Page 81 of Of Blood and Banes
I sway the flames back and forth, until I pull them toward me. It crawls across the ground, inch by inch, and grows more and more receptive to my call. As soon as the flames get a few inches from my boots, I take a step back and slam my hand down to stop them in their tracks. But instead, the fire zips down into the earth and disappears.
A clapping sound pulls my attention off the ground, and Marge is grinning at me.
“I meant to stop it?—”
“You did. You returned it to the ley lines.” She taps her staff on the frozen earth. “Now, let’s up the ante.”
She draws the hidden sword from her staff, the moon behind her outlining the blade in a brilliant blue. Daeja shuffles back,her eyes flicking back and forth between Marge and the sword as the horns on her head bristle.
“She won’t hurt you.”I caress the bond between us.
Marge lowers her sword and draws a lop-sided circle around herself. Breathily, she says, “This time, your job is to keep the flames from reaching me?—”
I snort. “Definitely not that advanced.”
“Well, you’ll have to be.”
As I open my mouth to argue, she flicks a side glance over at Daeja as she finishes the circle.
“Again.”
CHAPTER 27
COLD REFUSAL
Idamn near drag myself through the door back at Cyrus’s old residence in Kilamber. Darian’s at the farthest wall, sitting against the bricks and shackled.
“I see you’ve been up waiting for me?” I ask, trying not to sound as breathless as I feel. As I close the door behind me, I freeze when I notice how violently he’s trembling. His jaw is clenched, fists balled into the pants at his knees.
For once, he doesn’t respond. He squeezes his eyes shut.
I scan the room, only to find no windows are open. And it’s not like it’s any colder than outside. I walk across the room and stop just outside the perimeter his wall chain will allow him to reach. “Are you…cold?”
His breath comes out through gritted teeth and pursed lips, his body rocking back and forth slightly. “No.”
I begin to shrug out of my cloak.He’s that damn stubborn to deny something as simple as being cold?Taking a few steps into his space, I hold out my cloak for him. “Here.”
“I. Don’t. Want. It,” he grits out, opening his eyes to glare at me.
Sighing, I toss it over his boots anyway. As I turn and take a few steps away, he grabs it and chucks it off to the side.
Stubborn, prideful,andan asshole. What a combo.
I make my way to the wall where the hearth is, remove my gloves, and slide my fingertips across the cool marble mantle. Finding the flint and steel, I crouch down and begin to strike, again and again. As soon as a spark bounces off and flares into a soft ember, I reach my hand out with a steady breath. And pull.
To my surprise, the ember grows brighter. Then flames begin to rise out of the small kernel of heat. Until seconds later, fire snakes up through the logs and a tide of warmth washes over me. The fire fills the room with a sultry light, casting long shadows across the grand room and illuminating the gilded bed frame.
Darian has his head leaned back against the wall, his eyes screwed shut. I place the flint and steel back on the mantel and grab my cloak off the ground. At least this way he can’t deny the heat of the fireplace.
Good luck refusing that one.
The next morning, I find Daeja near a massive oak tree, attempting to mimic the chirping birds. Cole relays the information that Sethan and the other dragon riders are about to take to the skies. He helps me into the saddle then checks all the buckles and straps before heading back to the wagons.
We take another half day flying to the city of Vathstone. As we approach the far western part of the continent, a blinding glimmer of the endless ocean expands out beyond what the eye can see. It’s stunning, an almost seamless blend of sky and water in the distance.
I’ve never been to the ocean. Never even seen it outside of a map. I’d heard countless stories from Aiden when we were little, but it was mostly big brother intimidation of why I shouldnever venture away from home. Massive water dragons could shatter the King’s ships in a matter of seconds. Guaranteed disappearance if you dared any further than knee-deep waters.
The smell of saltwater whips over my face, and my mouth parts the lower we glide toward the shores. Smaller bays of water line the stretch of almost-white sand. And a bit further inland, likely no more than a fifteen-minute walk, is the towering cityscape of what I imagine is Vathstone. All around the city are lush, tropical plants and trees. Sethan and the other dragon riders land on the sandy shore between the ocean and Vathstone. I brace myself as Daeja glides into a running landing. Tightening my knees around her, I fight to keep myself upright until she slows, her body sliding forward slightly in the thick sand.
