Page 136 of Cry of the Firebird

"No, but I'm assuming you have."

"Yanka's granddaughter has been walking with Yanka," Aramis admitted.

"Fuck."

"She has no idea what she has done. There was no preparation. She just...went to sleep."

Silvian swore again. "How much time do I have?"

"Not a lot. She has to close the family gates tomorrow. I have no doubt she will do it, and I need to keep the Illumination from taking her back to London," Aramis replied.

"Good idea. Keep her away from them, Aramis. You might like to play general, but deep down, you know what they do to someone if they think they will be a threat," Silvian said, a deep growl in his voice. He would know. He had been their assassin once after all. "If this girl is Yanka's blood, there is no telling what she could do. I will dig deep, Aramis, and see what treasure they are hiding. Is this cell safe to call you back on?"

"Yes, of course."

"Leave it on, and I'll contact you when I know something. One question before I go," Silvian said with a thoughtful pause. "What if what you are thinking is correct, and they have lied to you about what really happened? What will you do?"

"Then I'll be joining you on the Rogue blacklist and killing whoever was responsible," Aramis replied and hung up. His mind was already moving to a dark, cold place in his past. The glamour on his skin shifted, and the Álfr tattoos snaked up one arm and over his chest and face. They were a physical marking of the position he had once held among his people.

Silvian wasn't the only one who had once been an assassin.

CHAPTER SIXTY-EIGHT

Anya was sitting on her bed with her head in her hands when Yvan knocked on the door and slipped into her room.

"I hear you killed some people today," he said before crouching down in front of her. "I wanted to make sure you were okay."

Tears slipped down Anya's cheeks as she lifted her head. "I did it so easily, Yvan. Every time I let my magic take over, it lashes out and kills. What kind of magic is that?"

Yvan put his warm hands over her tightly clenched fists. "The kind that's trying to protect you. You have to take into account the only times you let it take charge is when you're being hurt or attacked. Magic is not evil. It's the most neutral force in the world. It's what's inside of you that influences it."

"I know, Yvan, and I use it tokillpeople. Maybe that's what's inside of me!" she admitted, her worst fear exploding out of her. The firebird's flames rose out of Yvan's hands and curled around her arms, trying to soothe her.

"I've seen real evil, Anya, and trust me, you're not it," he reassured her.

Anya looked into his eyes, fire dancing in them. "I'm scared, Yvan. It's not just about closing the gates, it's about what I'm becoming. I'm not chosen one material. I'm going to disappoint everyone when I can't be that person for them."

"Fuck everyone," Yvan said, making her eyes go wide in surprise. "I'm serious, Anya. That's their bullshit expectations that you are not responsible for. You have nothing to do with the supernatural world, you never started the fight between the Illumination and the Darkness. You aren't responsible for cleaning it up."

Anya's hands tightened over his. "But what if I am? What if this is my destiny?"

"Tuoni told you the firebird egg was your destiny, and here I am," Yvan replied with a teasing smile. "This is the only destiny you need to be worried about as far as I'm concerned."

"You're right, Vanya. I blame you entirely for this mess you dragged me into." Anya laughed as he cringed.

"I hate that nickname," he muttered.

"Too bad, you're stuck with it now," she replied. She took out Ilya's knife to show him. "Do you think the firebird can tell me if this is magical?"

Yvan sat down beside and took the knife from her, sliding out to examine the blade. His eyes flamed bright, and he said in a voice not quite his own, "The blade is tied to the gates by the blood that's fed the steel. The blood of your ancestors resides in it, and it's all about blood and power in the end."

Yvan sheathed the blade again and passed it back to her. Anya's magic purred in her veins as she touched the bear's head on the pommel, and she quickly put it back in her bag.

"I learned something else today. Aramis knew Yanka," she said.

Yvan blew out frustrated a breath. "That makes a lot of sense."

"What do you mean?"

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