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At first, I think I should avoid immersing my wounds, but something tells me I ought to try, so, slowly, I sink down to shoulder level.
A long moan escapes me, half bliss, half despair. I try to stifle it, but it’s as if the water’s drawing out whatever poison remains. The network of webbing dark veins around the wound fades almost instantly.
With a wince before I even try, I do the same with my hand.
This time, tears fall, and I have to bite down on my good hand to keep from screaming.
But again, it helps.
I’m too tired to swim, and with the worst of my pain receding, my stomach’s demanding I stop ignoring it.
I get out, wishing Ryther were here to hand me towels and clothes and tea. But he isn't, and I don't dare to go out and explore the house. Yesterday, when we first came, it was full of fairy lords. There's no telling who I might meet. But it seems unlikely that anyone would go to the bathroom.
I retrieveValdred’s bag again, tearing into the cheese, the jam and butter in the pot, the fluffy bread. I wonder if he baked that, too. If so, Rachel needs to ask him for pointers. Though he'd likely just launch into a rant about the superiority of the ingredients here, away from pollution and general human evil.
Having nothing else to do, I return to the tub once I've eaten every morsel, and let the nightmarish day fade.
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
INFURIATING LITTLE THING
Ryther
The good news is, I don’t find her. The terrible news is, I don’t find her.
I go after her scent right as the sun disappears over the mountains, following the trail. I can’t deny the chase is exhilarating.
Her scent is fresh, though confusing. My home is the wild; I can identify most beasts. As I crouch to the ground, palm flat on a paw print, I shake my head. It smells and looks as though the forest had a conclave of their own. And they were clever enough to trample all over any sign of her prints, so locating her will be tricky.
I’m familiar enough with her scent to follow it to the arch, even without Crow’s help. And then nothing.
She could be anywhere by now. Where might it have taken her?
The portal would have transported her to her home here. Where would that be? My first thought is the high keep, but she’s never so much as taken a step in there. She could be in Polaris. By all laws, she’s still under Junis’s service.
At the very least she’s in no immediate danger from her ritual hunt, but it doesn’t follow that she’s safe.
Crow, I call.
His next cackle, overhead, sounds like a sigh.
While I was stuck in the meadow, I had him trail her, and the rest of his crows, take to different direction, to confuse the hunt. They’re good trackers, the crows, but I could hardly send the entire flock after her. Their movements would alert all the other lords.
Try Polaris, first.
Right. Only the northernmost tip of the northernmost kingdom. Don’t mind me flying, breaking my wings, over the entire planet.
You’re a bird. And immortal. Stop whining.
The rest of the flock isn’t immortal, Crow reminds me.
Then go alone. You’re the fastest.
Flattery. Do you think me so easily bought?
Yes, I don’t say. We both know it’s all about negotiating the price.
