Page 75 of Untamed

Something cracked nearby, but I couldn’t tell where the noise came from. The galleons floated under the cover of darkness with nothing stirring on their decks.

“Beatriz, get going.” Cosme flicked my shoulder, but my eyes remained trained on the horde rushing at us and the empty space whereLa Laviashould have been.

I let a trickle of energy tingle to my fingertips.

A wooden slat shot up from ten arm spans in front of me, shaking the floor beneath my feet. A soldier tripped in the gap in the dock. There was a sickening crack. He howled in pain. The next soldier skipped over the gap, and the plank that had shot up fell on his head with a thud. Another crack rumbled through the air and the mast from one ship toppled onto another. The boards rocked. The soldiers chasing us couldn’t get over the broken dock.

Cosme kept his arms raised. Moonlight reflected droplets of sweat on his forehead. Several more ships tore open, rockingthe waters below the boards. I threw my arms out to keep my balance.

My brother yanked my wrist, jumped off the dock, and pulled me along with him. Blurred specks of light swam across my vision. I landed hard in a heap on cold grass. Pain laced up my shoulder and hip. Huffing sounded from the distorted, dark air. Minerva raised her arms and crossed them in a swooping motion, closing the portal. The darkness stilled.

I lay on the ground, catching my breath. The markings along my knuckles still shone dimly from not holding back my powers. Where were we? Moonlight reflected off a two-story building with a wall covered in leafy vines. To my left, a shorter wall stood like a barrier preventing others from entering. Five silhouettes were nearby. A lady wept. Her sorrow swept toward me like a gentle surf washing onto a calm shore. A twisting tumbled in my gut as the truth about our dear friends sank in. Laude was gone, and whether she and Jaime fled without us, or someone had abducted them, I didn’t know.

“Are you all right?” Zichri touched my shoulder.

Lifting my head, I met Zichri’s concerned eyes. “La Laviaand Jaime and Laude are gone.” I pushed to a seated position and took in his shadowed features.

He raked his fingers through his hair and worry lines creased his forehead. “What do we know?”

“Nothing.” I scooted closer to him. The invisible connection between us brought in a fresh new wave of sorrows.

Footfalls crunched behind me.

I spun and met Cosme’s hard-set jaw.

“When I say jump in the portal, you jump.” Cosme wagged a finger at me, as if he were a father scolding a young child. Rather than a calm tide, his emotions raged like a hurricane. It dragged into my mind a whisper:How am I supposed to keep you safe if you never listen?

The blood pumping in my temples slowed at hearing his worries.

Minerva cut between Cosme and me. “Come inside. There are plenty of beds for us to rest tonight.” She crunched through the grass and onto a gravel drive. She bent beside a large potted plant at the front of the building and grabbed something small beneath the pot. Within a moment, she opened the front door.

Cosme clenched his fist and grunted. “Come on.”

Zichri helped me off the ground. We walked side by side in silence. The weight of losing our friends fell heavy around our shoulders along with the wet fabric growing heavier by the second. Lucas carried Fermín. Monserrat trudged behind us still sobbing, “Papi, Papi’s dead. Prince Hugo killed him.”

I pushed a wave of peace at her through the invisible line from my heart to hers. If only I could send her a word to lift her from pain, but I hadn’t a single syllable to offer. My feet moved of their own accord, shaky and soaked.

When we made it to the threshold of the front door, Minerva appeared with two lamps. Cosme sat on a couch in a simply decorated sitting room. Several armchairs circled the space, and Minerva placed the lamps on a table between the seats.

“Where are we?” I asked.

Minerva smiled. “This is my home.” Her boots pointed together, and she clutched her hands over her lap. “We’re safe here. Only my maid and her son live with me.” She grabbed a cloak and handed it to me. “So you don’t wet the cushions too badly.”

I nodded and grabbed the cloak.

Zichri maneuvered to the armchairs and sat in the one farthest from the entrance. I covered the cushion of the next chair with the cloak and sunk into it. Zichri slipped his hand into mine. His warmth steadied the dizzying adrenaline swimming through my head. The rest of our party filled the couch and othercomfy chairs, all defeated by the change in tide. Aracibel had been taken over by Prince Hugo. Minerva shut the front door with a thud.

“What happened toLa Lavia?” Cosme asked.

I straightened my back. “I don’t know.”

Minerva whispered, “Zichri and I weren’t there.”

Cosme’s jaw slackened in disbelief and barely contained rage. “Where’s Ignacio?”

Zichri shook his head. “Fermín followed Ignacio into the palace. I don’t know what happened. Fermín was unconscious and tied when I found him.”

A grunt escaped my brother’s throat. “Blasted traitor.”

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