Page 20 of Keldori By Daybreak

“Wasn’t much of a discussion when I wasn’t given a say in any of it.” I returned my attention to Liam’s backpack. I could probably fit a few jugs of Skal inside and maybe a spare cloak.

“You’re injured.”

“Then carry me.” I was only half-joking.

“We don’t even know where we’re headed after the Second Sentinel. You’ve seen how dangerous Skalterra is.”

“We don’t know anything about this secret door into Keldori. We don’t know where it is or where it lets out, but I doubt it’s going to spit you directly into Keel Watch Harbor.” I fought through the pain in my ribs to buckle my leather chest plate over the hoodie. “What’s your plan when you end up in the middle of nowhere in a realm you don’t know, don’t understand, and dressed like you’re on your way to the Renaissance Faire?”

“I remember Keldori,” Ciarán scoffed, but a thrill of uncertainty fluttered at our mental tether. “We’ll find one of those steamcarts you have.”

“They’re called trains, and you’ll need money.” I crossed my arms at him.

“We’ll manage.”

“You need me.”

Ciarán’s glowing eyes glinted dangerously. “Navigating Keldori will be difficult, but your mother will help.”

“But—”

“It’ll be fine, Blue. Trust me.”

I let my arms fall, and I stared at Jonquil, unwilling to look at Ciarán. It wouldn’t be fine. Maybe it was a selfish line of thought considering the fates of both Skalterra and Keldori were on the line, but no one had given me a thought beyond my immediate safety.

No one had realized that, best case scenario, I was still going to lose everyone I loved.

“Either you fail and my grandma gets wiped out by a volcano, and maybe Ferrin’s armies still manage to slip into Keldori before that happens, destroying life as we know it in both worlds, or you succeed and everyone I care about either gets frozen in ice or trapped across the Rift from me,” I whispered. “The worlds will be saved, but I’ll be stuck here with Sorcha and my grandma’s cat for the rest of my life.”

“Blue—”

“You, my mother, Orla, Gams.” I listed them off on my fingers, letting my anger spill over as I got in Ciarán’s face. How had none of them realized? “I have to go, because if I don’t, I’ll never see any of you again.”

Ciarán regarded me with an unreadable expression, and then dropped to his knee, taking my hand in his. I tried to pull it away, but his fingers tightened around mine, holding me in place.

“Lady Wren Warrender Saergrim of Keldori,” he said through a wry scowl, “I swear on my life and on my title of Grimguard, that whatever happens, I’ll come back to you. I will not let you be alone.”

Blood roared in my ears.

This was unacceptable. This was worse than me being abandoned in Skalterra by everyone I cared about.

Because I knew what Ciarán had lost when Liam died, even if he didn’t remember it. I could not let him sacrifice that for me.

“But you liked Keldori,” I asserted. “You’d be able to have a life there. You’re in school. You’re going to be an architect—”

“Skalterra needs architects too. And you need a friend.” The glow in his eyes dimmed, revealing Liam’s warm gaze.

“You’re not my friend.”

“Maybe not, but I’m sworn to your service until death, which, given who you are as a person, might be the closest thing you’re going to get. And if that means fighting my way to Keldori and back, then I’ll do it.” The orange light in his eyes returned, and steely resolve churned my stomach.

I finally squeezed his hand back, and his face fell at the sight of the grin forcing its way across my face as I remembered one crucial weapon I still hadn’t used.

He was sworn to my service.

“In that case, Ciarán Grimguard, take me with you. I demand it.”

The night was coldest as dawn approached, and I pulled my travel cloak tighter around my shoulders. The leather armor strung tight over my tattered hoodie at least felt like it was holding me in one piece, and I tried to imagine my ribs regrowing along the healing matrix Sorcha had been tending to only a few hours ago.