Page 93 of Heart of Shadows

“Right,” Brand mumbled, dumbfounded. “Not a big deal.”

“We need to get her out of here,” Ragnar said, biting his lip as he felt Harper’s forehead.

“A moment, please. I need to give her strength to move.”

Aedon dragged his bloodied hand across her cheek and cocooned her under his other arm. He murmured words she couldn’t understand that slipped in and out of her ears as easily as wind through hair. Harper felt the tingle of magic rush through her. Slowly, the fog in her mind retreated, then her pain, until she felt well enough to sit up on her own.

“Better?” Aedon asked. She nodded, but he did not remove his support until she was on her feet and he was certain she could walk unaided.

“Let’s go,” snapped Erika. “The entire hold will have heard that din.”

“We need another way out,” Ragnar said with a pointed glance at Aedon.

“Remember, we’re not the Dragonheart,” said Aedon. “We’re the decoy. The king won’t be able to resist trying to pin me down now. Brand, take Harper and go. A tall, high place… You know what to do. We’ll see you on the other side. Erika, Ragnar, come with me. We can’t use the front door, so we might as well try the back.”

“Try?” asked Ragnar.

“We’ve been in worse predicaments,” said Aedon with a smile.

Ragnar spluttered.

“Come on!” Erika scowled and set off.

Harper looked at Aedon, completely baffled. “We have to split up?”

“Trust me,” said Aedon. For once, there was no hint of mischief. He was uncharacteristically serious. “We’ll see you soon.”

“Harper, this way.”

For a short time, they ran together through the hall. The clamour ahead set Harper’s nerves on edge once more. At a crossroads, the group split in two without a word. Harper followed Brand into the darkness. The Aerian forged ahead along a perfectly flat corridor, which was lit by tiny lamps that offered little help.

“Stairs,” was his only warning before they ran into the rising spiral. Harper pushed as hard as she could, struggling to keep up. Brand’s giant wings, which barely fit in the narrow confines, rustled and scraped along the thick stone. He pulled farther ahead. Her lungs burned. Her legs screamed.

A different kind of light emerged. Suddenly, there were slitted windows in the walls that punctuated the stairwell at every level. The stone here was over an arm’s length thick. As she raced past each opening, she glanced out. They were so high. Where were they going?

Soon, Brand came to a door. It offered little resistance against his bulk as he ran into it. He contorted his body to slip his wings through. Once he had made sure the coast was clear, he reached a hand in to tug her out faster.

Harper gasped. It was the pinnacle of Tournai. A watch tower. A walled ledge surrounded them. Brand peered over the edge. Harper followed suit. Her stomach flipped. They were so high up, she could not even comprehend the height. The road to the city was nothing more than a tiny ribbon trailing through the valley.

From where she stood, the wall around the city looked like parchment, the buildings a sprawling collection of crumbs. The wind tugged and tore at her, teasing that it would pull her off and fling her to her death below.

“Where do we go?” She turned in a circle, seeing nowhere else to go, except down the staircase from which they had emerged.

Brand pointed out… toward nothing.

Harper raised an eyebrow. A suspicious inkling began to unfurl in her stomach, and she very much hoped it was wrong. Oh no.

“We’re going to fly. Low and fast.”

“Slight problem,” she said, her tone light, though she felt like screaming. “I can’t fly.”

“I can,” Brand replied. He smirked a little at her discomfort.

“But you can’t carry me,” she said desperately. Not this high. Not this far. Not again. “There must be another way.”

“Nope.”

“They’ll see us!” The sun was high, and the sky bright. There was no way for them to escape undetected—and she did not want to be there when Toroth unleashed his dragons to hunt the skies.

---