Page 51 of To Kill a Shadow
Beyond the copse of blackened trees were the trembling lights of the Knights’ torches. I maintained my distance, only extinguishing my flame when they slowed for the evening.
Sure enough, Commander Maddox signaled the unit to halt, the recruits dismounting their steeds to unpack. I sighed in relief. I wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but my aching limbs thanked him.
Slipping from Starlight, my bones crunching as I struck the hard earth, I led her to a nearby tree, tying her reins around its rugged trunk. She shot me an exasperated look before grazing on the prickly grass.
I could just make out the muffled voices of the others as they shared a quick meal by a hastily constructed fire, Jude’s voice absent from the chaotic chorus.
I was well aware I’d have to join them at some point, but prolonging the inevitable, even for one more evening, felt like a safer bet.
Lying on the damp ground, I fashioned my cloak into a makeshift pillow, tilting my gaze toward the stars. While they were always out, the sight of them never ceased to rob my breath.
Liam often teased me, claiming that I belonged in the sky alongside them, as my head was forever in the clouds.
He wasn’t entirely wrong.
There were many restless evenings at home where I’d sneak off and spread a thick woven blanket out beneath the twinkling lights. Sometimes I would bring a mug of Mother’s famous hot chocolate, angling my head to watch the fiery gems I could see, but never hold.
I thought I preferred it that way—nothing of beauty and substance should be kept by one person alone.
And in their own way, the stars soothed me more than any dagger or adrenaline-filled fight ever could. They coaxed out a side of me that few had ever seen before—a calm one.
Tonight, the stars were especially radiant, and after the day I’d had, I welcomed the sight. A part of me feared it would be one of the last times I would ever glimpse them, and my heart ached at the melancholy thought.
Sleep must have taken me at some point, because the crunching of a tree branch jerked me awake.
My hand shot to the dagger strapped to my thigh. I knew there were many thieves and rogues that preyed on the vulnerable in this forest. It was near enough to the capital and the surrounding villages to be a temptation to lowlifes looking for easy coin.
Scanning the thicket through narrowed eyes, I searched for signs of life, for anything amiss. The shadows were deeper than before, a thick fog of gray creeping through the underbrush. It hugged the surrounding trees, the air tasting of smoke.
It’s just fog, I chastised myself.
This forest was known to play tricks on the mind. It was the reason why most with any semblance of self-preservation steered clear of it.
I was paranoid. After all, I was a fleeing recruit who would be sent to the Patrol if found.
I was a damnfugitive, and that was enough to instill fear in the heart of any rational individual.
“Rational” being the key word. I might have toed that line one too many times.
Lowering myself back to the earth, I hesitantly shut my eyes, willing the brimming anxiety to ease. When minutes passed and silence reigned over the stagnant evening air, my weary muscles loosened once again, sleep opening its arms wide to receive me.
I felt the cold metal of the blade before I saw it.
My eyes shot open, lowering to where the sharpened point pressed against the hollow of my throat.
Damn it. I should have listened to my gut.
A deep voice made of pure velvet and ice whispered into the shell of my ear, fiery breath tickling my flesh as the hair on the back of my neck rose in alarm.
“And here I thought you might have actually listened.”
Chapter Twenty
Jude
There have been whisperings of a prophecy among my fellow priestesses. It claims the day will be restored when the darkness falls for the light. I cannot make sense of these words, but I do know hope is a powerful thing to have. And hope rarely comes during times of sense.
Found in the diary of Juniper Marchant, Sun Priestess,
