Page 54 of Crowned By the Shadow
“Not yet,” Thorn cautioned, scanning our surroundings. “We’re still too close to the Keep.”
I turned to Wyn, who was breathing hard from the exertion of maintaining her shadow powers for so long. “Can you sense if we’re being followed?”
She closed her eyes, reaching out with her new senses. “They’re still coming, but slowly. The tunnels confuse them.” Her eyes opened, concern evident in their starlit depths. “ButEldric is another matter. He knows these mountains better than anyone. He’ll find another way out.”
“Then we need to move,” I said, reaching for the pendant at my throat. “I can open a passage to take us farther away.”
I grasped the Veilshard Pendant, feeling its familiar weight settle in my palm. The connection to the realms buzzed beneath my skin, a low hum of energy that urged me to act. I had no time to waste.
“Stand back,” I instructed, turning toward the mountainside. The moonlight glinted off the pendant, casting ethereal shadows around us. I focused on the image of safety, of being away from Eldric, away from the Obsidian Keep, and felt the energy of the pendant surge in response.
As I channeled my magic through it, the air shimmered before us, bending and warping as a portal formed. Wisps of silver and shadow danced around the edges, creating a threshold that flickered with promise.
“We’re close to the river,” Wyn said, her voice steady despite her exhaustion. “It’ll lead us away from here.”
“Then we’ll go there,” I replied, glancing back at Thorn and Ronan as they helped Van and Volker along. Their faces were etched with determination, but fatigue threatened to pull them under.
The portal expanded into a gaping archway, pulsing with energy. “Now!” I shouted, gesturing for everyone to move through.
Thorn helped Van step forward first, followed closely by Ronan and Volker. I felt a pang of anxiety as they disappeared into the shimmering void. Would this lead us to safety? Or deeper into danger?
“Go!” Wyn urged me gently, her hand resting on my shoulder for reassurance.
I took a deep breath and stepped through just as Eldric’s voice echoed behind us. “You can’t escape! You belong to me!”
The world twisted around me, a rush of light and shadow collided with my senses. A moment later, I stumbled onto solid ground again, gasping for breath as reality snapped back into focus.
We emerged at the edge of a riverbank beneath a starry sky. The water flowed smoothly past us under silvery moonlight; its gentle sound was a balm against our racing hearts.
“Did we lose him?” Ronan asked, scanning our surroundings.
“I think so,” Wyn replied breathlessly as she steadied herself against a nearby tree trunk. “For now.”
Volker sank down onto a mossy patch by the water’s edge, clearly exhausted. “We need to regroup and plan our next move.”
I nodded, but felt an unsettling weight in my chest. Eldric wouldn’t give up easily. We needed more than just escape; we needed to stop him for good.
Chapter
Seventeen
Senara
The river lapped gently against the mossy bank as I helped Volker settle onto a fallen log. His face was ashen, but relief shone in his eyes as he looked at each of us.
“You came back for us,” he said, his voice hoarse.
“Of course we did,” I replied, checking the makeshift bandage on his arm. The wound beneath had festered, angry red lines spreading outward from the gash. “We wouldn’t leave you there.”
Van sank down beside Volker, exhaustion clear in every line of his body. Still, a shadow of his usual irreverent smile played across his lips. “I told you they would come,” he said to Volker. “The Eclipse Child is nothing if not stubborn.”
Thorn knelt beside me, passing a water skin to Van. “How long were you imprisoned? How did you get into the Keep to begin with?”
“Three days, maybe four,” Van replied after taking a long drink. “Time blurs in that place. They separated us at first, but then decided we were less trouble together. We got in exactly the way I said we would, only they saw through my charade almostimmediately.” His eyes flickered to Wyn, widening slightly at her transformed appearance. “I see we’ve missed quite a lot.”
Wyn smiled, the starlight in her eyes shimmering in the darkness. “It’s a long story.”
“One we’ll tell,” I promised, “but first, we need to tend to your wounds and make sure we’re not being followed.”
