A Vow So Bold and Deadly (The Cursebreaker Series Book 3)

With a small group that needs no cover, we’re able to ride hard across Emberfall. I remember sneaking through the woods with Grey, how every mile seemed to take an hour, but now we seem to fly. My stomach churns with anxiety, and I feel as though I haven’t eaten in days. I’ve never believed in fate for a day in my life, but Grey does, and now I find myself begging fate.

Let him survive.

Let him come back to me.

Keep him safe.

Please.

The officers from Rhen’s army ride at our front and at our back, acting as escorts as promised. At first my own soldiers were wary and reluctant, but we’ve made good time without incident. When we stopped to water the horses, I saw one of the Emberfall soldiers lend a piece of flint to one of my officers when hers dropped into the depths of the creek. This morning, one of my own soldiers helped one of Rhen’s when the girth of his saddle began to fray. Noah moves between both groups easily when we stop, treating minor wounds when necessary, but he mostly sticks to my side.

We slow the horses to a walk near daybreak, and Noah rides alongside. He offers me a heel of bread. “You should eat.”

I shake my head. “I’m not hungry.”

“Well, your body needs some food, even if your head doesn’t think so.”

I take the bread because I know he’ll be relentless if I don’t, but when I tear a piece with my teeth, I just want to throw up on my horse.

I shake my head and take a pull from my water skin. “I’m too nervous.”

He doesn’t say anything for a moment, but I can feel him studying me. “Small bites,” he says.

“How far are we?” I ask. To appease him, I take a tiny tear of bread.

He looks at the horizon. “We passed the turn to Silvermoon an hour ago. If we keep up this pace, we’ll make it to the castle before sunrise.”

“Sunrise!” I look at my soldiers. “We rest for no longer than five minutes.”

Noah chuckles. “Don’t you remember Jake punching Grey when he didn’t want to rest?”

I look into his eyes. “Aren’t you worried, too?”

That sobers him. “Five minutes.”

“We should make it three.” I draw up my reins.

I love the mountains in Syhl Shallow, but there is something peaceful about the rolling hills of Emberfall, especially when sunlight first breaks along the horizon, sending early streaks of purple across the sky. The horses blow steam into the air, their hooves pounding the ground. I recognize the territory surrounding Ironrose Castle now, the wide swath of forest that surrounds the castle itself. There’s one final hill to crest, and then we’ll be there.

My heart beats hard against my ribs. We’re here. Grey, we’re here.

Then we sail over the hill and see the soldiers. There are hundreds of them. Thousands of them. All in formation.

Clanna Sun hauls on her reins. “It’s a trap!” she cries. “Fall back!”

My soldiers and officers skid to a stop, too, horses rearing in protest. They quickly swarm to surround me. A shout goes up from the army at the base of the hill. The Emberfall soldiers who’d been escorting us look alarmed.

“Hold!” I say. I put up a hand and glare at Clanna Sun. “I said, hold!”

They hold. The horses stamp and prance, jerking at too-tight reins. I look across at Jamison, whose gaze goes from us to the soldiers waiting in formation in the valley.

Before I have a chance to say anything, he says quickly, “Your Majesty. I will ride down to them. I will explain.”

A group of Rhen’s soldiers have mounted horses, and they’ve begun to ride toward us. It’s too dark to see much very clearly, but behind them, I see the shadows of archers with bows sitting ready.

“Go,” I say to Jamison.

“This is foolhardy,” Clanna Sun hisses at me. “Your mother would never have—”

“I am not my mother,” I snap at her. “And you will remember your place.”

She clamps her mouth shut.

Jamison gallops down the hill, and when he reaches the group that’s split off, they stop. I can’t hear what they’re saying from here, and my heart seems to stop beating as I wait. We could never outrun this army. We could never fight. They could slaughter us all right here.

But then one soldier peels away from the small group, his horse sprinting across the turf. As he draws closer, I see the colors of his armor, the black of his hair.

I slip out of the saddle. “Move,” I say to my officers. “Move.”

I stride forward just as his horse crests the hill, and Grey leaps to the ground before his mount has even drawn to a stop.

My heart flutters wildly, and my knees are weak, but I force myself forward until I’m in front of him. His eyes are exhausted and full of pain, and there’s blood everywhere: in his hair, on his hands, in broad streaks across his armor. I press my hands to his face as if I have to prove to myself that he’s here, that he’s alive, that we’re together. “You’re well,” I breathe, willing the words to be true. “You’re well.”

He presses his hands over mine. “I’m well.”

“Grey,” says Noah, at my back. His voice is tight. “Jake?”

Grey’s eyes flick past me. “Jake is fine. He’s at the base of the hill. He didn’t know you were here, or he would have ridden up.” Grey hesitates, and his eyes return to mine. His hands tighten over my fingers. “The enchantress is dead. We lost Iisak.”

My chest clenches. I knew this fight would not be without loss. I stare up into Grey’s wounded eyes and think of the reason he came here. “And Rhen?”

“He survived.” He pauses. “We’re … no longer at war.” There’s so much weight in his voice that I know there is more to say, but Grey seems to realize we’re surrounded by soldiers from both Syhl Shallow and Emberfall. His eyebrows flicker into a frown “What … what happened? Why are you here?”

My heart lightens, just a bit. I want to tell him that I figured out his message, that I know Ellia Maya was working against us. I want to tell him that we’ve brought peace, that the soldiers were willing to pause. That if Rhen is no longer ready to wage war, that we can finally put our differences aside for the good of all our people. I want to throw my arms around his neck and never let go. I want to hear his heartbeat and feel his breath and sleep for a thousand days at his side.

Instead, my stomach twists, and I jerk back, slapping a hand over my mouth.

“Lia Mara,” he says, alarmed.

I inhale to answer, to tell him I’m fine.

Instead, I throw up all over his boots.

“I’m sorry,” I gasp, mortified. “I’m sorry. I’ve—I’ve been sick with worry—”

And then, to my horror, I do it again.

“Noah!” Grey calls, and there’s worry in his voice. His hands hold back my hair.

“Oh yeah,” says Noah, and his voice isn’t concerned at all. If anything, he sounds amused. “About that.”