Kiva’s heart jumped to her throat as he trailed off, and she turned pleading eyes to Ashlyn for what felt like the millionth time that night.
The princess sighed again and said, “Let’s sleep on it and figure that out in the morning. They came here for Kiva — they won’t try to escape without her.” To Eidran, she said, “Take them both to the barracks and allocate them bunks, but make sure they remain under watch all night.” When Cresta’s stomach rumbled loudly, Ashlyn added, “And have someone bring them some food.” To Kiva, she said, “You should eat, too. You haven’t had anything since breakfast.”
“That’s what happens when you knock me out for an entire day,” Kiva muttered, but her voice carried more than she’d intended.
“You knocked her out?” Caldon asked Ashlyn, his eyes narrowing.
“Only so she wouldn’t do anything stupid while I went to spy on Navok and Voshell,” she answered, brushing a wrinkle from her apron. “It was for her own good.”
Caldon frowned. “You make it sound like you were at Blackmount today. But Zadria is hundreds of miles away.”
As Eidran began to lead Torell and Cresta away — the former looking at Kiva like he wished he could stay by her side, and the latter merely yawning again — Ashlyn quickly explained about Galdric being an anomaly who had used his air magic to help them escape, causing wide eyes around the room. No one was more surprised than Torell, who heard everything just before Eidran prodded him out the door, and who had clearly been oblivious to the ex-rebel leader’s magical ability.
“Can you do the wind tornado thing?” Caldon asked Ashlyn, curiosity lighting his features. Kiva tried to focus on the conversation, but she was achingly aware that she was now alone in the room with the three Vallentis royals, one of whom would normally have been an active part of the magical discussion, but no longer had any power. Because of her.
“I’m not sure,” Ashlyn said. “But that’s something I’ll be asking him tomorrow.”
With how much they’d been through that day and all that was still ahead in the morning, Kiva felt suddenly exhausted and was desperate for someone to show her where she could sleep. But her night wasn’t over yet, and she knew that when her eyes skittered toward Jaren, only to find him already staring back at her.
Her chest constricted, and she made herself hold his gaze, keeping her face as open and remorseful as possible. But her hopes for any kind of reconciliation were dashed when he turned to Caldon and said, “Bring her.”
“Jar —”
“Now, Caldon.”
Caldon planted his feet. “It’s late, and she’s been through —”
Kiva had no idea what was happening, but her alarm grew when Jaren leaned forward, his voice low as he repeated, much more firmly, “Now, Caldon.”
And then he turned and strode out of the command center, clearly expecting them to follow.
Caldon swore and looked at Kiva with an apology in his eyes. “I know you must be tired, but this hopefully won’t take long.”
“What’s going on?” Ashlyn asked, staring at the door, her face puzzled. “I know he’s upset by . . . everything . . . but he’s never acted this way before. Jaren’s not the kind of person to lash out or —”
“He’s been through a lot,” Caldon defended him.
“We’ve all been through a lot,” Ashlyn returned, her voice hard. “Some of us have even been through it alone, and still managed not to lose ourselves in the process.”
Caldon flinched at the barely veiled reminder of how he’d avoided her for years, but he only said, “Jaren hasn’t lost himself. The first few days after the masquerade were . . . not great . . . but he’s adjusting well, considering. He’s only acting this way because of —” He stopped talking, but he didn’t need to finish. They all knew Kiva being there was what had set Jaren off.
She blew out a breath and said, “Come on, we’d better follow him before he has something else to be angry at me about.”
Caldon was reluctant, but when Kiva threatened to wander aimlessly around the base until she found Jaren herself, he finally led the way out of the command center, winding a path through the luminium-lit military buildings. Ashlyn walked with them part of the way before stopping at the entrance to a watchtower that reminded Kiva a little too much of Zalindov. The princess waved them on, saying she’d find out what all the fuss was about later, but for now, she needed to locate Captain Jenaire and update her about the Mirraven situation.
Caldon said nothing as his sister disappeared into the tower, and Kiva wondered how she might encourage him to mend their relationship, before noting the set of his features and realizing that now wasn’t the time. Instead, she kept in step with him and asked, “Where are we going?”
“To see Naari.”
Kiva stumbled slightly. “Jaren wants me to see Naari? Now?”
Her insides twisted as she wondered how the guard would react to seeing her, after everything that had happened. Naari, who valued honesty and loyalty above all else.
When Caldon remained silent, Kiva’s nerves grew, and she hedged, “Maybe we should wait until morning. I’d hate to wake her.”
“That’s exactly what we want you to do,” Caldon murmured, but he said no more because they’d arrived at a clean-looking building with a healers’ emblem carved into the side, indicating it was the base’s infirmary.
Jaren was waiting just inside the door, impatience radiating from him as he grabbed Kiva by the arm and dragged her through the quiet, sterile space, past empty beds, right to the end of the room where a white curtain was drawn. Through all this, Kiva was aware of nothing but his warm fingers wrapped around her elbow, certain he had no idea he was touching her, even if she felt his strong yet gentle grip right into the very core of her being.
Her heart sang at his nearness, but the feeling evaporated when he released her to pull open the curtain, revealing Naari’s still form lying beneath a white sheet.
The guard could have been sleeping, her amber eyes closed, her normally alert features relaxed.
But with a single glance, Kiva knew that wasn’t the case, and she staggered backwards, colliding with Caldon, who had halted directly behind her.
She barely felt him steadying her, her horrified eyes locked on the guard — and on the familiar black shadows of Zuleeka’s death magic swirling around Naari’s body.
Chapter Twelve
“No,” Kiva whispered, staring at Naari’s unconscious form while hearing an echo of what Caldon had said earlier that evening:
Your sister did something to her. It’s . . . hard to explain.
“Heal her.”
The two hard words made Kiva turn from Naari to meet Jaren’s stormy gaze. The look on his face —
Kiva flinched and curled in on herself, unable to bear the fury in his eyes and, worse, the devastation.
“I — I’m not sure —” Her voice was choked, but she drew in a deep breath and admitted, “I don’t know how to heal this.”
Jaren’s expression didn’t change, so Kiva took a shaky step forward, touching a trembling hand to Naari’s skin. Her flesh was warm, her pulse strong. There were no wounds or signs of illness. If not for the unnatural shadows, everything about her seemed normal, healthy.