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Chapter 39
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Flight of the cardinal Chapter 40
I tried to reason with Xander for the better part of the night. If he attacked Silas, who knew what would happen to us. Clearly, Silas had acted alone. The rebellion leaders would have never sanctioned such an assignment. I thought I was too valuable for them to do something that would put me at odds with their cause. Yes, some still wanted me to renounce my engagement to my fated mate—even going as far as suggesting finding a way of removing my mark. But I knew they would condemn Silas’s action. Still, I thought leaving Starling Castle for a while would be best. We made for the underground tunnel, and I guided Xander through its labyrinth. Although Xander worked for the rebellion, he had never come to Perch, so this was his first time walking on rebellion territory. Once we arrived in my room, I quickly closed the door and gestured to some of the men's clothes I had brought. Xander took a pair of pants and pulled his legs into them. They fit… but barely. Diana arrived moments la
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 41
On the morning we left Starling Castle, we met Gideon and Leo on horseback while we were half a day’s ride from Perch. Xander had been right about us meeting them on our way out. Gideon seemed anxious at seeing us this early in the morning, but when Diana and Xander explained what had happened, Gideon had also fallen into a sour mood. I was happy to see little Leo again, and he was a great distraction from the others’ brooding attitude. He sat in between Gideon’s legs, holding the horse’s mane. His eyes lit up at the sight of me, and I pressed my horse closer to Gideon’s, gesturing Leo to come and sit on my horse for a while. I didn’t know if they had used the forest path to leave the city of Maple, but I knew their horse must have been tired of holding up all that extra weight. They even brought back a tiny chest with some of my nicer clothes. I thought it was a friendly gesture on Gideon’s part, but it was pointless since riding on horseback with a gown was tough. I preferred keep
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 42
We had eaten early that morning and packed enough food to last the rest of our journey. Cardinal City was a little less than a day away. Once there, we would go to the Kestrel’s house they owned and used when they were summoned to court. Our horses were fresh and ready to haul us to our final destination. I dreaded our arrival at my old home. The beautiful childhood I had in Cardinal City was now tainted by the events during the uprising. Cardinal City sat atop a mountain. The steep rocky mountainsides protected it, and the only way in or out was through the thick, dark forest that lined it from the south. It reminded me of a peninsula, except air surrounded it, and the city was high above the clouds. It was technically a stronghold. The northern, eastern, and western sides had fortified and patrolled walls that blended with the jagged rocks of the mountain that descended to the ocean, while the ramparts served as the first line of protection for the castle and its inner city. The
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 43
No one came to get us for three days. Xander’s patience had thinned to the point where he was becoming irritable. None of us dared to leave the house except Diana, who was human. She went out for food and supplies, then returned and left again if we required something else. Gideon, Nimu, Leo, Xander, and I had preferred staying indoors, peering through the windows. We were now in the city where red was forbidden. Looking at the citizens walking past the house, I saw none with red hair. I dyed mine brown to ensure the redness wouldn’t attract unwanted questions. I thought it more prudent for when we would need to go to the Arcane Library. I wasn’t planning on wearing the enormous hat again. I thought it was over the top for the gowns I had in the small chest we had brought. We were lucky that Lady Lucia had left some of her crinolines and petticoats here from her last visit. We hadn’t had enough space to bring my own, and I wanted to dress according to being engaged to a lord. This
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 44
After Diana’s name left Denis’s lips, he rapidly collected himself and cleared his throat. “I’m so sorry. I mistook you for someone I knew long ago. Please forgive my misobservation. Allow me to help you. That was quite a tumble you almost had.” Denis gingerly got up and made his way to help Diana with the mess the fallen tray had left. “Please, let me take care of it, Sir,” I interjected, stepping before Diana. Whatever had happened, Diana still seemed a little shaken by the event. She straightened and mumbled, “It’s fine,” then gathered the broken porcelain. I didn’t think my friend almost fell; her path was clear, and Diana had an extremely sure footing from being a maid for such a long time. I thought she let the tray slip by sheer shock. If this man knew her, and she knew him, and they both acted like they didn’t know each other, I thought it best to separate them before the guards became suspicious. I glanced at Xander, who took the hint and asked the curator questions abou
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 45
After days of not hearing anything from Denis, we assumed he had no intentions of aiding us, so we prepared to leave the city. Diana had been a mess since she found out her brother was still alive and had not answered her note. “Do you think he read the message you gave him?” Diana asked me for what seemed like the hundredth time. We had had this discussion on more than one occasion, and I answered each time in the same manner. “I don’t know. I only know Denis took it and placed it in his front pocket. Will you tell me what was on that piece of paper I gave him?” Diana bit her lip while she continued folding some of our clothes. She kept the message secret, not wanting us to know what she had written. It had caused quite a commotion with Xander, who feared that Diana would betray and sell us out to her brother. I understood his annoyance, but I also understood the secretiveness Diana was keeping. The Chickadees had knowledge that no one else possessed concerning the contents of
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 46
“You both could walk into a trap,” Xander repeated as I dressed in one of my fancier dresses. If I were to leave the house, I thought it best to look respectable. Diana had also dressed nicely. We had chosen these attires to fit better in the crowd. One look at us, and they wouldn’t spare a second glance since we were just another wealthy family staying in the city. My hands were on the poster from the bed, and Diana was cinching up my corset. Each time she tightened a lacing, it constricted my chest and made me take a laboured breath. Why did they have to make those things so tight? Diana pulled on another set of strings, and I almost fainted from the tightness. “Oh, might have overdone it. Sorry, Ida. Let me loosen this a bit,” Diana mumbled as she saw my face pale. Xander growled and sat on the end of the bed, forcing me to look at him. “Stop pretending you can’t hear me! You shouldn’t be going anywhere, Ida. You still smell funny,” he said exasperatingly. “Diana, have you lo
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 47
I closed my eyes and searched for what could unlock the memory orb. I let my energy wander through the glass sphere, pulling some of the power from it. I slowed my breathing and listened to the vibration passing through my fingers and flowing in me. I imagined it looking like a series of small strings tied taut inside the orb—protecting its content like a package needing to be unwrapped. I didn’t quite know what to do, so I whispered an unlocking incantation and felt my magic tug at the invisible strings that resided within. It didn’t want to open. I tried a different approach; I would force the strings and break them. I gathered as much energy as I could muster. My body heated up, and the memory orb became hot as well. I needed to control my power, or it could shatter the delicate magic that created the small spherical storage. Sweat dripped from my forehead, gliding down my side temples and lining the base of my neck. I needed to create a balance between high force and a gentle
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The whip cracked in the air. I felt the leather strings touch my lower back, and as Shrike pulled, I could feel my skin lift and tear. Once the hooks were out, I was flung back near the post. I stopped breathing and tried to control the pain. I had not expected that. “The show is for my personal amusement, as well as to install fear in your mind. Fear in the body is no fun, but fear in the mind, now that is entertaining. Regarding the reasons why I am doing this… let’s just say it’s simply to pass the time until the king arrives, and then we get down to the nitty-gritty.” I felt the leather touch the inside of my ribs. Again, the skin pulled as the hooks receded. Shrike inflicted four more hits, but those had been higher on my back, where my skin was thicker. It pained me less than the previous ones, but I still had to muffle a cry. I started sweating from the pain and noticed that my feet and knees were slipping in the small pool of blood that was accumulating under me. At this rat
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 48 - End
Xander POV When Ida and Diana left the house, I suddenly wanted to tell them not to attend the meeting. My Lycan and I had a bad feeling about all this, mainly with Ida smelling different. Diana had said she was fine, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that she wasn’t. Something in the past few weeks had definitely changed in her. Even Gideon had mentioned it to me. But we both were at a loss to figure out what it was. I couldn’t believe that two prime shifters couldn’t tell what was wrong with her. Leo came out of the house and looked at me, almost pleading with me to take him with us. I ruffled his hair and smiled. “Keep Nimu in the house and ensure everything is ready when we return. The horses must be fed properly if we are to leave in the morning.” Leo’s face turned bitter as he realized he would not be coming with us. He was still young, and I didn’t know what would happen on our outing. It was safer for him to stay indoors with the old wielder. He begrudgingly returned ins
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 47
I closed my eyes and searched for what could unlock the memory orb. I let my energy wander through the glass sphere, pulling some of the power from it. I slowed my breathing and listened to the vibration passing through my fingers and flowing in me. I imagined it looking like a series of small strings tied taut inside the orb—protecting its content like a package needing to be unwrapped. I didn’t quite know what to do, so I whispered an unlocking incantation and felt my magic tug at the invisible strings that resided within. It didn’t want to open. I tried a different approach; I would force the strings and break them. I gathered as much energy as I could muster. My body heated up, and the memory orb became hot as well. I needed to control my power, or it could shatter the delicate magic that created the small spherical storage. Sweat dripped from my forehead, gliding down my side temples and lining the base of my neck. I needed to create a balance between high force and a gentle
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 46
“You both could walk into a trap,” Xander repeated as I dressed in one of my fancier dresses. If I were to leave the house, I thought it best to look respectable. Diana had also dressed nicely. We had chosen these attires to fit better in the crowd. One look at us, and they wouldn’t spare a second glance since we were just another wealthy family staying in the city. My hands were on the poster from the bed, and Diana was cinching up my corset. Each time she tightened a lacing, it constricted my chest and made me take a laboured breath. Why did they have to make those things so tight? Diana pulled on another set of strings, and I almost fainted from the tightness. “Oh, might have overdone it. Sorry, Ida. Let me loosen this a bit,” Diana mumbled as she saw my face pale. Xander growled and sat on the end of the bed, forcing me to look at him. “Stop pretending you can’t hear me! You shouldn’t be going anywhere, Ida. You still smell funny,” he said exasperatingly. “Diana, have you lo
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 45
After days of not hearing anything from Denis, we assumed he had no intentions of aiding us, so we prepared to leave the city. Diana had been a mess since she found out her brother was still alive and had not answered her note. “Do you think he read the message you gave him?” Diana asked me for what seemed like the hundredth time. We had had this discussion on more than one occasion, and I answered each time in the same manner. “I don’t know. I only know Denis took it and placed it in his front pocket. Will you tell me what was on that piece of paper I gave him?” Diana bit her lip while she continued folding some of our clothes. She kept the message secret, not wanting us to know what she had written. It had caused quite a commotion with Xander, who feared that Diana would betray and sell us out to her brother. I understood his annoyance, but I also understood the secretiveness Diana was keeping. The Chickadees had knowledge that no one else possessed concerning the contents of
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 44
After Diana’s name left Denis’s lips, he rapidly collected himself and cleared his throat. “I’m so sorry. I mistook you for someone I knew long ago. Please forgive my misobservation. Allow me to help you. That was quite a tumble you almost had.” Denis gingerly got up and made his way to help Diana with the mess the fallen tray had left. “Please, let me take care of it, Sir,” I interjected, stepping before Diana. Whatever had happened, Diana still seemed a little shaken by the event. She straightened and mumbled, “It’s fine,” then gathered the broken porcelain. I didn’t think my friend almost fell; her path was clear, and Diana had an extremely sure footing from being a maid for such a long time. I thought she let the tray slip by sheer shock. If this man knew her, and she knew him, and they both acted like they didn’t know each other, I thought it best to separate them before the guards became suspicious. I glanced at Xander, who took the hint and asked the curator questions abou
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 43
No one came to get us for three days. Xander’s patience had thinned to the point where he was becoming irritable. None of us dared to leave the house except Diana, who was human. She went out for food and supplies, then returned and left again if we required something else. Gideon, Nimu, Leo, Xander, and I had preferred staying indoors, peering through the windows. We were now in the city where red was forbidden. Looking at the citizens walking past the house, I saw none with red hair. I dyed mine brown to ensure the redness wouldn’t attract unwanted questions. I thought it more prudent for when we would need to go to the Arcane Library. I wasn’t planning on wearing the enormous hat again. I thought it was over the top for the gowns I had in the small chest we had brought. We were lucky that Lady Lucia had left some of her crinolines and petticoats here from her last visit. We hadn’t had enough space to bring my own, and I wanted to dress according to being engaged to a lord. This
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 42
We had eaten early that morning and packed enough food to last the rest of our journey. Cardinal City was a little less than a day away. Once there, we would go to the Kestrel’s house they owned and used when they were summoned to court. Our horses were fresh and ready to haul us to our final destination. I dreaded our arrival at my old home. The beautiful childhood I had in Cardinal City was now tainted by the events during the uprising. Cardinal City sat atop a mountain. The steep rocky mountainsides protected it, and the only way in or out was through the thick, dark forest that lined it from the south. It reminded me of a peninsula, except air surrounded it, and the city was high above the clouds. It was technically a stronghold. The northern, eastern, and western sides had fortified and patrolled walls that blended with the jagged rocks of the mountain that descended to the ocean, while the ramparts served as the first line of protection for the castle and its inner city. The
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 41
On the morning we left Starling Castle, we met Gideon and Leo on horseback while we were half a day’s ride from Perch. Xander had been right about us meeting them on our way out. Gideon seemed anxious at seeing us this early in the morning, but when Diana and Xander explained what had happened, Gideon had also fallen into a sour mood. I was happy to see little Leo again, and he was a great distraction from the others’ brooding attitude. He sat in between Gideon’s legs, holding the horse’s mane. His eyes lit up at the sight of me, and I pressed my horse closer to Gideon’s, gesturing Leo to come and sit on my horse for a while. I didn’t know if they had used the forest path to leave the city of Maple, but I knew their horse must have been tired of holding up all that extra weight. They even brought back a tiny chest with some of my nicer clothes. I thought it was a friendly gesture on Gideon’s part, but it was pointless since riding on horseback with a gown was tough. I preferred keep
