Page 116 of Prince of Shadow and Ash

Regulus yanked his hand free and covered her mouth for real this time. “You will be silent!” He cringed under the helm. The man turned his horse and fled. Regulus dropped his hand. “I’m sorry. Are you all right?”

She nodded. “If he does as I asked, you should be in the clear. Hopefully.”

“You nearly had me convinced.” He looked around and prodded Sieger forward. “We better get out of here. The rest of the hunting party might have heard you.”

Other than a couple peasants out gathering firewood, who saw them, dropped their bundles of wood, and ran, they didn’t see anyone else. Regulus wondered what Carrick had made of his absence from Arrano; if Dresden had convinced Carrick that he and Adelaide hadn’t seen each other since the previous night when Carrick took her away. Would that coward of a hunter go to Arrano or the Drummond estate? What would Carrick make of the news Adelaide had been captured? And what about Gaius? Minerva?

He looked over at Adelaide through his helm. “What about Minerva?”

“What about—” She paled. “She doesn’t know I’m safe.” She said a string of what he was pretty sure were Khast curse words. Her shoulders slumped, and his heart ached. “What have I done? If that hunter goes to the Drummonds, she’ll think...” She straightened. “She will think it’s peculiar I told him to find you and Nolan.” A hopeful look came over her face. “She’s smart. She’ll realize I wouldn’t ask him for help. Hopefully.”

“Maybe.” He tried to sound optimistic, but his voice sounded harsh in the helm.

Night had fallen when they arrived at the tower. Adelaide gawked at the dead trees as they rode in the moonlight and shadow. His heart grew heavier as each hoof beat brought them closer to the sorcerer. The most dangerous man he had ever met. And he was leading the woman he loved right to him. They stopped in front of the tower and he dismounted. He stuffed his helm in his saddlebag then crossed to Zephyr’s side. Adelaide looked at the bone-white trees as he removed the rope from her hands.

“What happened to them?”

“I don’t know. It’s like his sorcery infects them, and they just die.”

He helped her down. The door to the tower creaked open as her feet hit the ground. They both looked toward the door as the sorcerer emerged, cloaked in black and red and gold, his face half-hidden under his hood as usual.

The sorcerer smiled and stroked his beard. “I knew you’d find a way, boy.”

“I brought her, as you commanded.” Regulus ground his teeth. “You said you would release me.”

The sorcerer laughed, dark and menacing. “I said I would release youaftershe helped me.” He walked toward them, and Regulus covered Adelaide with his own body. “Oh, move out of the way.” The sorcerer flicked his hand, a hint of green light shooting from his fingers and forming a blast that knocked Regulus aside.

“Don’t hurt—” Regulus gasped and fell to one knee as pain erupted on his arm.

“Stop!” Adelaide moved toward him, but the sorcerer raised a shimmering transparent wall that gleamed faintly with green light between them, from the base of the tower far into the trees. She looked back at the sorcerer and squared her shoulders, her chin lifted. Regulus smiled despite the pain. The sorcerer looked her up and down.

“Hm.” The sorcerer turned and walked back toward the tower, leaving the wall separating Regulus and Adelaide standing. “Let’s see what, if anything, you can do.” He whirled around and thrust out his hand, sending several large, pointed shards that glowed green toward Adelaide.

“No!” Regulus leapt to his feet, but a shock of pain sent him back down.

Adelaide gasped and held out her hands. A shield of cobalt-tinged light flashed into existence in front of her, just before the shards slammed into it with a crackling sound. The shards disintegrated, but Adelaide staggered back, and the shield blinked out of existence. At least she knew how to defend herself. But why was the sorcerer doing this?

“You said you wouldn’t hurt her!”

“And I won’t, if she stops me.” The sorcerer held out his hands and ropes glowing a sickly green snaked out of his wide sleeves.

Panic crushed Regulus’ chest.Not again. Etiros, please, not again.He fought through the pain and tried to get to Adelaide through the sorcerer’s barrier, but it knocked him back as the ropes swayed toward her.

Adelaide held out her hands and jets of fire enveloped the ropes. Regulus could feel the heat even through the transparent wall. The sorcerer hissed and clenched his fists, then pulled his hands back. She stumbled forward, and the flames withered. The ropes lengthened and shot toward her.

“ADELAIDE!” Regulus punched the wall, which rippled but remained intact.

She summoned another shield of blue light. The ropes bounced around the shield and wrapped around her arms, pinning them to her sides. Regulus franticly shoved his shoulder against the barrier, but it wouldn’t give. Adelaide curled her hands into fists and screamed. Not a high-pitched scream of fear. A low scream that started in her chest and built. A scream of anger. A scream of strength. Not a scream at all.

A war cry.

Regulus had been in enough fights to recognize that desperate anger. Pale blue light flashed, and she pulled her arms away from her sides in a quick motion. The ropes snapped and disintegrated. Her chest heaved. A nearly imperceptible blue aura shone off her skin.

Regulus gaped at Adelaide. At the power she had kept hidden. She raised her hand and a spear of blue light materialized in her fist. She threw it at the sorcerer with fury. The sorcerer erected his own shield, which absorbed her spear.

The sorcerer applauded slowly. “Well—”

Adelaide made a sound like a growl and three sharp, shining magic throwing knives appeared between her fingers.

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