.
Kerrigan narrowed her eyes. She knew what was happening. The same thing that had happened five years ago at the end of the tournament—riots. Red Masks had gotten emboldened and flooded the streets, murdering innocents. There had been nothing she could do then, but that wasn’t the case anymore.
“We need to go help those people,” Kerrigan said. “Now!”
“You won’t do a thing,” Lorian said. “You aren’t a Society member yet. The Guard and the Society in the city can handle this.”
Kerrigan glared at him, straightening. “I might not be a Society member, but I’m never going to stand by and watch my city burn to the ground because you didn’t want me out there.”
Then, she nodded her head at Fordham and Audria. Noda and Roake looked on, aghast, but hastily jumped back onto their dragons when Audria snapped orders at them.
“We’ll swing in from the riverfront,” Audria yelled at them, taking command with ease. “We’ll bring in as much water from the river as we can and douse the buildings. Let’s figure out what we’re dealing with and go from there.”
Kerrigan nodded, and Tieran lifted into the air, heading directly for the river. They passed over the Artisan Village. Kerrigan’s eyes watered at the sight of one of her favorite parts of the city on fire. Audria swooped in over the river first, drawing water toward her with her magic. Fordham went in next, and Kerrigan flew in tight behind him. She pulled on her reserves and drew and drew and drew water to her, as much as she could manage. She had her sights on the opera house when Tieran headed back toward the city.
“The opera house,” she yelled over the wind whipping in her face.
Tieran dove low over the village, and with a deluge, she released the water magic over the burning opera house and nearby buildings. Other Society members had taken up the call. Dragons filled the air, heading for the river.
Kerrigan’s eyes searched the ground for the rioters who had started this.
And as Tieran began to bank away from the river, she nudged him forward. “Straight ahead.”
I see them.
Tieran came in low, and just before he reached the wide city street, Kerrigan dropped off his back and landed heavily on the ground. She winced at the pain that flared up her knees. She was going to need to work on that. She’d never made a landing like that before, but she had no more time to consider it. She took off at a run, straight for the line of people in black robes and red masks, who were dispersing back into their hidey-holes now that the Society had been called in to break up their fight.
It should have felt just like any other fight she had ever walked into, but it felt like more. It felt like every Red Mask who had beaten her that night almost exactly five years ago. She couldn’t let them get away with this. She couldn’t let their leader go free.
