I tugged it down again, making sure to keep my scars covered. “No.”
“Saltwater will help you heal,” he said.
“Saltwater can go through the fabric.”
He scooped me up and lifted me again. My vision was fuzzy, but with all the tile around us, I knew we were in a bathroom.
When he lowered me into warm water, fatigue wrapped around my mind, warm and soft. Steam kissed my bare skin. I kept my eyes closed.
“This will sting a bit,” he said. “I’m adding salt to the bath.”
“I have things to do,” I muttered.
“Not right now.”
I winced a bit as the salt stung my wounds.
Lyr’s warm hands gripped my shoulders, and I heard him murmur a low spell. Immediately, it started to soothe my pain.
Within moments, I could already feel the saltwater healing me, cleaning my open gashes. Then, Lyr’s magic whispered around me.
Should I tell him what the fuath wanted? I could hand him over in exchange for Gina. After all, he’d live. Gina was only a human, and she might not.
I forced my eyes open for a moment, looking at his golden skin, his cheeks a little pink in the warm steam of the bath. A few strands of his pale hair stuck to his face.
He met my gaze. “Close your eyes.” A warm, soothing voice that hummed over my skin.
I couldn’t give him up to be tortured, even if it made logical sense. If I handed over Lyr, I’d be condemning the entire kingdom of Nova Ys to an invading army.
Blast it.
I had no options.
Chapter 28
“Getting shot with iron really hurts,” I mumbled.
“Getting shot with anything hurts.”
“Iron especially.”
“Yes, I recently experienced that. Is that an apology for our first meeting, by the way?”
I sighed. “I suppose it is.”
“Be thankful you’re alive,” he said. “And didn’t have to spend any time in the hell world.”
I was trying to work out some sort of plan, but my body felt completely wrong, and my thoughts flitted by like autumn leaves in the wind. My mind danced with images of Ys, and the sun streaming through oaks and palm trees onto a soft, mossy ground. Bonfires burned in the orchards under a canopy of stars.
“The only thing consistent about you, Aenor, is your ability to surprise me,” said Lyr. “Why did you come back here to me instead of escaping to England with your key?”
Steam curled around me in the bath.
Sweat rolled down my temple. How hot was this bath? “Because I’ve learned about Nova Ys, and I feel responsible for it, even if they all hate me. And also, the fuath have Gina. They are threatening to hurt her unless we tell them how to get to Nova Ys. I need to get her back.”
When I glanced at him, I saw a flicker of the Ankou—his tattoos. “Clearly, we are not going to sacrifice a kingdom for one human. We need to stay focused on the athame.”
My eyes snapped open. “We can’t let her die.”
He splashed the warm, salty water over my body. “Finding the athame is the fastest way to stop them.”
“We could get Gina first before they cut her fingers off.”
“Why would they cut her fingers off?”
“Hang on. I can use the bath to get a glimpse of her. It will work as a scrying mirror.” I leaned forward, trying to get a good look at the bathwater.
Then, I blinked as sparkled flecks danced before my eyes, and my vision went dark. “Hang on.”
“Relax, Aenor.”
“Gina’s allergic to nuts. She needs an EpiPen, and she can’t eat anything unless she has one.”
“She needs a what?”
My pulse raced. “It’s medicine to keep her alive if she eats nuts. When I ran through the market in Acre, there were pistachios and almonds everywhere. Particles in the air. She won’t do well here.”
He looked baffled. “Humans can die from eating nuts?”
“Some can.”
Lyr pressed his hand on my chest. “Your heart is still beating unnaturally fast. It’s like a hummingbird. Stop thinking about the human for two minutes.” He pressed on my chest. “Do you want to see Nova Ys?”
My kingdom? “Yes.”
A charge pulsed through his fingertips, and my mind spun with images of a sun-dappled orchard and a stone palace with spires that pierced the clouds. Ships with glittering masts bobbed in a nearby bay, and colored wildflowers spread out over a rolling hill. Singing filled the air—a little girl with a haunting, melodic voice. It was a song about a mermaid with a broken heart.
I could see her now. She was making a wreath of dandelions, and her strawberry-red hair shone in the sun. Then, smiled, handing me the wreath. “A crown.”
I glanced out at the bay and breathed in the fresh, salty air.
Lyr pulled his hand away, and the vision disappeared, popping like a bubble.
“How did you do that?”
“I just gave you one of my memories. Now you know what I’m trying to protect. Do you remember that song from Ys? It was an old children’s song.”
I shook my head. “No. I don’t remember singing.”
“Ah. My mother used to sing to me when I was little.”
Steam rose around me, and Lyr brushed his fingertips over the cut on my side, and an electric thrill skimmed my skin. Gods help me, I liked being tended to by him.
“Let me see where they stabbed you.” He lifted up my shirt just a little on the side, his fingertips radiating heat. Warmth poured through me.
Then, Lyr stopped abruptly, fingers freezing in place.
With a shock of horror, I realized what he was looking at. He’d moved closer, staring at the scars on my belly, and I tugged down the hem of my shirt. His face was close to mine as he leaned over the tub. He let me tug down the hem of his shirt, but he kept his hand on my waist, his palm warming me through my shirt, like he was covering the marks protectively.
Lyr kept his eyes locked on mine. “How did you get those scars?”
“It was a long time ago.”
“But how did you get them?”
I sat up straighter in the bath. “It was in London, not that long before you saw me ripping out Sam’s heart. I was walking, when someone slammed a glass bottle over my head from behind. Another demon bit my neck. They said they hated fae, and women. They beat me unconscious and left me for dead. I woke up with the scars. Demons can be jerks, you know?”
“How do I find them?” Lyr barked.
I blinked at him. Was he… was he offering to avenge me? How gentlemanly and old fashioned.
“No, deathling,” I said. “I’m not waiting for you to avenge me. I already killed them a long time ago.”
“I hope you ripped out their ribs from their backs.”
“No, I used a revolver like a normal Victorian person. Then I killed Sam. Then I moved to Tennessee.”
“How did you end up living with a human?”
“I’ve lived with lots of them. Many in Tennessee, some in London. I help keep them safe. I met Gina when I killed the ancient demon who was preying on her. And now, I need to keep her safe from the fuath who have her captive.”
I rose to my knees in the bath, and I brushed my fingertips over the water’s surface. I chanted the scrying spell, and a tingle rippled up my neck as the magic started to take effect.