Chapter 10

Son. Please. The words invaded Davi’s mind, filling every space, overcoming every other thought. He is my son.

They were back to where the worst happened. The mountains of Isenore. It couldn’t have been far from where his father’s men almost killed him. Where he’d killed himself. His fingers brushed the hilt of his sword sheathed at his waist.

The one memory he wished he’d never gotten back seemed to vibrate through the mountains, blocking out the sun until all he saw was darkness.

He’d plunged a sword straight into his heart. He’d done it to save Trystan. A man he still couldn’t quite look in the eye.

Davi rubbed the spot on his chest that had been pierced by the blade. His father saved him. Brought him back to life.

Come with me Davion. Together we can make this right.

But nothing was right, and he got the distinct impression it never would be.

The burning inside his chest intensified and he lunged from his horse, rolling as he hit the ground. Magic flowed from the soil into his limbs and the pain eased as it calmed him.

He’d almost gone. Almost forsaken everything for his father. How could he have even paused? His body jerked as if trying to empty itself, but nothing came up.

“This is as good a place as any to stop,” Ramsey’s soft voice broke through the silence that had surrounded them for most of the day. It’d been two days since they made it across the Dreach-Dhoun border. Bowman was true to his word in covering their retreat. But what was happening to the rebels of Dreach-Dhoun now?

Since crossing into Dreach-Sciene, they’d been skirting the border, avoiding the heart of Isenore. They would turn in Aldorwood’s direction once they reached Cullenspire.

Rion dismounted next to Davi and took the reins of both their horses, leading them farther into the woods toward the stream they’d been following through the mountain pass.

Davi closed his eyes as the images returned to him.

“Edric!” Rissa screamed.

“Get down,” Rion yelled as another arrow flew into the clearing.

Ramsey raised his hand as if to send a blast of magic, but even he was depleted.

Rissa dropped to her knees and crawled across the pine covered ground to where Edric lay with blood gushing from his chest. She pressed her fingers to his neck, her blazing hair swinging back and forth as she shook her head.

Davi scanned the trees for their attacker as another arrow sailed through the woods, striking a tree to his left. He jumped back just in time to see a flash of red. Rissa sprinted through branches and underbrush, not stopping as they whipped her in the face.

“Dammit,” Davi grunted as he jumped to his feet and took off after her.

Rissa pulled an arrow free as she ran and set it against the curve of her bow. She didn’t slow as she pulled the string back. A scream pierced the air as the arrow struck soft flesh.

Another scream hit him as Rissa loosed a second arrow.

Davi arrived to find their attacker crawling in desperation to get away from Rissa who stood over him with a blank expression on her face. The first arrow protruded from his hand, which had been holding his bow. The second rose from his leg.

Crimson blood stained the dark Dreach-Dhoun uniform.

“Ri, he can’t come after us.” Davi reached for her, but she jerked away. “We have to go.”

She held out her arm for him to take her bow. He looked to her in question but did as she asked.

“Edric was good.” Ice entered her voice. She pulled a dagger free from the sheathe of her belt. “Honorable. Brave. He risked his life for his kingdom.” Her eyes hardened as she stared down at the man.

Fear shone in his gaze. “Please.”

“Ri, let’s go.” Adrenaline still coursed through Davi’s veins from the fight and their escape, but he knew they needed to move quickly.

Rissa acted as if she didn’t hear him. Instead, she bent to look Edric’s killer in the eyes. “I am not good.” With a swift movement, she sliced the dagger across his throat.

Davi pulled his hands away from the earth so quickly he almost fell back. He’d never seen Rissa so cold. So emotionless. When he’d left her, she’d still been a princess who knew how to shoot.

Now she was a… killer? Not just a warrior, but something else. That man hadn’t needed to die. Marcus Renauld always taught his children—including Davi—it didn’t matter what another person did, but what you did in return. That was what defined your character. That man had killed Edric. Was Rissa just as guilty of evil as him?

As Davi’s father?

That was what it came down to. Davi wanted to make some sense of his father’s actions. To find reason among the chaos. Good mixed with the bad.

If he couldn’t, that would make what he felt for the man a betrayal of everything he was.

A hand landed on Davi’s shoulder, and he jumped.

“Just me, kid.” Ramsey lowered himself to the ground.

“Kid,” Davi scoffed. “You don’t look a day older than me.”

Ramsey smiled kindly. “There have to be benefits to this Tri-Gard business. It certainly isn’t the lack of danger.”

“If you and Lonara can appear young, why not Briggs?”

Ramsey sighed. “Out of the three of us, who did you trust the most?”

Davi nodded. He understood finally. Briggs spent years pretending to be an ally. Just a crazy old man. He wasn’t the Tri-Gard member one had to worry about. Ramsey had been thought of as the betrayer by all of Dreach-Sciene for two decades. And people feared Lonara.

“He isn’t crazy, is he?” Davi asked.

“No. Briggs Villard is many things, but his mind works better than just about anyone else’s. Those ‘voices’ he always speaks too… that’s your father. They were in constant communication.”

So much made sense now. He looked up, hoping to see Rissa, needing to tell her. To talk to her. To touch her and remind himself she was there with him. She wasn’t a memory that had been implanted.

“I’m going to sit here a while longer and let the earth’s power soothe away everything from the past few days. You should go to the river.”

He sat there in confusion for a moment before Ramsey nudged him. “My granddaughter went that way.”

“Right.” Davi climbed to his feet and followed the path set by the horse’s hooves. Their weight left imprints on the mossy floor. Before long, a sheer rock face rose up on his right, forming a wall to the river.

Familiarity struck him. This same river wound down out of the mountains all the way to the forests of Aldorwood. They’d followed it when they first set out on their quest what seemed like a lifetime ago.

His feet stopped when he caught sight of Rissa. She sat in her underclothes on the edge of the river. A trickle of water ran down the rock wall, dropping into the current. She stuck her head under it, letting it lace through the thick strands of her hair.

He should have turned away. Given her the privacy she deserved. But his entire body froze to the spot as she stretched her arms out and scrubbed at the dirt caking onto her skin. She flung her hair back over her shoulder and rivulets of water streamed down her face.

She was beautiful.

Her cold eyes flashed through his mind, but that wasn’t the girl who was before him now. She’d turned into someone else.

I am not good.

The Rissa he knew represented everything good in this world.

And she’d slit the soldier’s throat without a second thought. They hadn’t been in battle. He was no longer a threat.

She only wanted revenge.

He remembered the feeling well. He’d burned with a need for revenge before his memories returned to him. And now he hated himself for it.

Did she feel the same way?

As if sensing his question, she looked up, her eyes widening at his presence.

Her shirt and trousers lay on the rock beside her, but she didn’t reach for them. Her underclothes revealed a sliver of creamy stomach and his fingers itched to touch her. To make her see she didn’t have to be that other person anymore. He was back. It was time for her to return as well.

“Dav,” she breathed, heat swirling in her eyes.

His body moved of its own accord as he jumped down to the riverbank and stood inches from her.

Tears hung in her lashes, but she didn’t let them fall. Not his Rissa. The strong, resilient fighter. What she didn’t realize was choosing not to feel didn’t make you strong. Bravery was facing that which we did not wish to face.

Davi didn’t hesitate any longer as he leaned in and pressed his lips to hers. Her hands gripped his biceps as if afraid she would fall.

They’d faced the hell of Dreach-Dhoun and returned alive. Again. They’d lost a dear friend. Rissa had taken a life with her own hands.

As he kissed her, Davi gave it all back to her. The emotions. The grief. He wanted to make her brave, just for a moment.

One arm circled her back while his free hand rubbed circles on the exposed skin of her stomach. There were always events or people stopping them from being in this together. From becoming a team.

Rissa pulled away and sucked in a shuddering breath. “You wanted to stay with him.” She rested her forehead against his.

Davi couldn’t take back his indecision. He couldn’t erase those memories from Rissa’s mind. “I won’t leave you again.”

In that moment, he knew it was true. His father didn’t hold half the power over him that Rissa did.

She stepped back and hugged her arms over her chest. “I want to believe that, Davi. I do. But what if it comes down to him or us?”

“I wouldn’t—”

“I saw the way you looked at him!” She breathed deeply. “He’s your father, Dav. And he’s the enemy. I know that. But do you know what I…” She turned away. “I’d do anything to have my father back.”

He stepped toward her, pressing up against her back, and wrapped his arms around her. “I’d give the world to have your father with us again.”

She sighed. “Really?”

“I won’t lie to you, Ri. My head is a mess. I’m still sorting through real and false memories. My father will always have some weird pull on me. But your family has always been my family. Marcus Renauld raised me. He trained me. He made me into the man I am.” He rested his chin on her shoulder. “Without him, I might be just like Calis Bearne.”

“Or like me.” A third voice joined their conversation.

Lorelai stood behind them, her watchful eyes studying them. “I’m sorry. I just came to bathe. This is the first time since… Well, the first time in a while. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

This was the most his cousin had said to him since her rescue. He released Rissa who quickly gathered her clothes and ran off without even slipping her shoes on first.

Davi let her go as he examined his cousin. Ramsey said she’d barely slept since the night they broke her free and the stress was clear in the rings around her eyes. Her beautiful white-blonde hair was matted with the same grime that streaked her face.

She stepped by him and bent to unlace her boots. Without straightening, she looked back at him. “Do you plan on giving me some time alone before I lose the last bit of sun?”

He ignored her annoyance. “What did you mean when you said, ‘or like me?’”

She stood up and faced away from him as her voice took on the sad note he’d heard too often. “I was raised by Calis, Davion. Or at least in his household. And you know what I’ve spent more than a decade doing?”

He didn’t make a move.

“Lying. Cheating.” She paused. “Killing.” A sigh pushed past her lips. “I did it all in the name of the uncle I still love. Even after he tried to execute me. If there’s anyone who understands you, it’s me. But you were lucky. Yes, you still served as your father’s unwitting pawn, but it meant a different path forward for you. Marcus…” Her voice shook and trailed off.

“Lorelai—”

“Let me have some peace, Davion.” Her voice hardened. “I know you don’t understand the consequences of your stunt in Dreach-Dhoun, but that doesn’t mean they don’t exist.”

“What consequences?”

“Exactly. You saw someone you love in danger and wanted to save them, but what other dangers did you cause? I won’t lie, I am happy to be standing here before you. But that is a selfish joy. Sometimes you shouldn’t risk everything for the ones you love. You have to know when it’s time to let go.”

She turned to face him. “I’m sure Ramsey and Rion would like help setting up camp.”

She began undressing and Davi walked back the way he’d come. A wolf howled in the distance, but he didn’t worry about Lorelai. If anyone could take care of themselves, it was her.