Page 150 of Wings of Ash & Flame
But what had arrived at her door hours earlier was what truly transformed her.
A sharp knock had interrupted her thoughts.
On the threshold was a midnight plush box. She’d peered down both ends of the hallway—empty.
Her pulse stuttered. Was this a trap?
The same familiar pull in her chest—the one that had drawn her to Solflara—flared.
But when Kaia and Archer tested it with magic, the object seemed ordinary. There was no way to be sure. Alaire assumed it was a gift from the Consortium, an offering to cement their “deal.”
Inside, nestled in dark velvet, was a gold diadem that stole her breath. Golden flames erupted from the band in razor-sharp spikes, feather fronds braided at the base. At its center, the tallest spike towered above the rest, woven with rubies and topaz that sparkled like embers. A statement of who she was and where she came from.
But it was the matching ring beside it that made her world tilt.
Aplain gold band set with a solitaire oval ruby.
Identical to her mother’s. The one from her memories. It had to be.
But how? Hadn’t it been lost during Starfall? Her mind spun, but she pushed the questions aside, clutching this piece of her mother she’d never thought she’d hold again.
Her hands trembled as she slid on the ring—a perfect fit. For a split second, something in her gut vibrated. She could’ve sworn a spark flickered at the stone’s center.
The pull in her chest eased.
She lifted the diadem and set it on her head, just as she had as a child, and it settled as though it had always belonged there.
From ashes to flames.
Now she touched the crown, feeling its weight. The ruby ring gleamed on her middle finger, a symbol of her lineage. She couldn’t resist that familiar gut pull to keep both items close.
Tonight, she would evoke the living, breathing power of her phoenix. Tonight, she would play their game—though what they didn’t know was the entire chessboard belonged to her.
Kaia hooked her arm through Alaire’s as they headed toward the ball. Archer, impeccable in a velour evergreen suit, fell into step beside them.
“Bold choice,” he said, eyeing her gown.
“All Kaia’s vision. I was the rag doll stabbed several times with pins,” she replied. “But even I can admit I’ve never worn anything so beautiful.”
“You’re welcome.” Kaia preened. “You needed an outfit fit for the queen you are. I couldn’t possibly allow you to wear any ordinary dress to aball.”
“Something ordinary would’ve been just fine.”
“Fine doesn’t befit a queen,” Archer agreed.
“Stars above,” Kaia whispered as they approached. “They’ve outdone themselves.”
The air was crisp, filled with pine and the sweet perfume of night-blooming flowers. Grass transformed into a flagstone path leading to the manor’s main entrance.
Fae shimmered in outfits that embodied the night sky—some sparkling like stars, others refracting darkness. It was beyond anything Alaire had ever seen.
She smirked. “Outdone themselves or outspent themselves? All this finery—while beautiful—feels like excess.”
Opulence dripped from them in jewels of sapphire, emerald, ruby, topaz, amethyst—and those were only the stones she recognized. Their laughter and conversation blended with the soft strains of music drifting through the night.
Archer’s sleeve brushed her bare arm. “Leave it to you to find cynicism on a night like this.”
“It’s a gift.”
