Page 94 of Heart of the Summer Queen

“Good,” he says, attention darting up. On both sides, solid cliffs now soar where ocean swelled before. “Freezing the serpent took much of my power, and Isidore will have undoubtedly felt it. We must hurry.”

thirty-three

Elaric conjures a winged steed, and together we take flight, bursting up through the frozen waves to land on our boat’s deck. Fanged gashes mar the hull where the serpent tried to devour me, but we don’t seem to have any leaks, and Elaric is certain they won’t impact the vessel’s performance.

Once we’re on our boat, he dismisses his steed and starts toward our supply sack still lying near the wheel. Recalling his magic hasn’t yet retreated, I grab his arm to stop him before he reaches it.

Frantically, I sift through the sack for the blue vial of Irremisa and shove it into his hands. “Drink,” I blurt.

He pops the cork, but pauses. “Isidore may already be on her way. Without my power, we will be defenseless against her.”

My thoughts race back to the battle we just experienced. While Elaric drank the Ruposley potion in seconds, there was a delay before his magic was restored. A delay long enough for the sea serpent to devour me. Fighting Isidore will be far more dangerous. And if she ambushes us, our loss will be certain.

Sword or not, we’d have no chance of defeating her.

“Then what do you suggest?” I ask.

“Abandon this vessel and fly to shore,” he says. “It shouldn’t take us long. If we try to sail there, we’ll need to pick our way around all the icebergs and they’re more clustered together nearer the shore.”

Both flying and sailing come with plenty of risks, and I can’t decide which is worse. “If you fly us there, she’ll be able to sense exactly where we land.”

“Indeed,” Elaric says with a sigh, “but at any rate, we must decide quickly. Hesitating much longer may cost us dearly.”

“We could swim to Eruweth,” I say as the idea appears in my mind.

“The waves are too strong, and you won’t be able to dry off afterward. The magic surrounding Eruweth is more powerful than it is inside the Crystal Palace, and there would be no way for us to light a fire.”

“What if you freeze the water and create a path to shore? You could take Irremisa right after to hide your presence again.”

“Like with flying, she would know our location,” he counters. “Except it would take much longer for us to reach shore, giving her more time to intercept us.”

“Flying it is then.”

Elaric pushes the stopper back into the cork, not drinking a single drop, and returns it to hang around his neck.

I swiftly gather our belongings, shoving as many of our fresh supplies into the sack as I can. Elaric conjures his winged steed once more and then pulls me up onto it to sit behind him.

We soar into the sky, our battered vessel dwindling fast below. Given our vast speed and the huge clusters of icebergs beneath, it becomes quickly apparent that flying was the wisest option.

While we’re in the air for just a minute, it lasts much too long. I nearly sob in relief when we land and my boots sink into snow at last.

Elaric grabs the Irremisa potion and gulps down a large mouthful.

Then the two of us sprint toward the trees. But as I run, I realize we don’t have a way to tell whether the Irremisa is working amid all the snow. I can only hope it’ll be as swift and effective as the first time.

Our footsteps form a frantic rhythm as we hurry to the safety of the forest ahead, accompanied by our ragged gasps. We’re almost upon the trees when our tempo is broken by an unfamiliar beat.

I stop to listen, holding my breath so it doesn’t drown out the faint sound.

It’s more than a beat—a flurry. Far in the distance, but growing louder.

And rapidly approaching.

“Elaric!” I shout, running to close the distance between us.

He skids to a stop, gaze jerking to the sky. Whatever he sees must be grave, since he grabs my arm and yanks me into the trees.

Twigs rip the sleeves of my tunic, gouging my skin so deeply they draw blood. I vaguely register the pain. Everything is a blur.

---