Elfhame (Skeleton Key) (16 page)

“If you do not marry me,” Bran said, his voice cold, “then we will all die. The Void will destroy us, Mara, and soon. Would you rather perish than make this sacrifice that will save not only yourself, but all of Elfhame?”

She almost said yes, she preferred to die than be forced into such a union, but even through her bitter anger she could see how foolish that was.

“Please tell me that marriage is a passing thing in your world,” she said, clinging to a shred of hope. “Something we can dissolve once the battle’s won.”

“I wish I could give you the answer you want,” he said. “But in Elfhame, a wedding vow is a lifetime pledge. Is it not so with mortals?”

She almost lied—but he would not believe her, and Anneth surely knew the truth from her studies.

“Marriages are not often broken,” Mara admitted. “But surely there is recourse among the Dark Elves? What if the union is an unhappy one?” As theirs surely would be.

“Then the couple may choose to live apart. But the bond will not be broken.”

Her throat constricted, and she could barely breathe. She would have to do it. She would have to marry the fearsome Dark Elf who stood before her.

But she had her own price for doing so.

She gathered all her strength and made herself stand tall, meeting his gaze. “If I marry you, swear to me you’ll do everything in your power to send me back home. Swear it.”

He regarded her for a long moment, violet eyes glowing. At last he gave her a slow nod.

“Mara Geary, I swear to you on the seven bright stars and the pale moon, on my own blood and breath, that after you marry me and we defeat the Void, I will find a way to return you to the mortal world. You have my oath.”

She drew in a ragged breath. There was no mistaking the sincerity in his voice. And he
was
the strongest magic user among the Dark Elves. Surely he would be able to free her from Elfhame and open the doorway back home.

The final battle with the Void was looming, and directly afterward she would insist he honor his promise. If she were fortunate, her imprisonment among the Dark Elves would be over soon. Until then, she hoped she was strong enough to bear being his bride.

“Very well,” she said. “On that condition, I will marry you.”

He made her a low bow. “It will be my honor.”

He almost sounded as though he meant it. Before she could respond, he turned and let himself out the door. It closed firmly behind him.

Anneth stepped into the room and tossed a towel over the spilled juice.

“He will do his best for you,” she said. “I pray you give him as much in return.”

“I will.” Mara had a promise to keep, too, much as she might abhor it. “Now, tell me everything about your Dark Elf weddings.”

T
he palemoon skimmed the horizon and cast soft shadows over the palace gardens. Bran walked the paths between the glowing flowers, paying no heed to the beauty of his surroundings.

It seemed Mara would never forgive him.

But despite everything, she would wed him. He was thankful for that, although the prospect was clearly odious to her. In return for her sacrifice, he must find a way to undo a hundred years of magic and open the door back into the mortal world.

There would be repercussions from that act he did not want to contemplate. But it was the price he had sworn to pay, and pay it he would. The pang he felt at the thought had nothing to do with Mara leaving forever. There was no point in her remaining in Elfhame to live out a life of misery married to a man she detested.

He let out a low breath. Not quite a sigh; princes didn’t sigh.

They would wed when the brightmoon rose, then return to the front and hope for a miracle.

Bran balled up one fist and tapped it against his leg. They needed more time! Time to teach Mara how to access her wellspring of power and harness it to her will. Time for her to learn more of Elfhame and his people. Time to rebuild the fragile understanding he had felt growing between them.

In a rare moment of indulgence, he found himself wishing for a different future. One where they walked companionably together through the gardens. One where Mara smiled at him again, her strange, lovely eyes sparkling with laughter.

Impossible. He shook his head to dispel such foolish thoughts.

He needed to focus on tactics and strategy. It was likely the Void would attack in force when it sensed Mara’s presence at the barrier. Their best plan would be to pull all the patrols in, and concentrate on delivering a powerful blow directly through one of the breaches, striking at the heart of the Void with as much power as they could muster.

It was not enough to defend. They must attack with the intent to wound as deeply as possible and drive the Void away from Elfhame, forever.

Bran
. It was a whisper on the wind, carrying the glow of Hestil’s magic.
Urgent. Contact now
.

He turned back toward the palace and lengthened his stride, gaining the privacy of his rooms less than a minute later. Quickly, he assembled his scrying tools and summoned the magic to reach his second-in-command.

The surface of the water in the silver bowl shivered, then revealed Hestil’s face.

“Bran—thank the moons.” Her voice carried a raw edge. “The Void creatures have broken through and we can’t hold any longer.”

“Then you must pull back,” he said, his blood running cold at the news. “Try to limit the casualties.”

“That’s not the worst of it.” Hestil’s weary expression deepened. “Word has come from the Nightshade Court. They’re under attack. I advised them to evacuate to Hawthorne.”

Muck and mire. Things were coming to a head—and he and Mara
still
weren’t married.

“Pull back to the palace,” he said. “I’ll alert the remaining guard, and contact the Nightshade Lady. Everyone must seek refuge here.”

“She won’t want to abandon her court.”

“Stones can be rebuilt, but lost lives are gone forever.”

Through the scrying bowl he heard screams and the clash of battle, and Hestil shot an anxious look over her shoulder.

“Retreat, before it’s too late,” Bran said, his stomach tightening. He should be there, helping hold back the Void. But he could not be in two places at once.

“Yes, commander. We will come, as quickly as we may.”

It would be a grueling journey back to the Hawthorne Palace with the Void creatures on their heels. He prayed they would not sustain too many casualties.

“I’ll ride out to meet you with whomever I can muster,” he said, mentally calculating.

Garon would come, and he reckoned perhaps a half-dozen other fighters. If they left within a half-turn, they would be able to provide reinforcements before the remaining fighters were cut down by the Void.

“Have you wed your mortal girl yet?” Hestil asked. She must have read the answer in his eyes, for she gave him a sharp look. “Do it. Now.”

She was right. They had not a moment to waste, not with the Dark Elf warriors in full retreat and the Void creatures already attacking Nightshade.

“I will. Now clear the camp, quickly.”

Hestil nodded, her image already fading in the scrying bowl.

When the water was completely clear again, Bran scrubbed his hands over his face. They were out of time, and it took an effort of will to keep despair from settling on his shoulders. All his life he’d trusted to the prophecy.

He must believe it would not fail him now.

Bending over his scrying bowl again, he contacted the ruler of Nightshade. Despite her reluctance, he extracted a promise from her to completely evacuate her court as soon as possible. The other courts were farther from the coming war—too far to send help or band together if Hawthorne fell. The fate of Elfhame truly was on his shouders.

That task done, he sent a message to Garon to muster whatever soldiers were left in the palace. Mara must be told of the change in plans, and his parents informed as well—a duty best done in person.

Anneth’s rooms were closer than the lord and lady’s suite. He knocked, then used a tendril of power to trip the lock.

“Bran—you’re too early,” Anneth said, coming to stand in the arched doorway of her bedroom.

“I am far too late,” he said. “Where’s Mara?”

“Dressing.” Anneth glanced back into her bedroom.

A moment later his mortal came and peeked out the doorway. She was wearing an underdress, and her hair was in disarray. He did not mind marrying her in such a state, but no doubt
she
would. And the court would be appalled.

“Dire news from the front,” he said. “The Void has breached the barrier, and our warriors are in full retreat. Nightshade is under attack, and evacuating here. The creatures cannot be far behind.”

“Oh, no.” Anneth’s eyes dilated in fear.

Mara looked pale, but she met Bran’s gaze. “That changes things. I suppose we must marry right away.”

He nodded, trying to ignore her flinch when she spoke the word
marry
. At least she’d grasped the situation immediately.

“I wanted to give you a little time to prepare,” he said. “I must go inform the Hawthorne Lord and Lady, and do what I can to see that everything is ready for the ceremony.”

“How much time?” Anneth asked.

“A half-turn, if we can manage it.”

“Impossible,” she said.

“I don’t care if my hair’s perfectly coiffed,” Mara said. “Just put me in that silver gown, and we’ll manage.”

Bran shot her a grateful glance. It seemed that, once committed to a course of action, his mortal woman would not waver.

“Do you have the companion rings?” Anneth asked him.

“The jeweler will provide something adequate,” Bran said, mentally adding a quick visit to the woman to his list of critical items.

“Go finish the arrangements,” Mara said. “We’ll be ready in time.”

Anneth did not look convinced, but Bran paid no heed to her sound of protest.

“I trust you,” he said to Mara, then turned on his heel and strode back into the hallway.

It was true—he had every confidence that in a half-turn, Mara would arrive in the throne room, ready to marry him. Despite her clear distaste for doing so.

Of course, it was all so that she could go home. No doubt she welcomed the escalated timetable, since it meant her return to the mortal world was that much closer.

Although first, they had the little matter of saving Elfhame.

Everything had shifted, but the prophecy
must
prove true. In a very short time, the moment he’d been waiting for since birth would arrive.

Unfortunately, it featured a reluctant bride, a promise he was not at all sure he could fulfill, and the threat of imminent attack and annihilation by the Void.

When he’d envisioned his wedding, the few times he’d even thought of it at all, he’d assumed it would be a joyful event, as such things usually were.

But fate was ever playing cruel jokes. As long as Elfhame was saved, nothing else mattered. He’d learned long since to set aside his own happiness for the greater good. Clearly his future would be no exception.