Page 55 of Flame and Starlight

“Almost done,” she whispered.

My vision, wet and out of focus, picked up who I assumed was Theia across from me now. She was tall, lean, and tanned. She had deep brown hair tangled in braids that reminded me of a Viking, and her bright blue eyes surveyed me like I was a piece of meat. If I hadn’t just been assaulted by her, that heated look might have had me squirming in a different way. She was breathtakingly beautiful.

I shifted my eyes away from her and looked up into Aoife’s. She had my head laid on her lap, and she was stroking the tangled mess away from my face. I tried to reach for my neck, but she grabbed my hand and put it back down at my side.

“Best not touch it until it’s healed.”

“It’ll be a wicked scar,” Theia chimed in from across the carriage, a snide smile painted across her pretty lips.

“You scarred me?” I met Aoife’s eyes defiantly, and she looked out the window, away from me.

“Those things are near impossible to break unless the maker does it willingly. And your body fought harder than I expected it would.” She sighed and continued to play with my hair. I wanted to cut off her hands in that moment. Knuckle by fucking knuckle. “His shadows finally let you go once that was broken, though. And it seems your fire magick kicked in. Now you look like a proper Autumn High Fae.”

I pulled one of my hands up in front of my face, seeing the blackened skin trail down my fingers and snake around my wrists. My stomach twisted in disgust at the blackened skin. I pushed off Aoife’s lap, and she disentangled herself from me reluctantly.

“What’s next?” I asked either of them.

“We get you home,” Aoife said as she reached out to take my hand. I jerked it away at the last minute and laid my hands on my lap. Looking down at them, I noticed they had relieved me of the dagger Asher had given me. My heart skipped a beat. I had lost a lot of Asher in one day.

“I was home, Aoife. You’re taking me away from home. But believe what you want. I’m here because I wouldn’t let Asher fight my battles.”

Theia snorted, and I whipped my head around to her. She met my hard stare with a flippant smile.

“Don’t look at me like that, princess. I may get the wrong idea.” She winked at me, and I looked away from her and to Aoife. Her eyes were shining with unshed tears.

“You have me. Theron has me. Leave Asher and his court alone.”

She gave a slight nod and looked to Theia as I decided to ignore them both for the rest of our travels.

I missed the shadows on my skin. My neck and shoulder felt lighter knowing I was missing that connection to Asher. I wondered what he would think when he realized I was gone, if he hadn’t already. Would he find out that Emric was the one that helped me? I prayed to the Gods he wouldn’t. If he knew Emric had been the one to help, he would kill him. Slowly.

I’m so sorry, I called out in my mind. But I knew he couldn’t hear me. The absence of him racked through my body like an earthquake, shaking the very core of me. He would hate me. But him hating me alive was much better than him loving me into an early grave. I took a deep breath to steady my nerves as the carriage rattled on.

Reach for a knife, Alys, not a savior.

EPILOGUE

ASHER

I sat upright in bed, my head pounding and spinning with the movement. I scanned the dimly lit room. Something was wrong. I had sworn I had heard a scream. I stood out of bed, swaying a bit with the sudden motion. The copious amount of alcohol was still very much in my blood. Gods, how much had I had to drink?

“Emric,” I stated loudly enough for him to hear. He jolted up from his spot on my couch and swore.

“What could you possibly need in the middle of the night?” He rubbed his eyes furiously before they landed on me.

“Something is wrong.” Ever the carefree guard, he rolled his eyes and took his time standing.

“What in the hell could be wrong at—” He glanced at the old clock above the fire. “—two in the morning?”

I tucked my shirt into my pants and slipped on my boots as quickly as I could against the ache in my head. “How much liquor did you force down my throat? I feel like I’ve been run over by a horse.” I groaned. “Multiple horses.” I took a moment to hang my head in my hands. My senses were dulled, my head was pounding, and I could barely get the energy to move.

“Pretty sure you were throwing those back all by yourself. Going on and on about how upset you were about a certain someone.”

Alys.

Her name drifted across my mind like a cool breeze, relaxing my muscles and bringing my senses back to light. And then my stomach plummeted. My heart raced. Why couldn’t I feel Alys? I reached out as hard as I could, searching for that cord that connected me to her. I struggled to try and hear her heartbeat. I listened for her sweet, dream-riddled thoughts. Nothing. Quiet. It was empty. The shimmering cord that connected us was gone. I felt the loss as if I had lost a limb.

“I can’t feel her,” I said, suddenly up and moving again.

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