Page 61 of Secrets of the Forgotten Heir

‘The border around Witchlight Cove prevents children under eighteen from leaving, unless they’re with an adult whose intentions for them are pure.’

His eyes widened slightly. ‘I didn’t know that.’

There was a reason why I’d stayed in Witchlight until my eighteenth birthday and not a second more. ‘You don’t have kids and you’re an adult, so why would you? Dahlia didn’t know about it, either. The ward set off an alarm and every powerful witch, wizard, elemental – everyone with even a hint of magic – came running. It took everything they had to stop her.’

I swallowed hard. ‘I wasn’t the only one who lost my parents that night. Too many people died.’

Fraser’s eyes were unblinking. ‘And when people see you around, they’re reminded of it.’

‘The guilt. The pain. I can feel it all.’ My voice was almost a whisper.

‘I’m sorry,’ he said. ‘It took a lot of courage to come back here.’

Imet his gaze and held it. There was something between us, I was sure of it. ‘It did. But I can’t let you have my family home.’

He nodded slowly. ‘I understand what you’re saying, and I understand your reasons for saying it, but the Eternal Flame could do so much good. There are ways to harness its power.’

I felt my stomach twist. ‘That’s the whole point.Youcan’t harness it because you’re not a guardian. Look, I believe that you have the best intentions and you think you could use the Flame for good, but it’s too dangerous. It’s in my blood. I was trained from birth to deal with it, to handle its strength and make sure I never abused it.’

‘But Maddie has held it for the last ten years. It’s not inherblood,’ he pointed out.

‘No, but she’s been my best friend since before we could walk. She’s not a bloodline guardian but she did a lot of the training with me – she thought it was fun. You don’t have that and it would take you decades to learn.’

‘Then I’ll learn. You can teach me, that way you’d know exactly what I wanted to use its powers for. That would work, wouldn’t it?’

I opened my mouth, not sure whether to agree or list of a dozen reasons why that wasn’t feasible, not least becausethat would mean me staying in Witchlight Cove for the next decade and a half. I couldn’t commit to that.

But before I could say anything, Eva started barking. ‘Eva, what—?’ I started, but she was already running away from the waves and bolting up the hill towards the village.

Something was wrong.

Chapter Forty

‘Eva! You come back here now!’ I didn’t care that I was yelling – Ineededto yell. Eva was running away from me and straight towards the village. As she reached the first road, she didn’t even pause before dashing across it between two cars.

‘Eva!’ I screamed in panic. Relief flashed through me as the cars missed her. ‘What are you doing, you stupid dog! Come back!’

She had never run off, not once – and I wasn’t going to lose her.

My legs pounded the ground and my lungs heaved in air as I forced myself to run faster. I saw her take a left turn on the high street past Shady’s and then go right, but I couldn’t catch up with her. She was pulling away from me.

‘Eva, what are you doing?’ I yelled. This time she responded with a loud bark. Blasted dog! She could hear me, but she wasn’t responding. What the hell? This was so unlike her.

As I watched her take another turn to the right, my stomach plummeted. I hadn’t been sure, but now I knew exactly where she was going. She was bolting home. Why?

‘Don’t worry, I’ll get her!’

I hadn’t realised Fraser was running with me; in fact, he was level pegging until he spoke, at which point he pushed his pace faster and overtook me. Damn selkies with their proper fae magic making them stronger and faster.

Still, I could keep going for hours – my stamina was something special. My mum had made sure of that. Once, she’d made me fight for twelve hours straight, not even stopping for food or the toilet. It was supposed to be a simulation of how I might have to act if someone came for the Flame. If only she’d realised the Flame could disappear all on its own. There had been no drill for that particular scenario.

Stamina didn’t equal speed, though, and I had to exert every last shred of energy to catch up with Eva. Finally, I turned the last corner and saw my house.

My girl wasn’t running anymore; instead, she was barking non-stop, not even pausing for breath, and it was easy to see why. Smoke was billowing out of the window – and it wasn’t normal smoke. The pearlescent mist shimmered with a pinkish hue and there wasn’t a hint of grey in it.

‘Maddie!’ I yelled.

‘Stand back! I’ll go in.’ Fraser held out his arm to stop me.

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