Trail of Lightning (The Sixth World #1)(77)

I gasp. “Is that what I think it is?”

“I thought you’d want it.”

“Thank you,” I breathe. Somehow, against all odds, he saved my weapons.

“Couldn’t find your B?ker, though. Just the box.”

“It’s fine,” I assure him. “More than enough.”

Grace comes back with coffee and a pot of tea that smells like mint and we each take a cup of our preferred poison. Honey is passed around, and one of the Thirsty Boys murmurs in delight as he squeezes a dollop into his tea.

“So what now?” Rissa asks.

There’s a hush in the room as eyes turn to me.

I cradle my cup in my hands, its warmth soothing. “Like Hastiin said, there are still monsters out there. Still a witch to kill. I know I almost died, but I didn’t. So, I’m fine.” A lie but a necessary one.

“I think we all know what we have to do,” comes a tired voice from the hallway. Everyone looks over to watch Kai pad into the room. He slips into the space next to me and confidently takes my hand in his. I flush, embarrassed at his display of affection, and my first instinct is to pull away. But I like the feel of his skin, the comfort of him being so close. And I got used to his arms around me as we slept. So I leave my hand where it is.

“Kai’s right.” I take a deep breath. “We have to go after Neizghání.”

Murmurs ripple through the group, loudest from Rissa and the Thirsty Boys. Hastiin, thankfully, is silent. Kai squeezes my hand reassuringly.

“You sure about that, Hoskie?” Hastiin asks me. I know what he’s thinking. Neizghání is a hero. We don’t hunt down the good guys unless we’re the bad guys.

“No,” I admit. “But there’s only one way to find out.”

“Seems there might be a better way,” Rissa says.

“He tried to kill her,” Kai injects angrily. “Why would he do that if he wasn’t trying to stop us?”

Rissa scoffs. “There’s plenty of history between those two for—”

“He knew about the monsters. And the firestarter,” Kai says. “If he’s so innocent, then why did he let all those people die?”

“That doesn’t mean—” Hastiin says.

“But why?” Clive asks, leaning forward. “If it’s him, and, yeah, it sounds like it is, then why?”

“He’s an immortal,” Grace cuts in. “Who knows why they do what they do? Will of the gods and all that. Now’s not the time to go trying to figure him out. Look at the facts. What we know.”

I nod, grateful for her words. “And what I know is where to find him.” The room looks at me, expectant. “Black Mesa.”

A beat. “You want us to go to Black Mesa?” Hastiin asks.

“It’s the last place he and I were together. At the old mine. That’s where he’ll be waiting.”

Hastiin shifts uneasily. “This isn’t just some grudge match you’re playing out in your head, is it, Hoskie? Because I signed up to kill these monsters, not to risk me and the Boys’ lives to settle some lover’s spat.”

“I heard him too,” Kai says. “I heard what he said to Maggie. About the monsters. Black Mesa. All of it. That’s where he’ll be and that’s where we’ll find the monsters.”

He’s lying. There’s no way Kai heard what Neizghání said to me in the arena. And Neizghání never mentioned Black Mesa by name. Kai doesn’t look at me. His eyes remain steady, trained on Hastiin, like he can convince him through will alone.

Hastiin stills, and for a moment I think he’s going to quit on me. But then he blows out a blustery breath and slaps his hand against his leg. “Okay, then,” he says. “I guess we’re all taking a little trip to Black Mesa.”



We make our plans over a pot of elk stew and thick fluffy tortillas that Grace and Freckles whip up. Afterward, Rissa and Clive go through Grace’s arsenal, tagging the firepower we’ll need, talking with the Thirsty Boys about modifications to turn rifles into flamethrowers. It’s a heady conversation, part excitement and part dread. I stay as long as I can, tossing in what I remember about the geography of Black Mesa and Neizghání’s likely battle tactics. I know there’s no way he’s not expecting us. But that’s not the part that worries me. He let me live, and I don’t know why. Why he spared my life when he had me at his mercy. Why he kissed me the way he did. And why he taunted me to come back to him.

I excuse myself from the war talk, feigning a need to rest, but I find myself in Grace’s spare room. The far wall is lined with built-in bookshelves and I thumb through the paperbacks, trying to distract my worried mind.

“Find anything good?” Kai asks from behind me.

I turn to find him standing in the doorway, smiling at me. He’s in the same baggy cargo pants and AC/DC T-shirt from before. He’s already starting to look healthier, but lines remain around his mouth and bruises under his eyes, making him look older, more severe. No longer regal and untouchable like he was at the Shalimar. Now he reminds me of a fallen prince, or at least one under siege.

“Yeah, hoping to find the CliffsNotes to ‘How to Kill an Immortal Warrior who Just Kicked Your Ass and Defeat an Army of Flesh-Eating Monsters,’ but it’s not here.” I tap an empty spot on the shelf. “I guess Grace misplaced it.”