Darkling POV

I was starting to get a little worried we were following the wrong tracks but they were headed in the right direction. The kings army has yet to catch up with mine, mine was tearing thru the country trying to keep up with its leader. About three miles where me and Ivan had camped for the night showed signs the carriage stopped and at least three tents were set up. She could have been that close to me and I let them get away. When they get to they fold he would have to shut down all travel to make sure they can't get thru if they are have that another issue. I'm a beacon for the volcra I can't go in but I must go after her I will risk it for her. Irina was riding by Ivan I could hear there conversation but chose to ignore it. "Do you think the sun summoner is ok do you think they have hurt her?" Ivans reply made me smirk despite myself "not if they know what is in their best interest he will kill them all." "So the rumors are true they are together aren't they? That why he is so upset isn't it. "Ivan about brought his horse to a staggering halt he tightened his grip that bad before he loosened and kicked the horse full run again. "No they aren't he is upset because the hope of Ravka is out there is the hand of who knows who. If there are truth to these rumors those two would make it known when they wanted to mind your business and your place." Irnia hid her face at that point "Ivan you would know are they we had something for awhile once then nothing. "He stone face her "ask him." I kicked Midnight faster to get away from this conversation. Had something? We hadn't been together in years even then it was just fucking. Where had she got the impression there was something more that hadn't been since Luda. No he couldn't think of Luda cause he lost her and he couldn't stand it if he lost Alina. Suddenly someone was beside me fearing that it was Irnia I look over only to see Mila. "Moi soverennyi you have raised me taught me to fight and made me the head of your Durast but why did you request me to join sir. You know I would do anything for you but I don't understand." "Mila you never know when a great Durast is needed. Never knowif something will be needed in a hurry only you can make and I've seen you do it never forget that Mila." She didn't say anything else and just rode I remembered the day Mila was brought to me a babe in swaddling rags. Her parents we poor, had no home at the time and when their daughter somehow got hurt they realized what she was. They came to the outer gates made it thru then got stopped at the second gate till my second in command Ivan came and tested the baby. Afterwards they were brought to me I can still remember their fear of me dispite the face they needed him. "General Kirigan sir will you please take our babe in and make sure she is loved and has what she needs. We can't provide or protect her and she... she is grisha sir please we love our daughter and only want what is best for her." I remember rising from my chair and walking around the table to take the babe looking at Ivan "she really is one of ours?" "Yes moi soverennyi she is Durast lit up brighter than I've ever seen sir." I turned looked at the parent's "I will make sure she is loved and knows of you she will need for nothing and she will want for nothing i will make sure of it personally. Plus for your loss, to help you hard times, and as a reward for bringing her forward here is coin. I know it doesn't cover the loss but I hope it helps." I don't recall how much I gave them but I followed thru on my promise for the babe and even watched over her. Shacking my head I had to turn my head back to the task at hand and find Alina. Still we rode on following tracks that could be how knew how old. Where was his sun his Alina.

Alina POV

We haven't stopped since that night other than a few seconds to swap out drivers I cursed this time cause that meant Mr. Berkker was finally getting some answers but so was I. "How did they know so quickly?" "The door was locked as I went to pick it I heard muffled talking inside so I stood waiting and after awhile everything got quiet and then there was shuffling. The Black General came out shortly thereafter I waited for a few minutes before I tried the handle and it was unlocked. Walking in she looked like she was asleep till I got back to the bed then she spoke without opening telling me to go away Genya whoever that was." Mr. Berkker looked at me "so was it the General or this Genya that gave us away so quickly." I looked at him "I will not give you anything no matter how many times you ask." Jasper laughed "she has fire in her I like her." "I am not called SUN SUMMONER for nothing I can get hot." That just caused more laughter from him but Mr. Berkker wasn't as amused "enough either answer our questions or stay quiet. I won't say again miss Starkov." I shut up and Jasper started in again "when she asked that I grabbed one wrist going for the second her eyes popped open and she swung. By the way she packs a punch. We fought but I kept her hands separated so she couldn't summon. Finally I won by smashing her head into the bed post. Also sorry for that sun summoner I just didn't expect you to fight." I laughed "you have got to be kidding me you thought I would just walk out with you or you thought I would sleep thru you picking up my body? Are you insane you jackass?" They both looked stunned "no we just weren't expecting that you would know how to fight and we prepared to knock you out with medicine." "How do you plan on getting me onto a skiff cause I won't walk willingly even at gun point." I added at the end having eyed Jasper's guns this time. "All in good time miss Starkov why spoil the surprise I'm sure you will just love it." I got the distinct feeling that I would not "love it" as he so claimed. What I would love would be to be rescued from these crazy people one seems like she doesn't want to hurt me, one is all jokes, and the third I couldn't get a read on but I knew he would do whatever for himself and maybe his crew. "How did y'all get to me? I was heavily guarded. " "Yeah no joke we killed one guard for his uniform then got two of the horse guards uniforms. Why are there horse guards anyways? We use those to get close to the guard outside your room killed him and waited for our opening. " "did you have to kill them and they have horse guards cause of the prince he loves them more than the whole of Ravka." "So you do answer questions after all and yes so they didn't find out before we were ready." "Only when not about myself or my people Mr. Berkker I would also say the plans for the future but I am not privy to any of that." "You don't consider the people of Ravka your people anymore?" This guy was getting on my nerves "yes I do however you weren't asking questions about them." We were close enough now to see the fold looming in the distance if they looked out the windows. Which I got to do from the floor where they made me ride laying down on my side. So no one would see me through the window if someone were to get that close. Oh where are you Aleksander they said you were close shouldn't you have caught up by now? Just how close was their close? The way they panicked made me think very close at first not sure now. At this point I was praying to the saints for the end of this trip or that it was all a bad dream. The integration started again this time he avoided my face though. The rest of my body well that was open season though. I am pretty sure he must have broken different things. When one side got to bad they turned me over to give him more room to work just growing madder when I would not speak.

Darkling POV

The fold was coming into view the next town they had arranged for new horses Midnight would be moved along after us when he was rested. In my group barely anyone dared to talk for fear of setting me off they could see the tension and anger rolling off of me in spades. The longer it took to find her the worse it got and it almost the same for Ivan. No approached his second in command either. They reached the next town at dusk and I went straight to the second army stables were there were in fact horses ready for them to hop on and ride back out. I dismounted and went to Midnight's nose and rubbed it for a moment before whispering "rest well my boy I will be back for you after I get her for us." He neighed as if he understood me and I turned and took the reind of a fresh horse from the stable hand and took off again my army following. I would do as I told Midnight and get her back though I thought. Will she forgive me for failing her though cause the more I think about it the more I realize that I had left the door unlocked that morning knowing Genya should have been there soon. Looking at Ivan "how much longer till we reach the fold? How long do you think it will be till they reach it?" He looked at me "we should be about a day or so from the fold now. So hopefully we are right on their tails but depending on how much of a lead they have moi soverennyi as much as I hate to say it sir she maybe at the fold." Growling under my breath "Ivan if they take her thru I will risk a trip after her you will wait behind to coordinate." "Sir I want to come with you I failed her too." "Fine Ivan but it will be more dangerous I am a beacon for the volcra you need to know that." He nodded "that is fine sir I am replaceable she is not and again sir I failed her." I nodded and said "we need to pick up speed we may loose the tracks the closer we get to town." We all kicked our horses faster the almost pure black mare I was on wasn't as fast as Midnight but she would do. Why hadn't someone brought the tracker he could be useful now he could lead them to her to his Alina and this nightmare would be over. I told the men they could stop for the night but I would ride on they all followed. For them it was just going after the savor of Ravka but for me I realized that it went far beyond that. I was not ready to voice it yet but I was crazy about the girl who turned my world upside down and I could not lose her. "Moi soverennyi we haven't lost her yet" Ivan said eerily echoing my own thoughts. "We had better not I will burn all of Ravka into the ground if we do to find her or to look for her killers. If she is not here I move on to the next country and so on." He nodded his head at me he knew I would hold to my word he may not know I was the black Heretic but he knows that I am a man of my word. Riding in the night following tracks is not the easiest even riding with torches or grisha fire. I was starting to getting to lose hope when we spotted the first carriage at dawn right before we hit the fold. "Stop that carriage search it for the sun summoner. Search everything big enough for them to have hid her in it and if its Mr. Berkker then we know its him if not only a small group will stay and search it the rest will move into town. Start shutting down everything docks everything. Then everything gets searched we will find her. Kick up the speed and catch that carriage." I was yelling for them to move I wasn't going to wait any longer I kicked even harder and Empress ran faster. Could this be it could this be her, could I have finally found her?

Alina POV

My suspicion was correct I didn't like how I was getting through the fold before we reached town they stopped the carriage. As I was starting to wonder why to two men lifted me out of the carriage and into a large trunk which they then locked. I could see air holes had been created so I would be able to breathe. They weren't genital about putting the trunk back into the carriage either. Apparently seeing me in the trunk was enough to finally bring the laughter out Mr. Berkker. I knew soon I would be hearing the inhuman cries of the volcra. They just had to make it to town then the skiff after that I'm lost to Aleksander he can't come after me he is a beacon. Finally after being shut up in the trunk I let my silent(I had been gagged) tears falled. I expected to hear the standard sounds of town life but that is not what I heard. I felt the carriage surge faster. All off a sudden I could suddenly hear the sounds of a lot of horses (muffled by stuff padding me) in the distance. Suddenly I heard Mr. Berkker scream "faster" and the carriage surge faster again "faster" then Jasper yelled back "I can't the horses are maxed out. " "We just need to make it to town then we can disappear till we can cross so make em go faster." I was starting to hope that, that was my rescue. The sounds of horses grew louder and now I could hear muffled shouting. I couldn't hear what was shouted yet but now I knew this was my rescue. Now I could hear the shouts they were shouts to stop or else. "Shit boss they are throwing grisha fire. They aren't hitting us it's more like they are trying to spook the horses to get them to stop or focus more on splitting apart than running"the Jasper yelled. "Keep them going at all cost we can't stop now" Mr. Berkker said. I heard gun fire even muffled sounded close so I'm figure Jasper was using his guns and I was hoping all my people are ok. I hated being locked in the trunk with no way to see what is going on, no way to show them that I was indeed in the carriage. The only things I can hear is horses, shouts to stop, gun shots, and Mr. Berkker getting madder that his original plans hadn't worked. I don't know what happened but the horses finally stopped and I heard "be ready. At first there was silence I couldn'thear anything then there seem to be some sort of fight but it didn't seem to last for more than a a few seconds. That is when I heard shouting I couldn't tell who it was inside here. I heard them shouting asking where they had me hidden I wanted to cry out to bang on the lid with my hands but they were still bound as before. Then I heard Aleksander's booming voice "soldier's you have your orders you should be searching everything. Now Mr. Berkker you or your three have five seconds to tell me where the fuck she is or I will kill you where you stand and move on to the next person." I could now hear sounds of soldiers searching in carriage and dragging out my trunk dropping it on the ground with no care. Even though it was a padded trunk I let out a grunt and lost all my of breath. With the gag in my mouth I couldn't get my breath back my view started to dem. Oh saints I was gonna die in a trunk being so close to being safe. That was the last thing I knew and my last thought besides I love you Aleksander.