Page 61 of The Princess of Nothing
Cedric followed, then placed a muscular arm in front of me as it opened. A shield burst out from Cedric, with beautiful golden magic. The guard was knocked onto his buttocks. Cedric smirked.
I pointed my staff at the man on the ground and uttered a banned spell I recalled from the books in Blaise’s library.Weaves of silver reached him and wrapped around his wrists, holding him on the ground.
Rushing past the guard’s convulsing body, Cedric looked back. “What did you do to him?”
“Not important.”
He edged on hesitation but relented. “Hold tight.” He wrapped his arms around me and lifted me into the sky. I didn’t get a chance to take a breath before my brain realized what was happening.
“We’re flying.” I looked out over the quaint shops that grew smaller and smaller.
The wind picked up the higher we got. His golden wings fluttered behind his back, whisking us over the town, to the port. “Why didn’t you fly us here from the castle?”
The corners of his eyes crinkled, his expression strained. “I can’t do this for long.”
Blaise jumped unwantedly into my thoughts. He had carried me for longer, I pondered, but then, dark fae enhanced their own magic. I refused to believe he was stronger than Cedric.
He veered us left, but we were wobbly, dancing down through the sky, layer by layer, the ground seeming to move closer with each beat of our breaths.
I felt lighter as we descended. When we reached the ground, he landed us with a thud. The air was ripped from my lungs.
Taking a moment to catch my breath, I looked around us. Rickety boards led out to ships.
“Where are we going?” he asked. “We can go by boat, or...” He pointed at a carriage with horses waiting on the road for another merchant. “Steal a ride on land.”
Searching the port, I noticed Hawk’s ship was gone, which I fully expected, but another I recognized stood glorious, its sails reaching high into the pastel-blue sky. “Aquarius and Bella.”
“So, where shall I tell my old friend he’s taking us?”
I inhaled sharply. There was only one safe place left for me now, and he wasn’t going to like it. “We’re going to Niferum.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Iwasted no time inupdating Bella and Aquarius on our travels. “Then, we saw your ship,” I said.
Bella looked from me to Cedric, then back again. “That’s a lot to take in.”
