Page 73 of A Court of Ash and Midnight
“About twenty-six hours,” he says, pressing a hand to my forehead as if I have a fever.
“Twenty-six?” I echo in disbelief.
He nods.
“Has…has anyone come to see me?” Daemon must be worried sick.
Cillian nods again. “Yes, Julian came a couple of times. Brought you some healing tinctures, which we’ve been administering.”
My heart falls a bit. “Oh. Julian, of course.”
“Your magic seems to take quite a toll on your body.” Cillian says with a frown. “But the tinctures helped to revitalize you.”
“And Toryn… is he dead?”
“No, still alive unfortunately. His family has their own healers, and he’s back to new. Saw him walking around earlier, albeit a bit stiffly.”
Now it’s my turn to frown.
“You still won,” Cillian says with a grin. “I’m glad my little gift came in handy.”
“What exactly was on those blades?” I ask with a raised brow.
“Just some excellent poison I came across in my travels. Poison which works particularly well on fae.” He shrugs. “If he hadn’t had a healer, he’d have been dead for sure.”
“But he did, so he can still compete in the rest of the tournament.”
“Afraid so.”
Something clicks in my brain, and I sit up straight. “Wait… if I’ve been asleep for more than a day, that means the second tournament challenge is…”
Cillian shoots me a somber look. “Yes. The second tournament challenge is tomorrow.”
Chapter Thirty-Three
The sun risesjust a few hours later, red and bloody on the horizon as if someone had slit the throat of the sky. I still haven’t heard from Daemon, which is adding anxiety to my already frayed nerves. Dread gnaws at my bones.
But I push it down, and I don my boots and my leather vest and my daggers, and I step out to meet the day.
Cillian and the guards flank me as we head up into the peaks over the valley, opposite the side Daemon and I have been using for practice. There’s a steady stream of people winding their way into the hills. I look for Daemon, but I don’t see him anywhere. When we reach the glen nestled between the peaks, I see that it’s much bigger than the one on the other side. Almost another whole valley sitting above the one below. The tournament council members are already there, standing in the midst of the green. And perched on a peak above it all, on the highest greenpoint jutting into the sky, sits the Queen on her nightmare, watching over us.
The royal houses are spread out around the perimeter of the valley. I catch sight of my grandparents beneath the House Harkyn banner on the far side, sitting with Kildari and Quelan beneath a red awning. Toryn’s house is there, too, and I see him standing alongside his second. His eyes lock on mine as soon as I enter the field, and the look he gives me sends a shiver up my spine. Further down the valley is House Aeternas, the Court of Onyx flag flying above them. I see Daemon’s aunt and uncle sitting with Trianne, and finally I catch a glimpse of Daemon, standing off to the side. He’s too far away to catch his expression. I bite my lip, my stomach feeling leaden. Maybe he’d decided to follow Trianne’s advice. Spending time with a human is a liability, after all. Especially me, being as how I’m hated by all.
One of the council members blows a horn to summon the champions. Cillian gives me a pat on the shoulder. “You’ve got this, cousin.”
I walk to the center of the field, along with the other champions, and we fan out around the council. Toryn is still shooting me daggers with his gaze. Daemon meets my eyes, but I can’t read his expression.
“Champions! Welcome to the second challenge of the Erys Lumena tournament. To win this contest, you must obtain the heart stone, but you cannot obtain it through death. Any harm to the bearer of the heart stone will lead to immediate forfeiture of the tournament.”
My mind spins the words in my head. Bearer of the heart stone? Cannot be obtained through death? I have no idea what any of that means. But as I turn the words over again, trying to figure them out, the council turns and walks off the field, and the valley begins to shake.
I turn toward the vibration, which is coming opposite the direction of the ocean. In the distance, I can see something moving, something that shimmers and catches the early morning sun. It almost looks like a fast-moving cloud, grayish-silver. As it approaches, the peaks tremble, and then a sharp sound splits the sky. My heart climbs into my throat.
A howl.
It’s a pack of wolves.
Wolves the size of horses, with silvery scales like dragons instead of fur.
