Page 128 of The Kingdom of Eternal Ice
“Princess of the Desert,” he looks at me imploringly. “I know I can’t ask you to promise to save my brother. I know no one can promise something like that, but please promise me you will try.”
“I will do everything I can to help and save him!” I say with conviction. “I've been connected to him ever since I set foot in these lands. And he is connected to me. Our fates are intertwined.”
“You are my only hope,” he whispers, his eyes filling with tears.
He looks so young and vulnerable. He is just a kid, who had to grow up in solitude and in hiding, and with constant fear for his brother. Probably two-thirds of his kind were wiped out of existence. I take his hand in mine. “I promise you, Elio, I will give my all to set your brother free from this curse. And then you will be reunited. You were so strong in how you followed his plan and how you saved Alana. I’m sure he and your people will be proud of their young prince.”
“Do you really think I was brave?” he asks curiously.
“I think you are incredibly brave,” I say. “Without you, we would have still been without any real leads. You are crucial to the end of this war.”
My words apparently stirred something in him because he looks at me with newfound motivation. “I think I will join Aylin,” he says. “I’ve had enough rest. I want to see if I can help. They said they want to use Tynan’s bond to his mate to find him. Maybe my sibling bond with my brother helps, too.”
“That’s a good idea!” I exclaim.
He beams at me and jumps up, running off immediately. I chuckle, he forgot his painting. I decide, though, that this is the perfect place for me to meditate for a while and to try my relaxation exercises.
I get myself comfortable on the bench, pulling my knees up and wrapping myself in a warm blanket before evening my breath and trying to focus on all the tricks Erin showed me. I’m not sure how much time passed, but eventually I can hear someone calling out for me. I lift my gaze, noticing that Elio is approaching me again. He is taking the shortcut over the frozen lake. This whole area is the pride of the royal pack. With the goddess’s tree here, and the huge frozen lake, sparkling and glittering in the sun, it looks like a painting.
“Azadeh!” Elio calls me and waves at me excitedly. “Come please, we need your help!”
I blink, a bit surprised that Elio finally dropped the formalities with me and uses my first name. It’s not an unpleasant surprise, though. I put my blanket aside and get up from my spot, walking towards him. It always feels so surreal to walk over the lake… though I got used to it by now. It’s just the feeling of the deep water beneath me that’s humbling… and slightly terrifying. Some of the pack members sometimes use it to ice skate, sometimes they even ice fish here as the lake is deep and broad.
“Here,” Elio waves and laughs. “We made some progress. Hurry up.”
I nod, picking up my pace.
Weirdly though, the closer I seem to get the further away Elio seems to be. This can’t be. I’m moving towards him. Is it an optical illusion?
There is a silent voice in my head, whispering to me, almost like it tries to warn me. I instantly halt, looking up and noticing how Elio has stopped too. He looks at me now and tilts his head. “Why are you not coming?” he asks. “Azadeh?”
I can’t believe it. I’m so stupid.
He never uses my first name.
I can hear a slight cracking noise beneath me, snapping me out of my thoughts. As my gaze wanders downwards, I notice a crack going through the icy surface. Below it, the water is dark blue, almost black. My heart beats so fast I can almost feel it jump out of my chest. I take a careful step, which is followed by yet another cracking noise, the crack expanding.
I halt, trying to hold my breath and feeling how the ground beneath me loosens.
Around me I can hear silent laughter all of a sudden. Raising my gaze, I meet her eyes again… Cailleach, or what she has become.
I need to run, run!
I swiftly turn on my heels, searching for the shore closest to me before making a run towards it. My training with Caelan and the horses has paid off, because my stamina is far better than it was before. I almost think I can make it before I can hear yet another loud crack.
The ground beneath me opens itself up as the ice breaks. Without anything beneath me, I drop into the dark. The water is so cold that I almost can’t feel my skin anymore. Within seconds it has already made me numb. I try to swim back to the surface, but my coat and clothes are soaked by the cold water, pulling me further downwards. I want to scream, but it’s just pins and needles.
I can see Cailleach standing in front of me, a smirk curling her lips as she purses her lips and breathes something towards me.
forty-two
The Silent Death
*ENDELLION*
“Come on, Nev,” I spur my little brother on, chuckling when he glares at me. “We are not even that
fast.”
