Zach pounded his fist onto the pommel of his saddle, causing his horse to toss his head. “I don’t care what you believe, or what you think I believe, but I refuse to use a kiss as a weapon.”
“It is a weapon! It’s been used as one for almost five hundred years. It’s how we defeat the dark creatures. It’s a catalyst—the end of a spell!”
“Then you’ve been wrong for five hundred years.” Zach turned his horse and started north, toward the village in the distance.
I grabbed the crossbow off the ground, mounted Lorena, and rode ahead, pulling up in front of him. “This partnership is useless if you refuse to Kiss me.”
Zach laughed without humor. “What are you going to do? Turn around and ride two days back to find another partner? The Sable Dragon could be fully grown by the time you finally reach it.”
“I never said I would get a new partner. I’m saying you’re as useless without me as I am without you because you don’t know how to sever our bond. As long as you still have my mark, I have your Sense. Good luck trying to find the dragon without it.”
Zach’s eyes narrowed. “I’ll wander the whole mountain range if I have to.”
“Now who’s wasting time?” I retorted. “If you wanted so badly to go after that dragon by yourself, then why didn’t you just leave without me? Why bother becoming my partner first?”
“Because I couldn’t just let—” Zach’s face suddenly tinged red. He turned his horse away. “Figured I’d last longer with you to help, especially after you stole my Sense, but now I’m willing to test my luck.” Then he glanced back over his shoulder. “Face it, Ivy. Even without your Kiss, I’m still a stronger partner than any other prince you could choose. But if you’d rather have someone to Kiss, then I’ll find this dragon alone. Sense or no Sense.”
Chapter
Thirteen
The Decision
Zachariah was no Royal. He was a liar and a fraud. He’d never had any intention of Kissing me from the start. Yet he had agreed to be my partner to go after the Sable Dragon. Everything was so clear now. Why he’d never had a partner. Why he’d never performed a Kiss with me.
Zach continued down the field, leaving Bromley and me behind. Brom looked at me with a question in his eyes: what now?
I didn’t know.
A large part of me wanted to do the very thing Zach told me was impossible: return to Myria, find a new prince, and start over. But Master Gelloren had said we probably had no more than a month, and a week had already gone by since then. By the time I turned around, found a partner, and reached the egg, it could be too late. Even if I did contact Gelloren through the magic mirror and had him send Amias, or someone else, we would need a mage to perform the separation ritual between Zach and me, and the partnership ritual between a new prince and me, which would take yet more time. The worst thing, though, was Zach was right—there were none as good as him. So was my only option to continue on with Zach and hope he would eventually give in and Kiss me?
The closer we got to the Wu-Hyll Mountains, the more danger we were sure to face. I would have dismissed this only a couple of days ago out of sheer confidence in my abilities to protect myself. But the only reason I was alive was because Zach had saved me from the dwarf, and I still had the remnants of the bruise, courtesy of my mother, to remind me of my sore miscalculation. No, I had more than just a bruise. I had memories of my other partners, too. No matter what Gelloren said, no matter if they had the Mark of Myriana, I’d been their partner, sworn to watch their back, and I had their fate—their blood—on my hands.
I swallowed and rubbed my eyes.
Could I really trust our little party to defeat all the creatures of the Forces and walk away unscathed, without the aid of magic?
No, I couldn’t. But it was either that or return home a failure.
Just like my mother predicted. She’d told me time and time again that I failed her. Failed at upholding Myriana’s signature flawless white skin and luscious dark hair—with my freckles and ruddy curls, I couldn’t be further from my grand ancestor. And I’d failed at bringing my partners home, alive and safe. She never let me forget it.
Zach rode farther away. Bromley cleared his throat.
I couldn’t return home without the dragon’s egg destroyed. I couldn’t let my mother be right again. Not this time.
More than that, if there was even the slightest chance I had of protecting young recruits from seeing battles, I’d take it.
I squeezed my reins, the leather making a grinding sound in my palms. He was going to Kiss me, one way or another. I’d convince him. I would make him see that his beliefs were nothing but ridiculous fairy-tale ideals.
I cued Lorena into a fast trot after Zach. Bromley followed.
When we caught up, I brought my horse close to Zach’s. He gave me a sideways glance but said nothing.
“We can reach the village by dusk,” I said, nodding toward the distant houses and barns, my voice as gruff as possible to hide any emotion. I didn’t want him to think his betrayal had wounded me. Even if it had, that wasn’t the reason I felt my throat getting tighter. It was from a sudden rush of crushing guilt. Now that the battle was over and I could think clearly, I regretted my impulsive decision to shoot the griffin in the wing. Everyone knew wounding the wings was the easiest way to force a griffin to retreat, but it was also the surest way to guarantee the deaths of innocents two days later. Maybe Zach could’ve killed it without a Kiss. But I’d been too rattled. Too scared for him. Scared and with no faith in what seemed impossible.
Zach’s shoulders relaxed slightly. “Looks like it.”
“We’ll be staying the night.”
“I assumed so.”
“Because we need to kill that griffin.” I didn’t want him to think I regretted my decision, because it’d make me feel vulnerable, like his anger at me was more justified than mine. Yet at the same time, I didn’t want him to think I was selfish enough not to care about the villagers whose lives we just doomed. Whose lives I just doomed.
There was a short pause, then, “Finally, something we agree on.”
…
The village was small, with houses, stables, and shops that spanned just a half-mile radius. When we approached the dusty road, paved by various slabs of rock worn by feet and time, two guards approached us. They wore rusty chain mail, and dark green shields were slung across their backs. Both middle-aged men. Both looking exhausted and defeated.
“So you saw the griffin, did you?”
It wasn’t much of a greeting, but judging from the looks on their faces, I couldn’t blame them. I nodded and swung off my horse. “Yes, I’m sorry to say we didn’t kill it. But we will.”
The guard, the one who had spoken, waved me off. “I know Royals on a mission when I see them. I’m sure you need to be on your way.” He grimaced. “We can handle one griffin.”
I shook my head as Zach and Brom dismounted. “We’re here to help. It’s my fault it flew off. I had a clumsy shot.”
I caught Zach’s eye. There was something different in his gaze, but I couldn’t tell what it was.
The two guards bowed, their chain mail clinking. “Thank you, milady. My name is Lynel and this is Toreck.”
The other guard, the younger one, bowed again and said, “We’re very honored to receive Royals in our humble village.”
I dipped my head. “My name is Ivy Myriana. This is my page, Bromley, and my partner, Prince Zachariah.”
Zach stretched out his hand to Lynel and smiled. “Zach, if you don’t mind.”
Lynel shook it, looking a bit confused, probably because Royals never shook hands with civilians, then he turned to Toreck. “Why don’t you show Bromley to the stables—get these horses fed and watered.”
Toreck nodded and took Vel’s reins from Zach. Bromley led Lorena and his horse, following Toreck toward a stable at the far end of the dusty road.
“We really are honored to have you both here,” Lynel said with a tired smile. “Come, come, I’ll make sure you have full plates and nice warm beds for the night.”