A Hero of Realms(50)

“What are you doing here?” I asked, dumbfounded.

She reached up a hand and, with curved forefinger, beckoned me closer. I took a step forward. She gripped the front of my cloak, yanking me nearer still. She tilted her head upward as if to look me in the eyes, if she possessed them herself.

Her lips unglued from the hard line they had formed. “Something’s happened,” she said in a quiet voice. “Something that has never happened before.”

She paused, leaving me hanging.

“What?” I urged.

“My sister and I… our eyes have diverged.” She let go of my robe and her small palms flattened against my chest, directly over my heart. “Although we are twins, my sister Pythia and I differ in a number of ways. However, never before have our eyes not seen as one. She envisioned a different path for you than I did, vampire.”

Again Hortencia paused, infuriatingly. I gripped her shoulders and shook her.

“What did she envision?”

“I would not suggest that my eye is more accurate than my sister’s,” she continued as though she hadn’t heard me. “Thus, I can only conclude that fate has carved out two paths for you.” Her hands slipped beneath my cloak and then through my ripped shirt, settling directly over flesh. Her fingers felt moist and clammy. The strange black symbols tattooed up her neck began to swirl and migrate around the center of her throat.

“Since earlier today, one of your feet is already over the edge. You are on the verge of being faced with a decision. It will happen soon. Very soon. Whichever path you choose will determine your true identity, and your place in the history of the universe.” Her face tensed, her voice strained as she parted her cracked lips and hissed, “When the road forks, your route will be clear. Either a destroyer or hero of realms you shall be.”

To my horror, her hands slipped away from my chest, and she jolted backward.

“No!” I lurched forward, reaching out to grab her, but it was too late. She disappeared before I could latch on to her. “No!” I yelled again.

Destroyer or hero of realms? What does that actually mean?

What did she mean when she said one foot was already over the edge? The loss of a jinni and the demise of Arron?

But she said I had a choice.

As desperate and hopeless as the situation was, those words shone a light. Ever since my visit to the oracle’s cave, I’d feared at the back of my mind that she was right. That my destiny indeed was to become a soldier of shadows and be lost to the Elders, their slave in helping them come to resurgence. The fact that Hortencia herself had said that her sister—wherever and whoever she was—had seen a different future for me, one where I could be a hero rather than a destroyer, sparked an unexpected ray of hope in me.

But how would this play out? And, dammit, why couldn’t she have stayed a few moments longer to help me? Wouldn’t the rise of the Elders affect her too? She was part jinni, part witch. She held magic. She could’ve easily stayed and at the very least transported Julie and me to our next destination, even if she refused to give us any more information. Would that have hurt her so much?

There was no point in lamenting what was out of reach. She was gone and I was on my own again. Although at least I was now armed with confirmation that there could be another way.

I remained still, watching the spot where the oracle had vanished, but soon it was clear she wouldn’t be returning. I turned around and clambered up the boulders, continuing my search for a boat. Her visit hadn’t changed our immediate plans. We still had to get off this island, and I still had to figure out if I really was going to go through with Julie’s suggestion.

As I reached the other side of the boulders, I was glad to see a small harbor filled with a dozen boats. To my surprise, Julie was also standing on the bay, accompanied by the redheaded witch.

I hung back, watching as Uma’s sister pointed toward one of the boats—a small yet sturdy-looking vessel with a narrow covering over the bow. I didn’t know exactly what kind of negotiation Julie was coming to with the witch, so I figured it was best I didn’t interrupt. I kept my distance until the witch had left Julie’s side and vanished herself, presumably back to the castle.

I ran over to Julie. Her eyes widened as she spotted me.

“Ben,” she said, stepping down from the boat and onto the wooden floorboards of the jetty. “I was about to come and get you.”

“What’s happening?” I asked, deciding not to tell Julie about the oracle’s visit to me just now. There was no point. It wasn’t like Hortencia had offered a single shred of practical information that could help us in our predicament. Besides, the exchange I’d had with Hortencia somehow felt too personal to share with Julie.