Page 27 of A Court So Dark
“Unless Kalyll is unconscious.”
Everyone grew quiet, considering this.
Shame came over me as I said, “Wehave kept him unconscious to subdue him.”
Kryn rubbed the back of his head, looking chagrined. Cylea shifted from foot to foot, and I felt bile rise up my windpipe.
“Kalyll submitted himself willingly and allowed us to do that,” Arabis said. “If Cardian is drugging him against his will, there is no comparison. So let’s stop feeling bad about that.”
Kryn huffed. “I highly doubt that’s what’s going on. That coward wouldn’t miss the opportunity to torture Kalyll.
“Agree,” Cylea said. “Cardian is cruel. Once, I watched him beat a horse because he lost a stupid race against his friends. It didn’t matter that he’s a lousy rider. He took it out on the poor animal, and I’m certain he felt no guilt afterward.”
“He’s a psychopath,” I said, my insides trembling.
“Psychopath?” Larina echoed, eyebrows drawn together.
“In Dani’s realm,” Cylea said, “they have a name for everything. In their dictionaries, when you look for the word psychopath, you find Cardian’s portrait.”
“Oh.” The pixie’s mouth formed an “O” as she considered this. She seemed unsure of whether or not this was true, so I had to set the record straight.
“Cylea is joking, Larina.”
I fought against the image of the poor horse, which Cylea had painted in my mind and my imagination had embellished. I didn’t want to think about Kalyll in the hands of a psychopath.
“Let’s focus on the matter at hand.” I cleared my throat. “So, we think it’s possible that when I asked the Envoy if Kalyll was in Nerethien that he wasmomentarilyelsewhere.”
Cylea twirled a strand of her long hair, appearing deep in thought. “What if he knew we were going to see the Envoy?”
“We didn’t tell anyone,” I said. “We didn’t speak of it in my chamber either.”
Kryn’s green eyes wandered to Larina.
“Don’t you dare, Kryn.” I pointed a finger straight at his nose.
“I’m sorry, Dani, but she’s the latest addition to the group. We barely know her, and it wouldn’t be the first time she betrays you. She did put that necklace in your bag in Imbermore.”
I turned to Larina. “Don’t let him bother you. Most of the time, he’s a jerk. He has his moments, but this is clearly not one of them.”
Kryn huffed. “I’m just trying to make sense.”
“Hundreds of people live in this palace,” I snapped. “For all we know, Cardian still has spies here. Maybe someone followed us out of the palace. That’s not so hard to fathom.”
Jeondar nodded pensively. “It seems our plans to go to Highmire stand. We can sleep for a few hours, then go at dawn. We can leave from here, and maybe we can come up with a way to throw Cardian off our scent by using that crystal bird to our advantage.”
“We should leave now,” I said.
“Dani, you need rest,” Arabis said, placing the barest of emphasis on the wordyou.
I was the human who was slowing them down. With their Fae stamina, they could probably go for days without sleep and rest, but not me. The worst part… Iwastired. To the bones. It had been a long day of stress and many waking hours. Still…
“We can at least go to Nerethien now, can’t we? We could rest there.” Something told me that if I was closer to Kalyll, my heart would be at ease because I would be able to feel him.
They all exchanged glances, considering.
“Everything is ready, correct?” Jeondar said. “I’ve done all I can on my side to set order among the council members and generals, in case there is an attack from the Unseelie Court.”
“I’m packed and ready to go,” Cylea said. “I couldn’t decide if I would need a gown, though. What do you think?”
