Page 109 of A Storm in Every Heart
He looks at it in disgust. “What is it?”
“Just trust me.”
He meets my eyes, and without question pops the stem into his mouth. “That’s sweet like candy. Now really, what is it?”
My heart skips a beat, but I don’t need to answer as in that exact moment Kastian disappears. One moment, he was standing next to me, and the next I’m looking at the unmade beds.
Jett gasps loudly. “What the hell is that?”
“Aurelia gave this to me. She said if you eat it, you’ll turn invisible.”
Connell raises his eyebrows in disbelief, but Jett grins with excitement. We’ve been living with Aurelia long enough to know that she’s a little odd, but her magic is more advanced than anyone I’ve ever met, and it nearly always works.
“Fuck yes,” Jett gasps excitedly. “Give me some.”
I break the rest of the blue stem into more pieces and try to hand him one, just as a heavy knock sounds on the door.
“Open up by order of the Kingdom of Hydratta.”
My stomach lurches with panic.
Jett looks at the door and shoves my hand away. “Never mind. You take it.”
“What—” Kastian’s disembodied voice begins.
“You two take it,” Jett cuts him off. “You’re the ones in danger of being recognized. I’ll distract them for you.”
“Excuse me,” Connell says dryly. “What are you expecting me to do?”
Another loud knock sounds on the door, harder this time as if the guard is pounding with his fist. A second later, the doorknob rattles as the guard tries to shove his way inside.
“Dessa, eat it,” Kastian’s voice hisses.
I feel Kastian’s large hand reaching for me, tugging me sideways as I pop the stem into my mouth and chew.
My first thought is that Aurelia was right—the flower tastes like marshmallow—then, a cold sensation washes over me, like ice water crawling slowly over my skin. I freeze, looking down at my body only for a split second later to find myself staring at the empty floor. I gasp.
“Stay quiet,” Jett demands, striding over to the door, then raises his voice, shouting to the guards outside. “Be right there!”
An invisible hand that can only be Kastian’s reaches for me, feeling along my arm to my ribs. His fingers close around my waist, and he tugs me sharply down to the floor between the wall and the edge of the bed. I’m not expecting it, and I fall sideways, a tiny yelp escaping my lips.
“Why are you all wet?” Kastian's bemused voice tickles my ear, his warm breath fanning over my invisible skin.
“Uh—” I begin.
“Shhh!” Jett hisses.
I freeze.
It’s the strangest sensation of my entire life. I’m lying half on the floor, half on Kastian. I can feel the wood beneath my hip and his chest rising and falling against my back. His arms wrap around me from behind in something like a hug. I can feel his breathing in my ear, but when I look down, I can’t see anything except the dirty wood floor, as if I’m peering through my own legs.
Jett walks over to the door, raising both hands to his hair and messing it up, making it look even more as if he just rolled out of bed, then in one movement he pulls his shirt over his head and tosses it on the floor, revealing a heavily muscled chest.
He stops just in front of the door and looks back at Connell. “I’m going to send him away. You stay quiet or I swear to whatever God you believe in that I’ll make you regret it.”
Then, Jett swings the door open and leans against the doorframe, using his body to block the rest of the room. “Morning, officer,” he says cheerfully.
“Why didn’t you answer the door?” the guard demands, looking Jett up and down.
