Page 53 of Sharpen Your Claws

The satchel became one of the few things from the war that he didn’t mind carrying. However, deep down, he didn’t believe the bag would be of any help. Shadowed disciples took his patients, and certainly not for good reason. They would probably bring home corpses, but he swung the bag over his shoulder, anyway.

He gave the stairs one last look, relieved that no one was there. If Matilda saw him leaving, she may try to stop him, so he left quietly.

Outside, Marshall had the horse and carriage ready. He also told William to be careful before heading inside. At the end of the road, two figures appeared. Nicholas and Evera didn’t have packs with them. He should have expected as such but still snorted. They’d be nagging him for snacks and drinks later.

As he loaded the few supplies they could carry, Nicholas came up behind him to kiss his neck. “I missed you.”

“Is that truly the first thing you have to say to me today?” he asked.

“It is because it is true. I dislike spending even a minute away from you.” Nicholas hopped onto the driver’s bench. Evera sat on the roof, letting her legs hang over the side. Nicholas offered his hand, smiling. “Let our adventure begin.”

“This is hardly an adventure,” he replied, but took Nicholas’ hand.

The fae tugged him onto the bench, where William grabbed the reins. The carriage traveled through the waking streets of Alogan, where people waddled to their workshops and bakeries. Charmaine waited outside The Gilded Lily in a pair of pants and traveling boots, neither of which he had seen on her for the last two years. Yawning, she offered a half hearted good morning prior to crawling into the carriage. Shockingly, Evera followed.

Nicholas knocked William’s hands aside to take the reins. “I’ll take it from here.”

“Where are we headed exactly?” he asked.

“Outside the city. We should reach the scar before the sun sets.”

“What will it be like going through the shimmer?” he asked.

“Like swimming through water,” Nicholas replied. “You must be careful not to go downstream.”

“What does that mean?”

“You can get lost. Even if you feel a tug, do not follow it. Actually,” Nicholas glanced behind them toward the carriage. “It would be best if we go through hand in hand, so no one gets lost.”

He didn’t like the sound of that. He never heard of anyone getting lost. Then again, he didn’t know many who passed through shimmers.

Nicholas’ driving skills were questionable. The horse sped up and slowed at random intervals, typically due to him being distracted by their surroundings. He hadn’t left Alogan since his arrival, so being outside the city intrigued him. He kept asking what languages the trees spoke, then got disappointed upon realizing they couldn’t talk.

They traversed back roads so rocky the carriage swayed. If William had eaten more than a roll for breakfast, he would have gotten ill. Instead, he clung painfully to the bench and willed his brain not to spill out his ears.

Nicholas jerked the reins. Someone in the carriage shrieked. He would have fallen off if Nicholas weren’t beside him. A wild laugh escaped the fae when they went off the road, flying between trees and brush. Charmaine threatened to get sick from Nicholas’ careless driving. That encouraged the fae to make it worse, ripping through the trees to make the carriage wheels shriek with every turn. The carriage didn’t slow until almost noon. They came to an abrupt halt that nearly sent William off the bench.

“Here we are!” Nicholas jumped down and pushed aside a bush to reveal the shimmer, little more than a thin line of blue light between the trees. One would struggle to find it if they didn’t know its exact location.

“Finally.” Charmaine dropped out of the carriage to kiss the ground. “He is never driving again.”

Pouting, Nicholas argued, “I got us here unharmed.”

“My stomach is harmed.”

Nicholas glanced at William to save him, which he would not do. “You are a reckless driver,” he said.

Nicholas clicked his tongue. “I’m underappreciated.”

“Aren’t we all?” Henry asked, causing William and Charmaine to curse. Evera and Nicholas didn’t look surprised.

He thought he hallucinated his brother riding up behind them. He waited for the inevitable change, the melting of reality, colors fading to black and Fearworn clawing out of the shadows. But nothing happened save Henry closing in. A bag hung over his horse’s rump.

Henry descended, clutching a stuffed satchel against his side. He wore a dark gray cloak, hood up, and a pair of slightly worn boots. William reached out, that time hoping his mind to be playing tricks, that his hand would pass through Henry’s mirage. Instead, his fingers landed upon Henry’s arm, firm and real.

His expression hardened to stone. “Why are you here?”

“Because I’m coming with you.” Henry retrieved the supplies from his horse to swing the pack over his shoulder.

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