Read Online The Vanishing Throne by Elizabeth May - Free Book Online

pain of it. Almost there .
    The last stars go out. Something claws at my leg, catching skin. I don’t lose course. I stay on my mental route. Just as I feel the heat of the mara unbearably close, I leap for the forest exit.
    My body slams into the ground, and I roll through the grass. I close my eyes hard against the sudden daylight, not even opening them when I hear the yelp from a mara in pain behind me.
    Moments later, others growl from the forest. They let out low whines and whimpers of frustration.
    Don’t worry. They’ll keep to the shadows . That means I’m safe. Finally.
    I lie on the ground, breathing deeply. The trees around me groan, the leaves fluttering in the cool breeze. I never want to move again.
    At the stomp of boots on grass, I ease my eyes open. Aithinne leans down with a grin. “You didn’t die. See? I told you it was easy.” She offers me a hand and I take it, rising unsteadily to my feet.
    â€œI’ve been bitten by some demonic woodland creature. My legs have been shredded by razor-sharp trees. We almost died. Easy ? I’m getting you a damn dictionary.”
    I inspect my bleeding arm. The cut bisects five of the marks Lonnrach made, and I feel inexplicably proud of that. Good . Replace the old, bad memories with new badges. Start over.
    â€œA dictionary,” she repeats. “Is that a type of dessert?”
    For the love of —“It’s a type of book that explains the meaning of words.”
    â€œOh. That sounds terribly dull. I was really hoping for dessert.”
    I’m hoping to end this rescue with my sanity intact .
    I stare at the beautiful scenery around us. The meadow is up high on a ridge, a muted landscape with even more extreme chiaroscuro than the area around the fissure. The clouds are black and heavy with rain.
    Every part of the land is rugged. Near where we stand is a waterfall that drops from the crags to the canyon below. The river at the base of the canyon is dark; it resembles descriptions I’ve read of dried lava, right down to the rough texture created by the rapids.
    It looks like a scene painstakingly etched by an expert hand. As if the artist had delicately stroked the charcoalpencil to get the texture just right. The shade just right. Each detail etched in fine brushes. The Sìth-bhrùth was once full of a thousand different colors your human eyes have never beheld .
    This place must have been even more magnificent before the color faded. From the expression on Aithinne’s face—the longing, mixed with sadness—she thinks so, too. Her gaze is unfocused, as if she’s remembering the way it was.
    â€œWhat did it look like before?” I can’t help but ask. “Was it beautiful?”
    â€œIt was always beautiful,” she says, rather mechanically. “That was never the problem.”
    â€œWhat was?”
    Aithinne seems to shake herself, closing herself off the same way Kiaran does. “Lots of things.” She looks over at me then. “You’re bleeding again.”
    Without warning, Aithinne seizes my arm. Before I can ask her what she’s about, she swipes a finger across my arm wound and licks the blood off with a quick dart of her tongue.
    â€œAhh!” I stare at her in shock. “You licked—you just—my god, I want the last five seconds of my life back.”
    Her face scrunches into a grimace. “ Baobhan sìth venom. It’s all over you; I can smell it.”
    I go rigid. Lonnrach marked my body. He stole my memories. Of course it would follow that he’s polluted my blood.
    I want to know everything. I just need to use your blood to see .
    I’m tainted. My skin isn’t mine and my blood isn’t mine and my mind isn’t mine. There isn’t any part of me that hehasn’t claimed or taken by force except for my will. And he almost took that, too.
    Aithinne notices my expression. “Falconer, I didn’t mean it