Page 45 of The Crowned Queen

Caela sprang back when he burst through the door, her tear-streaked cheeks flushed. Kai stared after her, his expression dazed and his hair disheveled.

“Where have you been?” Loren demanded.

“Where has he been?” Caela scrubbed a hand across her face, wiping away her tears. “That’s how you greet him after everything he’s done for us?”

“It’s alright, Caela.” Kai reached out, taking her hand. Looking back at Loren, he said, “I was at an Arcanum black site with the Shaws. They wouldn’t let me leave.”

“A black site.” Loren’s heartbeat pounded in his ears. “They took her to a black site?”

Terrible things happened at black sites. Awful things. He would know, having spent twenty-five years in one. If they’d taken Araya to one⁠—

Kai’s expression shuttered. “The last time I saw her she was…fine. Jaxon is possessive of her. He’s protecting her.”

The shadows hissed.

“Protecting her from what?” Loren asked.

“The new High Inquisitor for one,” Kai said grimly. “He wasn’t happy with you taking over Farhallow. He and Jaxon tried to force her to use the bond to help them.”

Goddess save him. Loren closed his eyes, forcing himself to take a deep breath. The shadows wrapped around his legs, their cold reproach biting into his flesh. He should have been there.

“Did they succeed?” Raelle asked from behind him.

“No—” Kai hesitated, seeming almost like he might say more. “No. She didn’t let them.”

“How did she resist if she was compelled?” Raelle cocked her head, frowning. “I always heard it was impossible to resist unless you were willing to kill yourself—ow!” She glared at Finn, rubbing her side where he’d elbowed her. But her eyes widened as the room darkened, her breath fogging the air in front of her.

“They brought a healer in,” Kai said hastily. “She’s alright⁠—”

“She’s not alright,” Loren snapped. “What happened, Kai? Why did she need a healer?”

“Well—” Kai shifted uncomfortably on his feet. “Look, there was nothing I could do to stop it. Pryce wanted Jaxon to force her to use your bond to find you. And she—” he cast another nervous glance at the shadows, taking a half-step closer to Caela. “Are you really sure you want to know?”

Loren clenched his jaw. He didn’t want to know. He had to know. “Tell me.”

“She wouldn’t do it.” The words tumbled out of Kai’s mouth in a rush. “She fought the compulsion. And when it seemed like she was going to lose she bit through her tongue so he couldn’t force her.”

Goddess save him. They were all staring at him, waiting to see what he—and the shadows—would do. But Loren could barely hear them now, their fury nothing but a slurred whisper at the back of his mind.

“Where is this black site?” he demanded, his voice hoarse. “How do we get to her?”

“Ah—” Kai’s face fell. “Well, she isn’t there anymore.” He swallowed hard, looking between them. “Garrick wouldn’t let me leave until they were ready to go. He wanted me to travel with them, but I convinced them I had business I needed to wrap up here. But it took me a week to figure out how to get into Farhallow with the perimeter they’ve set up⁠—”

“Where?” Loren’s voice cracked like the frost creeping across the windows. “Where are they taking her?”

“Elvanfal,” Kai whispered. “They’re taking her to Elvanfal.”

“Goddess.” Finn sucked in a sharp breath.

“It gets worse,” Kai said. “They’ve recalled High Commander Redmond to Aetheris to oversee the operation to retake Farhallow. That’s why they’re biding their time⁠—”

Loren couldn’t hear him. The shadows climbed his body, their muffled voices whispering a litany of recriminations he didn’t need to hear to understand. He should have been there. Should have protected her. She needed him. And he’d been here.

“I have to go after her,” he said. “Right now. If we can catch up with them⁠—”

“Loren—” Finn shook his head slowly. “I’m sorry, if they have that much of a head start I don’t think we can catch them on the road. Elvanfal is a fortress. She’ll be surrounded by walls, soldiers…we would need an army to get her out.”

The shadows shuddered, swelling around his feet. Finn said something else—but the roaring in Loren’s head swallowed it. It swallowed everything. His own heartbeat. The desperate keening of the shadows. The cold absence of Araya’s presence suddenly felt enormous, like Jaxon Shaw had carved his beating heart out of his chest.