Page 24 of Echoes of the Raven
“No dagger next time, little princess,” he says gruffly. “And if anyone but you comes in, she loses her head.” He makes my sister gasp again, pulling her head back by the hair.
Facing the door, I squeeze my eyes shut and draw in a shuddering breath, wondering how this male and Bastien can possibly be the same person. Oh, I was so blind.
“As you wish, Rífíor,” I say before leaving the bedchamber.
When I exit, Capitán Quiñones’s shoulders lower a couple of inches, betraying his relief. “That was very… was not… I’m glad you’re all right, Princess. The queen?”
“She’s fine,” I say. “And everything is going to be all right.”
I march down the hall, headed back to my room.
“Where are you going?” the captain asks in confusion.
Glancing back over my shoulder, I say, “I have something he wants. Once I give it to him, he’ll let the queen go. I will go and fetch it. In the meantime, you and your guardias must stand by and await my return.”
He opens his mouth to say more.
I shake my head. “Have no worries, Capitán. I have this under control.”
As I walk away, my steps measured and firm, I hope I’ve given the impression of someone who knows what she’s doing. It’s the only way to ensure they don’t do anything stupid that endangers Amira.
With each step I take back toward my bedchamber, my resolve begins to falter. A barrage of thoughts and possible scenarios assault me, driving home the absurdity of this entire situation.
If I surrender The Eldrystone to Rífíor, the instant it’s in his grasp, he could annihilate us all—not just Amira, but every single inhabitant in Nido, including Jago and Nana. That is all well and good, however, he’s using nothing but a dagger to ask me to retrieve a weapon much mightier than any in his possession, a weapon I can use to obliterate him the way I obliterated Orys.
It’s ludicrous, except… he must know something I don’t because he never seemed afraid of The Eldrystone at the engagement ball. He just stood there, his face frozen with cold determination, demanding that I give him the amulet or else his lackey would drop my sister to her death. And now... he behaves as though a mere dagger will protect him from the power of Niamhara’s conduit. Why?
Doubt fills me, and my fear gorges on it.
Rífíor knows more about The Eldrystone than me. I don’t know how much more or why, but it’s evident he has the upper hand or else he wouldn’t be here risking it all.
Once in my bedchamber, I push all of these thoughts aside and run to the balcony.
“Tch, tch, tch.”My tongue clicks against the roof of my mouth as I peer into the night, begging Cuervo is nearby and can hear my call. Several minutes pass without the flap of wings to announce his approach.
I call a few more times, but he doesn’t come. Just as I’m about to scream his name in desperation, he swoops in from the side and lands on the marble railing. I nearly grab him and crush him to my chest in a hug, which would only make him squirm uncomfortably. Instead, I pet the side of his neck with care.
“My dear friend,” I say. “I need your help once more.”
His head bobs up and down, and he makes a crooning sound.
“I need you to get me the amulet.”
“Treasure,” he croaks.
“Yes, treasure.”
He lowers his head once, then lunges himself into the sky, strong wingbeats pushing him onward.
“Be fast, Cuervo. Be fast.”
I pace the length of the balcony back and forth as I wait for him, murmuring a prayer.
“Please, don’t let anything happen to my sister. Please.” Of all the gods and saints humans and fae worship in Castella, I realize it’s Niamhara who I need to listen to me. “Goddess of Radiance, I don’t know why your conduit is here in my realm, why you allowed it to pass to my mother and then to me, but don’t let it be the reason I lose my sister. I beg of you.”
Cuervo plunges down from the heavens like an apparition, landing on the floor at my feet instead of the railing, and skidding as he flaps his wings. His sudden appearance startles me, and I can tell by the way his small body shivers that he pushed himself hard to get to The Eldrystone’s hiding place and back again.
I kneel and cluck a few times in praise. “You’re so fast and strong,” I tell him. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”
