Page 57 of Feathers of Ash and Hope

I grit my teeth and yank it out unceremoniously. No time to be careful. I roar in pain when it takes a good chunk of my flesh with it, thanks to the barbs. The blood flows freely, and I concentrate on healing it.

Healing myself is harder than healing others. Maybe because concentrating on whole and healthy tissue isn’t easy when the pain tells you it’s quite the opposite of well, and a nagging headache always accompanies it that ironically, I can’t heal myself from, no matter what I do. It isn’t like that for everyone, but frankly, healing myself sucks.

We are high above ground by the time I’m done. I free myself from the saddle, and Daeva goes into a glide. Lying down on my stomach, I slide onto her motionless wing, distributing my weight as evenly as possible.

“The arrow went through. I’ll cut off the fletching to pull it out,”I inform Daeva about what I’m doing. Using my magic, I sever the arrow below her wing. She caws at my jostling. I grip the tip, protruding on the top, and a screech accompanies themoment I dislodge the arrow. Relief floods me once the arrow is gone. I slip my hand over the wound, and it closes easily.

Sliding back into my seat is harder than getting here since I have to slide backward, and my armor catches on her feathers, ruffling them. Daeva complains about it.

“You’re welcome, beautiful,”I tell her dryly.

The fight is already over by the time Jared and I join our formation. No more arrows or movement from the mist, and the fire is contained as well. Infantry is on its way from a watchtower nearby, so we head back to the Aerie.

When we land, Zaza is slumped in her saddle, and Boko grimaces when he hits the ground, the broken shaft of an arrow sticking out of his leg. Zaza is close to exhaustion since she battled not only the fire our enemies set to one of the houses but also the wielder who did it.

“We have you,” Jared murmurs. We loosen the straps holding her in the saddle. Zaza refuses to let him carry her, so we take her between us, setting off for the healing quarters. Miller helps Boko by lending him a shoulder to lean on, and Tanner heads for Legatus Janus’s office to make a report while the rest of our flight sees that our birds get the care they deserve.

It’s two hours, a good meal, and a hot shower later that I find myself at the library, continuing my research on the Tracers. I prefer the always empty back part of the library. None of the books needed for classes are back here, and not many runners or riders spend their free time hanging out in the library.

I sit at a table with four chairs tucked between tall bookshelves. To one side is a little nook with two big and dusty armchairs and a little side table. Other than that, there is nothing but bookshelves around me, creating an area that can’t be seen until you turn the last corner.

I warm the air around me. I have had enough of the cold, and the library is rather drafty and cool, so air magic does come inhandy. My head and leg still throb, too little to seek help in the healing quarters but enough to be irritating. Heat seeps from my body into the air around me, and I stop once the temperature is comfortable.

I picked up some books from the library, and I’m now eyeing the tomes in front of me.The Ice Coast and Its Minerals, Ice Coast: Customs and Traditions,andGreat Minds and Their Inventionsare spread out around me,but Summer’s words are still the only information I have. I open the bookIce Coast and Its Mineralsat the back, checking the glossary. Heaving a breath, I get to work, starting with the promising first entry.

I pull out the Tracers to compare them to an image of another crystal and leave them on the table for reference. Only Jared and Summer know about the Tracers and their connection to the attack.

Maybe I should have gotten rid of the crystals since I suspect the one my contact handed me might have led those men to our camp.

We were too high up in the mountains and too far away from the mist for the titans to attack us. Even if the silent advance would fit their approach, the man’s accent didn’t.

Brrring you back alive…those words, combined with the lightning wielder’s attack and the fact that we were far from any bridge point, leaves me with the suspicion that they targeted us specifically.

Their attack resembled the one I survived three and a half years ago, and the option of them stumbling over us by accident is also out. No one lurks around so close to an Aerie just for the chance to run into someone. The risk of being discovered by one of the patrols is simply too high.

I have to face the possibility that my contact double-crossed me and set up a trap by handing me the crystal.

And he had the gall to ask for payment, too.

Now, the Tracers are usually stored in my room, but I had the first one with me all the time since I was trying to figure out its use.

Once more, the deaths are on me.

The scrape of a boot sounds behind me, and with the attack and thoughts of double-crossing and traps fresh on my mind, I’m out of my chair, my dagger drawn before I even think about it. I grit my teeth when the sudden movement causes the pain in my leg to flare up.

Big blue-green eyes meet mine, and I see concern in them while the corners of her mouth tip up into a guilty smile. Summer.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.” Her eyes fly past me and widen before they flick back to my face. Following her gaze, I see what caught her attention: the Tracers. Fuck.

Her eyes wander over the Tracers and the books scattered on the table before stopping on the leg I favor.

“Are you alright?” she asks, her eyes returning to mine, and I’m startled to see genuine concern there.

“Yes,” I tell her. Her lips part on my brusque tone, drawing my gaze, and all I can think of is how damn beautiful she is and the soft skin and slender curves hidden beneath her baggy clothes.

She looks up at me. “Do you want help with that?” In combination with my thoughts, that question is anything but harmless. Desire slams into me.

“No,” I snap, the word much harsher than intended.

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