Realm of Mirrors (The DeathSpeaker Codex Book 3) (21 page)

Once my spark recharged, I’d try again. For the moment, it was all I could do not to start screaming—and never stop.

I didn’t think I’d ever felt this…much. It was the only way to describe the awful, writhing mass that formed inside me the instant I’d seen him, and refused to ease. I was horrified at the pain he must’ve gone through. Practically relieved to tears that he was still alive. So furious at the people who’d done this to him, the anger was a hot blade in my gut.

And utterly sickened that one of my first, short-lived thoughts was to take him back to the human realm, right now, while we still could. Without Daoin and Reun.

I’d dismissed the idea almost as soon as it came. But I still hated myself for having it.

“Do you think they poisoned him?”

Sadie’s broken whisper distracted me from my self-loathing. “I don’t know,” I said slowly. “But that’s a good point.” If he was dosed with cold iron or mandrake oil, healing magic wouldn’t cancel the effects. Only time could do that—something we probably didn’t have much of.

I heard Uriskel rifling around in his pack for something. A minute later, he walked around the fire holding a large silver flask. “If he’s poisoned, this’ll help,” he said as he tossed the flask to me.

“What is it?”

“Self-medication.” He gave a crooked smile. “It’s elderberry wine.”

I almost refused. Taeral had a problem with alcohol, and I didn’t think getting him drunk was the best idea right now. But then I remembered the first time I’d seen him shot with a cold iron bullet. He’d brought out a bottle and Sadie started giving him hell for drinking, until he told her it was elderberry wine—and it would neutralize the poison.

Sadie’s expression said she remembered that, too.

“Thank you,” I said. “I’m glad you packed this. What made you think of it?”

“Mere habit.” Uriskel shrugged. “With no healing abilities, I’ve a need to rely on alternative methods. Sometimes the only option is to deal with the pain,” he said. “Wine helps with that too, even if I’ve not been poisoned. And I do enjoy the taste.”

And now I felt bad again. “Well, I’ll try to make sure there’s some left for you.”

He waved a dismissive hand. “Use it all,” he said. “I can always raid my brother’s supply when we return.”

I couldn’t help noticing he’d said when, not if. Like maybe he thought we had a chance now.

With a nod of thanks, I shuffled on my knees behind Taeral’s head and propped him against my thighs, so he wouldn’t choke on the stuff. I uncapped the flask and opened his mouth carefully.

Not much of it went down at first. Most of the deep red liquid dribbled down his chin and from the sides of his mouth, looking uncomfortably like blood. I tilted his head back a little further and tried to drip it directly down his throat.

His body tensed. He coughed and spluttered, and his eyes flew open. But I didn’t think he was seeing anything—they were glassy and unfocused, watering with pain.

“Taeral.” Maybe he could hear me. “Can you drink this? It should help.”

He gave a bare nod, the slightest shift of his head. I really hoped that meant yes.

This time when I tipped the flask, he managed to swallow a few times before the coughing started again. I moved it away until he stopped. “Did they poison you?”

Another weak nod.

“All right. Try to get this down.”

He drank a little more, and then shuddered and blinked slowly. When he opened his eyes, they focused on Uriskel standing a few feet away.

“
You.
” His voice was a rusted scrape, like a knife against stone. “Bastard. How could you…bring him here?”

I felt the words like a blow, and they weren’t even directed at me. I was too stunned to say anything.

Uriskel’s expression gave away nothing, but now I knew him well enough to understand how furious he really was. He stared at Taeral for a long time, like he was trying to decide whether to scream at him, or kill him.

Finally, he said, “You’re welcome.”

And he walked away.

C
HAPTER 29

I
had to give Taeral the short version of why he shouldn’t try to get up and kill Uriskel, other than the fact that he physically couldn’t. He calmed down a little at the halfling part, and a lot more when I mentioned two hundred years of slavery to the Seelie Court.

Now he was mostly pissed at me.

“Why did you come here? Both of you could have been killed.”

“You know why,” I said.

“I sensed you in the woods, but I…did not believe it.” His head fell back, and he closed his eyes with a grimace. “
A’ghreal.
”

Sadie squeezed his hand. “I’m here.”

“I know.” One corner of his mouth lifted slightly. “You should not be.”

“You know, I’m really trying not to get angry at you,” she said. “You’re crazy if you think I was going to sit around—”

“But.” The soft word got her attention. “I am grateful to see you both.”

Well, that was a first. He’d backed down from stubborn in record time.

“Get more of that wine down him, will you?” Uriskel materialized from the other side of the fire and tossed something at me—a leaf-wrapped portion of meat. “And eat, if you can. Young lord.”

Taeral shuddered and strained to sit up. “Uriskel…
ihmpáeg míe d’maihtúnaas.
”

I beg your forgiveness. Pretty sure that was a first, too.

Uriskel sighed. “No need,” he said. “Fortunately for you, I’ve a brother of my own who’s just as bullheaded as yours. I’d have said the same, or worse, if you’d been the one bringing him into danger.”

“Bullheaded?” I echoed.

“Aye. You are.” Taeral’s smirk turned into a wince. He almost fell back again, but he managed to catch himself. “Well, I thank you anyway,” he said to Uriskel. “I’d no idea—”

“Yes, let’s dispense with talk of my sad little tale,” Uriskel said abruptly. “You can thank me by telling me how you’ve escaped the palace dungeon, so I’m assured that you were not followed.”

His brow furrowed. “How did you know where I was?”

“A dead guy told us,” I said. “Little Redcap bastard, big mouth. He…told us about Reun, too.”

Taeral’s jaw clenched. “Aye, the fool. He should’ve known not to take Moirehna at her word, yet he still offered himself for me,” he said. “Gideon…any word of our father?”

Damn, I wished I had better news. “Only that no one’s seen him.”

“I thought as much.” Something dark flashed in his eyes. “She’ll not kill him. But she will destroy him, and soon.” He frowned and looked at Uriskel. “As to my escape, that was Levoran’s doing. One of the Unseelie Guard, my father’s lieutenant,” he said. “Even now he remains loyal to our family. He’ll suffer greatly when she discovers what he’s done,” he added in a rough whisper.

“I suppose that’s acceptable.” Uriskel folded his arms. “Still…how soon can you move? Even with the wards, we should not linger here.”

Sadie opened her mouth angrily, but Taeral stopped her with a shake of his head. “He is right. Her spies travel these woods, always.” He raised his hand and flexed it slowly, and I realized with a nasty start that at least two of his fingers were broken. But he hadn’t protested Sadie holding his hand. “I assume the plan is to get to the palace?” he said.

“Aye. More or less.”

“Well, I’m worse than useless without my arm. They’ve destroyed it.” He gritted his teeth, tried to stand, and gave up with a gasp. “I must replace it,” he said. “We’ll need every advantage if we’re to survive.”

“I admit, that was a splendid piece of work,” Uriskel said. “Where in Arcadia did you get it?”

Taeral gave a soft, bitter laugh. “The mirror mender.”

“No.” Uriskel immediately backed up a step, one hand extended in protest. “Gods, no. We’re not engaging with that mad old relic. Besides, the Autumn Highlands are a three-day journey from here—and that’s under ideal conditions.”

Okay. So the mirror mender was bad news, whoever that was.

“The Highlands are neutral ground,” Taeral said. “We’ll be safe there, for a time. And it need not take three days. Those with royal blood can open a direct portal to…oh.” His shoulders slumped. “Those with
full
royal blood.”

I cleared my throat loudly. “Neutral ground seems like a good idea to me,” I said, looking hard at Uriskel. “And we do need all the help we can get.”

“Blasted, meddlesome fledgling! I’ve no interest in—” He cut himself off with a frustrated growl. “Fine,” he spat. “Neutral ground it is. But I’ll not speak to that daft, chirping monstrosity. Nor will I drink any of her dreadful tea.”

Taeral stared at him. “You are a full royal?”

“It would seem so,” he said through his teeth. “And since we’re traveling by portal, we’ve no need to wait. So let’s get this over with.”

As he strode around the fire, probably to gather his pack, I moved to help Taeral stand. “Um…what dreadful tea?” I said.

“The mirror mender is difficult to explain.” He let me place his arm around my shoulders, and Sadie circled him to hover nervously on his other side. “Nearly impossible, in fact,” he said. “She is…something you must experience for yourself.”

I wasn’t sure I liked the idea of experiencing someone. It sounded a lot worse than meeting them.

Somehow, we managed to get Taeral on his feet. He couldn’t stay there without support, so Sadie grabbed our gear while I kept an arm around him, trying to avoid the worst of the damage. “Do I even want to know what they did to you?” I said quietly.

He shook his head. “Easier to tell you what they’ve
not
done to me. The
cáesdhe
are… quite skilled in their profession.”

“All right.” I tried for a light tone, but my voice shook anyway. “What didn’t they do to you, then?”

“They did not break me.” His expression hardened. “And I’ll not allow them to break Daoin, either.”

“You mean
we
won’t,” I said.

His smile temporarily banished the pain in his eyes. “Aye, brother. We will not.”

“If you’re through…bonding?” Uriskel’s dry tone cut in. He stood in front of us, pack in place and the ghost of a smile on his lips. “The rest of us are ready.”

“Yeah, we’re done,” I said. “Let’s do this.”

C
HAPTER 30

T
he mirror mender lived in a castle straight out of Sleeping Beauty.

Uriskel’s portal worked the same as the one that brought us to Arcadia. We stepped out into a vast, walled courtyard paved with gray stone and overgrown with bramble weeds. They snaked across the stone floor, curled and tangled around free-standing archways, and choked a scattering of statues and fountains that were slowly crumbling with neglect.

There wasn’t a sound in the place.

“I don’t think anyone’s home,” Sadie said in strained tones. “This place smells…wrong. I mean, it’s like
nothing
has ever been here.”

I had to agree. Definitely a creepy, don’t-go-in-the-basement kind of feeling.

Uriskel gave a derisive snort. “Of course she’s here,” he said. “This is all part of her blasted production. Every visit is a grand event, or some such royal nonsense.”

“Are you sure about that?” I said.

“Unfortunately.” With a barely contained groan, Uriskel clomped across the courtyard toward the equally creepy castle.

“It is true.” Taeral sounded faintly amused. “She does enjoy showing off.”

“If you say so.”

I couldn’t imagine what kind of showing off something like this would involve. But we made our way to the ominous structure, and I thought Taeral was leaning a little less on me now. At least, I hoped he was improving.

The castle itself was alabaster stone, dulled to a menacing yellow and streaked liberally with grime. Ragged vines hung listlessly from the tops of the turrets and fringed the edges of the roof. There were three lines of runes carved above the vast, arched wooden door. I couldn’t understand them as easily as the spoken language, but I managed to puzzle them out.

Mirror Mender