Page 104 of Sword & Shadow
His brother’s shoulders instantly drew back.
Deckard held his fierce stare, then placed a hand on his shoulder. “I need you to protect Ilain and the Relics. This is not a request; it is an order. Do you understand?”
Thom’s jaw tightened in the way it used to when they were young. For a heartbeat, Deckard tensed, his mind flashing back to their childhood. Should they have been ten years younger, he would have expected his brother to lash out with his fists.
Now, Thom leaned in, words hissing out between clenched teeth as he said, “I want to help.”
“And this is how you help,” Deckard insisted.
“No,” Thom spat, grabbing a fistful of Deckard’s coat. “I want to help you find her.”
Deckard saw the possessive flare in his brother’s eyes with those words. It was the same look he’d seen when Thom declared that he would do whatever it took to protect Evylin. And Deckard’s chest seared with anger now as it had then.
Deckard shoved Thom back, breaking his hold, and reminded him, “She’s not your wife.”
Before his brother could respond, Deckard turned. “Ilain, what is the next stop?”
The woman’s eyes flickered from brother to brother. “Dunbar. Twenty-two miles southeast.”
Deckard swung up onto his horse, Ethenn following his lead. “Take Thom and Rafferty there,” he instructed the Mage. “We’ll find them and meet you as soon as we can.”
“Colonel,” Rafferty said, hurrying over. He raised a hand, a Relic hanging from his grasp. “Take this with you.”
Deckard stared down at the dull amethyst. Night, like his magic. Did Rafferty know, or was it just a coincidence? The Relic would help. Though Deckard had yet to access his magic, if danger arose, surely he could with a Relic in hand. But then Deckardhadused magic when he’d summoned Hewitt. And heknew, with or without the Relic, hewouldfind Evylin and bring her back safely, no matter what.
It was too dangerous a risk. If Blount had captured them...
Deckard’s jaw grew tense at the thought. If Blount had captured them, Deckard wouldneedto be stronger than the Night Mage.
Swallowing the lump in his throat, Deckard swept the Relic from Rafferty’s grasp. He tugged open his collar, working the beaming amethyst pendant under his coat. Its cold metal sent an eerie calm sweeping across his skin.
Ilain watched, her chin raised in question, but she didn’t speak.
Deckard took it as all the approval he needed. Then he met Thom’s angered glare. “Keep her safe,” he charged.
Without waiting for a reply, Deckard dug his heels into his horse’s flank. He and Ethenn tore out of the forest, riding straight and fast toward Dunneshead.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
As the dirt road broke through the overhang of trees, they slowed their horses. Deckard’s heart beat with the urgency of a ticking clock. He scanned the distant village looking for any sign of disturbance or...well, he wasn’t quite sure what he expected to see. Some sign of whatever had waylaid Evylin and Auden this long, he supposed. But the village appeared calm, the thinning fog drifting out over the nearby lake.
The horses snorted, grateful to exchange their race for a plodding pace. Deckard’s hand twitched on the reins. The tingling of the Night Relic’s metal against his bare chest, tucked beneath the layers of his clothes to hide its glow, seemed only to heighten his agitation. He hated being forced to slow down. He wanted to charge into the village, knocking down doors until he found Evylin.
He fought those urges, remaining alert to survey the buildings as they drew near.
“Sir,” Ethenn muttered, his unusually shaky tone betraying his unease, “I don’t mean to question you, but...”
Deckard glanced at him. “But you have a question?”
The young man nodded.
“Go ahead.”
Ethenn eyed the village, his keen hunter’s gaze picking up things Deckard was sure he’d missed. “I’m concerned that Thom was right,” Ethenn said. “This could be a trap, and walking in with only the two of us....”
Deckard let the worried thought hang for only a moment. “Do you know why I chose to bring you with me, Loxley?”
The young soldier considered it. “No.”
