Page 44 of Fire in Stone

We met Margret and her husband in the main area downstairs and had breakfast with them at the small table next to the wood-burning stove she used for cooking.

After breakfast, Margret gave Elex a pair of rubber boots. Then, he went outside with our hosts to work on the wall while I cleaned the table and did the dishes.

Elex’s inhuman strength came in handy, the wall was finished in less than an hour, to the utter delight of our hosts, and we were free to get on our way. I politely declined Margret’s generous offer of warm clothes. We weren’t dressed for the local weather, but we weren’t staying here. I told her and Magnus that we would take the boat off the island to meet with the rest of our “expedition.”

The moment their house disappeared from view, as we turned behind a cliff down the muddy road to the boat launch, Elex stopped. Taking his t-shirt off, he handed it to me, then placed his hands on my shoulders.

“Time to fly, Amber.”

My heart skipped a beat, then rushed off with excitement. Anticipation vibrated through me. Twining my arms around his neck, I hopped up. He grabbed my butt, and I hooked my legs around his middle in the exact same position we’d been in yesterday.

This time, however, I wasn’t racked by worry and fear when I pressed myself to him. As his wings sprang open at his back, lifting us up into the air, I was elated.

I tossed my head back, letting the wind comb through my hair. As we broke through the gloomy clouds and surged into the clear sky above, I squinted from the sunlight on my face.

The bright blue sky was all around us, with the dark clouds floating like a river far below. A dragon’s wings carried me forward, making me feel like I was a part of this vast open space—a natural extension of it.

Real life, with all its problems, remained down there, in the mud below the gray clouds. Up here, there was just light and wind. And the warm embrace of the magical man who made me fly.

“You look so different when you smile,” he said.

I didn’t realize I was smiling. A light, airy feeling expanded in my chest like a balloon, filling me with happiness. Uncontained.

“How different?” I asked.

He stared at me in wonder. “You’re almost glowing. It’s like there’s magic in you, too.”

I laughed. “At this very moment, I feel happy, Elex. I haven’t had many moments like that in my life. This is how complete freedom would feel, I imagine.”

“Are you not free, Amber?”

And just like that, the elated feeling slipped away. The dark clouds of worries reached in and settled back in my chest.

“Freedom is relative, isn’t it?” I replied.

“Maybe. But as long as you’re in control of your life and your future, you’re free to live as you please.”

That was the problem. I had not been in control. But I was determined to get there.

I thumbed the carved ruby around my ring finger—my path to freedom.

“I will be there, Elex. Soon. I’ll be in control of my life.”

After he would safely leave for Nerifir, I’d sell the ring, pay Chris his money back—he’d never leave me alone if I owed him even a penny. Then, I could work on building the life I wished to have. I’d get a job, go back to college. And finally, I would earn my peace.

I leaned my head on his shoulder. “One day, I’ll be free.”

“What can I do to help?”

“You already have.” I showed him the ring.

His brows jerked up. “Is that all you need to be happy and free?”

“That’s it,” I assured him.

He tilted his head, looking at me in disbelief. “You’re so easy to please. You don’t need much.”

And yet, I’d always had to work so hard even for the little things I wanted.

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