Rider's Resolve (The Rider's Revenge Trilogy Book 3) Read online

  He sat back, sighing. “I don’t know. None of them will recognize me. And even if they do, then they’ll know I was brought back with death walker magic and probably try to kill me.”

  “Aran was brought back with death walker magic and no one tried to kill him.”

  “That’s because no one can be sure that’s what happened.”

  “Same with you. Now. If you’d come back the day after that mess in the audience chamber they would’ve all known that you’d been healed with death walker magic. But now? Who can say? Maybe you were seriously injured and just had a really long recovery time.”

  Badru tapped two fingers against his lips, thinking. “Good point.”

  K’lrsa watched him with narrowed eyes, wondering what was going on in that mind of his.

  He better not be thinking he could be Daliph again. Because there was no way she was going to live in the Toreem Daliphate for the rest of her life.

  No. Way.

  Plus, she was going to destroy it.

  Vedhe scrubbed her bowl clean with a handful of sand and put it away. “One problem.”

  “What’s that?” K’lrsa handed her the other two bowls.

  “Does Badru really know any better than the newcomers how to survive here?”

  Badru opened his mouth to object, but then closed it again. Vedhe was right. What did he know about living in the tribes? His parents might’ve been born there, but it wasn’t like that conferred some magic knowledge on him.

  “We’ll just have to tell him what to do, then.” K’lrsa grinned at him.

  Vedhe nodded. “And it’s really just to give him something to do for a few days while we visit the Hidden City so he doesn’t feel useless.”

  “Hey! I’m right here, you know.”

  Vedhe met his outrage with a completely bland expression. “Sorry. But it’s true.”

  Badru shook his head—in amusement, not anger. He’d changed—for the better—from the deposed ruler she’d fled Toreem with. He’d come to understand his failings, but he was also more comfortable in his strengths.

  She liked this new Badru.

  K’lrsa yawned, unable to stop herself. She’d gone so many nights without sleep and been so tense for so long…

  It was all catching up to her.

  “Maybe we can have that conversation over dinner? Unless you have the energy to explain it all to him right now?”

  Vedhe shook her head. “Not really. I’m as tired as you are after the last few days.” She nodded towards F’lia, reminding K’lrsa that she’d also stayed up all night the night the baby died.

  “Well, then. Let’s get some sleep and talk about this later.” As Vedhe made her way to where M’lara and F’lia were already sleeping, K’lrsa turned to Badru. “You were just waking up when we got here, so I’m sure…”

  He shook his head. “You think I’m going to pass up the chance to have you in my arms again?” He lay down on the bedroll and patted the hollow space in front of him. K’lrsa cuddled against him, grateful for his steady presence once more.

  She’d missed him so much…

  She fell into a deep, dreamless sleep, finally getting a small part of the rest that had eluded her for weeks.

  Chapter 26

  That night they parted ways with Badru and continued towards the Hidden City. It wasn’t easy to leave him behind again, but at least this time K’lrsa knew she’d see him again. Soon.

  As they flew through the silent night, he was all she could think about.

  What would their lives would be like after this was all over?

  Would he agree to live with her in the tribes? She certainly wasn’t going to live with him in the Daliphana, no matter how much she loved him. Maybe they could travel together. Go North to where Vedhe’s people were from. Or to the ocean she’d heard about but never seen…

  Then again, she wasn’t sure she wanted to see so much water in one place. To think that people traveled it in vessels made of wood!

  No, perhaps not that. She was brave not foolish.

  M’lara shifted in her sleep and K’lrsa checked to make sure she was still secure. She was.

  K’lrsa’s thoughts turned to Aran.

  He had the benefit of death walker magic, but was that all? If it was, he’d be relatively easy to kill. She could just use the necklace on him. But she suspected he knew how to counter it. Badru said he’d studied all the histories and knew all the hidden lore.

  Which meant she needed some other way to kill him. A simple arrow would do it as long as she could get close enough and keep his death walkers from resurrecting him in time. Or a knife to the heart for that matter.

  The question was how to get close enough.

  She ran her thumb along the curved lines of the necklace, wishing she’d chosen the staff of power or the sun orb when she’d had the chance.

  How much easier it would be to defeat Aran—and destroy the Toreem Daliphate—if she had that power instead of the necklace. She wouldn’t even have to be close to kill him, she could just burn him and everyone around him to the ground…

  She sighed.

  She’d made her choice, and she couldn’t take it back now. She was stuck with what she had and would just have to make the best of it.

  There had to be a way to kill him. He was mortal after all.

  They stopped in a cave the next morning as the moon was setting and ate a quick meal and rested for a bit, but then continued onward, riding the horses across the shifting sands.

  Halfway through the day, when the sweat that had poured down her neck in the morning was dried and salty against her skin and her tongue was swollen from lack of water, K’lrsa realized what a foolish choice it had been to try to travel during the day. Even the horses, normally so strong, were flagging, stumbling as they struggled against the shifting sands beneath their feet.

  K’lrsa touched the moon stone at her neck, silently begging it to find them shelter. It pulsed softly, glowing a gentle blue color as she felt a tug towards their left.

  “This way,” she croaked as she turned Fallion towards the hope of water and shade.

  It was just over the next rise. A cramped space, but enough of one for all of them to squeeze inside. And blessedly cool with a small bubbling spring in the back corner.

  K’lrsa was careful to pace herself and the others as they quenched their thirst.

  She sent a silent thank-you to the gods when Vedhe handed her a jar of salve to smear across her reddened skin. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have pushed onward this morning. It’s just…” She glanced to where F’lia lay, mumbling to herself. Within just the few days since the death of the babe she seemed to have faded away, shrinking in on herself.

  Just like K’lrsa’s mother had after her father died. But her mother seemed to have burned down to her core and found her strength there. F’lia was just melting away to nothing.

  In another day or two she’d be gone.

  She drank the sleeping draughts, but refused to eat or speak or do much of anything for herself. And when she was awake she just huddled in on herself, rocking back and forth in quiet agony. The twin losses of L’ral and the babe were too much for her delicate spirit.

  K’lrsa longed to talk to her. To explain that there was so much left for her in this world and remind her of all the simple things she’d found joy in before—a gorgeous sunset, a flower growing all by itself out of cracked earth, the soft luxury of a piece of silk—but it wouldn’t work.

  Even if F’lia heard the words, they wouldn’t bring her back from that dark place.

  Their only hope was L’ral. Assuming he didn’t convince F’lia to join him in the Promised Plains and leave this life of suffering behind.

  She’d kill him if he did that.

  But what if he did?

  Was it K’lrsa’s place to tell her friend to go on living when the man she’d loved her entire life was on the other side, waiting for her?

  No.

  But she’d still try. S
he was selfish enough to want her best friend by her side as she grew old. They were like night and day, F’lia the crafter who could find beauty in anything, K’lrsa the Rider who could master any physical feat. They balanced one another.

  And she didn’t want to lose that. She didn’t want to lose anyone else she loved. Ever again.

  Yes, she had Badru, but…That was different. A lifelong friendship like the one she had with F’lia was a deeper bond than she could ever form with Badru or anyone else. They’d grown up together, side by side, two trees twining their branches, supporting one another as they reached ever higher.

  K’lrsa chewed on her lip as she watched F’lia sleeping. She hoped she’d made the right decision, because it was too late to go back now.

  Chapter 27

  They waited until the moon rose and started on their journey again, reaching the Hidden City by the time the moon was directly above them—half-full, half-shadow.

  It was just as K’lrsa remembered. The wall was tall, stretching in a gentle curve in each direction, the buildings that showed above it hard-edged. It was a city built for a siege not beauty.

  From the outside, the main thoroughfare of the only entrance appeared deserted, its surface of fitted stone tiles perfectly clean.

  That was an illusion, of course.

  Once they crossed the threshold into the city the streets would be full of thousands of people of all colors, talking and laughing in a thousand different languages, oblivious to the strangers who walked through their midst. There’d be no scents—no city stench of unwashed bodies and food—no vendors, nothing but the people.

  The recently dead. Gathered together for as long as they chose to stay until they finally passed through to the Promised Plains, and from there to…

  Who knew?

  Somewhere else.

  Some place beyond.

  K’lrsa stared at the writing engraved above the entrance. She could read it now, thanks to the knowledge she’d gained from the labyrinth. That skill she’d chosen to retain, practicing in private until she could scrawl an approximation of each shape.

  “Only the living may pass through this gate,” it read.

  Somewhere, on the other side of the city, but not in this world, was another gate where only the dead could pass through. The Hidden City was a waypoint, a small oasis where the living and dead stood side-by-side for just a little while.

  A flaw in the world. The product of a god’s misguided sympathy.

  The god and the two lovers who had led her to create this place were long gone, but the city remained, a dangerous oasis that had destroyed hundreds of lives with the promise of a false eternity.

  It was also home to the most deadly of weapons, those granted by the gods that men had proven unable to control.

  K’lrsa took a deep breath and turned to Vedhe. “Ready?”

  Vedhe shrugged as if to say, why not? They’d been through the city once before after all. What was there to fear?

  Nothing for Vedhe, maybe. But in the center of that city, at the heart of the labyrinth, was K’lrsa’s father. And her mother. Both prevented from moving on to the Promised Plains because of the foolish vow she’d made while in the throes of grief.

  She licked her lips, nervous. She wasn’t ready.

  But waiting wouldn’t change things.

  It was time.

  “Okay. Let’s go, then.” She urged Fallion forward.

  Chapter 28

  Just as before, as soon as they passed through the gate it was midday, and the hundreds of people crowded in the street seemed to melt away from them, caught up in their eternal conversations, oblivious to the living, breathing people who rode through their midst. This time, knowing where they were going and without Lodie looking for her husband in every face, they made quick time reaching the heart of the city.

  They crossed from the main thoroughfare onto a deserted road that gently curved away into the distance on each side, following a wall that contained the heart of the city. They sat their horses, alone, the dead left behind on the long avenue, and stared across the street at the entrance to the labyrinth.

  Fallion shook his head and shifted his back legs, gently urging K’lrsa to dismount. She didn’t want to, but when Vedhe slid from Kriger’s back and pulled F’lia down with her, and Kriger turned and left like he had the time before, she gave in.

  She helped M’lara to the ground before kissing Fallion on the cheek. “Don’t abandon me, micora.”

  Fallion whuffed her hair before strolling away down the center of the road.

  She envied him his confidence.

  K’lrsa studied the entrance to the labyrinth, wondering if they’d have to do it all over again—fight the dragon, solve the puzzle, overcome the temptation to stay with their loved ones—but then Vedhe pointed to a small door off to the side. “Was that here before?”

  “I don’t think so.”

  M’lara slipped her slender hand into K’lrsa’s, her eyes wide with awe as they approached it. She’d been silent the whole ride through the city. Unlike K’lrsa she’d never been in a city before. Any city. And she certainly had never been around so many people crowded together—people who were so dark and so light, dressed in thousands of outfits unlike anything seen in the tribes.

  K’lrsa winced. She should’ve explained it or at least offered comfort, but…

  She had wanted to. Once started, M’lara would have had question after question after question and either K’lrsa wouldn’t have been able to answer or she’d have found herself delving into those memories she’d never wanted.

  She squeezed M’lara’s hand, offering what silent comfort she could, but kept her attention focused on the door.

  F’lia was awake enough to walk on her own, but she swayed with each step and Vedhe had to hold her firmly by the elbow lest she wander away.

  K’lrsa stopped just shy of the door and waited for Vedhe to join her. “Do you want to go first or should I?”

  “You go. If there’s something to fight, M’lara can step out of the way easier than F’lia can.”

  “Step out of the way?” M’lara stood a little straighter. “I’m going to be a Rider someday. Riders don’t step out of the way of a fight.”

  “They should.” K’lrsa squeezed her hand to take the sting out of the words as she placed her other hand on the door handle. She paused, turning to M’lara. “If I say run, run. No bravery, understood?”

  “Yes.” M’lara rolled her eyes in sullen agreement.

  K’lrsa smiled slightly as she turned her attention back to the door and cautiously opened it to reveal a hallway, entirely white with closed doors spaced along either side at irregular intervals—just like the second hallway in the center of the labyrinth.

  K’lrsa relaxed a little.

  Definitely a better start than the dragon’s attack that had greeted them when they entered the labyrinth. But she didn’t let go of M’lara’s hand as she slowly stepped through, peering around, looking for danger as they made room for Vedhe and F’lia to join them.

  “Now what?” She looked to Vedhe who’d retained more of the knowledge of this place.

  Vedhe nodded down the hallway. “Only one direction to go.”

  K’lrsa released M’lara’s hand and wiped her sweaty palms on her riding leathers. She didn’t know why she felt so nervous. She’d been here before. Chewing on her lip, she led the way forward.

  She was tempted to try some of the doors, to see where they led, but she didn’t. What if they revealed more hallways? What would she do then? Better to continue forward on the one path they’d been given.

  If they were lucky, this hallway led to the room at the center of the labyrinth.

  They walked for what seemed like forever, the hallway never changing, just one long stretch of white walls and floors and ceilings alleviated with doors every once in a while. At one point, K’lrsa paused, ready to turn back, but there was nowhere to go back to. The hallway ended in a blank wall a short
distance behind them.

  Vedhe noticed and shrugged. It was what it was.

  But K’lrsa had to force herself to stay calm, to breathe slowly, in and out, in and out. The walls—at least the one behind them—really were closing in on them. She felt light-headed and had to brace herself against the wall nearest her.

  “Here.” M’lara offered her a waterskin and K’lrsa drank the last of it. How long had they been walking?

  Vedhe squeezed her arm and stepped past her, leading the way onward. K’lrsa followed along with the others. What other choice did they have?

  Eventually, with F’lia so exhausted she needed both Vedhe and K’lrsa to keep her standing and even M’lara’s boundless energy flagging, they reached the center of the labyrinth—the same circular room she remembered from before with one door on each side and another hallway opposite them.

  The Lady Moon stood in the center of the space, waiting, her eyes shining silver from the midst of a beautiful, ever-changing face.

  First she appeared to be a young maiden in the first blooms of womanhood and then slowly, too slowly to notice, her face changed until she was a woman as old as K’lrsa’s mother, the lines of age touching the corners of her eyes like butterfly wings, but still more beautiful than any mortal woman. And then, oh so slowly, she transformed into the ancient crone, the wrinkles so deep they doubled back on one another. But still, somehow, impossibly, beautiful.

  And through it all that gaze—that silvery intensity—never shifted or faded.

  “Welcome back.” Her voice danced like the trickle of cool water over rocks.

  K’lrsa glanced around. “Where’s my father.”

  The Lady laughed. “Ah, child. You never change, do you?” She waved towards the opposite hallway. “He’s waiting for you in the room where you last saw him. Go. Refresh yourselves. See your loved ones. But then we must talk.”

  She nodded toward Vedhe. “I must talk with you as well.”