The Dark Light by Walsh Sara

Author:Walsh, Sara [Walsh, Sara]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Published: 2012-08-27T22:00:00+00:00

EIGHTEEN

Whether it was because of sharing a house with the horses or sharing a room with two guys, a musty odor hung over the place when I awoke. I grabbed my blanket and crept to the window. In the dawn’s first light, the demons, and all trace that they’d been there, had gone. Only the purple lattice remained, though it had faded to lavender. Even the red mist had cleared.

Sol and Delane slept, so, taking care not to wake them, I tiptoed to the door, crept past the horses, and slipped outside. The crisp morning sparkled with dew. Pale sunbeams struck the mountains and glistened on the pond beside the paddock. From across the valley, a faint pounding, like a distant drumbeat, could be heard. That was the only sound.

Glad to be in the fresh air, I sat on the porch’s bottom step, my blanket beneath me. A feather lay on the grass beside my feet, deep, yet bright blue, and almost a foot long. I picked it up, entranced by the green iridescence that shimmered where sunlight caught the tips of its soft vanes. It was a beautiful thing, vibrant and full of color. But then I thought about the bestiary outside last night and it immediately lost its appeal. I let it fall to the ground. There was really only one thing on my mind. Today we’d reach Orion and that meant finding Jay.

Yesterday, Orion had just been a word, a vague somewhere in a world I didn’t know. Today it felt tangible and real. Reaching Orion was about the Solenetta for the others, and if there was anything I could do to help stop that war, then I’d gladly lend a hand. But whatever magic lay in the Solenetta’s stones, it was still just a necklace and, I suppose, I didn’t truly believe that a piece of jewelry could cause so much trouble. Jay was flesh and blood. My little Spud.

“You’re awake early.”

I turned to find Sol on the porch, his hair tousled from sleep. The color had returned to his skin and he looked strong and refreshed. After how pale he’d been last night, it was a relief.

“There were drums,” I said, pointing toward the horizon. “Or something like that.”

“I heard them too.” He sat at my side, his long legs bent, his arms resting on his knees.

“Demons?” I asked.

“Maybe. But we don’t have to reenter the forest. We should be fine.”

We sat in silence, but this was different from the awkward pauses when he’d driven me to Mickey’s. I felt no pressure to speak. It was like a regular morning—as if we were the first up after a night camping at Jacob’s Lake.

“You were right about the mist,” I said eventually. “It’s cleared.”

“It’ll build again during the day,” said Sol. “It’s always the same in the valley.”

Almost as much as his stoicism, I was growing to hate the sadness in Sol’s voice whenever we talked of his home. I chased those fleeting moments when he opened up with a smile or laugh, and I’d see the humor and mischief inside.

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