Lily of the Desert (Silver and Orchids Book 4) Page 10

  Drip. Drip. Drip.

  Goosebumps rise on my arms, and a crawling sensation travels my spine. I gulp down my nerves, sure they’re from the many warnings and not from the premonition of danger itself. After all, what could possibly leap out at us in this ancient, dark, wet room?

  An icy breeze caresses my neck, and I jerk around, looking for its source. Next to me, Avery startles as well.

  “Did you feel that?” I barely whisper.

  Adeline’s light continues to quiver.

  My imagination takes over, and I see movement in the shadows, just beyond the black pool of collected water—just past the mage light.

  The others are right behind me, but I feel something else. It presses on my skin like a vapor, like icy tentacles, testing…tasting.

  “I don’t think the map’s down here,” I say as my brain whirls madly to process the sensation. It’s bringing back a memory—no, not a memory—remembered stories. Legends. Myths.

  Nightmares.

  We need to go. We must lock the door, see if we can close off the alcove.

  Just as I’m opening my mouth to give my companions a warning, an ear-piercing shriek echoes through the chamber, just as horrid as a siren’s cry.

  “Wraiths!” Avery yells, but he’s too late.

  The ghostlike beings rise from the water, ethereal and deadly. We stumble for the door, but it swings shut, locking the four of us inside. Gorin and the others yell on the outside, but there is nothing they can do. We are separated. No matter how I pull on the door, it won’t open.

  Adeline’s light gutters out and then springs to life, like a candle drowning in its own wax.

  “Keep it going, Addy,” Sebastian cries as he throws a knife at one of the monsters. It’s like slicing a cloud—his blade goes right through it and lands with a splash in the pool. “It’s the only thing keeping them at bay.”

  Silently thanking Avery, I nock one of my enchanted arrows and shoot it at the specter. The creature hisses once, but I know we’re in real trouble when it passes through, just like Sebastian’s knife.

  How do you kill a ghost?

  The wraiths surround us, trapping us in a circle, moving slowly like a snake squeezing its prey.

  “I don’t know if I can,” Adeline gasps. Her light surges, but just as quickly, it falls dim.

  One of the creatures dares to move forward, grasping at my arm. Its cold fingers cut right through me, and I cry out and yank back. It lets go, not daring to come into the light.

  “We need more, Addy,” Sebastian begs. “Everything you have.”

  “It’s all I’ve got,” she cries.

  The light grows dimmer by the moment. The room fades, getting darker and darker, until it’s dim enough one of the ghost-creatures decides to make a bold move. It lunges into the weak circle of light, wrapping itself around Sebastian. It drags him from Adeline’s light, into the pool.

  I try to run after him, but Avery holds me back. “Don’t be a fool! They’ll take you too!”

  My partner yells and flails in the water, trying to free himself. The wraiths go mad with sick, morbid glee.

  Adeline shrieks, and the heartbreaking sound is as deafening as the keening wail of the monsters. And then the struggle stops.

  “SEBASTIAN!” Adeline cries.

  But there is no reply.

  I fight Avery. When that’s no use, I stumble into the captain.

  Sebastian.

  Suddenly, the room flashes with light as bright as the sun itself. And in that moment, Adeline’s wails become something entirely different. She lets out a battle cry, a guttural yell that says she will not lose Sebastian.

  The abrupt switch from almost complete darkness to bright, hot light brings me to my knees. I cover my eyes, shielding them, but the light penetrates my eyelids and the arms I have over my face.

  Around us, Adeline’s scream is replaced with the dying cries of the wraiths. It’s a horrible noise, something that will haunt me every time I close my eyes.

  And then it goes silent.

  I dare open my eyes, and I find myself on the floor, crouched in Avery’s arms. Adeline stumbles to the ground, spent. Her light barely glows, a candle in a ballroom, but the wraiths are gone, and the room no longer carries their cold, dead essence.

  Sebastian lies gasping at the side of the pool, soaking wet. He looks up, coughing, and his eyes lock with Adeline’s. He crawls for her, and she stumbles for him. He yanks her close, holding her so tightly I’m afraid she might break in the fragile state she’s in.

  “You did it,” he practically gasps as he looks at her with fierce affection. “Adeline—you saved us.”

  She nods, tears streaming down her cheeks.

  And then he kisses her. It’s not a sweet kiss—not gentle or hesitant, but the kind that’s a long time coming. The kind that comes from near loss.

  Avery meets my gaze, still breathing hard, and raises his eyebrows. “About time.”

  Before I can answer, the door bursts open and Yancey comes barreling in like an angry bull. He stops short when he sees the threat has been vanquished.

  “Where did they go?” he asks, stunned.

  Avery rises to his feet, and then he offers me his hand. “Adeline toasted them.”

  “That was you?” Yancey demands, looking at the seamstress.

  She nods, overwhelmed.

  He gives her an approving look, one that says he’s impressed—which is like receiving a parade from anyone else.

  Gorin leans against the door frame, looking ill. I turn to him. “I don’t think the map is down here.”

  He waves the concern away as if it’s the last thing on his mind, but then he hangs his head, perhaps acknowledging that we came down here for nothing. “I know.”

  “I’m so sorry, Gorin.”

  “We’ll worry about it later. Are you all right?”

  I glance at Sebastian and Adeline, who are still clinging to each other. “I think we will be.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Time to Leave

  Avery lounges in the shade of a pillar on the edge of our dusty camp. “Who’s put it together that it’s the wraiths that tainted the water supply?”

  I glance at him as Esme wraps my wrist, horrified. “You don’t really think that, do you?”

  Sebastian wrinkles his nose. “The collected water isn’t all that deep. After all these hundreds of years, it should be flooded. It must be leaching into the aquifers.”

  After the words are out of his mouth, he shudders, likely remembering his time in the wraith’s clutches.

  Esme and Yancey have already tended his wounds as best as they can using a salve Yancey whipped up once we returned to camp. The pair makes a good team when they’re not fighting with each other. Now Sebastian’s arms and neck are covered in wrappings to cover the angry raised ice welts that gradually rose on his skin.

  I glance down at my own small wound. It aches with a vengeance—making me a little ill. I cannot imagine how awful Sebastian must feel, but he’s hiding the pain well—which is to be expected considering he’s had years of practice concealing his emotions.

  I thank Esme and stumble to my feet. “I need to lie down.”

  Avery turns to me, his easy expression now etched with concern. “Are you all right?”

  I nod and set a hand on my rolling stomach. “Too much excitement.”

  “Have you eaten?” he demands, leaving his shady spot to join me.

  I choked down a little of the awful dried meat this morning, and I tell him as much.

  “You’ve never minded it before,” he says, frowning.

  “I’m just so sick of it, Avery.” I wave his concern away. “We were attacked by wraiths, and we’ve been up for thirty-six hours now—I’m tired. I just need to rest for a bit.”

  He walks me to the tent even though I insist I’m fine.

  “Adeline’s resting,” I remind him. “No one’s badgering her.”

  “Adeline just pulled every ounce
of magic from a half mile vicinity.”

  “So she’s allowed to sleep, but I’m not?”

  Avery’s eyebrows shoot up, probably surprised at my sharp tone.

  “I’m sorry.” I rub my hands over my face. “But please go away so I can sleep.”

  He takes me by the shoulders and brushes his thumbs over my skin. “I don’t think less of you, Lucia. I was only concerned.”

  I nod.

  “You promise you’re all right? The wraith didn’t harm you more than you’re letting on?”

  “I’m fine. Honestly.”

  “All right.” He brushes a kiss over my forehead and nudges me into the tent with a grin. “Why are you still talking? Go lie down.”

  Gladly.

  But rest must not be in my future because the moment I stretch out on the bedroll, there’s a great ruckus outside, and Yancey begins screaming at my dragon. Did Flink have to choose now to come back to camp?

  I stay here for a moment, debating whether or not I’m going to pretend to be asleep, but I know I haven’t been in here long enough for that. Just as I rise to my feet, there is a horrible crash, and now everyone is yelling at Flink.

  I scramble out of the tent and come to an abrupt stop. Yancey’s table is on its side, and his supplies are scattered on the ground. Flink’s running about the camp, chasing a tiny something. Everyone stands on the edges, yelling, but no one bothers to stop him.

  “What is it?” I holler to Gorin.

  “Sand lizard,” he calls back. “Stay back—they’re poisonous.”

  Of course they are. Is there any creature in this wretched kingdom that isn’t?

  The lizard finally runs into a small crack in the outer wall, losing Flink. The dragon paces back and forth, hoping it will be foolish enough to run back out.

  “Lucia!” Yancey turns to me, livid. “Do you see what your beast has done?”

  I look at the supplies. One glass beaker is broken and another is chipped. The rest of his precious explosive powder is scattered on the ground, as are many of his dried herbs.

  “I’m sorry, Yancey.”

  What am I going to do with Flink? We can’t keep on this way.

  The alchemist must be able to tell how sincerely I mean the apology because his expression softens. “That was all my tinroot powder—I can’t purify any more water without it.”

  Gorin looks ill. He turns away from camp, walking down the road that leads to the city. Esme glances at me, gives me a soft, bolstering look, and hurries after her uncle.

  Sebastian turns to Yancey. “How much water do we have left?”

  Yancey walks to the bucket—the one he had to fish out of the well. It’s high on a wall in the shade where the dragon hopefully can’t reach it.

  “I have enough to fill each of our water skins, but that’s about it. We have to leave today.”

  He doesn’t look as happy about it as I thought he would. I guess after everything, it seems a waste to leave without finding the map.

  I help gather Yancey’s supplies off the ground, and Avery leans down to assist. The captain pauses when he picks up a faded book with a worn leather jacket. “What’s this?”

  Yancey looks over. “I found it inside. It’s an alchemy journal. I thought I’d look at it, but with the cobras, wraiths, demon dragons, and adventuress who dropped my bucket in the well, I haven’t had a free moment.”

  “Is it in Rilcreal?” I ask, taking it from the captain. But when I flip through it, I find it’s in the common language of the kingdoms. It must not be as old as it looks.

  Leaving the mess, I stand. There are a lot of recipes, but also the alchemist’s notes—his experiences, where to find specific ingredients. My heart starts to beat wildly. The sketches are beautiful and simple, and I flip through it madly, stopping at all the flowers.

  When I find it, I almost drop the journal. “It’s in here,” I breathe. “This is the alchemist’s journal.”

  Avery’s at my side in an instant. I bat his hands away when he attempts to steal the journal from me to take a better look himself.

  “…lost the map I copied from the pillar,” Avery reads over my shoulder. “I think it blew out of my pack when I crossed under the dragon bridge on the way out of the village. Hopefully, I will find my workroom in one piece when I return. Wretched Kalaen soldiers had torn down half of it by the time I escaped.”

  I turn to Sebastian. “When were we at war with Elrija?”

  He shakes his head. “Not for centuries.”

  “This can’t be that old.”

  We study it for a while longer, but none of us is familiar enough with the kingdom to guess at what the man is referring to.

  Eventually, Gorin and Esme return.

  “Gorin!” I yell. “We’ve found something.”

  He runs forward, almost tripping in his haste. He snatches the offered journal from my hand and frowns as he reads the text. “Dragon bridge,” he muses aloud.

  “Do you know what he’s talking about?”

  Gorin shakes his head. “I don’t, but this is a good start. At least we have some clue what we’re looking for. Once we figure out what village he was speaking of, we can find the original map.”

  After letting Adeline sleep for another hour, we pack up camp, load the mules and donkeys with our supplies, and gladly leave Struin Aria.

  “Where are we headed?” I ask Gorin once the abandoned city is well behind us.

  “Malka is a large city on the Elrijan river, and we should reach it by tomorrow. Their scholars’ guild houses one of the largest libraries in the kingdom. Hopefully, we can find information on the village with the dragon bridge while we’re there.”

  “Will we have enough water to make it?”

  “There’s a creek that runs down from the Tairan Mares. It’s a bare trickle in most seasons, but it should be running this time of year. We’ll camp there for the night.”

  “How far?”

  “Not very.”

  And thank goodness. We’re all half-dead. Adeline’s fast asleep, slumped against Sebastian’s back. Avery’s far too quiet, and Yancey and Esme don’t even have the energy to bicker.

  Just when I think we won’t make it any farther, tall, green trees appear in the distance. I blink several times, not certain I should believe my eyes.

  “Gorin, I think I’m hallucinating,” I call to him as I ride slumped over on my donkey. “Those look like trees.”

  “Those are trees, Lucia. The creek is right ahead.”

  I’m so tired, I could cry. My stomach has felt off all day, and I want to sleep for the foreseeable future.

  Flink runs ahead of us and burrows into the soft, silty soil by the water. Finally, we too reach the trees. They are tall, with strong, stout trunks and crinkled bark. Their leaves are large and grow in clusters from small branches, casting the ground in lovely shade.

  I slide from my donkey, already dreaming of blissful sleep.

  There’s little conversation between us as we set about our tasks. Before the sun even sets, we’re in our tents.

  Avery lies next to me, murmuring goodnights against my neck, and then falls right to sleep. Nothing feels better than our bedroll and the lumpy ground. Idly, a thought drifts into my head as I feel myself falling. Is anyone on watch?

  Before I can worry over it, I’m already out.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  City of Lanterns

  “Maybe they weren’t stolen,” Avery says wryly. “Perhaps they went for a morning walk.”

  I glare at my husband, not in the mood for his particular brand of humor at the moment.

  The mules, Avery’s horse, and both the donkeys are missing. If it’s not one thing, it’s ten others. My easy expedition is getting more difficult by the day.

  Flink’s gone as well, but since he’s gotten into the habit of wandering, I’m not too concerned about him. At least not yet.

  Gorin sits on a tree stump, his head in his hands. He hasn’t spoken all morning.

>   Esme stands with Yancey, looking like she wants to lighten the situation but has no idea how. “This is a popular stop for the caravans,” she finally says. “Someone will be by soon, and we can travel with them.”

  “How soon is soon?” Yancey asks.

  She wrinkles her nose. “A week, maybe two?”

  Adeline is handling the news surprisingly well, but she looks nervous. “How much food do we have left?”

  “Enough for half a week,” Sebastian answers. “A few days more if we’re careful.”

  I hold up my hand. “I volunteer to give up my share.”

  Avery flashes me a stern look. I smile like I’m joking, but the truth is, I’m starting to get anxious. I’ve felt off for days, and even after a full night’s rest, I’m still exhausted. This morning I was ill as soon as I woke up. Luckily, I managed to sneak out of the tent without waking Avery. I don’t want him to worry, but I’m afraid I might have contracted something.

  Though I hate to, once we’re in Malka, I’m going to have to find a healer. If we ever make it, that is.

  Flink returns early in the afternoon and finds a spot to nap in the shade.

  The rest of us are restless.

  Yancey spent the morning organizing what’s left of his supplies, and Adeline’s been working on a handkerchief all day. Avery and I hike up the creek so we can have a few moments to ourselves. Flink wanders with us for a while, and then he gets bored and goes off to do whatever it is dragons do in the desert. He’s probably hunting snakes and lizards. There’s no denying he’s taken a liking to them.

  We find a small waterfall and rest in the spray. I’m sullen, melancholy. If we’d gotten on Avery’s ship fifteen minutes sooner, Gorin would have never found me, and we wouldn’t be stuck in the middle of the desert, hoping for a passing caravan to rescue us.

  “I’m about done with Elrija.” I watch a giant dragonfly settle on a tall reed growing by the creek.

  Avery catches my arm and pulls me over to him. I settle on his lap and put my arms around his neck. We haven’t had enough of this time, just us. We’ve been married for a month, and the only time we’re alone is at night.