Jonas felt at his belt for the golden dagger, the one given to him to allegedly destroy magic and kill an evil sorceress if there was no other option.
Lucia had gone to Kyan’s side the moment he’d summoned her. Whether she did it to save her daughter’s life didn’t matter. There’d been other solutions, other options.
Jonas would have helped her if only she’d asked.
But she hadn’t changed after all.
Timotheus had believed it was Lucia’s destiny to help the Kindred destroy the world.
And Jonas knew it was his destiny to stop her.
CHAPTER 28
MAGNUS
AURANOS
Magnus and Cleo followed the river to the next village. Once there, they stole a pair of horses and rode to Viridy, where, Magnus hoped, Ashur and Valia would meet them.
The weight of the ring on Magnus’s hand felt heavier than before. He’d known it was powerful enough to save the life of its wearer, but not that it could also take a life . . .
This ring had also affected Kyan, allowing Magnus the chance to escape him.
This ring had caused Cleo pain when it had been momentarily on her finger.
What else could it do? Magnus wondered grimly.
As they drew closer to their destination, Magnus realized that Cleo was watching him, her grip tight on the reins of her horse.
“Are you all right?’ she asked. “After . . . after what happened with Kurtis?”
“Am I all right?” His brows went up at the question. “You are possessed by a malevolent water goddess who wishes to help her siblings destroy the world, but you are worried about me?”
She shrugged. “I guess I am.”
“I am fine,” he assured her.
“Good.”
Cleo had told him on the ride that the water Kindred could speak to her, urging her from inside her mind to let the waves in her drowning spells take her under. To give up control of her body.
It infuriated Magnus that he didn’t know how to save her from this demon that wanted to steal life away.
Cleo also shared that Nic had been conscious enough to allow her to escape from the temple. That he’d told her to destroy the orbs. That they were the Kindred’s physical anchors to this world. That without them, they would be vanquished.
He hadn’t believed her at first, convinced it had been a trick Kyan had played to manipulate her. But she’d been certain it was Nic.
Certain enough that Magnus had stopped their journey long enough to take the aquamarine orb from her and attempt to shatter it with a rock. He’d tried until his hands bled and his muscles ached, but it didn’t work. The orb remained intact, without even a crack.
He had damaged the earth Kindred in the past, throwing it against a stone wall at the Limerian palace in a fit of rage. This had triggered an earthquake.
But that, Cleo reminded him, was when the earth Kindred had been within the obsidian orb. An orb that had healed its damage after the Kindred had escaped from it.
It was more than obsidian, he realized. More than aquamarine.
The orbs were pieces of magic unto themselves.
And, despite his initial desire to find these priceless, omnipotent treasures, he now hated every single one of them because their very existence threatened the life of the woman he loved more than anything or anyone else in this world.
He knew Cleo wasn’t helpless. Far from it. He’d witnessed her defend herself both verbally and physically in the past. But this threat wasn’t as simple as escaping an assassin’s blade or thrusting arrows into the throats of enemies at close range in a desperate quest for survival.
They needed a sorceress.
But they would have to settle for a powerful witch.
They entered Viridy just as the morning sunlight began to move across the large village. Their horses’ hooves clip-clopped along the sparkling cobblestone roads lined with stone buildings and villas. It was much like the maze of the City of Gold; one could get lost along a road if they weren’t careful. Magnus forced himself to concentrate, to remember the way to their destination. Finally, thankfully, they arrived at the large inn and tavern in the center of the village, the one with a black wooden sign in front emblazoned with a gilded name: The Silver Toad.
Leaving the horses with a waiting stableman, Magnus directed Cleo in through the entrance to the tavern, currently vacant but for one person seated at a table in the corner near a blazing fireplace. At the sight of them, Ashur rose to his feet.
“You made it,” he said to Cleo as he took her hands in his, his expression filled with relief.
“Yes,” she replied.
“And you saw Kyan . . .” he ventured.
She nodded. “I did. And Nic—he’s still here, and I managed to speak with him for a few moments. He helped me escape. He’s fighting as hard as he can.”
Ashur sat down heavily in his chair. “He’s not lost to us.”
“No. There’s still hope.”
“I’m very glad to hear that,” he whispered.
“Where is Valia?” Magnus asked, scanning the dark tavern. “Did you get her a room at the inn?”
“She’s not here,” Ashur replied.
Magnus’s gaze shot to the Kraeshian. “What?”
Then he noticed the bloody bandages wrapped around both of Ashur’s hands.
“I tried to summon her,” Ashur said. “Multiple times. I followed the instructions perfectly, but she never arrived.”
Magnus hung his head, pressing his hands to his temples.
“Where is Bruno?” he asked. “Is he here?”
Ashur nodded. “He’s here.”
“Who’s Bruno?” Cleo asked.
“Bruno!” Magnus yelled at the top of his lungs.
The man in question appeared from the kitchen area, wiping his hands on his dusty apron. Deep lines fanned out from the corners of his eyes as he smiled broadly at the sight before him.
“Prince Magnus, such a great delight to see you again!” He looked at Cleo, and his eyes widened. “Oh, and you’ve brought your beautiful wife with you this time. Princess Cleiona, it is a true honor.”
He bowed deeply before her.
“And it’s lovely to meet you too,” Cleo said kindly when he rose from his bow, absently tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear.
Magnus was dismayed to see that the blue lines had extended further along her left temple.
He tore his gaze from Cleo to look at Bruno. “Where is Valia?”
“Prince Ashur asked me the very same question last night,” he replied. “And I have the same reply for you: I’m afraid I don’t know.”
“Ashur tried to summon her, but it didn’t work,” Magnus said.
“Sometimes it doesn’t. Valia chooses when and where to appear.” At the furious expression that fell over Magnus’s face, the old man took a step backward. “Apologies, your highness, but I don’t control her.”
“We didn’t even know if she could help,” Ashur said. “We were only hoping.”
“Hoping,” Magnus muttered. “There’s that useless word again.”
“It’s not useless,” Cleo said. “Hope is powerful.”
Magnus shook his head. “No, a sorceress is powerful, and that’s what we need. Valia was useless too, a waste of time. I need to find Lucia.”