Page 119 of A Sun Scorched Bloom

"It worked," Lea laughed, a small, joyous sound that caused a beat of pride to flash from Gray through their bond.

"You did it. You stunning creature." Gray lifted Lea off her feet, crushing her against his chest and spinning her in a circle.

"It’d help us even more if I could take magic," Lea said, raising an eyebrow at Janelle.

"Wait, mine? I don’t even know how much I have? What if it’s only a tiny bit, and you take it all?" Janelle asked, her eyes nearly bugging out of her head.

"One thing at a time, Little Flower. Let’s see if you can show Janelle what you’re seeing." Gray crossed his arms and leaned back.

Her friend's face relaxed, and Lea tried not to smile. She knew that Janelle would let her practice taking magic if she had to, but she also knew that having that magic, whether a sliver or a huge slice, made Janelle feel safer.

"Alright. We can start with that, then." Lea took a deep breath, not certain how to even start. With giving away magic, it started with finding her own power. She followed the phantom trail from her chest toward her magic, focusing on pushing her own thoughts into Janelle’s head. Her magic wrapped around her friend’s consciousness once again, and Lea focused on what she was seeing, but—dammit!

Once again, she was looking at herself. Pulling her magic back, she shook her head.

"Did it work?" Erik asked.

"No, I tried, but—I saw through Janelle’s eyes again. You didn’t see anything, did you?" Lea asked her.

"I’m sorry." Janelle winced. "I didn’t see anything different."

Lea rubbed the back of her neck where her muscles met her skull, a headache forming and wrapping up into her temples. "Let me try again," she said with false bravado.

"Mother said it was difficult, Lea. If you need a minute—"

Lea held up her hand, already trying to push what she was seeing toward Janelle. She prodded at her mind, looking for a way to break through and force her own thoughts inside. Her vision began to transform again, blurry this time. "Anything?" she asked, her concentration faltering as her head started to pound.

"Nothing," Janelle confirmed.

Lea let go of the thread of power between her and Janelle, her vision coming back into focus. "I can’t get through."

"We’ll keep practicing. I’m sure you’ll figure it out." Gray laced his fingers between Lea’s. "The most important thing is that you’ll be able to see throughout the battlefield. That’s more than we could have hoped for."

"It doesn’t feel like enough," Lea said, pressing her lips together, trying to hold her disappointment at bay. Gray was right. Being able to see the entirety of the battlefield was no small victory.

"We have to celebrate every victory, Little Flower. Before today, I wondered if it was even possible for us to win this war. But now?" Gray cupped Lea’s face tenderly between his hands. "We have a chance. Our people might live. And it’s because ofyou."

Chapter 77

Erik

ErikhadhardlyseenJanelle since their conversation the other night, when she had opened up to him and he’d almost burned King Tanad’s palace down with his fury. It had taken every last shred of his self control to not leave that night, to go find the soldiers who had assaulted her and make them pay. His daydreams were now filled with the different ways he would kill them.

The visions filled his mind every waking moment. As he ate, he dreamed of poisoning their wine. While drying off from bathing, he thought about the color their faces would turn and the panic he’d see in their eyes if he strangled them with his towel. Erik had accidentally come a little too close to splitting Gray’s throat as he imagined an epic sword fight against Jakob, Stefan, and their friends while they’d been training.

He’d had to remind himself that Janelle was okay, that he could help put her back together. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t fantasize about cutting her attackers from ass to eyes, splaying them open like a duck on the dinner menu.

The past few nights, Janelle had been asleep by the time he’d returned to their room. Gray and Erik had spent hours every day discussing strategy, working with the rebels, assessing their magic, and maintaining their own training. In addition, now that Lea could give away little bits of her power that would allow her to see through others’ eyes, they had been making plans for what vantage points were most advantageous, and who should be positioned where for Lea to gather the most valuable information.

Erik was exhausted, and frankly, quite crabby. He’d grimaced and ground his teeth more than laughed and smiled the past few days, and it hadn’t escaped Gray’s notice.

"What is going on with you?" Gray asked after he healed himself from the nick on the right side of his throat.

"It’s nothing." Erik cleaned the blood off his sword and sheathed it. "I’m sorry I cut you. My mind was elsewhere."

"Don’t be sorry. Just tell me what’s going on. I can’t have my second in command distracted. Not right now."

"Says the guy who acted like an animal until he stopped being an ass and sealed his mate bond," Erik grumbled.

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