Chapter 16

Ihalf-expected Tormund to follow me back home. And when he never materialized from the shadows, I didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed. Perhaps a little of both. As soon as he'd started talking about Azraak, I'd only been reminded of how tenuous our friendship was. At the end of the day, we needed the same thing, and neither of us would back down. He wanted freedom for his brother, and I needed freedom for myself.

When I reached my vine-engulfed cottage, I tugged the cot further into the new build and climbed on top without bothering to change into more comfortable clothes. My bones were weary, and my eyelids were weighed down by stones. But despite my exhaustion, I tossed and turned all night. I couldn't get the vision of Tormund's midnight eyes out of my mind—or how his hands had felt wrapped around me.

At least it gave me time to make a plan.

After I tumbled out of bed and splashed some cool water on my face, I stuffed some supplies into my pack and took off toward the mines. The answer had come to me, and it was simple enough. I would track down the dragon by myself and use the Everstone's power before Tormund even knew I'd gone anywhere.

I'd left a note at my cottage, saying I'd decided to practice for the upcoming trial. It was a believable enough lie, and I'd refrained from specifying which trial I meant and where I'd be training. My hope was that Tormund would go looking for me, and he'd waste the entire day trying to figure out where I was.

By the time he realized the note was a lie, I'd have returned from my quest all curse-free and happy as a clam.

Perfect plan!

As I traipsed across the bridge, the sunstones dimmed. Frowning, I noticed all the gems embedded along the bridge were quickly fading. I'd swapped these out myself a few weeks ago. They shouldn't be losing their shine just yet.

The ones in The Wet Beard had faded, too. Seemed like an odd coincidence.

No matter. It could wait until I got back.

Not much later, I waltzed into the back end of the mine tunnel, avoiding the usual entrance, where dozens of dwarves would be starting their mining duties for the day. I wanted to avoid any questions about why I'd taken the day off work and why I carried a packed bag.

When I walked inside, an eerie darkness enveloped me. Most of the sunstones here had gone out, even though they'd yet to be pried from the stone walls. An uneasy thump went through my heart, and I stopped to stare. Not once had I ever seen a sunstone lose its glow before being mined. As long as they remained embedded in their natural walls, they shined for years. They only began to lose their power when we interfered.

My gut churned. Something wasn't right.

The shadows parted, and Tormund emerged from the darkness. I yelped and danced back, the hammering of my heart so painful I had to grasp my shirt. "For Thor's bloomin' sake, Tormund. You can't appear out of thin air like that. If I had a pickaxe on me, I would have swung it at your head before I knew it was you."

"I followed you."

"‘Course you did." I threw up my hands, annoyed that I hadn't seen it coming. He'd probably already guessed I'd go for the dragon after what I'd said to him last night. How long had he waited for me to sneak off? I wanted to throw something at him for it, but I had to admit I'd have done the same thing if I were him.

He eyed the straps of my bag tightened around my shoulders. Coolly, he asked, "Going somewhere?"

"You know exactly where I'm going."

"To find the dragon."

"I thought I'd make friends with the beast."

"You thought you'd find the Everstone without me," he countered.

A beat passed before I replied. "Do you blame me?"

"Not in the least." Shoving his hands into his pockets, he turned toward the sunstones I'd been inspecting. With his back turned my way, I could see he'd had the same idea I'd had. He wore a satchel, so stuffed that the linen material strained against the contents, threads unravelling.

"You know, for someone who thinks the missing gem is a fake, you're very intent on finding it," I said.

He pointed at the wall. "Is that normal?"

"The faded sunstones? Not in the least." I moved in front of him, though all that accomplished was getting trapped between the wall and his chest. "They don't go out until many months after we mine them."

"Bit odd, isn't it?" he asked.

"Very." I took off down the mine tunnel, my pack bouncing against my shoulder-blades. Tormund jogged to catch up, then fell into step beside me in that sauntering walk of his.

"Don't you think it's important to sort this out?"

I cut my eyes his way. "By all means, stay and figure out what's going on with the sunstones."

A wry grin spread across his face. "Nice try, but you can't get rid of me that easily."

I heaved a sigh and stopped in the middle of the tunnel, throwing my arms wide. "Why, Tormund? Can't you just leave me to do my own thing? I know you're determined to find the Everstone, same as me, but I don't know where it is any more than you do. And it's not fair for you to dog my every step just to snatch it out from under my nose if I happen to stumble upon it. Go search another mine. Alone."

He blinked, like he was shocked I'd actually stood up for myself. Bloomin' shadow demon.

"Well then. You're really saying how you feel, aren't you?" He had the nerve to look a bit hurt.

"I need to break my curse. I know you don't understand, but—"

"No, I do," he said quietly. "I understand far more than you think. And I want to offer you a deal."

I squinted at him. "What kind of deal?"

"One where we both get exactly what we want." Tormund closed the distance between us. His chest pressed against mine, and his eyes instantly went south. I didn't even attempt to cover up the hint of cleavage. If he wanted to get an eyeful, then he'd get an eyeful. Bet he liked what he saw, too. Good.

Wait a minute, I thought to myself. Where in fate's name had that bloomin' thought come from!?!

I stepped back, but I hit the stone wall, my head haloed by a cluster of dim sunstones. The dying glow glinted in the depths of Tormund's eyes, sparking something deep and aching inside me. Swallowing hard, I slid my finger beneath his chin and pushed it up. His gaze dragged back up to my face, but that wasn't any better. He looked like he was ready to devour me.

All the rumors I'd heard about shadow demons tore through my mind. They weren't known to be timid lovers. And when they chose a mate, they really chose one. They were raw and animalistic in their passions. At the thought of Tormund focusing all that intense energy on me, well. A blush was an understatement for how hot my face got.

"We both get what we want," I repeated, desperately trying to focus on the conversation rather than on the utter lack of space between our bodies. But then I struggled to think what Tormund wanted. Other than something raw and passionate. And if he wanted that with me, then I was afraid he'd be sorely disappointed with how that turned out.

I'd had a brief fling when I'd been much younger, but it hadn't lasted longer than a month, and I hadn't known what I was doing. Since then, I'd only shared a couple of kisses with one other. My experience in the romance department was…limited, to put it mildly.

"That's right," he said, his lips curling into a wicked smile. "Wouldn't you like that, Astrid?"

I nearly shuddered at the delicious way he spoke my name.

"That depends." I swallowed. "What is it that you want?"

"You know what I want," he said, practically purring now, strands of shadows curling and twisting around every inch of his body, including his deep black horns. The rhythm of their dance was mesmerizing, the way they whorled across his pale yet midnight blue skin.

"Do I?" I whispered.

"The Everstone." His words snapped me out of my reverie. "Just like you."

"Right. The Everstone." I slid sideways. The rocky wall scraped my back, and then I found freedom in the open air, though a part of me ached to return to where I'd been—trapped with Tormund's body against mine, his shadows nearly engulfing us.

"What else would I be talking about?" he asked. "Is there something else on your mind?"

"No, Tormund." I sighed and rolled my eyes, desperately trying to cover up how flustered I'd gotten. "Just get on with it, all right? What's this deal you want to offer?"

His expression sobered. "We join forces to find the Everstone. The real one, wherever it is. You let me have it so I can return to Azraak and heal Tahir."

I scoffed. "That's not much of a deal. In fact, it's the opposite of a deal, because I get nothing out of it!"

"I will vow to find a way to undo your curse," he said solemnly. "And I do not take vows lightly. In my eyes, they are unbreakable. My life will be dedicated to the cause. I swear it."

For a moment, I didn't know how to respond. I didn't much like his offer, mostly because I couldn't be sure if I could trust him. The only thing binding him to his promise was his integrity. He'd repeatedly made it clear he'd do anything to get his hands on that gem. Would he stoop so low to make a false vow?

My heart pounded my ribs. I wanted to believe him. I wanted to trust he was one of the good people of the world, that he wouldn't let me down. But it was a great bloomin' leap of faith.

I didn't need his help. I could find the stone on my own. And then I could un-curse myself.

And his brother would forever be trapped.

"Why can't it be the other way around?" I asked. "I could get the stone first, then we could search for another way to save your brother."

He rubbed the base of his horns, then sighed. "This is where I tell you I haven't been entirely truthful about Tahir."

"Wonderful." I folded my arms. "I should have known. Let me guess, you're not here for your brother, after all."

"I am here for Tahir," he said, his voice insistent. "But Tahir is not my brother. He's not even a shadow demon. He's a dragon, and the gem is the only thing that can heal the issue he has. Another gem caused it, so he needs a gem to undo it."

My hands fell to my sides. "A dragon?"

"I know." He took a step toward me. "It's hard to believe. Impossible, even. All the dragons were killed, right? Well, I'm here to tell you they weren't. One survived, and his name is Tahir."

"More than one survived," I told him.

"The talon you found?" He sighed and ran his hands along his horns, shaking his head. "I believe someone has discovered why I'm here. They planted the talon as a warning of some kind. It explains all the other coincidences, too. Someone has it out for me."

"Hmm. Well, you might be right about the coincidences, but you're wrong about the dragon." I nibbled on my bottom lip, unsure if I should tell him. But he'd come clean to me, and if he was here to save a dragon, then I knew I could trust him with this information. "Four others have survived. They've lived in the Isles for well over a decade. And they're adolescents, growing rapidly every day, which means they want to spread their wings and explore. I think one of them came here."

"Wait. You have four dragons on the Isles?" His voice was flat, his eyes dark. For a moment, I wondered if I'd read him very, very wrong.

And then his entire face lit up. "Do you know what this means? Tahir won't be lonely anymore. Once I heal him, he came come here. He can soar through the clouds with his brethren."