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The moment Lyrae and Crux turned back toward Blackcastle, we’d head for Tempeste.
And because we were so far out of our way, we’d be riding for our lives.
The Oracle had summoned us, and when the Oracle of Tempeste summoned you, you’d better damn well answer. That had been Tavion’s opinion a few hours ago after I’d lost the argument about riding in this godsforsaken carriage with him.
Outvoted, three to one, because I’d befar safer with Tavion than out in those woods.
I snorted and crossed my arms over my chest. I was still holding a grudge against Raziel for that betrayal, although his low, urgent argument aboutnot making the Shadow King suspicious when we were planning to meet with his enemywas pretty damn convincing.
Coldness washed through me like I’d been doused in ice water. The air in the cabin tightened, as if we’d just passed through an invisible barrier, gooseflesh rising all over my body. The horses whinnied and the carriage jerked dangerously to the side, slamming my head against the back of the thankfully well-padded seat.
Tavion’s hand slipped over my shoulder, steadying me, sending another shiver of somethingthat definitely wasn’t desirethrumming through me. “You’re safe, Anaria.”
“Forgive me if I don’t just take your word for it,” I snapped, moving out from beneath his fingers, leaving them dangling midair.
I moved away, and when a flicker of disappointment crossed his face…I didn’t expect it to hurt as much as it did.
“We just passed through the ward separating Montgomery lands from the rest of Solarys. The terrain grows rougher from here,” Tavion murmured, a touch of apology in his tone.
“The Fang Mountains are dangerous; the road will get steeper. With luck, we’ll lose Lyrae and Crux during these next few miles.” His warm breath brushed my face. “Welcome to my world, Anaria.”
A moment later the horses slowed to a walk. My back pressed against the opulent leather seat as we climbed the steep incline. I swallowed hard when the carriage swayed violently, gripping the edge of the leather seat as tightly as I could without looking completely desperate.
It was either that or cling to Tavion, because out my window, the ground dropped away into such a deep ravine, if that door opened, I’d plunge to my death.
Tension filled the tight cabin, and for the thousandth time, I wished I was on my own horse instead of in this death trap with a male I despised.
But they had a saying in Varitus.
You can’t change fate any more than you can touch the stars in the sky.
I used to believe those kinds of absolutes. That our lives were planned out, down to our final breath. That the stars in the sky were so far out of our reach, mere mortals could never hope to touch their cold, burning brightness.
But now I held the power of those stars inside of me.
Which meant, perhaps, my fate wasn’t yet written.
Maybe I was an arrogant fool, but I refused to be moved around like a pawn for one more moment.
War waited for us in Tempeste, but I was wiser than I’d been a few months ago. I understood there were dangerous secrets hidden beneath her streets. I worried about the danger…but those secrets…
We had to discover why the Oracle had chosen me—chosen all of us—to be her puppets in this war.
While I doubted the truth would set us free, ignorance would certainly get us killed.
Varitus had another saying, too.Fate brings people into your life who are meant to be there.
Tavion leaned back, settling himself beside me, the scant inch between us gone when the carriage hit another hole. With a curse, I pushed myself off him, ignoring his soft, seductive chuckle, and how hard his muscled body felt beneath my own.
Fate was bullshite. The Oracle brought us together to create a weapon she’d use to destroy the world.
Except I was nobody’s weapon.
Not the Oracle’s, not the Shadow King’s—not anyone’s.
I didn’t know what I’d do with this magic or where this shite-for-a-road was taking us, but my magic was meant for more than destruction and death. There was no future in ruination and chaos, in these endless, bloody wars fought for a thousand years with no end in sight.
My entire life I’d been powerless and small.
