Page 10 of Court of Bone and Amethyst

The first nightof travel passes uneventfully, as does the second. We sleep in a cave one night and a forested glen the other, only for a handful of hours before moving on again. Zyren seems to know this land just as well as he knew the Forever Mountains to the south.

Silence hangs between us so palpably it’s like a living, breathing thing. Now that Naryo isn’t here to spur conversation, Zyren barely speaks to me, or even look at me. In that void, my mind has nothing to do but turn over a million racing thoughts. I think on the enormity of the task that faces us, on the fact that three weeks ago I was a lowly priestess in training with no inkling that in another realm, a realm I didn’t even know existed, I would soon be queen. A queen married to someone I love, but someone who is still a stranger to me in so many ways. A queen with a core of shadow and flame, waiting to break free at any moment.

And I think about Zyren. He’s alluded to being centuries old. And it seems, from how familiar he is with this land, that he’s walked every corner of Valaron. I can only imagine all the thingshe’s seen and done. I think also of his grief for his brother, both of them now, and I wonder if he blames me for it all. Surely, he must. If I had not come here, to Valaron, Jonavus would still be alive. Zyren would not live with the shame of what we did in the meadow beneath the lights of Selaye.

The bigger question, however, is whether he will ever be able to forgive me.

OrIforgive him for keeping the truth from me.

On the third day of travel, Zyren wakes me at sunset and we mount up and ride on. Far, far behind us, to the south, the Forever Mountains rise in purple peaks that look tiny on the horizon. Ahead is an endless stretch of plains dotted by the occasional cluster of trees. To the east is an inky smudge that must be a vast forest. The air has grown colder each day, but not as cold as when we traveled in the peaks of the mountains. Once or twice, with a strong wind, I’ve caught the salty scent of the ocean, so I know we’re not but a few miles from the coastline still.

I wait until a smattering of stars have popped out against the velvety sky before making my daily attempt at conversation. “Where are we heading tonight?”

Zyren’s head turns ever so slightly over his shoulder toward me, where I ride a couple of feet behind him. “If we ride hard, we can make it to the Court of Bone by dawn.”

My heart flutters in my chest. “My home.”

His jaw rolls, a minor flex of the muscles. “What’s left of it.”

A barrage of emotions moves through me. A desperate longing to see something of my true heritage, a feeling of homesickness for a place I’ve never been, and a deep wave of sorrow for the family I will never meet. All my life I’d wanted to know the truth of my heritage, and now that I do, I’m not sure it brings me any peace or closure.

The shadows inside me stir, a not-so-quiet rage that flickers like black flame in my stomach.

“Let’s pick up the pace,” I say.

Zyren does turn fully this time, apparently hearing the strain in my voice, his eyes searching mine. He doesn’t question me, but just nods once and urges his horse into a canter across the plains. My gray gelding sprints out ahead of Zyren’s horse, feeling the urgency in my core. I focus on the movement of his powerful body beneath the saddle, and the wind whipping his mane into my face as I lean low to his neck, the coarse strands of his mane and the thick leather of the reins beneath my fingers. Moonlight illuminates the path as I gallop him faster and faster, trying to escape my need for revenge before my magic and my shadows spill out of me.

A quarter hour later, Zyren pulls his horse alongside mine and reaches out to grab my reins. “The horses need a break.”

I jump, realizing I’d been half in a trance as I rode. We slow to a trot to cool them down, then gradually to a walk. Zyren doesn’t ask why I’d taken off like that. Whether it’s because he senses the nightmare within me, or because he still doesn’t want to speak to me, I don’t know. The horses breathe heavily as we stride beneath the night sky.

For the next several hours, we alternate between walking, trotting, and cantering the horses. When the moon is almost directly overhead, sometime past midnight, we stop for a brief rest before crossing a shallow river to eat some bread and cheese and let the horses drink and cool their legs in the water. A soft wind blows over the plains, blending with the sound of the flowing water.

Zyren’s voice, when he speaks, sounds harsh in contrast. “We’re no longer heading for the Court of Bone. We will pass east of it instead and head for an old guardian outpost a couple hours past it.”

I take a moment to absorb his edict. “Why the change in course? I want to see my home.”

“What you want and what is prudent are two different things.” His gaze sweeps over mine in the darkness.

“And why is it not prudent, Zyren?” I can’t keep the edge of heat from my voice. He’s talking like he did when he first brought me to Valaron, providing the most minimal possible details, not fully explaining his plan. It was maddening then and it’s infuriating now, after everything we’ve been through.

This time, when his eyes find mine, they stay there, glowing silver like the moon. “Every time you think of your family, you come close to losing control of your magic. If we go to your former home, that will only get a thousand times worse.”

“You think I’ll cause another earthquake,” I say flatly.

“Yes,” he growls. “It was obvious back there when you galloped your horse too hard. Your magic is clawing for the surface.”

“And I did what you suggested. I engaged in something physical to take my mind off it.” I shrug. “It worked, didn’t it?”

“This time, yes.” He crosses his arms over his chest. “But that was only the briefest of discussions. Imagine what you’ll feel when we reach the burned and abandoned former home of your family.”

“This may be the only time I get to see my home,” I say, indignation flaring through me. “You’re going to deny me that?”

“If it means keeping you safe, then yes.”

We stare at each other for several long moments in the dark, then I get up and stride off, fury lashing like fire through my veins. I stomp right through the shallow river, ignoring the icy water that soaks my boots. Zyren has done nothing but punish me with silence for days, and now he’s going to take away theone thingI still have in this realm of nightmares, the one connection to my past. All to protect me.

Except, I’m not sure I need protection anymore.

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