Page 10 of The Court of Thorns and Wings

Anger heated my blood. Yeah, I’d teach the prick exactly how quiet I could be after Struan left the room. I didn’t want to cause more friction for Tavish by throwing a tantrum.

The door to the hallway opened, and Nightbane snarled. Teeth clacked as he snapped, and Struan yelped, slamming the door behind him.

“What the hell was that?” I snapped, shoving Finnian in the chest. My sides still ached, but not to the point where I wanted to cry and vomit, which was progress.

“Sprite, be careful.” Tavish flew and landed at my side within a second. “Your injuries. We don’t need you bleeding anymore. I worry you won’t survive it.”

My pulse fluttered. “I’m feeling better.”

“We still can’t risk you reopening the injury.” Tavish pivoted to Finnian and growled, “And what did you do to her?”

He lifted both hands. “Nothing. She wanted to confront Struan, and I told her to be quiet.”

My blood cooled to a normal temperature. “What? You knew he was evading the truth?”

“We knew before he came in here.” Tavish cupped my cheek and smiled tenderly. “But we needed to listen to him for show and to make my stance about you clear so the guards can’t claim there was a misunderstanding.”

“Now we put Finola on him to watch his every move.” Caelan placed his hands behind his back. “Which we hope will lead us to where Eldrin is hiding. I suspect we’ll have him back in the cell within three days, if not less.”

Okay. That sounded like good news. Then a thought slammed into me. “But my parents and sister. He threatened them. What if he’s heading to Earth to kill them for revenge?” Panic clawed at my chest, and I felt as if I couldn’t breathe. Had I put everyone I loved in danger by living?

“Blighted abyss!” Tavish kicked at the floor. “With you nearly dying, I’d forgotten his threat.”

“I can go check on them.” Finnian’s wings fluttered. “I went to Earth with you once before, so as long as you tell me how to get there, I should be fine.”

I hated that I was a burden, but I wouldn’t reject his help. I needed to make sure Eiric and my parents were safe. “Or I can go.”

“You can’t go anywhere.” Tavish shook his head and stepped closer to me so that our arms touched. “Just like I can’t—I need to deal with the turmoil in the kingdom. Finnian, when you get there, you can’t stay long, or you’ll risk losing your memories. You need to bring them here so we can protect them from Eldrin until the threat is over.”

“I’ll be fine.” Finnian rubbed his hands together. “Besides, Earth is interesting. It’s been years since I visited.”

Caelan crossed his arms. “This isn’t for pleasure. It’s a mission.”

“Noted.” Finnian beamed.

Tavish went over the instructions on getting to Earth while I turned toward the bed, wanting to sink into the mattress. Navy sheets had replaced the bloodstained bedding, and it looked so inviting. But with the way Caelan kept darting glares at me as he listened to Tavish and Finnian’s conversation, I didn’t want to lie down and make myself a target.

Instead, I stared out the large windows the men stood in front of. The sky was clearer than it’d been since I’d arrived, the stars twinkling and the full moon shining down on the dark village.

After a few minutes, the men dispersed.

Finnian came over and hugged me. “Don’t worry, Lira.” He held my gaze. “I won’t be gone long, and I know what I’m doing. Trust me.”

The realization that I did trust him crashed over me. “Be safe.”

He released me and squeezed my arm. “I will.” He headed out with Caelan on his tail.

“I’ll tell Finola to select someone she trusts to stand guard tonight over your room,” Caelan said as he exited into the hallway. “We don’t need Eldrin sneaking in and undermining your word.”

“Sounds good.” Tavish ran his hands through his hair and sighed. “We both know I can’t kill him, so it’s best to have people guarding me who can.”

As soon as we were alone, Tavish excused himself to take his own bath.

Alone in the room, I couldn’t resist the bed with its fresh sheets. Fatigue hit me, weighing me down. I crawled onto the mattress on the side closest to the windows.

Nightbane jumped onto the bed and lay down at my feet, and I listened to his breathing and fell fast asleep.

I woke, and something immediately felt off. I took in the room and found Tavish standing by the windows, staring out toward the village and the ocean. He had his hands on the back of a wooden chair, and his shoulders were hunched.

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