“Do you know what the heir looks like?” I ask.
“Yes.” He glances at me. “I’ve met him, and I can’t see him now.”
“So that means he could just be tucked away in one of those buildings or something?”
“That’s a possibility,” he agrees. Solan turns his head sharply to the left. “Look.”
I follow his direction, zeroing in on the cluster of Glowranth all in full armour. It appears like they’re organising themselves to head out of the compound. That can’t be good.
From the way Solan tenses at my side, I suspect he’s come to the same conclusion. Tension radiates from him. We’re so close, I feel the tightness. I also feel a blast of heat when his grip on the spyglass tightens.
“What’s—”
“We have to move.”
Before I can process his words, he’s up, his heated hand landing on my arm as he drags me up with him.
“Come quickly.” He’s hauling me back the way we came, his palm drifting to mine, our pace no longer slow and steady.
I struggle to keep my footing but sprint beside him, his unwavering grip still on my hand. “Did they see us?” My question is barely discernible beneath how heavily I’m panting. The loud pounding in my ears doesn’t help.
“Yes. They looked right at me.” Gravel fills his voice, a whisper of a growl barely being held back.
“Fuck.” I pump my arms, losing Solan’s grip. He jerks his head my way, concern etched in his gaze, but he doesn’t reach out to me again. “And we can’t simply stop for a chat? Let them know I’m here and everything’s cool?”
He’s shaking his head before I finish. “Not wise.”
“But the Glowranth accepted you, right?” I push, ignoring the branch that smacks into my face. It stings, and I feel a trickle of blood, but I keep pumping my arms.
“Yes, but that was after weeks of negotiation and a promise,” Solan says, his words clipped as we navigate through the thick brush. “The Glowranth don’t tolerate outsiders—they capture them and take them to the queendom’s epicentre. Those with gifts are expected to serve the realm, offering skills, whatever they can, for the betterment of society.”
I’m jolted, and a flare of anger heats in my chest. “You’re telling me thisnow?”
Solan doesn’t miss a beat, glancing at me as if he expected my reaction. “It’s… complicated.”
I press on, disbelief edging my voice. “This whole society just… grabs people to use them?”
Solan’s shoulders tense, and he avoids my gaze as he continues, “The Glowranth believe every gift, every skill, should serve the whole. Outsiders are seen as opportunities, not individuals.” He finally looks at me, a shadowed glint in his golden eyes. “They assume anyone strange to the realm has abilities they can use. They’re taken, studied, and trained if they’re found useful.”
“So, how areyounot in their ranks?” The frustration bubbles up even as I push forwards, my breathing turning ragged. He clearly knows a lot more than he’s let on. Hell, he’s a firestarter or some shit. How canthatbe a gift not being manipulated by the realm?
Solan sighs, pressing his lips together as though weighing how much to say. “My brother-in-law, who was caught in the rift with my world, is the son of Harith, the chief merchant in Myra’s Crossing. When our worlds merged again and I told him who I was, he called on a favour with the realm—a one-time pardon. The queen granted me my freedom on one condition: that I support Myra’s Crossing, make it prosper.”
I process that, frowning. “And that’s how you’ve avoided being captured?”
Solan nods. “In a way, yes. I’ve been useful to the realm by proxy. My brother-in-law’s family is influential enough to protect me so long as I stay within their territory and aid them however I can. As long as Myra’s Crossing thrives, I’m safe. But that safety doesn’t extend to… everyone.” He gives me a look that’s loaded with implication.
I swallow my irritation, doing my best to keep my focus. He’d kept this from me, yes, but it had kept him alive—and by extension kept us from being hunted sooner. Still, the weight of it sits heavily between us, his obligation to the town and his tentative freedom hanging by a thread.
“So that’s why you’re helping me?” I ask, my voice low as we keep moving. “Because you know what they’d do to me?”
He hesitates briefly, and the skin around his large eyes pinches. “Yes,” he replies, his expression shifting. “You’d be taken to the queendom, interrogated. If they deemed you useful, they’d put you to work. And if they didn’t….” He trails off, the silence a grim indication of what happens to those who don’t fit neatly into the Glowranth’s plans.
I grit my teeth, nodding. For now, my questions will have to wait.
CHAPTER
FIVE
