I could only hope it would be the last. I didn’t like trusting these big winged creatures—bird or dragon—not to drop us for shits and giggles.
The werehyenas screeched their displeasure as we were lifted out of range. I twisted around and stuck my tongue out at them. “Neener neener, stupid mutts!”
The Raven banked to the right and swung toward the castle. The snow below us sent cold gusts of air up around my face, whipping my hood back and tangling my hair.
The distance between the hilltop and the castle was short, and in only a few minutes, we were coming in for a landing. The Raven brought us to the center courtyard, her wings sending up flurries of snow and bits of dirt as she neared the paved stones.
Balder’s hooves just touched the ground and she opened her talons and let us go. He stumbled only a step or two and then he was jigging away from the big bird, his tail flicking side to side as he danced. He wasn’t the only one glad to be back on solid ground. I released a long-held breath and some of the tension left me. Until I looked to my right.
The Raven landed next to us, her wings tucking back sharply against her body. She was easily as big as some of the largest dragons I’d seen, if put together differently. Her dark beak was twelve feet or better in length with a wicked sharp curving point at the end. Her black eyes were hard to read, and that spiked my heart rate up yet again.
“Thanks?” I said. “For not dropping us. And taking us away from the mutts back there.”
“My mistress would speak with you. Now that she is free of the jewel, her mind is more her own.” The Raven pointed with her beak at a narrow doorway set into the castle at the far side of the courtyard. The wooden door had large hinges and a circular iron handle, and as far as I could see, it was the only door leading out of the courtyard.
Backed into a corner, I had no other choice but to go through that door.
“Talk or kill?” I asked.
“If she wanted you dead, I would have dropped you over the snow field and pecked your bones clean of flesh myself,” she said with only a slight tremor of excitement in her voice. “She commanded that I should not do that.”
Her eyes widened and I thought for just a second I could see my broken body in them, blood everywhere. She blinked and the image was gone.
“You are one creepy-ass motherfucker, you know that, right? But you could eat those werehyenas. If you’re hungry, that is.” I pressed my leg against Balder, scooting him sideways. I realized that if the Raven launched at us, we wouldn’t be able to avoid her, but I couldn’t help but put distance between us and a creature that wanted to peck our bones clean.
Color me cautious if you want. I liked being on this side of the dirt and not in a raven’s belly. A thought caught me off guard. I was not the only one in danger of being pecked to death.
“I’m being tracked by a Jinn,” I said. “But I don’t want him dead. He’s not himself, but if he comes, let him come.”
Her eyes narrowed and her head swept toward me. “I obey the Witch, not you. I will kill whoever else I like, whether it is a hyena or a Jinn.”
My hand shot to the flail and I pulled it free before she could get too close. She paused. “You would use that weapon on me?”
“If you force me to. Don’t kill the Jinn. That’s all I ask, not command.”
“That weapon would devour you if it could.” She cawed a laugh that hurt my ears and made Balder whinny and dance even farther away.
I kept him steady with my legs. It was the best I could do. “The flail and I have come to a working relationship. It doesn’t suck the life out of me, and I let it feed on whatever I’m battling.”
The Raven hopped backward, horror written clearly in her eyes. “Fuck my feathers, are you serious? That is not possible.”
My eyebrows shot up. “Yeah. But back to my Jinn tracker, can you not kill him, please?”
She ruffled her feathers and scooted a few more steps back.
“He won’t find you while you are in this place. You could only find us because of your connection to your dragon,” she said. “Rest your horse.” She tipped her head at a set of stables. A troop of little gnomes scurried out, one right after the other. About four feet in height, they were chubby creatures with gentle faces and some form of beard on each, in a variety of colors. As they approached, they made soft clicking sounds that had Balder lowering to them so he could nuzzle their heads.
Ice goblins had been the Ice Witch’s minions before when she’d been the Ice Witch in truth. With the jewel gone from her, and out of the goblins’ lives, had they become the more helpful cousins to the goblins?
What did that say about the Ice Witch? Was it possible she wasn’t the psycho I’d met before? I wanted to believe that, especially since she’d helped me by returning the flail. I wanted to believe it more because she had Lila with her, and I was afraid for my friend’s life if the Ice Witch turned out to be fooling us.
The troop of gnomes hurried forward. As they drew close they bowed repeatedly, whispering something under their breath.
“Hail the Wall Breaker.”
I grimaced and slid off Balder’s back. They reached for his reins and he calmly followed them toward the stables, ruffling his lips through their hair and beards.
“The Witch waits for you,” the Raven said.
I stared up at her. “Do you have a name?”
“You may call me Raven. I will not give you my name. It is enough that the Witch has it.” The white feathers ruffled down her back in a shiver.
So that was how she’d been captured, by her name. Names had power in our world, which was why so many of the supes didn’t give their real name. Unlike me, who had no reason to hide behind a moniker.
“Raven, then. You caught Lila looking for you?” I asked.
She bobbed her head. “I did. She begged to go back for you, but the Witch wants you here for a time. And I must obey her.” A flash of irritation snapped through her eyes. The emotion was there and gone so fast that I might have thought I was seeing things, only I knew I wasn’t.
I felt bad for the big bird because I knew what it was to be trapped, to be told you couldn’t fly free. “I’m sorry for that. I know what it is to be . . . held down.”
She snorted. “Doubtful. You have no idea what you ride into, reckless one. You think you know, but you don’t . . .” She lowered her head until her beak was only a few feet from me. “The Witch is not who you think she is. She is not who she was and she is not who she will be, so take what she says with caution.” She shivered again and pulled back. “I can say no more.”
“Why would you even say that much?” I frowned up at her. “Why help me at all outside of what you are commanded to do?”
“I knew someone like you once. I did not help her and I regret it.” She turned her head away and her wings spread as she pushed off the stones. Into the air, she rose with three effortless flaps that took her to the edge of the castle wall where she sat facing outward. Guarding her mistress again.
There was nothing I could do for the Raven. I kept telling myself that while I wondered if I could convince the Witch to let her bird go. I turned and strode toward the door in front of me. No time like the present to say hello to an old friend and find out just what the fuck was going on.
The thick iron circle was ice cold against my hand, and heavier than I’d anticipated. I had to use both hands to pull the door open. The iron hinges creaked horribly as I pulled. They needed to be oiled, and badly. Stupid thoughts, I know, but I was avoiding thinking about all the possibilities that waited for me on the other side. A nice witch. A bad witch. A dead friend. A live friend.
The interior smelled of ice—yes, ice has a smell—and pine tar. Sconces set in the walls lit up as I took a step, leading me on a pathway deeper into the castle. The flames burst into life as I drew close and went out as I passed. I made myself stop and back up, but the flames didn’t light again behind me.
Forward it was then. I lengthened my stride. The faster I found Lila and dealt with the Witch, the better. So far, her actions spoke of someone trying to help, but I was no fool. I’d been duped more than once by friends and lovers to know that rarely were people out to help you. More like out to help themselves. I put a hand on the stone, not because I was losing my balance but to see if it was real. I still struggled with the idea of snow and a castle in the middle of the desert.