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Nick jolted awake as the wagon rolled over a pothole. Blinking his grogginess away, he looked around. Artemis sat beside him, her legs stretched out in front of her. Cal was in the driver’s seat, brushing flies off his cheeks. Julian and Felix both rode behind, their hands tied to the saddles and their horses tethered to the tray. Blood had dried thick and dark underneath Julian’s nose and on the freshly-sliced star under his ear. Miles was still unconscious, his clothes caked in dried blood. Someone had folded leaves under his bandages, and a faint smell of burnt flesh hung about him.
Nick sat up slowly. ‘How’s Miles?’ he asked.
Artemis shrugged. ‘Xanthe says he’ll probably live.’
Nick noticed another two horses ahead of the wagon. One of the riders was Xanthe, sitting straight-backed and haloed by her frazzled blonde hair. Kráytos rode next to her, his bald head glinting like a brown bowling ball.
‘She sent a messenger to Auremos to let Rayámina know you’re alright.’ Artemis shuffled nearer to Nick. ‘You look heaps better.’
He touched his smashed temple where a sticky, honey-smelling ointment had been smeared across the left side of his face.
‘Xanthe? He’s awake,’ Artemis called.
Steering her horse in a one-eighty, Xanthe ordered, ‘Stop the wagon, Cal.’
She dismounted, leapt onto the tray, and knelt in front of Nick to inspect his face and neck. He could see the worry in her eyes and felt it in her light touch.
‘How are you feeling?’ she asked.
‘Like I’ve been run over.’
‘Understandable.’
Taking his chin, she tilted his head up and checked his eyes, though for what he had no idea. Then she squeezed his shoulders, jumped off the tray, mounted her horse, and led them on through the grasslands. He gulped down a lump in his throat. The only person who’d ever shown him that sort of concern was Mía, and for a fleeting moment it had felt like she was here again.
They reached Auremos well after sunset. Drumbeats thrummed the air and kids danced in the streets. A fire night had begun somewhere in the southern quarter. The rhythm got under Nick’s skin like a heartbeat from the earth. He closed his eyes, inhaling the smell of wood smoke and eucalyptus. He knew right then that, no matter where he ended up, a large handful of his heart would always call this place home.
A cohort of soldiers escorted them to the council chamber, some carrying torches that flared in the gentle night breeze.
‘Take Julian back to the vaults,’ Xanthe ordered when they stopped outside the council chamber. ‘Make sure he’s very well-guarded. And send a doctor to dress his wounds.’
The Bandála untied Julian’s hands and helped him out of the saddle. His face scrunched up in agony as his feet hit the cobbles.
‘What about me?’ Felix demanded. ‘Don’t I get a doctor? That savage little peaker punctured my leg!’
Cal jumped down from the driver’s bench. ‘You’re lucky that’s all I did.’
Artemis stepped over Miles and leapt to the ground. Nick slid off the wagon. His whole body ached, and his left temple still throbbed. His focus slipped, forcing him to grab onto the tray so he didn’t topple. Strong hands supported him, and David’s face appeared, his gaze full of the same concern Nick had seen in Xanthe.
He pulled Nick into a fierce hug. ‘I thought I’d lost you.’
It took all of Nick’s remaining strength not to pass out from sheer exhaustion.
‘You nearly did,’ he replied.
* * *
NICK SLEPT ALL THAT night and most of the following day. In the afternoon, a knock on the front door finally woke him. He rolled onto his back and listened to see if anyone was going to answer, but the apartment was silent. Another knock sounded. With a groan, he tugged on a shirt, scuffed down the hall, and opened the front door. Artemis was waiting on the stairs. The gold strands in her fringe reflected the late afternoon sun.
‘Hi, Nick,’ she said. ‘Are you feeling better?’
‘Yeah. Heaps.’ He smelled jasmine, and his heart beat faster.
Cal appeared on the landing. ‘Conscious at last. How’s your head?’
‘Still attached, thanks to you two.’ Nick touched the sticky ointment on his temple. ‘Xanthe reckons this stuff helps with the bruising. I’m not so sure.’
Cal wrinkled his nose. ‘I guess you haven’t had a bath yet.’
‘Oh. Sorry. I wasn’t expecting visitors.’
‘We can wait.’
‘Ah...okay.’
Cal and Artemis disappeared into the lounge room, leaving Nick alone in the hallway. He sniffed his armpit and winced then grabbed some clean clothes, trudged downstairs, ran himself a bath, and lowered himself into the enormous tub. The warmth was so soothing that he felt the tug of sleep again and had to shake himself awake. He scrubbed the dirt and grime off his skin and tried to wash it out of his dreadlocks and fingernails as best he could. The bathwater turned murky brown.
He returned to his apartment to find Cal and Artemis settled in the lounge room in front of an open fire. Nick stretched out on the free couch and dangled his bare feet off the armrest.
Cal sniffed the air. ‘Much better.’
The smell of roasting meat wafted down the hall. Nick’s stomach gurgled, and he realised he hadn’t eaten anything in the last three days. He wondered what fantastic feast Amaránta was preparing, and he released a deep, contented sigh.
Artemis gave his foot a light kick. ‘It’s good to have you home, Nicholas Kári.’
He wrinkled his nose. ‘Don’t call me that.’
With a chuckle, Cal said, ‘He’s definitely back.’