Page 130 of A Touch of Gold and Madness

The familiar pain of self-hatred crept back into my chest. The last thing I wanted to do was to make her sit on the sidelines, but there were things she couldn’t know just yet.

Onyx led me to the dilapidated barn on the outskirts of the Hollow near the farm fields. We could’ve easily put earth Elementals on the task to fix it up, but we didn’t want to make the space comfortable for any potential threats.

The holes in the tin roof made the area freezing and dank, while the piles of hay held tattered articles of clothes discarded from years past. Nobody bothered to remove them.

“He’s not speaking,” Onyx said as we walked past the empty stalls. “Must say, he looks so familiar, though. I just can’t place him.”

“Gray can’t come here. If someone recognizes her, that could spell disaster.”

Onyx looked uncomfortable but nodded anyway. “Got it.” A few moments later, he added, “Though I must say, this will make for some awkward-as-hell pillow talk. Imean…”

I smacked him on the back of his head. “Don’t…”

Onyx laughed, rubbing the spot I had just hit. “Okay, okay.”

Reaching the back of the barn, we came to a halt before a closed stall door. I used my magic to unlock it, then pushed it open. The rusted hinges screeched, forcing me to suppress a cringe.

I pulled out an Elemental dagger as I entered the stall, ready to interrogate the intruder. A shadowed figure sat hunched in the corner, the afternoon sun streaming through behind him. It struck me as odd that a Kinetic scout would be trying to make their way inside the property during broad daylight. That wasn’t very wise.

But when I looked at the person in the light, I froze.

“Onyx,” I said, my voice hardening. “I’m gonna have to ask you to leave. I need to be alone for this.”

I could sense Onyx’s hesitation, looking back and forth between me and the scout, probably wondering why I had just given away his identity to this person. It didn’t matter. This person knew exactly who Onyx was without me having to tell him.

“You sure?”

“Yes. I got it. Let Orion know that I can handle this. No one is to come here. This person is dangerous, and I’ll handle them myself.”

Onyx ran a hand through his black hair. “Alright. But don’t hesitate to call for help.”

“I won’t.” I didn’t take my eyes off the Kinetic scout.

Once Onyx was gone and out of earshot, I dropped my arm to my side. “What the fuck are you doing here?”

Chapter 47

Gray

Ibeat my fist on Orion’s office door, determined to find some answers inThe Book of the Arcane.Pissed was what I was. I was determined to prove I was the furthest thing from a liability. I’d find information, anything that would stop Forest.

Then I’d go find out who that scout was myself.

I was done with powerful men, thinking I needed to be in the background. That I was a hindrance when I’d done nothing but prove myself day in and day out since I was born.

And how dare Chrome think just because we shared a fucking soul, he could order me around.

Orion swung the door open with a gust of wind. He sat at his desk, his head buried in the book. “How can I help you, Princess?”

“I came to see ifIcould help. Have you been able to translate anything?” I took a seat across from him, taking controlled, deep breaths to calm my fiery anger toward Chrome so I could focus.

“Only a few letters. Many of the sigils are similar to Elemental ones,” he muttered, completely engrossed in what he studied.

“Like what?”

He moved over to a sheet of paper, scribbling an Elemental sigil down, and next to it, he drew one of the symbols from the text. “This,” he pointed to the foreign symbol, “is similar to our sigil, meaning soul or life force. There are slight variations in the fine details of the angles, but I’m confident that’s what it means.”

I leaned forward and studied the two examples. “What image are you looking at that the symbol is associated with?”

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