Illusion: Book Four of the Grimoire Saga (5 page)

“And mine would be sunshine without you? This isn’t a one-sided deal, Braeden!”

His mouth snapped closed. He didn’t have a reply.

Her lip quivered. She tucked her knees below her chin and stared at the stone floor while she spoke. “The whole point of the battle is to kill Carden. And if you die, too, the Stelians die. Yakona can’t live without their Blood. That’s genocide. I’ve already committed mass murder, Braeden. If I can stop a genocide, I will.”

Braeden lowered his head, one hand on his chin as he processed what she’d said. She pressed her face into her hands. Her shoulders bobbed. A sob escaped the otherwise quiet tears. He crossed to her and knelt at her feet, setting a hand on either side of her head.

“I’m sorry I scared you with the daru,” he said.

Her shoulders stilled, but she didn’t look up.

He ran a hand through her hair. “I didn’t know how else to deal with the thought of losing you. Even in a game, it’s too much.”

She lowered her hands and lifted her eyes to meet his. Red splotches lined the skin around her eyes. She held his gaze, and he didn’t dare look away.

“Don’t ever scare me like that again.”—her voice broke—“You can use the daru against Carden, fine. But not on me.”

His throat tightened at her intensity. He nodded.

“I am deeply sorry,” he said.

She reached for his hand and rubbed his knuckles with her fingertips. Her touch sent a shiver of pleasure through to his core. Her fear worried him—he never wanted to scare her, of all people. But his daru had this effect on people, and he understood. He pushed the memory of her wide eyes from his mind and wrapped her in a hug. She slipped her arms under his and hugged him close, resting her chin in the crook of his neck.

“Promise me,” she whispered.

“I promise. Never again. If I lose control, I’ll leave until I can cool off.”

She nodded into his shoulder. He set a hand on the back of her head and leaned his head into hers.

“I love you more than I can ever express,” he said.

“I love you, too.”

“Still want to marry me tomorrow?” he asked with a chuckle.

She laughed. “For some foolish reason, yes.”

“Then I’m happy.”

She kissed the side of his head and pushed herself to her feet. “I need some sleep.”

“Let’s get back to the castle,” he agreed.

“Mind if we walk? Fresh air would be nice.”

“Not at all.”

Kara reached again for Flick, and Braeden wanted to stop her. He wanted to pull her into a kiss and forget what happened when the vest was torn off. But even a welcome distraction wouldn’t make it any less real. If this hadn’t been a game, he would have lost the love of his life.

Somehow, he had to make her stay behind.

A hand brushed his arm. With a sharp crack, the fort’s roof disappeared, replaced once more by the almost-empty flag room. A few soldiers stayed behind, some nursing injuries. More than a few cradled broken arms.

Kara headed for the door, eyes on the flooring as she walked. He sighed and followed her out. He would make his case later.

Chapter 3

No Rest

Kara rubbed her face as she headed back out into the fort’s hallways. Her shoulders ached. The torn remnants of her vest clung to her shirt, tickling her arm. She ripped the paper off and crumpled it into a ball.

An arm wrapped around her. Warmth seeped into her body as Braeden held her. She smiled, a real one this time. They walked toward the door while the last of the Ayavelian elite clapped each other on the shoulders and helped each other to their feet. Anyone who needed a healer limped off, most with their arms around someone else for balance.

Kara entered the hall and rounded a corner, following a pair of elite guards headed for what she thought was the exit.

“This way,” Braeden said.

She hesitated. He stood in the middle of the hall, his thumb pointing over his shoulder.

Oops.

She nodded and followed him in silence. Her feet throbbed, and she pushed away the thought of her tattered vest. She couldn’t deal with processing an in-game death right now. She wished for her bed, but the tension in her back tightened. She and Braeden shared a room, thanks to Evelyn. And while Kara hid her secret pleasure at that fact before, it filled her with dread now. He had that glint in his eye—there was something left unsaid, and it probably involved her staying back while he led the final battle. That wasn’t going to happen, and she wouldn’t escape the discussion tonight.

Several minutes of silence passed as they made their way out of the fort. Apparently, Braeden wasn’t going to speak first, and Kara didn’t know what to say. She’d done her best, and it wasn’t good enough. She’d lost the game, but at least Braeden made it. In the real world, only that mattered. They needed to kill Carden, and with Deidre at his side, death was a very real possibility.

Kara stared out the passing windows. Smoke billowed upward in the darkness, illuminated by the fires still burning along the wall. Blue and brown heads bobbed along the fence, blasting streams of water at the flames. Bit by bit, the flames receded.

All soldiers would have two days to rest and recoup. Ayavelian healers were the best in Ourea, and two days would be more than enough to let the men recover. Kara doubted she would be so lucky. The Bloods needed to discuss lessons learned from the game and alter their battle plan as necessary. They would need to strategize and debate. Even when she did get time to rest, she would worry. She didn’t even sleep well anymore. Since Braeden’s near-death experience at the Stele—and Gavin’s all-too-close rescue—she hadn’t slept through the night.

Hopefully this would all end soon. Once it did, Kara would sleep for days to make up for all the stress.

Kara reached the door to their bedroom first, with Braeden a few feet behind. She glanced at him as she twisted the knob. His arms were crossed over his chest, eyes on the threshold and out of focus. She groaned. He was likely choosing his words for what would be a heated discussion about why she shouldn’t go to the final battle with Carden. Her eyes stung. She needed sleep, not an argument. Flick hummed from his usual place on her shoulder, his eyes drooping.

The door swung inward. A man sat on their four-post bed, the dark wood blending with his cloak. He hunched, face toward the windows on the opposite wall.

Kara’s heart skipped a beat. Braeden stepped in front of her, body tense, one hand on his sword as he examined the intruder.

Stone turned around from his place on the bed and sat up straight. His salt-and-pepper hair framed the wrinkles in his face. He frowned and set his hands on his waist. “About time.”

Braeden relaxed his shoulders. Kara took a deep breath and shut the door.

“Make yourself at home,” she mumbled.

Kara’s hand lingered on the doorknob as her mind raced. She’d sent Stone off to make a vault in which to store the Bloods’ Sartoris, but Braeden didn’t know that. She didn’t even know how to ask her mentor, not yet. It required tact and an opportune moment she hadn’t had. A pang of guilt shot through her—she hated hiding anything from Braeden, especially something like this. But now wasn’t the right time to ask. She hoped Stone would have at least a little discretion and not mention it. Unlikely, but she hoped for it anyway.

“Niccoli is dead,” Stone said.

Kara sighed with relief as the topic of conversation shied away from her concern, but she paused just as quickly. “Who killed him?”

“I have no idea.”

“How could anyone kill such a powerful isen?” she asked.

“Perhaps a drenowith did it,” Braeden mused.

Stone shrugged. “It’s possible.”

“How do you know he’s dead?” Kara asked.

“I can’t sense him anymore.”

“What do you mean?”

“Niccoli’s reach for giving commands is very far—so far I could feel the orders even in my home. I never had to obey them, mind—not since I stole Bailey’s soul—but his orders always felt like a compulsion about nothing in particular, as if I’d forgotten something very important.”

“That would be an annoying feeling to live with,” Kara said.

Stone nodded. “Sometimes the sensation stopped, usually when Niccoli went into the human world. It faded two weeks ago, but it hasn’t returned. He doesn’t stay away from home for so long, not anymore. I heard rumors he was dead, and I took a detour from my errand to see for myself. It’s true.”

“What errand?” Braeden asked.

Kara tensed and avoided his stare. “I’ll tell you later. Right now, we should focus on Niccoli.”

Braeden grumbled something she couldn’t make out.

She sat on the bed, relief trickling down into her toes as she redirected the conversation. Flick leaped onto the comforter, his paws leaving indents as he trotted across the cotton spread toward his pillow on the nightstand.

“I’m glad Niccoli’s dead,” Kara admitted.

“Don’t be,” Stone chided.

“Why?”

“There’s a power void in the guild now. Niccoli kept thousands of isen in check, and now they’re roaming away from home, free for the first time. There will be a rise in isen attacks on yakona villages soon. There’s also a small war brewing in the guild itself as the elder children decide who will take over the guild in their master’s absence.”

Kara huffed. Great. Another war.

Braeden crossed his arms. “This doesn’t apply to us. We can warn the yakona villages to be on alert for attacks, but we need to focus on our fight with Carden.”

Stone laughed. “Nothing to do with us? It’s the worst news possible.”

Kara frowned. “How could—”

“Who is a contender to replace Niccoli? Any one of his elder children. Who is among them? Deidre.”

Kara’s eyes widened. She cursed.

“Exactly,” Stone said.

Braeden groaned. “And she’s Carden’s puppet. So if she manages to control the isen of Niccoli’s empire, how many would join Carden’s army?”

“I don’t know for certain. Tens of thousands, probably. Perhaps more,” Stone said.

Braeden sighed and sat in the desk chair. “Wonderful.”

“It’s the reason we need to reach them first,” Stone added.

“What now?” Kara asked.

“We must reach them before she does and convince them to join us instead.”

Braeden frowned.

Kara laughed in disbelief. “Why the hell would they follow us, Stone? I swear half of all yakona were isen hunters at some point. Let’s fight one war at a time.”

“There isn’t another option. We need to recruit them, and we need to go now.”

“How exactly are we going to recruit them? Shall I walk in, wave my wrist guard, and tell them I’m an isen, too?”

He nodded. “Pretty much, yes.”

“Why would they care?”

“Isen follow the strong, Kara. Your family line is feared in Niccoli’s guild. Agneon made plenty of enemies, but even they obeyed him. If you show the elder children your abilities, we will likely win them over. At a minimum, we can convince them to ignore Deidre when she inevitably comes.”

Kara leaned against the headboard. “Where would the isen fight, though? Is there room in the battle plan, Braeden?”

“On the front line with Gavin’s troops,” he said.

“I’m sure Gavin would love that,” Kara said, rolling her eyes.

“I can’t imagine isen fighting alongside Hillsidians,” Braeden admitted with a nod.

Stone shrugged. “The Hillsidians can fight with isen or against them at this point.”

Kara blew a raspberry. Those choices sucked.

“Fine,” she said.

Stone stood and leaned against the bed post. “When we arrive at the guild, I’ll introduce you, but that’s as far as my involvement will go. When you get the floor, state your case and terms quickly and confidently, without stuttering or emotion. Even then, you’ll likely have to prove yourself to them.”

Kara rubbed her face and suppressed an exasperated sigh. “How so?”

“The elder children will challenge you to see if you’re strong enough for them to follow.”