Return to the Shadows (Shadows #2) Page 19

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  I slept for a full twelve hours before Ashley and Marta decided it was time to rouse me from my slumber.

  “There’s coffee in the dining room. And there’s someone here to see you,” Marta informed me, looking much less intimidating in the late afternoon sunlight that lit the pale yellow walls.

  “Mama, there’s a lady downstairs!”

  “There is?” I frowned. For the briefest of moments, my spirits had lifted in the hopes that Mark had returned.

  “She looks like a real fairy!”

  “A fairy? Well, my goodness. I had better go and meet her right away.” I smiled at Ashley before looking quizzically at Marta.

  “She says she knows you.” The older woman shrugged. “You want us to stall her while you take a shower?”

  “No, I’ll go down now—the bath can wait.” The familiar raven-haired beauty with the exotic pixie face was like a jolt to my system when I entered the dining room. “Aries! Is it really you?” I cried, launching myself at the taller woman without waiting for an answer. Of course it was her.

  “Claire,” she laughed, returning the embrace. “I can’t believe you’re really here. Where have you been? I’ve been looking everywhere for you. The pixies and the sprites formed a search party after a man came to see us about a missing woman with honey-colored hair called Claire who had come here in search of her brother. We knew it was you the man spoke of even before he said your name.”

  “Aries, I have so much to tell you. I was so worried about you after that day we’d been captured.”

  “You saved my life that night.”

  “So you did get away then.”

  “Yes. I went back to my people. We went back to find you only to learn you had been taken to auction. There were no leads after that. Not until the man came to us. Are you all right?” She held me at arm’s-length.

  “Perfectly fine,” I assured my old friend. “Did you say a man came to find me? When?”

  “He was tall with streaked hair. I think his eyes were green. He showed up about eight months ago.”

  “Mark,” I whispered.

  “I think that was his name, yes.” Aries cocked her head. “Is he important?”

  “Yes, but I’m afraid that we’ve got bigger problems at the moment.” I sighed, stepping closer. “The fences are failing, Aries. From Lerna to Oxbrough, and that’s just what I know about firsthand.”

  “I know. There’s a large group of us who’ve been trying to assess the damage across Terlain and bring any survivors to safety. I’m afraid we’re not much of a match for Kahn and his guards, and especially not for some of the creatures that have taken free rein across the land.” Her tone was laced with a bitterness that had grown roots that went deep.

  “So we’re all screwed.” Marta sauntered into the room.

  “We might be,” Aries acknowledged. “But there just may be hope yet.” Her silk-and-honey voice became low and dramatic. “There’s been talk of an army that’s forming, high in the mountains, not very far from here. People talk of a man without a name, the warrior of the ruins, who’s to lead a powerful army.”

  She turned to me. “They say he’s tall and strong, with jewel green eyes and light hair.”

  “Sun-streaked—” I broke off, my heart beginning a slow flutter.

  “They say his heart was broken and he took the mountains, some think to avenge his lover’s death.

  But he means to take out Kahn’s empire, and most people think he can do just that.”

  “When did this talk begin to circulate, Aries?” I asked, holding my breath.

  “About eight months ago, maybe less,” she confirmed.

  “Dear heaven, Marta, I think she’s talking about Mark. Do you suppose?”

  “The timing is right,” she nodded, tears forming in her blue eyes. “The description too. So that’s where he’s been all this time.”

  “It’s possible. Very possible.” I swallowed, excitement beginning to build. “We have to find him.

  Can we get there, to the mountains?”

  “Their training camp is in the ruins near the ranges. It won’t be easy, but we can get there. He might be our only hope.”

  “We have to make the journey,” I decided. “Marta, can you watch Ashley for a few days?”

  “Yes,” she nodded. “Don’t you worry about your little girl. She’ll be safe here. You go find my boy. Bring him home.”