Thane tapped his fingers on the tabletop. “I’ve had reports of soldiers saying something similar. Only a few but enough it’s not an isolated incident.”

“What could it be?” Layala asked, remembering the she-elf’s mutilated body. It made the ale suddenly sour.

“It could be a diseased animal. I hope it is so we can take care of the problem easily.”

Layala watched Thane, trying to decipher his thoughts. If only she could feel his emotions like she once had. “But you don’t think so?”

“I don’t know. But my gut tells me something terrible is coming. You must stay close to the castle.” His eyes seemed to darken as if he lied. Layala didn’t question him further, but she had a feeling he knew more than he let on, and not just about this but about the Black Mage.

Chapter3

LAYALA

Aquick knock on Layala’s bedchamber door startled her from sleep. If it were Thane he’d knock then enter. Anyone else would wait for her. Sunlight shined brightly through the windows, practically blinding. With one eye open she waited. The elf king didn’t barge in, so it was indeed someone else. An annoyed groan bubbled in her throat. She got up and patted down her mess of black hair, took a breath and opened the door.

Two notes fluttered to the floor as if they’d been shoved in the crack.Not again.She sighed and swallowed to wet her dry throat. Both were folded in half but with different colors of paper. One was off-white and the other more yellow. She must enjoy torture because she pulled the first open to read it.

No one wants you here. The writing was masculine and a little sloppy. She crumpled it up and threw it back inside her room where it landed in the dark corner along with a pile of others.

With a shaky hand she opened the second.Too bad High King Tenebris didn’t kill you the day he killed your parents. We know what you’ve done.

A pang hit her chest and instead of crumpling that one, she stepped over to the candle on the dresser top and set the edge of it in the flames. She watched the edges curling and blackening as the fire licked up.

Thane could only hold off the suspicion that the Black Mage was alive for so long. Rumors spread, and they started from soldiers who fought on the field and saw Layala go into the Void. Whispers ofhisname spread in the gossip parlors and in the pubs. The Black Mage hadn’t been seen by anyone outside that tower, but the people talked. They suspected Layala had brought him back.

“Oh, dear me.” Two little brown boots with holes poked out from the perch inside the green vine canopy above the bed. “Oh, dear plump pixie berries.”

Layala slammed the door and whirled around. The little gnome in her ancient-looking floral print dress with mismatched patches held thePalenor Scrollin her hands, and Layala’s heart clenched. “What?”

“Nothing. Just uh, nothing at all but good news.” Tifapine scooted further into the dark hole of her hiding spot.

Layala stomped over to her and held out her hand. Was there another story about the attacks? Reports on who’d been stolen right out of their homes? “Let me see it.”

Tif stuck the news scroll out and Layala snatched it. The first thing she saw in huge bold letters was,Is Layala Lightbringer’s True Mate the Black Mage?

This wasn’t just some gossip in the ladies’ lounge. It was the front page of thePalenor Scroll.

An anonymous buttrusted source informed me last evening that High King Thane’s betrothed Layala Lightbringer is mate bonded to the Black Mage and was able to bring him back to life.Yes, I gasped in horror as well.Just last week one of the soldiers present at the battle for the High King spoke of how he saw Layala Lightbringer taken into the Void by a dragon. Ever since that day the pale ones roam freely, no longer pulled to the Void, and they seem to have a greater purpose than to simply kill and maim.

Is there proof the Black Mage is alive? Not yet, but is there proof they are mates? Many have long wondered about the lily’s mark on Lightbringer’s flesh the day she was born. The very midwife present at her birth attests she suspected immediately the child was cursed. Many of us there on the day of her testing knew she was destined for disaster in Adalon. We all saw the dark display of magic. You may be wondering if it’s a mark of destiny for the Black Mage—a mate bond, why wouldn’t the lily look like a common mate rune? Well, because it isn’t. We don’t understand it entirely but another source alive during the last war confirmed the Black Mage has that exact mark as well, among the many runes on his skin.

If he is awake and she is his mate, one can only imagine what lies in store for us when he steps into the light to claim her, a powerful mage in her own right. Where is he, you may ask? Perhaps he is not strong enough yet. Or he’s gathering armies to take control of Palenor, or to recapture Lightbringer. Some say he’s hunting down those who opposed him before and taking their heads. Many in Palenor deny his return but us believers know the truth will prevail.

Lastly, I want to give our condolences to the High King of Palenor, Thane Athayel. He must be heartbroken over this bitter and shocking news. He may be the only hope left for Palenor and all of Adalon but is our Warrior King strong enough to best the most powerful mage in history? Only time will tell. For now, stay safe. Lock your doors. Don’t go outside after dark, and whatever you do, don’t try to fight a pale one. Hide.

—Telvian Botsberry, Chief Editor at the Palenor Scroll

With her cheeks burning,Layala dropped the paper to her side. This was bad. Horrific might be a better word. Who was this anonymous source? Only her trusted friends, the Black Mage himself, Mathekis, and Varlett knew what happened in that tower. But which would tell? Obviously the Black Mage couldn’t be the source—and no elf would trust Mathekis or Varlett would they? Had someone else seen? Did Fennan or Leif slip the truth while lying in some maiden’s arms half drunk? Had Prince Ronan said something to someone?

“Has Thane seen this?” Layala asked, wishing she could find every one of these and burn them, but no doubt there were several nailed to poles and doors all over the city and being passed out in the pubs and down the main street of shops.

Tif pressed her lips together and twirled a brown curl around her finger. “I found it on his bed so...”

Layala tore the paper until it was in a pile of shreds on the ground. These people turned on her like vipers after she endured months of starvation and torture by Tenebris, lost friends, fought sirens and a bloody dragon to figure out how to save them all. Let that disgusting Lord Brunard put his lips and hands on her. She went into the Void, a place none of them would dare go to end the curse, and now she was going to be called a disaster for Adalon? She wanted to scream, to show them all what a nightmare she could truly be.

“Ehem. I should have kept my mouth shut.” She slipped down the green vines draping over the bed acting as a canopy. Tifapine still wore the same red hat every day although Layala wondered if she had several of the same one stashed somewhere. “I think we started our day off on a bad note reading that newspaper so let’s start over.” She hopped onto the bed and pulled a cupcake from behind her back. The base of it was larger than her palm with a dollop of chocolate frosting. “I made you a treat earlier and should have started with this. It’s a special gnome recipe from what I’ll one day call Tifapine’s Bakery. I guarantee it’s the best one you’ve ever had.”

Layala took hold of it between two fingers, careful not to crush the gnome-sized cupcake in her grip. The chocolate frosting was whipped to a tall center and the white cupcake smelled like vanilla. The gnome’s big brown eyes widened as she eagerly awaited Layala to taste.