Page 105 of A Legacy of Storms and Starlight

Zack got to his feet first, reaching out a hand for Rose. Zylah stood alone as Saphi rested a canvas bag beside the counter, the space seeming to close in on her. Zylah closed her eyes to steady herself, Saphi’s vanilla perfume hitting her as the Fae’s arms wrapped around her shoulders.

“Do you want to see his room before you go?” Saphi asked into Zylah’s hair.

Zylah’s stomach twisted. “No. Thank you.” She couldn’t see it. Couldn’t look at all the places they’d been together, didn’t want to feel his lingering presence when he wasn’t there to hold. To holdher.

Saphi pulled away, and Zylah wrapped her arms around herself.

“We’ll see each other again,” the Fae said quietly. “Rose has seen it.”

Zylah nodded. It didn’t matter what they said. Whether Marcus was gone or not. Or whether Jesper was still out there, running Marcus’s errands. She was never coming back.

“Will you have a funeral?” Zylah asked. Her father’s body was gone, but it brought her some comfort to know that they could do that for Raif, even if she couldn’t be there for it.

A dull thump sounded on the floor behind her, and Zylah turned to see Holt with her things. “His body is gone; I went back there first.”

Zylah’s hand went to her necklace. “Jesper?”

“The sprites, I think.” Holt dragged a hand through his hair. “Maybe they wanted to protect him from Jesper.”

Wild heat flashed through Zylah. “Why didn’t they protect him before Jesper killed him? Why didn’t they protect him when he needed it?”

Holt shook his head. “I don’t know.”

The anger left her then, when she saw the anguished look on Holt’s face. The loss wasn’t hers alone. They had all lost Raif. And Zylah knew Holt would be feeling just as responsible for Raif’s death as she was.

“Now what?” she asked quietly.

“Put these on.” He handed her a fresh apron and her cloak. “There are horses waiting for us on the south side of the city.”

“Horses?”

“Magic has a trace, remember. We can’t risk Marcus tracking us, so we’ll take the horses for a while.” Holt fastened the bag again after handing Zylah her things.

She didn’t question the clothes, just did as he asked, tugging her apron on over her head. “I’m not putting anyone else at risk.” Holt might have had his reasons for getting her out of Virian and if he thought this was how they could protect her, let him believe it. But Zylah held onto the truth. She was protecting them instead.

Holt frowned. “Zylah, please.”

She read the unspoken words in his eyes.Let me do this.He hadn’t been able to help Raif. But this was something he could do. She turned to Saphi and Rose, made her goodbyes as if she were floating somewhere outside of her body, watching.

Zack hugged her tightly. “I love you, Zylah.” She didn’t deserve his love. She didn’t deserve any of them.

She smiled weakly as she tugged up her hood, and Kopi took that as his cue to fly down onto her shoulder. This was why she’d left the way she had before. To avoid this moment with them. This look on their faces.

Holt handed Zylah her sword, slung the bag over his shoulder and grabbed the one Saphi had packed. Then he reached out a hand to her. “Ready?”

Zylah looked up at her friend. “Ready.” She put her hand in his, took one last look at her brother, and Holt evanesced them away.

They reappeared on the south side of the city, just as Holt had said. But only one horse was waiting for them, a note tucked under the bridle in the dusk. Zylah peered over Holt’s arm as he read the scrawling ink.This was all I could manage at short notice. Please accept my apologies.

“Shit,” Holt breathed. “We’ll make slower progress, but this will have to do.” He fastened the bags on either side of the saddle and helped Zylah up, passing her the sword. “Keep the belt on. Do not take it off.” He pulled himself up behind her carefully.

The horse took off into a canter, its feet fast in the dirt, and Zylah let the sound wrap itself over her thoughts. It was fitting, she supposed, that Holt had been the one to bring her to Virian, now he was the one to take her away from it. She replayed the moment Jesper’s fangs sank into Raif’s neck over and over, wondering if she’d just tried a little bit harder… whether she could have reached him in time.

“Did he teach you to shield yourself?” Holt asked over her shoulder as the horse cantered further into the forest.

“Hmm?” It took her a heartbeat to realise he was talking about Raif. “To shield? No, I can defend myself, just like you both taught me.”

“There are other ways to be attacked, Zylah.”

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