Page 60 of Reckless
“Luna comes from a long line of Mixes, for lack of a better term, which is why her fingers are the only place her Blazer ability manifests,” Meredith says softly. “I found her in the slums, no older than a toddler. I knew immediately that she didn’t possess the full power of a Blazer, considering that Elite children can barely contain their abilities for several years. She should have been covered in flames.”
She smiles sadly at the giggling girl in Lenny’s arms. “I knew it wouldn’t be long before it became clear to everyone that she wasn’t fully Elite. And Ilya has no use for those weakened by Ordinaries.” Her eyes skip over the Enforcer. “So I hid her for a while. Most Mixes are still strong enough to blend in with Elites, but Luna is far from the first Mix in her bloodline. Eventually”—she waves a hand to thegroup behind her—“I found more throughout Loot and took them in. That is, until I couldn’t hold any more and eventually made the trek to Dor, where it is safer for them. Here, they are met with hatred if they are found out. There”—her sharp stare finds the prince—“they are met with death.”
“There aren’t many left in Ilya,” Lenny adds. “Most of them fled to Dor or Tando a generation ago and live among everyone else. But if I happened to find any in the slums when I was stationed there, I’d send them to Ma.”
A man clears his throat, stepping forward from the back of the group. “Lenny found me a few years ago.” His hands are cupped together, holding the small flame that has been illuminating the dark room. “I’m also a partial Blazer. I have to cup my hands together like this, just to make a flame.”
A woman clears her throat, stepping into the dim light. “I’m a partial Veil. So…” Her arms suddenly flicker out, disappearing before our eyes. “The rest of me stays visible.”
Several others walk forward, sharing how they got here and the little they can do. Leena is nearly brought to tears as she profusely thanks Meredith for all that she’s done, hugging her and anyone else who will allow it.
But it’s the Enforcer who holds my attention. He studies them like a puzzle, deciphering the percentage of power each of them possesses. I vaguely wonder how many of these half Elites have passed him in the streets with him none the wiser.
“You’re welcome to stay here as long as you like,” Meredith says sweetly, turning her attention to me. “I can imagine it’s hard to keep you out of trouble with that hair of yours.”
“You have no idea,” I say, smiling slightly.
“Make yourselves comfortable,” Lenny says before turning towardhis mother to inform her on where we left the horses while Luna plays with his hair.
I make quick work of unrolling a bedroll while gnawing on some bread Meredith begins passing out to us. “What are we doing with him?” I turn to see Finn nodding the crossbow at the prince.
“Put him by me,” I say sweetly, though my smile is anything but. “We’ll take shifts watching him.”
When he sits down beside me, he’s wearing my least favorite mask at his disposal—indifference. So I lean over, whispering softly in his ear. “Lucky for you, my feet arefreezing.”
CHAPTER 23Kai
My hands are numb.
And they’ve been numb for nearly two days now.
I shift against the wall and attempt to rotate my sore wrists. I’ve been tied up since the ambush in the Scorches and, frankly, I’m not accustomed to feeling like my fingers are going to fall off. I huff, frustrated at my current situation.
“Something the matter, Prince?”
She’s perched at the end of my bedroll, crossbow in hand and a smirk on her lips. It’s alarming how much she enjoys this. “I don’t know, maybe the fact that I’m still tied up?” I say dryly.
She gives me a falsely sympathetic look. “You’d better start getting used to it.”
Oh, I’ve had plenty of time to get used to it.
I walked the entire way back from the Scorches with my hands bound behind my back. At least I had entertainment at the time. Eavesdropping certainly kept me occupied on the long trek, since no one seemed to remember that Lenny’s Hyper ability was free game to me.
And that’s when I heard how she killed him. I’d never asked, I realized, what it was like for her. Maybe I didn’t want to know if she had a good reason for doing it.
My eyes linger on the scar trailing down her neck to slip beneath the folds of her vest. She tracks the movement, shifting uncomfortably under my scrutiny. Pulling the collar of her vest higher, she holds my stare. “What?”
I shrug, shaking my head at the ground. “Nothing. I just know how painful that was.”
I’ve been cut up enough times by the king to know exactly how much pressure he uses with a blade.
She rolls her eyes. “Sympathy doesn’t look good on you, Azer.”
“Everything looks good on me, Gray.” I flash her a smile. “Don’t lie.”
Her mouth falls open, and I’m greatly looking forward to what is about to come out of it when Lenny strides over instead. “You ready for tomorrow, P?”
She takes a deep breath, looking composed as she continues staring at me. “Oh, I can’t wait.”
