Page 27 of Of Stars and Lightning
“I can. Sorry.” Sol swirled on her heel and made to exit the Hound Inn, thinking she’d feel at least some remorse but felt something like hope instead.
Eight
NO REST FOR THE DEAD
SOL WENT STRAIGHThome.Leo insisted on going into town to scout for necessities she might need on her voyage, but accepting such an offer made it all too real.
Nina also insisted on following Sol around like a puppy, mostly because the Jinn’s magical signature—whatever that meant—still lingered nearby. Sol protested initially, but eventually decided the woman wasn’t terrible. Instead of the beach, Sol veered to the farmlands, unable to bring herself there, even for a final farewell.
They walked in silence through the tall, yellowing grass, focusing on the way it swayed as they took the long way to her cottage.
Sawyer and Cas kept a fair distance, both spreading into the land somewhere, scouting or doing whatever it was they did. She walked beside Nina and Alix, and Sol concluded she didn’t mind Alix either. He was mostly quiet, offering only small kernels of information about the plant life they passed, or the small critters that ran across the roads. Nina, with her earth magic, made the small flowers bud into gorgeous blooms, and even went as far as to pick a tiger lily for her.
And who isn't swayed by flowers?
The Wielders returned to the Hound by twilight, this time having to pay the regular guest fare. Lora packed some herbs and salves in Sol’s satchel for her to take, though Sol stared at the things begrudgingly and tried to unpack instead.
She ate the seafood stew her aunt crafted, then retreated to her room before Lora could try to speak of Rimemere or magic or anything else Sol wanted to put on hold.
As she stared at her cracking ceiling, she zipped her necklace back and forth on its chain and sighed.
Surely there was a way out. Surely her mother’s letter couldn’t be true. Surely there were alternatives. Because the reality of there not being any was almost as overbearing as her succeeding.
Sol didn’t realize she had fallen asleep until she awoke engulfed in winter. Sitting up from the comfort of her duvet, she slowly shifted her legs over the edge of the bed. Her breaths pooled in a mist in front of her face, and her room was dark, illuminated only by the moonlight that seeped through her window. A harsh series of rumbles sounded beyond her room’s closed door, the vibrations thrumming across the walls like a heartbeat.
Instantly, Sol was on her feet and reaching for her satchel where her knives and Leo’s gifted dagger were. She tore through it and armed herself, then secured the bag across her chest.
The banging continued, making her books and things clatter to the ground with the force. Tears burned behind her eyes as she whispered, “Aunt Lora?”
“Yaaaarooow,”a voice called, one that instantly made Sol’s blood ice over with fear. Slowly, she turned toward her window.
If it hadn’t been for the pair of arms that grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her away, Sol might have fainted at the horrible sight beyond the glass.
The Jinn peered into her room, its gray skin decrepit beneath the silver light of the moon. Round eyes were wholly black and focused on her. When she slammed back into the hard body behind her, the Jinn grinned its wicked smile.
Sol fought against the assailant, sure her luck had run out and she would be Jinn food. But they released her, giving her the opportunity to raise her dagger at them.
“Careful.” Cas jumped back, his armored forearm colliding with her knife. “First you bite me, and now you want to stab me?”
Sol tried to steady her breathing as she said, “Maybe you should stop grabbing me without my permission, then.”
Behind her, a tap sounded on her window. She recoiled as she looked over her shoulder to watch the Jinn’s talons scrape against the glass.
“They can smell you more than they can see you,” he remarked in a hushed voice. “You were too close to the window.”
Slowly, Sol turned back to face Cas. “Where’s my Aunt? Why are you here?”
He gestured to the door. “Living room. As soon as you left that Inn, we felt the Jinn around. We came over here to make sure you both are??—”
Sol didn’t care to let him finish as she eased past him and threw her door open. It was the sort of chill that penetrated all the way down to the bones, the kind that produced instant shivers. As soon as she stepped into the dark living space, she knew her life was about to change.
Maybe it was the way Lora lifted her head from her hands as she stood in the center of the room. Maybe it was the way Nina had her hand draped over her aunt's shoulders in comfort. Or maybe it was the fact the only thing Sol could see beyond the windows, was Jinn.
Cas closed the door behind them, forcing her to step farther into the freeze.
Tears stained Lora’s face, and she pulled Sol into a desperate embrace. Sol let herself cry too, knowing deep down what came next.
Softly, her Aunt whispered, “I thought we had more time.”
