A Court of Ash and Necromancy

41. Tearful Security

    Mikael crossed his arms, studying the maps laid out before him. He was accompanied by the High Lords. They were still trying to figure out where Melantha's hideout could be. They'd also been working on different plans that could guarantee Melantha's destruction and the safety of the hostages.

    Angry instincts burned through Mikael as he stroked the stifled Bond within his chest. He'd done as Azriel instructed and let his fears give way to instincts. The Shadowsinger was right. Mikael had never felt his instincts quite so strongly before. They roared through his veins. His heart. His mind.

    Find Estelle. Protect Estelle. Protect your child. Kill Melantha. Find Estelle. Protect Estelle. Protect your baby. Protect them. Mikael didn't fight the pulsing thoughts. He let them run their course and focused around them. He knew Nyx was doing the same.

    During the times when their instincts became too much, they would grab Calden, Lysander, and Corbin and go somewhere remote to work off some steam. It took all three of their friends working together to fend off just one of them, and when Mikael and Nyx worked together, the others simply picked themselves up and kept coming back.

    Magic crackled within Mikael, growing more wild each day. Thesan took him to the warded clearing to help him expend his energy and keep it at a safe level. Sometimes Azriel accompanied them. It was strange. Azriel seemed...worried for him. Almost as worried as he was for Estelle. Mikael couldn't help but think that perhaps Estelle was right. Perhaps Azriel was finally willing to admit that he liked him.

    Mikael glanced up from the maps as Nyx entered the room. He looked exhausted. Mikael wondered if he'd slept at all since Venelia was kidnapped. Likely not, and if he had, that had certainly changed after Melantha showed her to them. Mikael couldn't wipe the image from his mind. Venelia had looked so weak. She'd been coughing. She was in danger.

    Nyx dropped into a chair close by, massaging his temples. Mikael left the table and joined him. "Any ideas?" Nyx murmured.

    "None that are guaranteed to work," Mikael sighed. "We still have a few days though. We'll think of something. We know what Melantha wants now, and what her plan is."

    "Well, we know what few small parts of it she told us."

    "That's better than nothing."

    "I suppose you're right." Nyx closed his eyes with a sigh. "When this is over, I'm going to sleep for months."

    "Me too." Mikael began to say something else, then broke off as a bright light flooded the room. He stumbled back, a hand falling to the dagger sheathed at his thigh.

    The light faded and Nyx was on his feet, his chair overturned. Venelia lay on the floor before him, unmoving. "What the hell?" Tarquin gasped.

    "It's Venelia. Someone find Feyre," Mikael called. Thesan sprinted from the room. "And a healer!"

    Nyx dropped to his knees, staring at Venelia with wide eyes. She coughed and drew in a wheezing breath. Nyx pulled her onto his lap, smoothing hair from her pale face. "Ven?"

    Venelia couldn't reply. She was coughing again, shivering violently. Blood dotted her lips when her cough faded. Nyx lifted his gaze to Mikael's. "She's burning up."

    "Why would Melantha send her here?" Helion asked. "Is it really her?"

    Nyx nodded, silver rimming his eyes. "The Bond isn't stifled anymore. It's her." He pressed their foreheads together. "It's all right, Ven. You're safe. I'm here." His hand rested atop her round stomach.