Page 49 of The Blood Traitor

“We’ve all been through a lot,” Ashlyn returned, her voice hard. “Some of us have even been through it alone, and still managed not to lose ourselves in the process.”

Caldon flinched at the barely veiled reminder of how he’d avoided her for years, but he only said, “Jaren hasn’t lost himself. The first few days after the masquerade were... not great... but he’s adjusting well, considering. He’s only acting this way because of —” He stopped talking, but he didn’t need to finish. They all knew Kiva being there was what had set Jaren off.

She blew out a breath and said, “Come on, we’d better follow him before he has something else to be angry at me about.”

Caldon was reluctant, but when Kiva threatened to wander aimlessly around the base until she found Jaren herself, he finally led the way out of the command center, winding a path through the luminium-lit military buildings. Ashlyn walked with them part of the way before stopping at the entrance to a watchtower that reminded Kiva a little too much of Zalindov. The princess waved them on, saying she’d find out what all the fuss was about later, but for now, she needed to locate Captain Jenaire and update her about the Mirraven situation.

Caldon said nothing as his sister disappeared into the tower, and Kiva wondered how she might encourage him to mend their relationship, before noting the set of his features and realizing that now wasn’t the time. Instead, she kept in step with him and asked, “Where are we going?”

“To see Naari.”

Kiva stumbled slightly. “Jaren wants me to see Naari?Now?”

Her insides twisted as she wondered how the guard would react to seeing her, after everything that had happened. Naari, who valued honesty and loyalty above all else.

When Caldon remained silent, Kiva’s nerves grew, and she hedged, “Maybe we should wait until morning. I’d hate to wake her.”

“That’s exactly what we want you to do,” Caldon murmured, but he said no more because they’d arrived at a clean-looking building with a healers’ emblem carved into the side, indicating it was the base’s infirmary.

Jaren was waiting just inside the door, impatience radiating from him as he grabbed Kiva by the arm and dragged her through the quiet, sterile space, past empty beds, right to the end of the room where a white curtain was drawn. Through all this, Kiva was aware of nothing but his warm fingers wrapped around her elbow, certain he had no idea he was touching her, even if she felt his strong yet gentle grip right into the very core of her being.

Her heart sang at his nearness, but the feeling evaporated when he released her to pull open the curtain, revealing Naari’s still form lying beneath a white sheet.

The guard could have been sleeping, her amber eyes closed, her normally alert features relaxed.

But with a single glance, Kiva knew that wasn’t the case, and she staggered backwards, colliding with Caldon, who had halted directly behind her.

She barely felt him steadying her, her horrified eyes locked on the guard — and on the familiar black shadows of Zuleeka’s death magic swirling around Naari’s body.

Chapter Twelve

“No,” Kiva whispered, staring at Naari’s unconscious form while hearing an echo of what Caldon had said earlier that evening:

Your sister did something to her. It’s... hard to explain.

“Heal her.”

The two hard words made Kiva turn from Naari to meet Jaren’s stormy gaze. The look on his face —

Kiva flinched and curled in on herself, unable to bear the fury in his eyes and, worse, the devastation.

“I — I’m not sure —” Her voice was choked, but she drew in a deep breath and admitted, “I don’t know how to heal this.”

Jaren’s expression didn’t change, so Kiva took a shaky step forward, touching a trembling hand to Naari’s skin. Her flesh was warm, her pulse strong. There were no wounds or signs of illness. If not for the unnatural shadows, everything about her seemed normal, healthy.

Zuleeka’s dark magic had swirled around Nanna Delora when Kiva had arrived at Murkwood Cottage, and soon after, Delora had died. But this was something different. It was as if Naari was in a coma, and if she’d been like this for weeks —

“How has she been eating? And drinking?” Kiva asked, her healer sensibilities kicking in, helping her push past her initial horror.

“She hasn’t been,” Caldon said. “She should have died from dehydration weeks ago. She should have wasted away to nothing. But instead” — he indicated her perfectly fit physique — “it’s like she’s frozen in time, kept alive by Zuleeka’s magic, but also kept, well... likethis.”

Kiva marveled at what her sister’s power was capable of, even as every part of her recoiled.

“Heal her,” Jaren ordered again, his hands bunched into fists.

Kiva bit her lip. “I told you, I don’t know if I —”

She stopped abruptly when Jaren’s eyes trapped hers, like twin pools of raging fire, and he said, “It’s the least you can do after everythingelseyou’ve done.”

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