“You think they’ll jump back to the Otherworld?” she asked.
“I’m positive. They won’t risk being caught by humans, and we know they give away their goods to the gentry.”
“Pagiel’s probably strong enough to jump without a gate,” Jasmine reminded me.
“His followers aren’t,” I said with certainty. “He’ll go to the gate. And we’ll be waiting for him. We can beat him if we leave now.” This was a chance we weren’t going to get again. Any number of places would have too many gates to choose from or else be too far away.
Jasmine followed me as I grabbed my car keys and headed for the door. “Where’s the gate open up?”
“The Thorn Land, actually.”
“Ballsy,” she said.
I laughed. “I suppose so. But I think it’s a pretty remote part of the kingdom. Easy for him to hide out and also close to an Oak Land border.”
I wanted to double the speed limit but knew a ticket would slow me down. Still, we made good time on the interstate. It was once we had to turn off and head into the desert that we slowed. I watched the clock anxiously, constantly running calculations on how long it would take his posse to get there. The odds seemed in our favor, but I’d learned not to assume anything when it came to the Otherworld.
We reached the gate, and I parked the car a little ways from it. Pagiel wouldn’t know it was mine, but I didn’t want him getting spooked if he thought humans were in the area. It was late afternoon, in the middle of desert country, and the heat was in full effect. Jasmine and I had had the sense to bring water bottles, but they didn’t stop the sweat from rolling off of us as the sand radiated back the sun’s merciless rays. We found a spot near some saguaro cactuses. They didn’t offer much shade, but they gave us a sheltered view of the gate. Again, I didn’t want our presence to be obvious to Pagiel.
The afternoon wore on, and I began to doubt myself. Maybe I’d guessed wrong on the gate, especially if Pagiel decided not to risk crossing into one of my kingdoms. Or maybe he’d somehow made better time than I expected and was already gone. Our water was running low, though both Jasmine and I could pull water out of surrounding plants if necessary. I felt bad about that sometimes, but it occasionally had to be done for survival.
“There,” said Jasmine, straightening up. I followed where she was pointing and saw sand being kicked up as a group of horses and riders came into view.
“Unbelievable,” I said. “They rode horses from Phoenix. He really is a modern-day Robin Hood.”
Pagiel was in the lead, easily visible with the way the sun lit up his red hair. There were about a dozen riders with him, which made my heart sink. His initial raids had only contained a handful. A dozen was hardly an army, but it still signified an increase in support. After seeing the passionate reactions back in the Otherworld, I had a feeling he could have recruited more if he wanted. It was a small mercy that the majority of gentry had trouble crossing over to this world.
I waited until he was closer but not close enough to cross through the gate. I jumped up and strode forward, Jasmine right beside me.
“Pagiel!” I yelled.
He flinched in the saddle, and instantly, I felt the wind pick up. It stilled when he saw us, though the wary expression on his face clearly showed he didn’t quite trust us as friends. His riders regarded us with equal caution, and I saw the flash of a few copper blades.
“Your Majesty? Jasmine?” Pagiel glanced between us. “What are you doing here?”
“You already know,” I said, trying to present an air of peace and calm. “We need to talk about these raids you’re on. Pagiel, you know they’re not right.”
“Humans have plenty!” exclaimed one of his followers. “We’re entitled to reap our share.”
Pagiel silenced him with a look, and the guy cringed. Somehow, the boy sidekick I’d befriended had become more of a formidable leader than I’d suspected.
“The people in my kingdom are hungry,” said Pagiel. “They are in yours too. Can you honestly say you don’t want to help them?”
“No one’s starving anymore,” I argued. “We’re on rations, yeah, but at least we’re surviving honorably.”
Pagiel shook his head. “We talked about this before. Honor doesn’t enter into it—only survival. Besides, isn’t this what I’m supposed to be doing?”
I winced at the bitterness in his voice. So. He knew. Somehow, I wasn’t surprised. If he’d been back and forth between the worlds in the last few days, word would have gotten to him about his heritage.
“You aren’t ‘supposed’ to be doing anything,” I said gently. “You make your own choices.”
“That’s not what I hear,” he said. “I heard what everyone said when I was back there. They’ve all got plans for me. Even my grandmother does. Why else wouldn’t she have told me?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. There was a raw pain on his face that broke my heart. Maybe he’d technically reached manhood by gentry standards, but he was still a boy in many ways. He’d been thrust into a world he wasn’t ready for, had his life irrevocably changed. I knew the feeling, and I ached for him. “Let me help you. Come back with me so we can talk.”
That set off alarms for him. The wind rose again, whipping my hair around. “‘Talk’? I’m not stupid. I know what that means. You’ll put me in iron and lock me away.”
“Stop that,” I snapped. With barely a thought, I killed his wind magic. He might be strong, but Auntie Eugenie was stronger. He cringed a bit, feeling my magic dwarf his. “I’ll win if we fight, and I don’t want it to come to that. We’re family, Pagiel. And in a lot of ways ... it feels right, you know? You’ve stood by me since we met. I want to do the same for you. I swear to you, I won’t hurt you. Neither will Dorian. We’ll work this out together.”
Indecision warred on Pagiel’s face. He didn’t know who to trust, and I didn’t blame him. I’d been in that position. In a chaotic world, he’d carved out this outlaw niche for himself, one that at least gave him control of something.
“Pagiel, please,” I said. Panic was building in me. I was afraid it was going to come down to a fight, and I really didn’t want that. “I know what you’re going through. I’ve been fighting the destiny that was allegedly laid out for me too. You are your own master, not some prophecy made before you were born.”
Pagiel still didn’t respond. It was Jasmine who cracked him. “Pagiel, please,” she said, echoing me. “Please come with us.”
His gaze flicked to her, and I saw a new pain cross his features. Like her, he’d come to realize the family connection that had killed their romance. Nonetheless, I knew that as he studied her, he still cared about her and probably always would.
“All right,” he said at last. He turned his attention back to me. “I trust you, Eugenie.”
It was the first time he’d called me by my given name, and I smiled. It was fitting, since we were related. A few of his followers grumbled about this decision, but again, a command from him silenced them. I also noted that a few of them actually looked relieved. I wondered if maybe what had started off as a fun, madcap adventure had become too much for some.
Pagiel glanced back to where a couple of horses simply carried packs and supplies. “Distribute those goods among everyone so that my aunts can ride,” he ordered.
His riders jumped to obey. I hoped desperately we could work out all of this because he had so much potential. He was powerful in presence and personality. If he was put on the right path, he could become the kind of leader who did great things in the Otherworld. He could inherit a kingdom someday.
I hoped my abandoned car would be okay and crossed with Pagiel’s riders into the Otherworld. It wasn’t one of the strongest gates I’d ever used, but none of his party seemed to have difficulty with it. He’d picked a strong group. We reached the Thorn Land and then turned down the road for the Oak Land. As we rode, I occasionally saw the other gentry going through the packs of stolen goods. A few of them started munching on candy bars, like Butterfinger and Heath. Once Pagiel’s stopped his raids, I thought, this will all be funny someday.
It was still weird seeing the Oak Land so green. The trees held the fruits of both summer and autumn now, and I hoped Pagiel would soon realize there was a lot to love here in the Otherworld. He and his followers didn’t need the human world. This was where they belonged.
We reached a part of the road that I knew well, a bend that would soon put us in sight of Dorian’s castle. I breathed a sigh of relief. We had done it. We would bring Pagiel home and fix all of this.
Suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, an arrow zinged by Pagiel, only just barely missing him. It was followed by two more, one of which took one of Pagiel’s riders in the chest. I pulled out my athame and gun. The air swelled around us—a result of both my magic and Pagiel’s—and his riders drew weapons. Shouts from the trees around the road told me we were rapidly being surrounded, but I couldn’t see by whom yet. I looked around frantically, trying to decide how we could best defend ourselves.
Before I could say anything, Pagiel gestured to me and Jasmine with his sword. “Seize them! Use them as hostages! They’ve led us into an ambush!”
Chapter 26
“What?” I exclaimed. “They aren’t with us! I don’t know who they are!”
Pagiel didn’t seem to hear me. Neither did his followers. A few of them advanced on me, which was pretty foolish on their part. I held out my silver athame in a warding gesture and summoned a sudden rush of dark clouds and flickering lightning above us that was mostly for show. I didn’t want to hurt them, not when a third party was attacking us. The trick worked, and his riders hesitated.
“I’m not your enemy,” I told them. “Deal with me later. Worry about them.”