“Marten, we have to go.” I spoke quietly and with regret, knowing the severity of what I asked all too well.
“Go?” he asked, shaking his head. “It’ll be dark in a few hours, where do we need to go?”
“No, I mean…” I exhaled sharply, frustrated with myself. “What we talked about before. We need to leave the country.”
Marin gaped at us, clearly lost between the urgency of our arrival and the severity of my suggestion. Marten’s face went pale as his eyes scanned back and forth between me and his family. “It’s come to that, then.”
I nodded solemnly. “I swear, if there was any other way, I would—”
He held up a hand. “Not now. We have a lot of work to do.” He looked around the room one final time, then crossed to meet me face to face. “When my family is safe.” I had become so used to the lighthearted quality of Marten’s mannerisms that the sudden, fiery resolve in his eyes caught me off guard. “I’ll be expecting answers; better answers than the ones we’ve heard before.”
“I’ll tell you everything,” I promised. He gave me a firm nod, then passed by me to check on Hana and Lia.
A small, shaking voice called out to me from the opposite end of the room where Marin remained in shock. “Lux?” She flinched as I met her gaze. “What happened?”
Anger flared in my chest as I stared her down, unable to see anyone but Val in her sister’s shared features. “Come with me,” I ordered, turning back towards the front door.
She followed along behind me obediently, waiting until we were outside and the door was closed before speaking up again. “Lux, I’m not—”
“Your sister ordered her men to kill us,” I cut her off harshly, “and the King made it abundantly clear that Lia’s family is in danger of the same fate. Their men are most likely on their way here right now to try to finish what the Trinity Guard started.” I increased the radius of my Detection to watch every possible approach, and was relieved to find the area clear of any guards. “We’re not going to be here when that happens.”
“No!” The whisper was nearly inaudible as Marin’s face contorted with horror. “She wouldn’t! None of them would! The Trinity Guard has always been...they’ve…” she trailed off suddenly and reached out a shaking hand to my gauntlets, tracing her finger in a slow line along the surface. As the realization set in, her eyes filled with tears. “I-is my sister...did you…”
“Val is alive, against my better judgement,” I answered bitterly. Somewhere in the back of my mind I knew that Marin didn’t deserve my ire, but the day’s events had worn away my patience. “I’m sorry Marin, but whatever plans you made with Marten are over now. You should leave before the guards arrive.”
“No!” she said again, much more forcefully. “This has to be some kind of mistake! Let me stay and talk to the guards; I’m sure I can help.”
I paused to consider her proposition. It was a naive hope to believe that she could convince the guards that we were innocent, but it would stall them in their pursuit, if only for a moment. As much as it soured my stomach to consider the notion, I also knew that keeping Valandra’s sister close by to use as a potential hostage was much more advantageous than forcing her to leave. “Fine,” I said eventually, “you can stay with us until we’ve dealt with the guards. Don’t leave the property, and don’t get in the way.”
Marin nodded and sat down against the wall, burying her face in her arms. It might hurt now, but this is the best thing for you in the long run. Anyone who stays close to me for too long gets pulled down into my shit. I let out a long sigh and returned to the living room to check on the Corells. Lia was back on her feet, helping her mother sort their living room into two piles. Marten was nowhere to be seen, but the consistent banging sounds that echoed up from the basement stairwell indicated that he was similarly packing the belongings of his workshop.
I crossed the room and hugged Lia from behind, planting a kiss on the top of her head as I took a moment to appreciate the fact that we were both still alive. She gave my arms a light squeeze and let out a soft hum of satisfaction. “How are you feeling?” I asked, slipping around her to help Hana reach a set of pictures on a high shelf.
“I feel better now,” she answered, the strain in her voice giving away the lie. I spun to look her over with an arched eyebrow, and she threw her hands up in defence. “I do! I felt like I was going to be sick after our run, but it passed. I’m just...really tired, is all.”
Smiling, I stepped forward and gave her a proper hug. “You did a great job today, Lia,” I murmured into her ear. “Whatever happens next, I’ll take care of it; you’re almost out of mana, and I don’t want you passing out on me, right?”
She laughed. “I don’t plan on sleeping for three days straight like you did.”
“You’d better take it easy if that’s the case; it’s not as far off as you might think.” I left an arm draped around her shoulder as I turned to her mother. “Hana, I’m sorry that it’s come to this. I know that
