Echoes of the Raven (The Eldrystone #2)

39. CHAPTER 39

39

RíFíOR

“Garras is a good name. Only you would befriend a bear.”

Venancio Rincón - Castellan Farmer - 1998 DV

W here to begin? They always say from the beginning, of course, but I simply cannot. There is so much pain, so much I cannot bring myself to confess, that I must start elsewhere.

The end, I suppose.

The time is here to divulge everything. In the next two days, we will arrive at the veil, and I have no doubt Valeria will reopen it. I have seen what she can do with The Eldrystone, nearly as well as I did in the past when its power belonged to me.

Moreover, the goddess clearly favors her in a way I never personally experienced. Niamhara seems to be guiding this quest, her power working in Castella as easily as it ever did in Tirnanog, the collapsed veil no obstacle for her influence.

So yes, soon, I will be in Tirnanog, home, and I cannot curtail my hopes, no matter how hard I try. Once there, I will need the amulet back, and the only way Valeria will agree to give it back without a fight is if I tell her the entire truth .

She waits patiently, her expression wary. I am loath to admit that confessing everything scares me. I should not care, but alas, I do. She will despise me when she learns what I did.

Pushing through my reserve, I begin.

“Let’s talk about Loreleia Elhice,” I say, because that is the beginning of the last two decades here in Castella—never mind the true beginning when Loreleia and I were still in Riochtach, Tirnanog’s capital. I cannot go that far. Not yet, perhaps never.

Her eyes open wide, and I know she will not begrudge my backward storytelling, not when it commences with her mother, not when Loreleia also left Valeria in the dark about the past, just the way I have.

Measuring my words, I continue. “She stole The Eldrystone from me, Valeria. I know you doubt it, but it is the truth. It happened not far from here. It was the day she met your father, the day she made her escape from Tirnanog.”

At the word escape, Valeria opens her mouth as if to protest, but no words come out. Mayhap, she has decided to listen without interruption.

“Yes,” I say. “She was escaping, and I was pursuing her. She took The Eldrystone from me in Riochtach, and with help from an unexpected ally, she thought to find refuge in Castella. Of course, I was determined to stop her, and I suppose I would have succeeded if not for your father. He was taken with her as soon as he laid eyes on her, as if she had put a spell on him.”

For the first time, I wonder if The Eldrystone had something to do with their instant connection, if Niamhara was already working on whatever plan she seems to have laid out for us, her pawn pieces.

“He was quite willing to give his life for her. He gave me this scar, you know?” I say, vaguely gesturing toward my face. “And he’s also responsible for the scar on my chest.”

I regret the words as soon as they cross my lips. She has seen me naked as well as I have seen her, but it hardly bears reminding her at this moment. But that worry may be misplaced as she appears astounded by my revelation. Her father is responsible for my disfigurement.

I clear my throat. “He did not inflict the chest wound himself. That one came from a friend of his, a bear… of all things.” I pause, remembering the fierce creature and how it jumped to Simón’s defense.

“Garras,” Valeria whispers.

I cock my head to one side.

“That was the bear’s name,” she says. “Father told me stories about him. He told me he raised the bear from a cub and that an enemy he despised killed him.”

“Indeed, I slew the animal defending myself,” I admit, glad to see that she possesses some knowledge that will help corroborate my story. She will not willingly believe what I am yet to reveal, so I am grateful for any help I can get.

“Your father and I fought when I tried to take the amulet from Loreleia,” I go on. “To my surprise, he shifted into a raven. I knew then he must have fae blood, though I truly had no idea who he was, the future King of Castella,” I add bitterly. “How could I have suspected that Loreleia had met such a powerful figure upon arrival?”

I remember how fiercely he fought for someone he had only just met, and how impotent I felt without The Eldrystone. I had grown used to its power, used to relying on it rather than my own skill.

“I was determined to get the amulet back. No matter the cost. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that Loreleia would be able to wield it against me.”

I stare into Valeria’s face. She hangs from my every word, riveted.

“She used The Eldrystone to curse me. I don’t think she intended more than that, but it was the curse that slammed the veil shut.”

Valeria gasps, understanding dawning on her.

I nod. “It was her words, her curse, that caused all of this. So yes, she trapped us here. ”

She shakes her head, shunning my words.

“She hated me,” I add. “She would have said anything to hurt me, and she knew that condemning me to a life away from Tirnanog would be the worst type of punishment. She also took away my magic. It’s the reason I can’t conjure a glamour.”

The words of Loreleia’s curse echo in my ears.

You are a monster. You deserve what Saethara did to you and worse. I curse you to live without magic. I curse you to never be able to return home, to always be alone, and to never find love. So be it.

I cannot bring myself to tell Valeria more, and the lie of omission—the reason why Loreleia did not want me to go back to Tirnanog and condemned me to a life without love— burns in my throat.

I sit quietly, scanning Valeria’s face, trying to find the smallest indication that she believes me. It is crucial that she does, though as she speaks, I am reminded that it will not be an easy task to convince her.

“No,” she protests, shaking her head. “My mother would have never cut herself off from her home. She missed her family deeply, every day, every hour. She longed to go back.”

“No more than I do, I assure you.”

Anger etches Valeria’s features, and I know I said the wrong thing, so I quickly amend myself.

“The words of her curse were not precise. They were vague. She wanted me to suffer. She wanted to bar me from my home—not bar herself and others as you point out. Nonetheless, this is what happened. From the day that I…” I trail off, unable to bear it all. “The Eldrystone seems to have a mind of its own. Loreleia might have not meant to strand us all here, but I am beginning to suspect Niamhara has a different plan.”

She does not argue about this point. It is clear, she has noticed how temperamental the amulet has been. She lowers her eyes and stares at the floor. I can tell she’s thinking, her sharp mind quickly and efficiently pondering every detail I have provided, weighing each against what she already knows.

In a moment, her mind will be full of questions, questions I do not want to answer, even though I told myself I was ready to do so. I am not.

I am not!

Abruptly, I stand, burdened by the weight of countless years spent evading my past. I have never run from a battle. I have always faced the sword with equanimity and valor, but Valeria’s judgment… I cannot face. Like a coward, I marched out of the room, ready to drown these awful memories. I never should have unearthed them.