Fires of War (War and Deceit #4) - Erin O'Kane Page 0,120

I don’t understand what he’s saying, my focus on the prince.

Tilting his head to one side, he blinks his black, soulless eyes at me, his smile widening, showing too many teeth. “Why would I do that when I can have all of you?”

Fear unlike anything I’ve ever felt before pulses through my veins as he raises his arms, and I realise I’m too late. His body seems to shimmer as a thick, inky mist leaves his hands, crawling towards us across the ground. I hold my breath, knowing that if that magic fog was to touch us, death would surely follow. There’s movement to my right, where Grayson and Ellis make sweeping gestures with their hands, their faces tight with concentration. My skin tingles with the strength of their magic as they strengthen the barrier. Vaeril pulls me back against him, holding me closer, and I feel the hands of the others as they lean through the open carriage door. Their touches steady me as we all watch the swarming fog.

When it hits the barrier, the mages grimace, but they stay strong as the fog crawls up and over the invisible dome-like shield. I watch Rhydian through the gaps of the writhing mist as it continues to move over us, his grin still stretched wide. He doesn’t seem upset that his power hasn’t reached us, almost like…like that was never the purpose of it in the first place. As I turn around, everything speeds up, the mist suddenly gaining a life of its own and creating a living, writhing barrier across the open gateway, blocking our escape.

I realise now what my earlier premonition was referring to, and it was this moment. If I want my friends to escape, I’ll have to break the spell, and to do that, I need to touch it. There is no way Rhydian is going to let us go easily. If there were just the six of us, then we might have been able to slip through, but with a group this size and a spell that large…

Grayson dismounts from his horse and hurries over to my side, his eyes on the moving barrier impeding our escape. I know what he’s going to ask, and the weight of that responsibility is hanging heavily over him, so I won’t make him say it. As he reaches us, I reach out and take his hand, turning to my companions in the carriage. Vaeril’s face is already set in a disapproving frown, having sensed the direction of my feelings. “I have to break the spell,” I tell him before turning to the others. I don’t miss Grayson’s quiet sigh or the feeling of relief and little pulses of love reaching me from our bond.

Turning to him, I squeeze his hand, needing to make sure he understands. I know my elves would happily sacrifice the others if it meant I would be safe and return to them. However, Grayson will get the others to safety if I ask him to, he understands this is about more than just me. “As soon as the barrier is down, you need to rush through, it won’t be long before it’s back up again.”

Eldrin makes a noise in the back of his throat. “Don’t you have to touch the magic to break it?” I don’t reply, but he takes one look at my face and snarls, trying to fight his way through the small carriage doors to grab hold of me. “No, no way.”

Heart in my throat, I jump back a few steps so I’m out of his reach, all of their reaches, the tingle of the magical barrier pressing against my back in warning. I’m about to cross the line, possibly in more ways than one. Glancing over my shoulder, I notice most of the mist has cleared from the courtyard now and Rhydian is starting to straighten. We’re out of time.

“I will join you as soon as I can,” I say in a rush, seeing the prince’s approaching figure as he starts sluggishly strolling towards us. The magic seems to have slowed him at least.

“And how are you going to do that?” Eldrin fires back. We all know that once the spell is broken, I’ll likely collapse. The likelihood that I’ll be able to catch up with mages on horseback and carriages is…unlikely.

“You’ll find me.” I look at my mates, smiling, even though I want to cry. “We have a connection. You’ll find me,” I assure them in a hurried whisper.