“We’ll meet again,” she says.
“I know,” I reply, though in reality, I know nothing of the sort. No one knows where this next part of the adventure will take me. All I know is where I hope it will lead me—at least in the short term. But after that...
With a sigh and a forced smile, I turn away from her and pull myself up onto Stella’s back.
“Tell Khaosti…” What am I supposed to tell him? That I love him? It’s not something I want to say through an intermediary. “Tell him we’ll meet again as well.”
“Not if I slit his throat first,” she replies.
But I know she doesn’t mean that. I think she’s overcome her aversion to Khaosti and might even like him a little, even if she doesn’t trust him completely. But it’s obvious she still hates his father. That’s something else we will have to discuss.
I don’t turn Stella in the direction of the stone bridge. If Khaosti decides to follow me, I’m guessing that’s where he’ll go. Instead, I head west. I know there’s a track that will take me past the temple of Selene. My mother paved the way for me all those years ago, implanting the memories as she did with the location of Lucifer’s Mirror.
To get there, I will need another mirror, and she left me one—my very own—that will take me where I need to go.
I nudge gently with my legs, and Stella moves into a smooth trot along the narrow, overgrown pathway. As I pass the temple, I raise my arm in homage to the goddess, and Selene’s gaze seems to follow me. A prickle runs over my skin, and something twists inside me, then settles. That’s something else I need to think about, but I sense there’s no rush.
“Wish me luck, grandmother,” I shout as I pass.
The track continues to wind through a narrow valley. I keep looking back over my shoulder—I don’t think anyone is coming after me. I don’t expect him, but I can’t deny the flicker of disappointment I feel.
After about an hour, I stop at a stream for us both to drink. From what Hecate has told me, I know that we must be close to the western border of the warded lands. I pull some bread and cheese from the saddlebag and eat while Stella nibbles at the long grass. Then I get back on. Soon after, I sense a shiver go through me as we pass through the wards. Everything changes. All around, the land is scorched, with twisted, blackened vegetation in every direction. The air is heavy with ash and smoke.
I pull Stella up and peer behind me, but there’s nothing to see. Still no one following. No crimson eyes staring out from the dead bushes. Nothing moves. My head is clear, with no telltale pressure to indicate that the shadowguard is close by. I presume they’ve all fled the area.
I swallow at the thought of them.
I can kill them now, but I’d rather not meet up with any if I have a choice.
Only a mile or so later, the valley widens into a plain, and we’re galloping flat out, trying to race away from my fears. At one moment, I think I hear Khaosti in my head.
Amber!
But it’s likely just my imagination. I concentrate, but there’s nothing. Just wishful thinking on my part. I keep going, leaning low over Stella’s neck, and we’re flying.
As we fly, the land changes again, the devastation giving way to green grass and small shrubs. And then I see it—the image fixed in my memory. Up ahead are twin towers of rock. Beyond them is a steep cliff face. I pull Stella up and slide out of the saddle.
This is as far as Stella can come. I already miss her, but she can’t follow where I must go.
I take off her saddle and bridle, lay them aside under the lee of an overhanging rock—in case I need them again. Then I stroke her beautiful face, kiss her nose, and wrap my arms around her neck, resting my face against her silky coat. My eyes prick. I didn’t cry when I left Khaosti or Hecate. But now a tear slides down my cheek.
“Wait for me for one day,” I whisper to her. “If I’m not back by then, you have to go home.”
She whinnies her response, then nuzzles me.
“I don’t want to go,” I tell her. “But it’s something I have to do. You be careful out there.”
I grab some more food and then leave her. This time, I do look back. She rears up on her hind legs and whinnies, then bucks to show her displeasure.
I head between the two twin rock towers. They appear almost unnatural. On the other side is a sheer cliff face. It looks impenetrable, but I know differently.
I walk parallel to it for maybe half a mile, then turn toward the rock. There’s a mark, almost invisible to the human eye if you didn’t know where to look. I press my palm to it and murmur,“Rocky veil, dissolve, unfold, reveal the path that you withhold.”The rock face disintegrates in front of me, leaving an opening big enough to squeeze through.
Inside, there’s a narrow tunnel. It looks very uninviting, but I force my feet onward. Within a few feet of the opening, the light diminishes, and soon I’m moving through Stygian darkness. I brush the walls with my fingertips for guidance; the rock is cool and smooth.
At one point, I stop, certain I heard a movement behind me. But there’s nothing except the deep, resounding silence, so I keep moving. Finally, my fingers find nothing. The rock wall has vanished, and I turn into the open space. I’m disoriented. I close my eyes for a second, reset my brain, and let my mind take over. I move forward through nothingness.
Up ahead, a faint light glimmers in the darkness.
