To Whatever End (Echoes of Imara Book 1) (47 page)
Read To Whatever End (Echoes of Imara Book 1) Online
Authors: Claire Frank
Tags: #Literature & Fiction, #Action & Adventure, #Fantasy, #Mystery; Thriller & Suspense, #Mystery, #Thriller & Suspense, #Science Fiction & Fantasy, #Epic, #Sword & Sorcery, #Thriller, #Metaphysical & Visionary
She may have her husband back, but she was starting to realize she couldn’t take him home. Not yet.
46. WATCHING
Pathius ducked between the buildings and melted back into the shadows. The ground in the tight alleyway was dry, the tops of the buildings leaning toward each other, blocking the flakes of snow. He hung back, hardly daring to breathe, as his gloved hands pressed into the walls on either side.
Cecily emerged from a building across the street and pulled her fur-lined hood over her head. She carried a basket at her hip and the hem of her cloak swished through the shallow snow as she walked down the quiet street toward the river.
He waited and peeked his head around the corner as snowflakes drifted into his hair. When she was almost out of sight, he stole from his hiding place and pulled his cowl down low. The cold air brushed his face. He was still unaccustomed to the absence of his mask. How many years had he worn it? He didn’t know.
He followed her toward the pier, thinking she was returning to her inn, but she turned down a footpath that led to the river’s edge. Turning up another street, he hoped to circle around so as to stay out of sight. He emerged further upriver and peered around a building’s edge. She sat on a bench near the flowing water, holding something in her hands.
Pathius crept toward the bank and stole close enough to feel the sheen of her energy, a smoldering warmth that called to him. A raw hunger grew inside him, a desire for something he couldn’t name. It crept into his thoughts and lurked in his dreams. He slid behind a tree, pressed his hand to it, and pulled energy from within the towering timber. He felt the edge of hunger soften. But Absorbing energy from the things around him didn’t satisfy the craving that had taken root. He wasn’t sure what would.
Cecily picked up her basket and set it in her lap. Pathius crouched down and leaned forward to look at her. He wondered what would have happened if he had never Absorbed the energy from Fourteen that day in the courtyard. He should probably call him Daro now. He would never have developed this strange affection for Daro’s wife. He would have killed Cecily in Wesfell. She wouldn’t have lived to rally the new king, nor the Paragon, to fight against Nihil. No one would have marched on Nihil’s compound and Pathius would still be masked, answering to a number instead of his name.
He reached back and scratched at the scab where his implant had been. It had come loose when Daro had crushed Sindre’s medallion and killed her. It fell out of his neck, leaving a bloody wound behind. His only regret from that day at the Lyceum was that Sindre hadn’t died at his hands. He pacified his irritation by remembering the satisfying feel of Nihil’s energy as it poured into him, his body withered and frozen, falling to the floor.
But it wasn’t gratitude for his freedom that made him follow Cecily across the kingdom. He didn’t know what it was. He couldn’t explain it, even to himself. Daro’s deep love for his wife had been so ingrained in his soul, a piece of it had bled into Pathius when he Absorbed Daro’s energy. And now he couldn’t get rid of it.
He wasn’t sure he wanted to.
He knew he couldn’t follow Cecily forever. Every day he told himself it would be the last, he would tear himself away and go. But when he thought about where, a great barrenness stretched out before him. Where would he go? He had no life to return to. His father was dead, the throne in the hands of a new king. What life was left to him now?
Number Four waited for him at the edge of town, hunkered down in a room at a cheap inn. The man still couldn’t tell Pathius his name. Pathius wasn’t sure if it was because he was afraid, or because he truly didn’t remember. Perhaps he would have to help him choose a new one.
He thought about the others who had suffered at Nihil’s hands. They had scattered after Nihil’s defeat. Only Number Four had waited for him, the rest disappearing into the city, and beyond. He had no doubt Rogan and the Lyceum would hunt them down, one by one, killing them like rabid animals. It was only a matter of time before someone came for him. Perhaps that held the answer to his quandary.
If they were going to survive, they would have to do it together.
THE END
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The story continues in
An Altered Fate: Echoes of Imara Book Two
A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR
Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed
To Whatever End
, please consider leaving a review on Amazon, Goodreads, or wherever you hang out online, to help others decide if they would like it.
You can find maps, concept art, and depictions of the series in Lego (yes, Lego!) on my website at
clairefrankbooks.com
.
I love to hear from readers! You can contact me through my website, or find me on
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and
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.
Until next time…
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
For David. Always have.
First and foremost, to my husband David. This book is the result of many hours of brainstorming, world-building, note taking, idea-bouncing, discussing, and even a bit of arguing. Thank you for challenging me to think through the difficult parts, for tugging on each thread of the story to make sure it wouldn’t unravel, and for sharing your endless stream of ideas. Without you, this story never would have been written. The time spent with you, planning, plotting and bantering ideas has been amazing and I look forward to many more stories to come.
To the beta readers who shared their valuable time - Dan Bogh, Jane Brooks, Alice Finch, and Josh Wedin. Your insight, comments, and criticisms were immensely helpful. The time you so generously spent pouring through that first draft has done an enormous amount to help me grow as a writer and make this book far better than it would have been without your thoughts.
To Trevor Smith, responsible for the stunning cover. Thank you for putting up with my pickiness and requests for changes, and for bringing Cecily to life.
To Eliza Dee, thank you for your thorough revisions and suggestions. A good editor not only polishes a manuscript, but helps the writer grow and I certainly learned from your expertise.
Last, but most certainly not least, to all my family and friends who have cheered me on, you are all incredible. Your belief in me means more than I can say.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Claire Frank is a longtime fantasy fan who was raised on a steady diet of magic and wonder. She started writing as a child and somewhere along the way, realized she had worlds to explore and stories to share. Immersed in fantastical worlds, she can explore love, loss, heartbreak, fear, companionship, loyalty, betrayal and redemption. She can walk with a character as they stumble, fall, fail, rise, and try again.
Her husband David is her co-creator in everything she does. He is blessed with an abundant imagination and a tendency to daydream. Together, they craft worlds, banter ideas, create characters and develop their stories. She may be the one to craft the words on the page, but he is a part of every word.
They live in the Pacific Northwest with their three children. Claire loves coffee, great books, The Princess Bride, chocolate, and bacon. Because everything is better with bacon.
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