Queens of Thorns and Stars (Courts of Inara Book 1) by Elle Cross & Vivienne Hart

Author:Elle Cross & Vivienne Hart [Cross, Elle]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Cross & Hart
Published: 2020-04-02T16:00:00+00:00

When all is said and done, we resume our journey, but it takes hours and a heavy toll. Six of our party remain lost: Gull, Ozeer, Maurelle, my carriage driver Ren, Ianthe, and Lietta. Although Lietta did not disappear into the darkness like the rest, she clawed at herself as she ran, rending her flesh into a bloody mess. The trauma was too great for her to survive, and I held her hand as she bled out, shuddering and crying and lamenting ever partaking in this journey. I could not blame her for that.

Worse still, we were further delayed by burying her body in the sand, leaving ourselves vulnerable to more attacks. Fortunately, none came. The courtiers protested her burial; it is our custom to burn the dead on a ritual pyre. Several practical matters made that impossible. Not only did we not have the wood for a pyre, but the sight of the fire might well have attracted more unsavory creatures to us, and we were in no way prepared to defend ourselves further. Besides, what we would perceive as burning the shell of a fallen companion might be perceived by others as the mouthwatering scent of cooking meat, and quite frankly, I just did not want to fucking deal with that. No one argued with me once I pointed it out.

In one small bit of luck, after the guards collected Lyser, they found Bariel wandering with his eyes closed, apparently compelled to ramble blindly. Like the rest of us, he’s a bit worse for the wear, but at least he’s alive. Kalina also turned up in the end.

Those of us who are left are exhausted and filthy, scratched and clawed and battered. A black eye darkens Lyser’s perfect face, and my fingernails were torn to stubs when I wrestled my people into submission. Flitter lost more than a few feathers from her wings, Sorel has developed a significant limp, and Galog is aflame with mite bites and humiliation. One of the guards has a broken rib, and I suspect more snapped bones will reveal themselves soon enough.

Now we travel without footmen, as Florizel has taken up the reins to the carriage. The others have remounted their stellarae, but the mood of the party is grim, which is no surprise. Honestly, the true surprise is that all the stellarae are still with us. They are apparently immune to autochthones, and even in all the mayhem, stayed huddled together in their flock. They may be mere birds, but I like them, and something about the fact that they were not also taken eases the sting in my heart.

Now they will ferry us the rest of the way, this worn, beaten, bloodied group. We are in shock; when the reality of our losses kicks in, the grief will make itself known. But until then, all we can do is carry on to the Court of Thorns, a place of dark madness.

I only hope this incident is not a harbinger of things to come.

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