Gale—dark brown skin, brown hair, griffin tattoos on both arms
Torra—the tall, glowering one with the crossbow
Rebel and River—the olive-skinned black-haired twins who rarely speak with anything other than their swords
We now return to our crisis-in-progress.
Chapter Nineteen
Rafe waited for the laugh, for the punch line. No. Nothing.
Jeremy was looking not at him but at the leader, at Tempest.
“He doesn’t have his memories back yet,” Jeremy said. “Go easy on him.”
“I’m a prince,” Rafe said in disbelief.
“Yes, Highness. I’m sorry you don’t remember that, but I promise you, the rest of us do.” Tempest spoke those words, but all the Valkyries nodded in agreement.
“You can freak out about it later,” Jeremy said. “We need to figure out what to do now. We should probably—”
“Probably?” Rafe said. Finally he shook off the bewildered daze he’d been in since waking up in this world. “Emilie’s gone. While you two were playing Jedi knights, whoever has her was getting away. You all have horses. Can you track? We need to hunt them down, now, and get her back ten minutes ago.”
This speech was met with silence.
“I thought you said he didn’t remember he’s a prince?” Tempest said to Jeremy.
“He doesn’t.”
Tempest gave him the slightest of smiles. “Are you sure about that? Sounds like our prince.”
“Still bossy,” Ember said.
“Focus, please,” Jeremy demanded. “Where’s Skya? We brought her sister and—”
“The queen is on her own mission,” Tempest said. “One I’m not at liberty—”
Rafe said, “Someone has Emilie. Is anyone going to help us find her, or do we have to go ourselves? I’m ready to go. Ten seconds until we get a good answer or I’m leaving. Ten—”
Tempest said, “The queen asked me to tell you both, ‘Thank you for bringing her sister to Shanandoah. You have fulfilled your promise in full. The princess is no longer your concern or obligation. Please accompany the Valkyries to the palace forthwith.’ ”
“Skya said that?” Jeremy said. “Was she high at the time?”
“I’m paraphrasing,” Tempest said. “She left us a note for you.”
She held out a sheet of linen paper. Jeremy took it and unfolded it.
Jeremy read from the paper, “ ‘Stop arguing with the Valkyries, asshole, and do as you’re told.—Skya.’ Okay, that sounds more like her.”
“No, no, I’m arguing,” Rafe said. “Emilie is—”
“No longer your concern, Highness,” Tempest said. “And if you wish to know more and why, we must go to the palace. You are both under the queen’s orders.”
“I’m not leaving until—”
“Rafe,” Jeremy said.
“No, no, I’m not—”
“One minute, please, Highness.” Jeremy took him by the arm, and they stepped away from the Valkyries.
Rafe had had enough of orders. “Highness? Seriously?”
“Better get used to it. Rafe, listen, if Skya told us to go to the palace—”
“I don’t know Skya, but I know Emilie. We can’t leave her out here—”
“You do know Skya,” he said. “You do. And you love her and you trust her with your life. Tempest knew who I was from the first second she saw us. She knew me, and she knew you. That whole song and dance with the sword fight was to buy time for some reason, and apparently it was Skya’s reason. We need to go to the palace anyway. That’s where your book is.”
Rafe stepped away from Jeremy and faced Tempest. “Just tell me one thing, please.”
“Anything, Highness,” she said.
“Is Emilie safe right now?”
“None of us are safe right now. That’s why she was taken. But this should give you comfort, Highness. Right now the princess is safer where she is than she would be with you two.”
Some of the terror and fury left Rafe’s body at that news.
