Raina grunted and let out a desperate cry before the stones rose higher, leaving a clear path. Relief flooded me at the sight of Lucia, Barrett holding her steady as they stumbled toward us.
“Hurry!” Raina cried out, blood dripping from her nose.
Barrett dragged Lucia through the opening, their boots smearing a path of blood. The boulders fell the moment they were clear, sealing the entrance once more.
Raina fell back, gasping for air, and Alec caught her.
“Lucia!” Damien rushed to her. She smiled weakly up at him, and Barrett helped steady her, his eyes never leaving her.
Something tender reflected in his steel eyes. They had never seemed so soft, so full of worry and care.
“Thank you,” Damien said, sparing Barrett a glance before scooping Lucia into his arms.
Barrett nodded, and my feet moved on their own, rushing to him at the sight of the blood painting the side of his face.
“Are you all right?” I asked before I could think better of it.
His eyes shifted to me, weary and exhausted.
“It’s just a scratch,” he said, but at the way his eyes wavered, the way his pupils expanded, I could see through the bluff.
“Thank you,” I muttered, and he blinked, his brows rising, as if he had expected me to say something else.
He suddenly couldn’t hold my gaze, and my heart squeezed as his lips parted and closed. His expression changed, hardening, and he shrugged past me. “I only did what was required.”
Twenty-three.
We had managed to save twenty-three captives. Sixteen of them were children, the youngest only five. Had I been that young when I’d been brought here?
We had lost four warriors in the end, four souls who would never return to loved ones waiting for them. Several warriors stayed behind, earth Stoicheion dismantling the fortress, ensuring nothing and no one would ever set foot in that cursed place again.
Lucia knelt before a human child, probably nine or ten by the look of her. She was just as filthy as the others, her red hair a mess of knots and curls. A strange accent I had never heard before painted her tongue whenshe spoke.
“What’s your name?” Lucia asked.
“Nora,” she said timidly.
“Is that the name your parents gave you?” she asked, and I felt my breath tightening in my chest.
“It is.”
I let out a sigh of relief. To hear a child made it out of that place and still had the ability to speak their true name brought me the most profound joy.
“Do you remember where you’re from?” Lucia asked.
She shook her head. “They took meh from mah home when Ah was little. Ah donnae even remember me mummy and daddy’s names.”
“Sounds like she came from Scotland,” Damien said, kneeling before the girl. “If you like, you’re welcome to go back with us.”
She glanced between them, and I could already see how she hesitated, how her body tensed.
Lucia offered her a smile. “You will never have to do anything they forced you to do here. You’ll be free. We have plenty of food, we can get you fresh clothes—whatever you need, it will be yours.”
I turned from them, walking through the makeshift camp we had set up to tend to the wounded before we made our way home. The sun crested the mountaintops, chasing the twin moons into their slumber. An envoy would be arriving from Erebus’ kingdom soon to collect most of the prisoners. He would aid in reuniting them with their families—their domains. The feather folk child, Aesos, waved to me as I passed, and Micah, who was tending to one of her wounds, looked back to offer me a warm smile.
Warmth filled my chest at the sight of it, and I drew close enough to press a kiss to his cheek before continuing toward the forest.
The air was fresh, caressing my skin and rustling my hair. Sprites danced along the branches high above me, the tiny orbs seeming curious of my presence. Tiny, furry creatures scurried about, their long ears perking up as they paused to look back at me with big, beady eyes before running for cover.
