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“Do it,” Orman said. “She won’t get the jump on Sai, anyhow.” He turned towards me and his expression firmed up. He didn’t think Sai would get tricked. Sai would be wary coming here—on guard. He’d never been caught unless he wished for that outcome. But he also had Lira with him. Like Elisa for me, she distracted him.
Luz doesn’t fail.Sai had said that to me when we’d sat in a jail in the Seelie palace. Now Luz lay injured somewhere in this damned monsters’ cave. And Sai was about to walk into this disaster with false instructions.
That’s when it hit me. The question Elisa had asked wasn’t the right one. It was based on fear of everything that could go wrong, a feeling I’d grown up with and easily slipped into. But it wasn’t our life in the last five years since we’d met. We worked as a team. We all sacrificed and fought for that. Not one of us would hesitate to protect another. This wasn’t a hopeless choice between Elisa’s life and Sai’s. Orman was right. Sai was smart, and we’d faced more dangerous situations before. There had to be another path, but I’d focused so much on fear that I’d lost my sense of possibilities. It was time to shove those feelings back and think.
“Go ahead, Elisa,” I said. Her lips pursed, forming into a word.But.I offered her a smile that was steadier than I felt even as my mind settled. “It’s okay. I promise.”
She frowned and her skin appeared pale in the limited light from Orman’s zevar, but she followed Jessamine’s directions and wrote a note telling Sai to come into the cave on the north side with false instructions for finding us. When she finished, Jessamine released Elisa who pushed away from the bars but no longer trembled.
“Don’t attempt to send more messages,” Jessamine said. “Even if you don’t see me, I’m watching.” She looked at Elisa. “If you send another, your girlfriend is the first to die.”
She slipped off into darkness, blending with a shadow again, and I gritted my teeth.
Elisa stumbled over to me, and I opened my arms to clutch her against my chest. It was a relief to have the warmth of her in my arms. “Should we have done that, Nei? Are you sure Sai will be okay?”
I brushed my fingers down her arm and pressed them against her elbow, hoping she’d understand that I was asking her a question more than what I said out loud. “If Sai were here, he’d lay out a plan and be wary.”
She raised her face, and her breath hitched against my cheek. A moment later she squeezed my arm.
“We’re good to speak?” I asked.
“We’re warded.” She swallowed. “It won’t last long.” Elisa’s magic wasn’t strong like Sai’s, and warding wasn’t an area she had much practice in anyhow. Plus, her magic would leave a trace Jessamine would notice. She might suspect that she tried to send another message. We had a few minutes at most before she realized Elisa used her powers.
“Orman, can you hear me?” I asked.
“Yup.”
“I signed the letter from Lis,” Elisa said.
“Why?” Sai never called Elisa that name. No one did. It was a private nickname only I used. Then it hit me. “He’ll realize something is off with you signing it that way.”
“I hope so.”
“He will.” Damn, Elisa was smart. Sai would know she’d never sign a letter with that name, and he’d have his guard up. She’d used a code and if only we could figure out something similar— I stilled as an idea came to me. “Orman, use your magic to watch for Sai. As soon as he approaches the cave, let us know. You remember the drum codes the guards use at the Prasanna palace, don’t you?”
“A few of ‘em.” He chuckled. “Pestered Ishir for a full fucking month before he agreed to teach me a couple. Said they were meant for those with guard training only.” I could imagine Orman rolling his eyes.
“Are there any that mean trap or stop?” I asked.
Orman’s laughter warmed as he caught the thread of my idea. “I’m following you.”
“When Sai gets here, beat the bars.”
“Yeah, I got it.” His voice which had been tense throughout the night grew lighter. A plan was falling into place. If we got out of this damned cage, and with Sai and Lira on our side, we’d figure it out and rescue Luz as well. We just needed to keep our cool. We needed to remember we didn’t face this alone but as a part of a team that would not let us fall.
I brushed my fingers over Elisa’s curls and felt the relief in her muscles as she drew the magic back. Now we waited. If I knew Sai, it wouldn’t be for long.
CHAPTERTHIRTY-ONE
LIRA
Sai raised a hand,and Rainoe and I stopped walking. The three of us tucked behind an outcropping of rocks that waves crashed against before peppering us with spray. Gray clouds swirled around the mountain like smoke pouring out of a fire. The ocean roared, and Sai slipped when he stepped on a rock. He winced before placing a hand across his stomach.
Rainoe glowered at him but didn’t comment. Sai looked at both of us like he wished we’d stay back. His eyes skimmed over me and flickered with worry and resignation. He knew I wouldn’t abandon him in this, so he shifted his attention to Rainoe. “Are you sure you wish to come with us?”
“Sure,” she said dryly, as though we discussed who’d be stuck on costume duty for a show rather than facing potential death. “You’re worried some of your team may be injured, yes?”
His brow furrowed. “Possibly. It’s unlike them to all get caught which makes me think something went wrong.” He turned towards the cavern’s entrance again. “We’re close enough that Orman could sense us if he’s tapping into his magic.” Sai released a breath, and I clasped his fingers. He smiled and glided a thumb over my knuckles.
