Shattered Souls (Guardians of the Maiden Book 3)

Von didn’t know why he prayed anymore. Whether it meant anything or if his plea even reached the God of Urn. Still, he remained kneeling, his head pressed to the ground. He asked for the same things. Forgiveness for what he had done, for what he would be made to do, and protection for the one he loved. But for all his begging, his soft words seemed to stay trapped within the quiet tent. No one was listening.

The brisk wind hit his back at the swish of the tent flap opening. “Oh, pardon.”

Von sat back on his heels with a sigh. It was fruitless anyway.

He stood and faced Dyna. “If you’re searching for Yavi, she is with Sorren and Geon, helping them with the kitchen.”

They had already finished their packing. The cots were undone, table and trunk of clothing loaded among the wagons. He only needed to break down the tent.

Dyna didn’t leave.

She met his gaze for once and held it. They had avoided each other for the most part, unless required, but Dyna never outright spoke to him or looked at him until now. Von had been relieved for it, not having the nerve to face her after what he had done to Zev.

The moonlight highlighted her silhouette, catching on her hard eyes as she studied him. She knew about his secret, and he had been waiting for the consequences to surface.

“Do you pray often?” Dyna asked, surprising him.

“Not as much as I should.”

She looked different. The softness of her features was fading. He had seen a glimpse of it in the Port of Azure, when she had raised a knife to protect the Celestial. Then again in the grove when she swore to end her life for her Guardians. That sweet, innocent girl he first met in Landcaster was learning how dark the world was.

It saddened him.

“Was there something you wished to discuss?” he asked. “Or is this the moment when you threaten me?”

No matter how good Dyna was, she was human like everyone else. Von wouldn’t blame her if she tried to use him as a way out of Tarn’s clutches.

“What do you want from me in exchange?” Von pressed when she didn’t answer. His throat bobbed with a thick swallow at her continued silence. “Dyna, for what it’s worth, I’m sorry about your cousin. I don’t take lives lightly, but each one I take is with the intention of preserving my own. I have someone to live for. When it comes to fighting to defend that, I will take down anything and anyone who stands in my way.”

Unintentionally, his apology came out as a threat. He had no urge to harm Dyna, but he feared her now that she could hurt Yavi.

When she offered no reply, Von sighed and started breaking down the tent. Her gaze bore into the back of his skull as he worked.

“She cannot be here,” Dyna finally said. “I know it’s not my place to say it, but you won’t be able to hide your relationship much longer.”

Von fell still. That was the last thing he had expected her to say.

He glanced around them to make sure no one was nearby. “How did you come to find out?”

Her eyes flickered away briefly, and the color of her cheeks darkened. “I overheard you both one morning.”

“Oh…”

They both stood around awkwardly, not sure what to say next. He continued working, and to his surprise, Dyna helped with the tarp.

He cleared his throat. “I plan to send her away. The timing must be right.”

But the bangles would prove a problem. He had to find a way to get the slaver’s key. He finished bringing down the tarp and stretched it out on the ground to roll it up.

“Do it soon,” she said. “It’s not safe for her here. What happened the other day proves it.”

Von hadn’t expected Dyna to care for Yavi after only knowing her for a few days, yet he could hear her genuine concern.

“I will,” he promised. “Thank you…for coming to her aid.”

He had yet to say it until now.

Dyna gave him a stiff nod and turned to go.

“Why didn’t you shoot me?” Von blurted. She halted with her back to him.

He had been there in the woods, standing at a distance as Tarn had ordered. The rage on her face in that moment, the deep anguish and hate, he expected her to kill the vision of him. Dyna had attacked the Master instead. That was something he killed for, however small the slight.

Yet even as Tarn had held Dyna’s life in his hands, he showed restraint.

She partially turned, glancing at Von over her shoulder. “You had sad eyes.”

That’s what saved him? Her sympathy?

Dalton’s vision could only bring out how she perceived him, and she saw the burden he carried. He didn’t know if that was a good thing or not.

Lost in thought, Von watched her head for Sorren’s tent where Geon and Yavi were loading crates into a wagon. They both yanked her into a tight hug between them. Sorren’s large hand poked out of his tent, holding a sweet bun on a plate for her. It made Dyna laugh as Dalton ambled over to join them.

As much as she hated it here, the Maiden somehow made a spot for herself among them. She had a way of drawing people. Perhaps with that inherent kindness that was so rarely ever found, it made one want to protect it. Even Von felt it. He knew what the Master was doing with that little test in the woods.

It’s what Tarn did with everything that fell into his hands.

He broke them.

Olsson and a group of Raiders came to help Von finish rolling up the tarp. Soon everything was all loaded and the camp was ready to move. He headed for his waiting horse, and Coal nickered at the sight of him. Once Tarn gave the signal, he led the procession of men and wagons into the woods. Von stayed near the back with Elon to keep an eye on the minotaur.

But Sorren wasn’t thinking about escaping. He was too distracted staring at the night sky speckled with stars, the moon glowing beyond the sparse clouds. The camp moving was the only time he was allowed outside. He hauled his wagon along, the weight nothing to his strength. Dalton, Yavi, Dyna, and Geon sat inside as they talked quietly among themselves. The young mage kept an orange sphere of light above their heads, and it cast a soft spectral light over the dark woods.

Clayton rode in a wagon in the middle of the procession with two Raider’s sitting on either side of him. It was their usual arrangement. They were under strict orders to slit his throat if Benton tried anything. Von spotted the old mage up far front where Tarn kept him in his view.

“Did Novo and Len return?” Von asked Elon under his breath, knowing the elf could easily hear him. He didn’t see the spy among the men.

“Yes,” Elon replied. “No sign of her Guardians. They checked their last location and noted tracks headed northeast.”

Von raised his brows at that news. He didn’t expect them to yield so easily. However, they wouldn’t have been able to search for her past the cloaking spell.

“Furthermore, the werewolf survived,” Elon told him next. “Paw prints were found. The Celestial must have healed him.”

Von feigned disappointment but he was inwardly overjoyed with relief. He would tell Dyna the good news as soon as he could privately pull her aside.

“How unfortunate,” Von said lightly, then moved on from the topic. “Now that they are back, the spies will travel to Beryl Coast. Have them pack light, we depart tomorrow night. As for command while we’re away, I have Olsson in mind to become the next lieutenant. The man is loyal and has been with us the longest.”

And he knew how to keep his head. Olsson was a good fighter and naturally intimidating to others with his large size without having to threaten them. He understood how Von managed the camp at Tarn’s behest and would follow those measures.

Elon nodded. “Wise choice.”

After the trouble with Haran, Von didn’t want to make another poor one.

The elf slightly tilted his head as he looked ahead, indicating he was listening to something. “Tarn requests the Maiden’s presence.”

Requests. That was putting it kindly.

Von nodded and tugged on his reins to slow Coal down, leaving Elon to ride past him. He lined up beside the wagon to find Yavi and Geon had fallen asleep. Both leaned on each other’s shoulders, sharing a blanket. She had seemed more tired these days.

Dyna and Dalton huddled in a corner whispering. They quieted as soon as they noticed him.

Von frowned. “What are you plotting?”

The spectral light gleamed in Dalton’s eyes as his lips parted in a shrewd smile. “Only villainous schemes of grandeur.”

“Don’t joke about such things, lad. Come Dyna, the Master calls.”

She warily looked at him.

“Hold,” Von told Sorren, then held out a hand to her.

The wagon came to a stop. Hesitantly, Dyna rose and took his arm so he could help her climb onto Coal. She sat at his back, and clutched the ends of his jacket. At the light prod of his heels, Coal eased into a slow trot along the procession. This was Von’s way of delaying the inevitable, even if it was only by a few minutes. But it didn’t ease her stiffness. Dyna’s breathing grew heavier as they left behind the soft orange glow at their backs and entered the dark trees. The men were quiet as their boots crunched over leaves and the frozen ground. It accompanied the sound of creaking wheels and hooves with the rattle of dried branches. He thought Dyna’s hands might be trembling.

“Are you cold?”

“No,” she answered stiffly.

He couldn’t see her face to know what she was feeling. It was so dark in the forest, with only the faint moonlight to light their way. Ah.

Von tugged off the crystal tied to his belt. Once whispering the word lux, he held the glowing crystal over his shoulder. “Here. Keep it.”

There was a heavy pause, then it was gently pulled from his fingers. “Thank you,” came her soft reply. Its idle light haloed behind him, lighting the ground as they moved.

“Try…try not to provoke him this time,” Von said quietly after a pause. Tarn may not be so lenient again. “Do whatever he asks.”

“Do you always do everything Tarn asks?” Dyna asked.

Von was aware of every scar on his back for when he didn’t. The most recent ones were added because of his failure to capture her in Corron. His life stopped being his a long time ago.

“It’s the way of things here,” he said.

“That doesn’t mean it’s the right way.” There was a weight in her tone that made him think of everything he had done at Tarn’s command.

But the Lycan lived. It was one lost life he didn’t have to carry. Von opened his mouth to tell her the news—

“It would be a lie to say coercing you hadn’t crossed my mind. But I think you have enough over your head.” Dyna handed him back the crystal. “One day, perhaps very soon, you will have to decide for yourself, Von. And I pray for Yavi’s sake, you decide the right thing, before it’s too late.”

The crystal’s light vanished, plunging them in the dark. Flurries of snow flowed past them, the icy wind stinging his face. A flare of fire burst to life ahead and Von’s heart lurched. It was only a Raider lighting a lamp, but an awful shudder sank down his spine.

After leaving Dyna with Tarn, he rode back to check on his wife. Dalton had left to join his brother, and Geon was awake. Without being prompted, the lad hopped out to take Coal. Von climbed into the wagon and gathered Yavi in his arms. The Seer’s divination repeated in his mind endlessly, until he fell asleep and dreamed of flames consuming him whole.