Page 163 of A Vow of Wrath and Ruin

“Erissa made special arrangements for us.”

“Erissa has been banished from these lands for thousands of years.”

She scoffed.

“There are still some who are loyal to Crom Cruach and want to see him rise again.”

“King Arendir?”

“I don’t know who the bargain was made with.”

The conversation ended.

A chill ran down my spine. Was Arendir working with Erissa? Sure, he was power-hungry, but I just hadn’t realized the lengths he’d go to get what he wanted.

We rode through the day. Not one elf stopped us. Not even for a toll. My body slowly healed as we went along. I could feel my powers returning and my wounds mending. I faded in and out of consciousness. The sky overhead turned from faint pink to blue to orange and then to black. All the while, the horse never stopped. Or perhaps he did, and I did not notice.

A fever left my brow wet and clammy, and my breath rasped in my chest as the magic in my veins worked hard to heal the iron-infected wounds.

We stopped in front of a tiny shack that couldn’t have been more than two rooms. The roof sagged, and the shutters barely hung from their hinges.

Alwin lifted me from the cart like I weighed nothing at all.

An ancient-looking elf with long pointed ears, a bulbous nose, and pock-marked skin answered the door.

“Come in quickly. We don’t need anyone snooping around.” The cottage smelled of mildew and old soil.

The elf led us to the back of the house, where a portal stood open—swirling colors of blue and green.

“And this will take us where we need to go?” Baylis asked.

“Yes, my Lady. Unlike the sanctioned portals, this will take you anywhere you want to go. I’ve already put in your coordinates.”

Operating an unsanctioned portal carried a hefty price. They were outlawed ages ago during the Sylph and Elven Wars. I didn’t even know any still existed. They must have paid this man a small fortune for him to risk his life like this.

“Very well, let’s go.” Baylis walked through the portal, and we followed, stepping into a dense wood steeped in fog with mountains at our backside. The portal promptly closed behind us.

Baylis scoffed. “That idiot sent us to the wrong place.” She paced around the darkened wood. Her blonde hair glowed in the streaks of moonlight trickling through the thick canopy. The smell of damp earth and pine wafted through the forest. “Okay, let’s go this way. We must be close. He can’t actually be that bad at the one job he had.” She started off into the forest.

Alwin followed, still carrying me. The smell of liquor on his breath mixed with the smell of sweat on his skin. I tried my best not to breathe.

Baylis used a machete to hack through thick brush blocking our path. Thorns scraped at our skin, snagging on our clothes.

“You know, if you undid my ankles I could walk.”

“And risk you running again? I don’t think so.”

“Suit yourself,” I said.

A faint clicking sound echoed in the distance. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end. We were not alone.

“Stay alert,” Baylis said.

Alwin nodded.

“Do you know what hunts us?” I asked.

“Shh. Be quiet. We don’t need to draw any more attention than we already have,” Baylis said without even looking back at me.

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