Page 103 of Given

I crossed the cell. He snagged my arm and pulled me against him, then pressed his mouth to my ear. “I’m getting you out of here.”

“But Laurent—”

“Shhh.” Abruptly, his voice filled my head. “Listen to me. The Deepnight is failing. Disappearing. If the canopy disintegrates, the people will burn and Nor Doru will fall. Laurent believes the prophecy you overheard has something to do with you.” There was a pause, and then his voice flowed again. “He thinks you and I are supposed to conceive an elven-born child. And his priests have convinced him that he needs to toss that child into the Rift so it can reemerge and save the kingdom from the unveiled sun.”

Confusion and shock formed a whirlwind in my mind. But in the center of it, icy cold reigned. “What?” I whispered.

Varick spoke aloud again, holding me tightly with his breath tickling my cheek. “I don’t know anything about the prophecy, but enough men with power have convinced Laurent that it’s real. He is the king. If he thinks he has to do this to save the realm, he will.”

“But…I’m not pregnant.” As soon as I said it, I realized I didn’t actually know that. Not after what happened in Laurent’s bed. I jerked my head back so I could see Varick’s face.

The look in his eyes told me his thoughts matched mine. “I came inside you tonight.” Bitterness flashed across his features. “An outcome no doubt arranged by Laurent.”

The icy center inside me cracked. Laurent thought I’d betrayed him. But he’d betrayed me, too. And he’d done the same to Varick. “What will you do?”

For a moment, pain hovered in Varick’s eyes. Then he blinked and it was gone. “Right now, I’m going to get you out of Lar Katerin. Then I’ll return and try to talk sense into Laurent.” A muscle in Varick’s jaw jumped. “He’s been under more pressure than I realized. I should have paid closer attention.”

He blamed himself for Laurent’s plans? “Varick—”

“Come,” he said in my head. “I’ll take you somewhere safe.”

“Where?”

“Wesyfedd.”

Of course. It was the only place that made sense. I couldn’t go to Sithistra, and I definitely couldn’t stay in Nor Doru. The mountains and caves of Wesyfedd were the perfect destination for someone who didn’t want to be found.

“Brother Jordan,” I said suddenly. “Could he—?”

“No.” Varick’s voice was clipped. His eyes hard. “It’s best if we go alone. And we have to go right now. We can’t linger here.” He took my hand and pulled me with him past a row of empty cells just like mine. On our way out of the dungeon, he grabbed the lamp from a hook in the wall.

With a firm grip on my arm, he hurried us through a series of tunnels. Despite his size, his steps were nearly silent. I tried to be just as quiet, but I was hampered by my long skirts that tangled around my legs and tried to trip me every few steps. The tunnels reminded me of the ones Laurent had taken me through the day we rode to Lar Satha. But these weren’t quite the same. The ceilings were higher, and the air smelled of horses and leather. Moments later, Varick helped me through a tall wooden door.

Swirling snow and freezing air blasted my face as we stepped into a dark courtyard. I looked up and saw the Serenity Tower looming over us.

Varick pulled me against him, his expression grim. “We move quickly, and we don’t look back.”

“All right,” I whispered, my heart thumping painfully.

“Do you trust me?”

My lips parted. Did I? I’d followed him from the dungeon without protest. I was willingly leaving the city with him. It never occurred to me that he might be lying. But my gut told me he wasn’t. The pain he was fighting to keep from his eyes made me believe Laurent had wounded him deeply.

And I’d heard Rolund and Crasor with my own ears. “The savior of the realm will be bound in blood and reborn from the Rift.” If my child was supposed to save Nor Doru, it made sense that the Brotherhood—and my brother—wanted me dead.

“I trust you,” I rasped.

Varick released me and moved into the shadows. When he reemerged, he led two horses. He pulled a bundle from one of the saddlebags. When he shook it out, I realized it was a long, black cloak. He wrapped it around me and fastened it under my chin like I was a child. Then he tossed me up and mounted his own horse.

“Keep your head down. If you hear a shout, ride like hell.”

* * *

No one shouted. We slipped from the city under the cover of darkness, and when we reached the gates, we galloped hard. We rode without stopping, and soon our horses frothed at the mouth. Varick and I didn’t fare much better—at least I didn’t. Snow pelted my face and gathered on my eyelashes. The cold pierced my cloak and gown, and I shivered even as sweat trickled down my back.

An hour passed. Then two. And still we rode, eating up the frozen countryside.

My world shrank to the dark sky, the blinding snow, and the rhythmic sound of our horses’ hooves flying over the ground. The galloping pace shook my bones, and I found myself clenching my jaw as I leaned over the beast’s neck. Varick looked at me now and then, but he didn’t slow. And he didn’t speak in my head again. He was a big, powerful presence at my side, his own cloak snapping behind him.

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