Elven Legacy

Chapter 12

Jaden

Once the others had left the council room and only Moira and Kitera remained, seated to either side of him, the uneasy tension Jaden had felt before seemed to ebb. More or less.

The silence, however, lingered for some time.

Moira's hand slipped from Jaden's and she hugged herself instead, staring down at the table.

Kitera kept stealing glances at Jaden, until eventually, she burst out, "I'm so sorry, Jaden. This is all my fault. I should've known better, I should've—"

"It's all right," Jaden said.

"No it's not," she replied hotly. "I failed her, I failed you, this is just . . . too much."

She crossed her arms and lowered her head. Had he not known her better, Jaden might've thought she was crying.

"Kitera," he said softly, "please. I need you focused. Beating yourself up will get us nowhere."

"He's right," Moira said, and her voice held a great deal of authority. "Focus on getting her back now, feel sorry for yourself later."

Jaden thought it was perhaps a bit harsh.

Be that as it may, it worked like a charm. Kitera stirred, seemed to shake it off. And she looked up at Moira, her eyes clear.

"I'm sorry for that. Right, so," Kitera said, clearing her throat. "If they don't find her – which, let's face it, they probably won't – we leave at dawn. You and me," she said, addressing Jaden, "and a handful of my very best."

Before Jaden could reply, Moira asked, "So you do think Jaden should go with you?"

Moira wore a slight frown, but she didn't seem to have an opinion of her own. It just looked like she wanted to hear Kitera's.

"Well, if they have demons," Kitera said carefully, glancing at Jaden.

He spared her a nod, his hand going reflexively to his chest as his elbow leaned on the table.

"I might be the only one who can defeat them," he finished for her.

'Not exactly,' Noah commented.

Irritation snapped at Jaden. 'Could you stop? We'll talk later, all right?'

'Fine.'

Jaden flinched inwardly at the roughness of his tone, as the trace of Noah's presence vanished from his mind.

Why don't I want him to come? He's right. He could travel to the north of Nimis, sail from there and meet us in Azuria.

So, why?

Moira's voice brought him out of his thoughts. "I don't know if I'll survive it. Worrying about you two, worrying about Zemisha – I mean, you could be gone an entire month. Maybe longer." She rubbed at her temple anxiously, and a slender red strand of hair came loose.

"Silver and Bolt are the fastest mounts in the castle's stables," Jaden said. "There's a fair chance we'll catch up to them in the next few days." Though truthfully, those words were meant to comfort her, rather than something he solidly counted on.

Joining her hands on the table, Kitera said, "I think we need to consider that they might have demon horses."

"What makes you say that?" Moira asked, and Jaden glanced at Kitera, his heart sinking low. He had the sneaking suspicion that she was right.

Kitera shrugged. "Dharkan had one, didn't he? It's just a hunch." But she averted her gaze in a way that made Jaden believe she was keeping something from them.