The Crow King's Wife (23 page)

“I do not want what was in that dream.”
Zoelyn said firmly, but kept her gaze fixed on the tea kettle she
was filling. She knew if she looked at him, Grim, would see the
lie.

“Who is he?” Grim pressed. He leaned back
further against the counter so he could glimpse her face. “Is it
the Blight? I mean Micah’s boy.” He asked hesitantly.

Zoelyn nearly dropped the tea pot as she
whirled to face him with a look of shock on her face. “Dray? No!”
she gasped and shook her head quickly. “Aspects no, Grim. Dray is
barely more than a child himself. He is like a little brother in my
eyes. He watches over me and I try to look out for him.” She
explained quickly then frowned as her eyes moved to the faint dawn
light outside the window. “Though in truth he has been spending
more time with Vosha these days than me.” She admitted with a
sigh.

“Vosha?” Grim queried and she could see him
turning the name over in his mind trying to determine if it
belonged to a man or woman.

“He is one of the Dragons that serves house
Merrodin, and before you ask, no the dream was not about Vosha
either.” She answered quietly and turned to set the water to boil.
She spent several minutes busying herself with mixing tea herbs and
thought he would let the matter go, but when she turned back to him
he was still watching her with narrowed eyes. “For the love of the
Aspects, Grim you are not even kin to me. Why are you so
protective?”

“Who else do you have to look after you,
Zoey?” he asked calmly. He ran a hand through his dark hair
ruffling the white tips before moving back to the table. “The least
I can do is make sure you will be ok before I go.” He added
quietly.

“I will be in Delvay. Neph won’t let anyone
near me there.” She assured him with a sigh. She wasn’t really sure
what Neph would think about Seth’s promise though. The memory of
the last time Seth had appeared in Delvay was still very clear in
her mind, and it had been apparent then that the demon had her
brother over matched. If it came down to a fight between the two of
them Neph didn’t have a chance.

“Why would NephonDelvayon care about you? He
barely cares for anyone aside from himself.” Grim objected
mildly.

“He is family.” She answered simply as she
pulled the hot water from the stove.

“Why were you in Arovan if he is your
family?” Grim demanded with more anger in his voice than she
expected.

The look on his face was one of quiet fury
and Zoelyn was glad she had mentioned it before they arrived in
Delvay. At least this way she had time to explain everything before
it could come to blows. Grim wasn’t the sort that sought out a
fight, but he wasn’t one that shied away from violence either. If
he thought someone deserved to have their teeth knocked out, he
would happily do just that.

“He thought I was dead, Grim. He would have
come for me had he known I still lived, and I had amnesia remember?
I didn’t contact him, and he had no way of knowing otherwise.” She
felt a pang of guilt as she spoke the words, but she wasn’t ready
to admit to him what she really was. Grim had always treated her
fairly, but then he didn’t know everything about her. He knew she
carried a curse, but he didn’t know exactly what it was, and she
wasn’t ready to explain it to him yet. Just the thought of having
him look at her with the same disgust his father had shown made her
cringe.

Footsteps sounded from the hall before he
could speak more on the topic and Zoelyn cocked her head at the
sound. It was too quick of a pace for Jala or Valor, and Legacy was
too small to make that much noise. The door burst open as the steps
grew closer and despite herself Zoelyn jumped. She let out a faint
sigh as Shade fairly skipped into the room and shook her head
slowly as she pulled another cup down from the cabinet. She gazed
at the goblin trailing along behind him with amusement. Shade was
the only person she could think of that would tolerate the
creature. Even Jala had seemed uncertain of it.

“Good Morning to you both.” Shade chirped in
a voice that was far too cheerful for a man that had been crippled
hours before. “Are you ready to destroy a country, save a child,
make an alliance with people that despise us, and break into the
best protected prison on Sanctuary?” He asked brightly with his
gaze directly on Grim.

“Yes, yes, no, and no.” Grim replied calmly.
He was watching Shade cautiously. “It’s rather early to be drunk or
on whatever drug you are partaking of.” He pointed out calmly.

“I have two eyes. I can walk and I have
insanely stupid goals ahead of me. Why wouldn’t I be in good
spirits?” Shade responded with a grin that bordered on madness.
“How about you Zoey? In good spirits today?” he asked turning his
attention to her when he realized Grim’s opinion of the day
apparently wasn’t going to change.

“She started her day off with a dream about a
man she won’t mention and nearly gave herself a concussion from
falling on the floor.” Grim informed Shade before she could even
open her mouth to reply.

Zoelyn stared at him in accusation and
narrowed her eyes before turning to look at Shade. “It was just a
dream, and my spirits are decent considering.” she answered as she
carried the tea to the table and sat a cup down for both of
them.

“Noble? Vosha? Dray? Who are we dreaming
about?” Shade asked as he settled in a chair and smiled at her.
There were no signs of his former wounds, and he was freshly
showered and dressed well. By just looking at him no one would ever
guess he had been on death’s door when he had arrived. It was the
good cheer that amazed her most though. She had fully expected
Shade to be angry or depressed when she saw him. Instead he was
buzzing with energy and apparently in a very good mood.

“None of them.” Zoey sighed in frustration
and shook her head at Shade. “Shade how can you possibly be this
happy knowing what today holds in store for you?” she asked in
confusion.

Shade raised an eyebrow at her as he tossed a
piece of dried meat to the goblin. The creature scurried from the
door to snatch the morsel and then settled beside his chair to
devour it. He smiled again and shrugged. “I don’t really see the
downside of what today has to offer.” He admitted with another
shrug and then busied himself tearing more pieces of jerky apart
for the goblin.

“Grim intends to commit suicide and you have
to assassinate someone.” Zoelyn reminded him stubbornly.

“Caleb won’t die because I won’t let him die.
I can count the true friends I have on one hand and I value each of
them too much to let them throw their lives away no matter what
idiotic notion they may get in their heads.” Shade corrected
calmly.

“And the Assassination?” Zoelyn pressed. She
settled in the chair across from him and watched him closely. He
didn’t even flinch at her words, but she knew how Shade felt about
killing. From what Jala had told her about the man, he didn’t
resort to violence unless he could see no other alternative. Shade
was typically the mellowest of the people she knew, and the idea of
him going into Rivasa to kill seemed too out of character for
him.

Shade sat silent for a long moment before
dropping the handful of jerky for the goblin. Turning slowly he
folded his hands on the table and leaned forward to meet her gaze.
His smile was gone replaced by a look of pure determination. “The
man I am going to kill is going to die for the crimes he has
already committed. He attacked a defenseless country and killed one
of the few individuals I can honestly say I respected. I justify
the blood I am spilling on the fact that it will be done for the
greater good. Not only will I be ridding the world of a horrible
person and avenging Micah Arovan, I will be forging peace for an
entire culture of people in the process. I am killing a man that
doesn’t deserve to live and I refuse to feel guilt for it.” He
lifted his chin as he spoke and his smile slowly returned. “I will
kill, Caleb will live, and Sanctuary will have peace. It’s as
simple as that. I refuse to allow it to end any other way.” He
finished in a voice that held no room for argument.

“Thank you so much for referring to my
intentions as an idiotic notion.” Grim said dryly. He sat down at
the table finally and pulled his cup of tea closer as he regarded
Shade with annoyance.

“I call it as I see it my friend. Life is too
precious to waste and friends are too important to lie to.” Shade
responded without the faintest hint of apology in his tone. His
gaze turned back to Zoey and he grinned again. “So Seth eh?” he
asked and she felt her face go red again. He nodded at her reaction
and smirked. “Figures. It’s always the ones like him that draw the
attention.”

“Seth?” Grim asked seizing the name at once.
He stared at Shade expectantly and didn’t even bother to look in
her direction.

“Shade please.” Zoelyn begged and to her
relief Shade glanced at Grim and then back to her but didn’t
elaborate.

“Let it go, Caleb. If I have learned anything
in the past year it is the simple fact that no matter how many
times you try to tell a woman that the one she adores is not right
for her she won’t listen, and as much as I hate to admit it there
are times that she is right to ignore you. I was never able to see
what Jala saw in Finn, but he gave his life to save her. In that
much at least I will admit I was wrong about him. There is a fair
chance that I’m wrong about Seth too.” Shade said and rose from his
chair without so much as looking at his tea. “Dray is coming with
us right Zoey?” he asked as he turned toward the door.

Zoelyn nodded silently and felt her tension
ease a bit at the question. He had changed the subject willingly,
and it was possible that the mention of Dray would keep Grim’s mind
too occupied to press her more.

“Excellent. I have a plan, but I will need
his help with it.” Shade announced then paused before stepping into
the hall and turned back to look at her a bit abashed. “Um where
exactly would I find him? I’m not sure which room is his.”

“He won’t be in his room at this hour. He
will be practicing with Vosha somewhere.” Zoelyn answered quietly
and rose from her chair.

“Somewhere?” Shade raised an eyebrow at her
with the question and she smiled in response.

“The two of them have become rather close
friends since we recovered Delvay, and Vosha has decided it’s his
duty to ensure Dray knows the appropriate skills for the next
battle.” Zoelyn explained with a heavy sigh. “He knows my feelings
on violence so he doesn’t include me on their training sessions. I
have a general idea of where they go, but honestly it depends on
what they are working on. Dray is learning swords, archery, and
magic and each one seems to require a different place to
practice.”

“So I should wander until I find them?” Shade
asked hesitantly.

“Or Zoey could show us where she thinks they
might be.” Grim suggested as he rose from his chair and headed for
the door that led to the gardens. “I confess I’d like to meet
Micah’s son. Valor says he is a mirror image of his father.”

“In appearance they could pass as twins.”
Shade informed him with a wide smile and to Zoey’s eyes he looked
entirely too pleased with his words.

Grim eyed him for a moment thoughtfully and
then slowly nodded his understanding. “So the Rivasans are going to
get a visit from a dead man are they?” he said softly.

“Perhaps.” Shade responded as he brushed past
Grim and stepped out into the early morning light. He inhaled
deeply and smiled as he glanced back at Grim. “It’s going to be a
beautiful day.” He declared cheerfully.

* * *

There was nothing beautiful about the day as
far as Zoelyn could see. The sky to the north was dark with
promised storms and the humidity of the air made her leather
clothes chafe against her skin. Her steps slowed at the edge of the
training grounds and she let her gaze sweep across the men that
already clustered there. Several were working on swords while still
more carried grain and fresh water to the horses stabled nearby.
None of them were Dray, but then she hadn’t really expected to find
him near so many people. Despite how Jala insisted they were
welcome in Merro, both she and Dray found it difficult to openly
move amongst crowds. There were only a rare few they felt truly
comfortable around, and just the sight of the soldiers in the yard
made her want to retreat back to the house.

The grass crunched behind her and she didn’t
need to look up to know it was Grim that stood beside her now.
Shade’s presence was vibrant and he would have spoken the moment he
paused, but Grim studied the training yard in silence before
turning his attention to her.

“Most of them seem to be Arovan. I see quite
a few I recognize.” There was a note of distaste in his voice that
didn’t surprise her at all. The men and women that had been sent to
Merro had been the dregs of the Arovan armies. If Grim knew them by
sight, he knew that fact as well. He hadn’t had a chance to see
what Valor had made of them yet. He was still judging them by what
they had been in Arovan.

“You still don’t like crowds, but then I can
understand why now.” Grim mused softly and nudged her shoulder as
he moved away from the activity. “Let’s see if he is on the other
side of the grounds. Once we are away from the stables there won’t
be as many about. I confess I have no desire to be seen
either.”

Zoelyn gazed up at him at his words and a
frown lightly creased her lips. She walked beside him for several
steps only glancing back once to watch as Shade strolled toward the
soldiers working at swords. No doubt he planned to simply ask where
to find Dray, and it was likely the faster approach, but given a
choice she preferred to simply look herself and avoid unnecessary
conversations.