Keeper of Storms (The Fallen Fae #3) - Jenna Wolfhart Page 0,66
nothing more. It will calm your storm, but only for a bit. Long enough to provide you some relief, I suspect.”
“Thank you,” Reyna whispered, as the calm spread through her every limb, loosening her tense muscles, unwinding the knots in her neck. “But what happens when it wears off?”
“Then, I will make you some more,” Laoise said. “And I will keep on making it until you are able to find your calm yourself.”
“I…” Reyna trailed off, overcome. “Laoise, I—”
“I know.” Her smile crinkled her eyes again. “Now, get some rest. We have a big job to do, and you need to be at your best.”
Reyna did not get to sleep for long. The thunder of boots on cobblestone roared through the city as soon as the sun dipped below the western horizon, its reddish haze flaring into purples and pinks. With alarm shattering her peaceful dreams, Reyna threw back the covers and leapt to her feet.
Laoise stood by the window, peeking behind the makeshift curtain.
Reyna edged up beside her, hands clenched. “What’s happening?”
“The warriors are back. They’re searching every house.” Laoise’s voice was thick with tension. “They’ve just started on this street. I imagine they’ll be here within the hour.”
Reyna’s heart thundered in her ears. “But they’ve already searched this street. They already looked for me here.”
“Well, they’re back.” Laoise dropped the curtain back over the window, her body trembling. “Maybe they realized two of their warriors went missing.”
“No, I suspect they’ll take me to the king. He’ll want to chop off my head himself.”
Her cheeks blanched. “And that doesn’t scare you?”
Reyna shrugged. “Your brew is making me feel more level-headed than I’ve felt in weeks.”
Grief still raged through her. Not a single part of her heart felt whole. But…she could think. And that was enough to keep her moving.
“So, then what do we do, princess?” Laoise shivered, glancing back at the curtain again. She twitched, as if she was desperate to check where the warriors were now, if they’d grown closer. “Hide you in the cellar with the…others? And hope the guards don’t look inside?”
“They’ll look inside,” Reyna said. “There’s no carpet hiding the cellar door anymore. We have to leave out the back before they get here. It’s the only way.”
Laoise nervously glanced at the back alley window. “That window doesn’t open, princess.”
“So, I’ll break it.” Reyna strode toward the back window, sweeping up the metal pot on her way. She smashed the glass window and knocked away every last remaining shard so that Laoise wouldn’t cut herself climbing out. “Go on then. You first.”
Laoise nodded. She bustled through the room, snatching a leather bag from the floor and shoving the herbs inside. Reyna almost asked her to stop, to hurry, but she knew they’d need them later when the Ruin burst back into her mind again. She wouldn’t be able to keep going if the storm dragged her beneath the waves of her grief.
Laoise climbed through the window. Reyna followed just behind her. She didn’t bother to clean up the glass. The guards would know she’d been here as soon as they opened the cellar door.
Shadows whorled through the alley, clinging to the narrow path that twisted through the black stone buildings. Laoise led the way. They raced as fast as their feet could carry them, taking forks in the path when they could. They passed homes and shuttered shops. Every so often, the sound of sobs would drift toward them from somewhere nearby. In the distance, screams shattered any hope of peace.
When Laoise finally slowed to a stop, she motioned for Reyna to join her behind a half-wall that jutted out from the building to their right. Voices shouted from somewhere up ahead, and a familiar scent drifted on the wind. Reyna’s lips curled at the iron twang.
It was blood.
“Where are we?” Reyna whispered, heart hammering.
“Fomorian Square.”
Reyna pressed her lips together. “That’s close to the castle. And it sounds like there are warriors up ahead.”
“I know.” Laoise gave her a grim smile. “Just before I found you, I heard they were here.”
Reyna’s heart thumped. “Laoise…”
“I want you to see what they’re doing.”
Dread coiled like a snake ready to strike. “I know you think I can save your city, but I can’t. And even if I could, I couldn’t do it like this.”
“Just look,” she hissed.
With a shuddering sigh, Reyna shook her head and then peered around the wall. In the center of