Page 32 of A Blade of Lies and Spirits

And the man was something else because with no further explanation he launched into action, climbing out of bed and getting dressed. His face emerged from the shirt he was pulling on, dark eyes alight with curiosity. At my impatient beckoning, he nodded.

Downstairs, I looked at the sky through the windows, watching as Walker finished getting ready. In just those few minutes it had darkened, clouds roiling. Walker retrieved an umbrella as we went out.

“There’s strong magic inside the wards,” he remarked. “Those look like thunder clouds. Capitol never has those. What are you afraid of, Alys? Should I contact Silver?”

I avoided his gaze. Foreboding made me shiver. What if the elves had broken in through the wards and were calling the storm?

Worse, what if it was Dmitri?

A spray of drizzle hit before Walker opened the umbrella.

“I don’t want to say until I’m sure. Let’s hurry. I want to get there before the storm hits.” I didn’t disguise my urgency; I could blame it on the cold and the rain.

* * *

Lacy white branchesof electricity spread across the sky, arcing to the ground. I counted, waiting. The crack and rumble of thunder rolled over me, perhaps a mile and a half away from where I stood. The lightning was still outside the city, but the dark waves of clouds racing overhead meant the storm would hit in earnest at any moment.

As if in punctuation to the thought, a hard spray of rain soaked my boots as we stepped on the fast section of people movers, the squares of concrete that floated a few feet in the air and carried people from one neighborhood in Capitol to another as a moving sidewalk. The mover I selected, headed north through the rich section of town at a fast walking pace. Ignoring the complaints of irritated passengers, I pushed forward at a jog. The rising wind fluttered pricey fabrics and disarrayed expensive hair arrangements around me. People were on edge, though the muttered comments were more angry at the weather witches not being paid on time.

I glanced back; he’d managed to keep within ten feet of me. Much larger and more polite, he maneuvered around the clumps of people rather than plunging through.

In the rich areas, zoning codes dictated that buildings stayed below four stories, even hotels. Further out, in the less rich sections, gleaming high-rises ringed the city, all chrome and windows. Capitol didn’t really have poor neighborhoods; even the people who served as domestics when it was fashionable were well paid. But unlike the well off, they didn’t get an opportunity to tour the world. Keeping the location of the this single city secret meant only those who could walk the Road or pay for alternative transport could leave.

In this neighborhood, it was all lawns and charming small houses made of expensive natural materials: stone and wood, although it sprawled too much. The landmarks told me we were several miles away from the Dumonts, perhaps a three-minute run using the movers. That was too much time, damn it. I was almost certain someone had hurt my child so much that he was terrified enough to call for the elves. But who? What if the Wolves had found out about Dmitri, were attacking him to draw me out? He could be killed if I didn’t get there soon enough.

“How do you get the sidewalk to work faster?” I broke into a run as Walker joined me. I used my elbows to get by the people still using the conveyance.

The motion vented the fear gnawing at my heart and belly. Dmitri was too young, the Dumonts ignorant. If my son was calling the elves because he was frightened, he wouldn’t realize what he was actually doing. He wouldn’t know that if his father’s people discovered his existence, and he was unknowingly welcoming them, they could simply take him and disappear into the clouds.

If I lost him—I cut the thought off. The stories about the Stormdusts who’d changed into elves all said it happened under stress, in life and death situations. What kind of life or death situation would a small child be in? I’d never mentioned the danger to the family who took him; I didn’t know if they were even aware of it.

I’d tell Elise what to look for after this. She was easier to deal with than Robert.

My knees shook as another lightning strike reverberated, this time within city limits. I set my teeth to hold the scream of frustration that clawed at my throat because we were still so far away.

“Relax,” Walker snapped. An arm like an iron band yanked me flush to his side.

The yearning for a knife to stick in him was a physical pain as his jacket muffled my sight. I felt giddy disorientation, bright lights in my eyes and a sour taste in my mouth as normal senses revolted. No air pressure touched my skin, no ground pressed my feet.

The world reeled at the shocking resumption of all those sensations. His grip relaxed, and I reeled, caught myself against the chest-high stone wall, with precious seconds running by me. If I’d known he could do that, I would have asked when I first sighted the clouds; even Ethan didn’t like teleporting without using a portal.

“Wards made a closer jump hazardous.” Walker released me.

I hugged him. “Thank you.”

The middle-aged security guard by the gate goggled at us. Alive. Whatever happened wasn’t the Wolves then. I swiped my hand across the palm plate, opening the gate. He didn’t demand additional ID. Concern shadowed his face as he looked up at the sky.

The clouds above us boiled, black and whipped by a vicious wind. The air within the gate’s confines rippled the open passage through the exterior wards. I ran, cursing my short slow legs and the size of the lawn. The wind shifted, carrying a shriek of rage overlaid with the low insistent boom of alarms from the direction of the house.

For all I disliked the Dumonts for having my son when I couldn’t, they didn’t deserve what would happen if this meant Dmitri had been forced to a crisis point.

Nor did Dmitri, ever.

“Where?” shouted Walker, pacing me, not even breathing hard. Wind snatched at his dark hair, whipping it behind him.

“Back of the house—the garden—that’s where he’ll be.” It was the only area of the house without dampeners installed. Dmitri’s magic, even as a baby, had been too strong for servants to handle. The dampeners restricted Robert’s abilities as well, but it was the best solution anyone could come up with. I hoped to take a dampener with me when we escaped.

Suddenly I was weightless and airborne as I was scooped over Walker’s shoulder in a fireman’s carry. Anger bit at me from the humiliation of it, but his reasons were sound. Walker’s long strides ate the ground, even with my additional weight. I was no match for his speed in my current state.

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