Page 87 of Heiress of Fire

“Yes, Dark Mistress?” he asked.

Davina gasped.

“I want a full report on the Dunbar girl,” Raven said sharply.

Davina sighed, closing her eyes with remorse.

“She continues to be completely infatuated with me. I’ve been able to exploit her sentiments for me as an advantage to complete the task you’ve given me, my Mistress,” Sadoc replied. Davina couldn’t see his facial expression, but she could hear his arrogance.

He was part of the Main Predators clan.

She’d never be able to understand the minds of those who turned their backs on being good.

“Too much time has passed. I’ve been battling with the Bellatorman army for four months now and the progression has been minimal,” Raven pondered.

She thinks that’s minimal?

“Mistress, many Bellatormans have begun to agree with your perceptions of the King’s absence and have begun a campaign for a new candidate for the throne,” Sadoc replied.

“The support of Bellatorm does not matter to me if Davina continues to resist me. I need you to work harder. I fear Dunbar is the only way we can get through to my sister.” Raven’s tone softened.

Davina focused on the scene before her. Fog had begun to surround the garden in which Raven and her servants stood. Davina squinted as she stepped to her left to move closer to the shrubs.

A branch snapped under her feet. She froze.

Raven fixed her gaze on Davina’s direction. It was as if Raven’s glare had the power to push her onto her behind. Fractured bark scratched the palm of her hand as she fell and hard droplets of rain landed over her face as she groaned. The bushes shuffled as her boots brushed against them.

Her cloak was rammed harshly into the mud. Davina shoved herself up against the force of the sticky mud and swiftly ran away from the field.

Loud stomps were close behind her. Her hand gripped onto the hood to hide her face as she glanced back.

“Hey! The Dark Mistress will make you pay for this!”

Her heart quickened as she continued to move past the large logs and bushes. The landscape of the forest had been uneven, causing her to stomp brutally. Her calves burned as she rushed up the erratic slope.

One large Main Predator, wearing all black, slithered out a dagger and sent it slicing in her direction. Davina propelled herself forward, pushing harder to escape from the edge of the knife.

A sharp cold wrapped around her torso. Swiftly looking down at her waist, she found that her dark violet cloak had been ripped with the edge of the blade. Davina returned her gaze only to notice what had once been a beautiful grand tree mounted and shattered before her.

“Seriously?” she yelled. Davina jumped onto the large bark, splinters stinging her fingers. The Predators continued to yell after her.

Davina’s breath became uneven as she leaped from one large log to another. Once she landed on the last tree trunk, harsh pain shot through her ankle. She yelped when she fell onto the wet floor.

She’d landed on her shoulder, a sensation of needles poked at her arm, rushing to her shoulder. It had been from the stab wound from Raven’s dagger heels. The moment she broke up with Ron and conjured her fire, the injury had scarred. But it continued to pain her occasionally. It was like a constant reminder of her failure.

The rain had turned into a slight drizzle, and she could feel her coils already beginning to frizz.

“Where are you, girl?” A Main Predator croaked.

“I always loved to play hide and seek as a child,” another Predator sang.

“Davina,” a voice whispered.

The young Aurisan quickly looked up at the nearing silhouette. His shaggy chestnut brown hair and his frames shone under the foggy night. Chief Leader Isaiah.

He briskly kneeled beside her. “Are you okay? What happened?”

“Predators. They’re coming after me but I hurt my ankle, can you help me up?” she asked, holding herself up with her elbows.

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