The Girl With Red Hair (The Last War Saga Book 1) (13 page)

“Oh, my apologies,” the gnome said. “My fault entirely, I was—”

The gnome froze and locked wide eyes with Tannyl.
There it is,
Tannyl thought.
He knows.
The gnome scuttled backwards and scrambled to his feet. His eyes remained wide. Wetness spread from the crotch of his pants.

“Fae’Ta’Nyl’Na’Ling,” he said in a low voice before running in the opposite direction.

Tannyl watched the small man vanish into the crowd and then looked at the forgotten goods scattered in the street. And then he stared at his own hands. If he stared long enough, he could still see the blood. And if he shut his eyes, the full host of sensations that accompanied that blood returned as well.

He shook his head and narrowly avoided colliding with another Fae. His stomach churned and he quickly stepped off the street, wedging his body into a narrow alley between shops. He put a hand to his chest and realized he was panting. He closed his eyes and found his center. When he opened them, he had stopped shaking.

He dug his fingers into the rough grooves of the stone that made up the wall in front of him and began climbing. Twice, he stole a look at the crowd and nearly fell. Each time, he had to close his eyes to calm his body and mind. That brought with it the warmth of blood and stink of burning flesh. It nauseated him just as it brought a fire to his muscles. He longed for a sharp blade, but he couldn’t be certain what he would do with one. He reached the rooftop and collapsed away from the edge, out of sight of the prying Fae four stories below.

He rolled onto his back to stare at the perpetually blue sky. There was no sun in the Fae Wyld, but no night either. Only constant bright blue and wispy white in all directions. Tannyl longed for the deep greens of his forest home, the dark nights, and frequent thunderstorms. It was real. This… He shook his head and sat up, staying far from the edge.

“Why are you here?” he asked softly to the blue sky. “You shouldn’t have come back.”

A chill crawled up his back and sat menacing at the base of his skull. If a strange gnome on the street had recognized him, no doubt the Council wouldn’t even need to get close enough to sense his emotions to know him. He shuddered again and brought his knees to his chest, hugging them tight. He deserved it, of course, whatever lay ahead. It had been nearly thirty years, but he had never forgotten, so how could the Fae? Returning was a mistake on top of a mountain of mistakes. It was bound to topple.

Was it worth it?
he wondered as the phantom cries of the dead crowded his mind. If he listened hard enough, he could hear them plead for their lives. But then Fae’Na’s face floated to the forefront and the other voices faded away. The acrid scent of fire was swept away on the breeze and the blood evaporated from his hands.

He smiled. Yes, it was worth it.

He heard his name called from the street below. Sachihiro. The musician’s thundering stage voice echoed off the stone buildings that surrounded him. Tannyl didn’t move. He couldn’t. The call came again, louder, more insistent. Tannyl gritted his teeth and rose. His eyes darted toward the direction of Sachihiro’s voice for a moment, but then he looked at the greater city and made a decision. He hadn’t made a promise to Sachihiro and the others, or to Adelaide, or to Woodhaerst. He had made a promise to Fae’Na, and as much as it pained him to do so, he was going to hold true to it. Even if it got him killed.
Especially
if it got him killed. He ground his teeth and leapt to the adjoining rooftop, quickly picking up speed until he was nearly flying above the crowds.

If he died, it would be better than he deserved, but an end he longed for all the same. He fought back tears, shut the emotions away, and ran harder.

Chapter Thirteen

ADELAIDE HAD NEVER felt more beautiful. She spun in tight circles on the street of the strange Fae city, trying to block out Sachihiro’s shouting. The dress spread out around her in perfect symmetry. She had never worn anything so light and elegant. Elora claimed the silk came from the Underground. That meant nothing to the girl; all she knew was that she
loved
the dress of muted greens and embroidered leaves. A thin braid of vines created a false neckline and wrapped around the midsection, keeping it snug to her chest, while allowing the bottom to move freely as she did.

Alexander had insisted on getting a set of plain traveling clothes as well, but she would die before she took the dress off. And no matter what he or Jaydan said, she did not need shoes, or worse, boots. The stone of the street was polished, smooth, and warm. They shouldn’t worry so much about her. It was them that needed to be protected. She felt it.

Growing too dizzy to see straight, Adelaide came to a disjointed stop and grabbed onto Alexander’s arm to steady herself. The lanky teen smiled warmly at her and looked back at the other adults.

“He does this a lot?” Alexander asked.

“Yeah,” Jaydan said. “He’s off by himself more’n he’s with us.”

Sachihiro shrugged. “He’ll show up eventually. Likely just scouting the area. You know how he is. A touch paranoid.”

Adelaide couldn’t stop herself from smiling. He was gone. The one that smelled…
off.
Everything about the elf made Adelaide uneasy, even if she couldn’t quite put her finger on the reason. She knew elves were a little strange, but that wasn’t it. Miss Hastings was an elf. A very old elf, and Adelaide loved no one in the world more than Miss Hastings.

Her joy faded at the thought of her caretaker. She had told Adelaide she must flee, and she trusted her always, but it made her sad to leave her. She didn’t miss the others, though. Just Miss Hastings. She was the only one that was nice to her and didn’t tease Adelaide about her eyes and ears. She tugged at her elven ear and ran a finger to the point. She couldn’t remember a time that it wasn’t so. And she couldn’t remember a time when the others didn’t bully her for it. Her mum was human to be sure, but Adelaide was clearly something else. She often wondered if her ded was an elf, but Miss Hastings told her it didn’t work like that.

“There are half-races to be sure,” she had said. “And even muddier waters after that, but it doesn’t make a person
half
one race and
half
another. It’s more subtle.”

Miss Hastings reached up and ran a finger along her elven ear and then her human ear. Always smiling. Always gentle.

“And my eyes?” Adelaide asked. There were plenty of polished mirrors about, and she often caught herself staring at her own reflection for long parts of the day. Wishing she were different. Wishing she were normal.

“That’s not so strange, dear. I once knew a dwarf with one blue eye and the other bright red. He used to say that he used one for love and the other hate. Said it kept him in balance.”

Adelaide frowned at that, unsure if it made her feel better or worse. “Well, I love you,” she said at last. “And I hate Gwyn and Stephen and Veira and—”

Miss Hasting forced a laugh to stop her from continuing. “Hate is a strong and dangerous emotion, Addy. Difficult to control and nearly impossible to master.”

She decided it didn’t make her feel any better. “And love?”

Miss Hastings smiled and shifted closer to her on the large canopied bed. She wrapped an arm around Adelaide’s shoulder and pulled her tight. Even in the dead of winter, Miss Hastings was warm. Always warm. And safe.

“Love, my dear, can be even more dangerous, and is more wild than anything known to the world.”

Addy giggled and burrowed into Miss Hastings’s chest. She pressed her human ear against the elf until she could hear the slow, rhythmic beat of her heart. “You’re silly,” she said.

“That may be. Could be something I caught from you. But in this I am the most serious.”

Adelaide twisted until her opposite ear was at her chest and she could look up at Miss Hastings without leaving her warm embrace. “Then we should never love anyone.”

Miss Hastings put a hand to Adelaide’s face, lightly tracing her jaw line. Her eyes were bright gold and shone brilliantly in the dim lantern light. “The opposite, my dear. Love is the most dangerous because it can take hold of a person and make them do things no other emotion can. It can be blinding and terrifying. It consumes entire lives and brings desperation just as often as it brings hope. Many cities have come to ruin because of love. And many more have been built.”

“I don’t ever want to love, then,” Adelaide said sternly. “Sounds scary.”

“Oh, but you do. You see, Addy, love is most certainly all of those things I said. And more. I wouldn’t ever lie to you. But there is no more beautiful and wholly wonderful thing than love. To freely give of such a gift, and to receive it from another when you did nothing to earn it…” Miss Hastings paused, a faraway look in her eyes.

Adelaide understood little of the words that Miss Hastings said, as was oft the case, but she knew their meaning. No, that wasn’t right. She felt their meaning. She burrowed even deeper into her caretaker’s body, feeling entirely secure.

“I love you, Miss Hastings,” she said.

“I love you too, Addy, my dear. Always.”

Something jolted Adelaide and she nearly fell. A pair of hands grabbed her shoulders and saved her from ruining her new dress.

“You all right, Addy?” Alexander asked, crouched before her.

She looked back at the young man and for a moment almost said the words. But they got caught somewhere between her soul and her body, so she just nodded. The warm stone beneath her feet didn’t feel quite so warm anymore.

Alexander raised an eyebrow, but relented and stood. “Well, I guess we go find the Council,” he said to Jaydan and Sachihiro. “See if we can’t get some answers. For all of us.”

“We don’t even know where to go,” Jaydan said.

“I can find it,” Sachihiro shouted, eyes already scanning in all directions.

Adelaide watched Jaydan roll his eyes and slowly shake his head. She had seen him do it more times than she could count, always directed at Sachihiro. She reached out and took his hand, squeezing gently. Something spread over Adelaide. It was similar to what she felt when she was near Alexander, and both were similar and different than how Miss Hastings made her feel, even at this distance. She first thought it love, but now she wasn’t so sure. Miss Hastings had never told her if there were different kinds of love. Adelaide assumed she would recognize it just as she did with her caretaker.

“Maybe we should ask someone,” Alexander said. “The Fae seem friendly enough. What about the shopkeeper that gave Addy the clothes?”

“Ask me, I know the answer,” said a shrill voice from the air. Adelaide’s heart soared and she giggled. She should have sensed him before he shimmered into view now.
He must be good at hiding,
she thought, thinking of the games she would play with Miss Hastings on rainy days. “For I am Erlen Dragontamer and while I most certainly, absolutely, and with great skill and charisma, tame dragons, I also know much about this here city. For I am Fae’Erlen Dragontamer, as well. A Fae from birth and a Dragontamer till death!”

“You’re back,” Sachihiro exclaimed, his face lit with joy.

“Back? I never left.”

“Wait, so you’ve been following us the whole time we’ve been here?” Jaydan asked.

Erlen nodded energetically, causing his whole body to bob up and down in the air. Adelaide felt herself moving in time with the small creature. He was just so cute, she wanted to place him in a pocket and carry him around forever. He was so much more amicable than the wolf cub Veira had. And Erlen had stories, which she loved far more than anything else in the world.
Well, except for Miss Hastings
, she reminded herself.

“That’s a little creepy,” Jaydan said.

“A sprite has to be careful. Even one such as tames dragons with merely a coy thought and a stiff sword.”

“Just because you can render yourself invisible doesn’t mean you can just follow people around without them knowing,” Jaydan retorted.

Erlen faced the slight man and tilted his head. He continued to do so until his entire body hung horizontal, his iridescent wings beating no different than before. Adelaide turned her head as well, wishing for such beautiful wings.

“Invisible?”

Jaydan rolled his eyes and looked pleadingly at Sachihiro. Adelaide frowned. How could they not see? It was plain as day.

“How do you do that anyway, Erlen?” Sachihiro asked.

“Do what?”

“Turn invisible.”

“Oh,” Erlen said thoughtfully. “I can’t turn invisible. What do I look like, a Fengar?”

“Well, how do you make it so we can’t see you?”

“It’s not a matter of
can’t.
It’s a matter of
won’t.
”

Adelaide glanced at Alexander. He shrugged.

“What if I
want
to see you?” she asked, stepping forward.

Erlen spun in the air and flitted toward Adelaide until he nearly landed upon her nose. He leaned in close and held a finger up to his lips and another to his. It tickled. He then winked, smiled, and abruptly darted away.