Page 8 of The Tracker's Dawn: Sunderverse
Eric shrugged. “You could hold your own with her even when she was healthy, shouldn’t be a problem now.”
“I doubt she’ll come alone, but like I said, I’ll worry about it later,” Damien said.
“We,” I corrected. “We’ll worry about it later.”
He smiled crookedly, a grateful expression shaping his features. Then his copper eyes twinkled. “Though perhaps...” he paced in front of the kitchen sink, rubbing his pointed chin.
“Perhaps what?” Eric pressed him.
“Just a thought. I need to let it... congeal for a little bit. Now, I think you’d better go to Prince Kalyll to retrieve that cure.”
I had been so focused on the idea of meeting Mekare and rescuing Rosalina that I hadn’t even realized I had to go to Elf-hame.
“What if I can’t find him?!” I asked, a surge of panic sending my heart into a frenzy.
“We’ll find them,” Jake assured me, squeezing my shoulder for comfort. “But Damien is right, we should leave right away.”
My gaze darted to Damien again. He pulled the wooden token out of the breast pocket of his jacket. I had given it back and thanked him for letting me borrow it.
“I always carry it with me,” he said. “It’s one of my most prized possessions.” He handed it over. “I trust you will take care of it, just as before.”
I wrapped my fingers tightly around it. “I will.”
“Then go,shoo,” the mage made sweeping motions with both hands.
A million thoughts crowded my mouth, but I didn’t have time to vent them. It could take hours to find the Prince. Though, hopefully, he would find us first as soon as we materialized in his realm. He’d done it last time we’d used the token.
Feeling restless with anticipation, I turned to Jake and grabbed the hand he extended toward me. We interlaced our fingers and, as I thought of the Fae realm, the world around us began to wash away, all the color melting to nothing then building back up into the vibrant forest on the outskirts of Elyndell.
It was daytime, a crisp morning filled with birdsong. The Seelie capital was fit for a fairytale and could take your breath away upon sight, but Jake and I wasted no time gawking at it as we normally would have, and, instead, started walking away from the forest and headed directly for the idyllic city, veering in the direction of the Vine Tower, the place where the royal family lived. I kept waiting for the Prince to appear in our path like last time, but no such luck.
We were practically running as we crossed the large prairie that separated the woods from the city limits. Finally, we intersected one of the many moss-covered paths which meander through the picturesque Fae dwellings. Self-consciously, we slowed to a brisk walk, and continued hand-in-hand in search of the Prince.
Despite the early hour, it seemed that everyone was up and around. People watched us from the path, the round windows of their treehouses, and the hanging bridges that stretched from branch to branch overhead. We stood out like two fat sore thumbs, and I worried someone might say something, but they simply observed us quietly, their keen eyes holding a warning not to do anything stupid.
Jake walked, staring straight ahead, his chest rising and falling—not from exertion, I realized, but from an effort to ignore his hyper-alert wolf instincts warning him of potential hostiles that could attack us at any moment. Red felt the same way, but my fear for Rosalina’s well-being was the predominant emotion, the one thing that would make me walk in front of a fire-breathing dragon if it meant seeing her again.
As we neared the center of the city where the Vine Tower stood, the tree canopy above us thinned gradually, allowing us a view of the beautiful structure. It stretched toward the sky, tapering as it rose. Its white walls were dressed in twining vines that crept in through doors and windows, undisturbed. As we moved closer, I was able to perceive a sweet scent that seemed to come from tiny flowers gracing the vines.
“We’re almost there,” Jake said. “This way, I think.”
Pulling on my hand he led me around a stone structure with a roof of what looked like terracotta Spanish tiles, except these were made of tree bark. As soon as we rounded the corner, we came to an abrupt stop as a line of people appeared before us. It stretched for about thirty yards from the Vine Tower’s outer gate.
“Shit,” I cursed, remembering something.
“What?”
The people standing at the back of the line turned to watch us over their shoulders, their expressions turning distrustful right away. I smiled and waved, wiggling my fingers. Slowly, I pulled Jake off to the side.
“I think those people are petitioners,” I said. “I remember something from the first time I was here. Foreigners are supposed to stay in the back of the line and wait their turn.”
Jake followed the length of the line, measuring it, and frowned. “That could take forever. We don’t have time.”
“I know.”
“What do we do?”
I thought for a moment. Anything else besides waiting in line like the rest would be rude as hell.
