Page 15 of The Spark that Ignites
Khaos flame. Emmery studied her hands. It sounded entirely fictional and yet, why else would he be here? She didn’t want to believe it, but if this was her key to safety, would it be worth it? Was he trustworthy?
“How do I knowyouwon’t use them for dangerous things?” she asked cautiously, unsure how he would accept the question tossed at him.
He caught it with ease. “You’ll have to take that risk. And let’s just say, I don’t plan on getting caught.”
No one ever did. She certainly hadn’t. And they were going tostealthese items? She was already drowning in guilt after taking that coin and now she was getting involved with this. Not to mention, the magic to resurrect the dead sounded dangerous, immoral, and would surely anger the gods. Transcending the afterlife seemed unwise and yet an idea sparked. A foolish idea. “Hypothetically, could you use this magic onKennaand humans?”
Vesper studied her for a nerve shredding moment. “Humans aren’t meant to tangle with magic. That’s part of the reason we separated our worlds. They askedKennafor all sorts of dangerous things that went against the gods. They even tried to steal from the Whispering Spring.” Seeing her inquisitive expression, he added, “That’s where our magic originates.”
It was rumoured the war started from human’s hunger for immortality and experimentation on Damned Ones to steal their magic. Had they meddled with this spring too? Humans truly were despicable, greedy creatures.
“What would happen? The worst outcome,” she asked, her voice faint but hopefully innocent.
“A single drop from the spring can kill a human if they’re bloody stupid enough to drink from it. It’s impossible to say what the spell would do to someone mortal, but I wouldn’t recommend finding out. It would cause more harm than good.” Vesper kept his eyes narrowed on her, his feet spread apart as he stood at the hearth. “The afterlives are separate for humans andKenna. Messing with the two ... wouldn’t be wise. Besides, the items are intended forKennaand are single use.”
Emmery’s stomach knotted. If they could only be used once, that complicated things. “But—” She cleared her hoarse throat. “Is it possible?”
“It is.” He tugged a hand through his hair. “Moronic, but possible.”
A flicker of hope inflated her chest as Maela’s gentle smile flashed through Emmery’s mind and her heart constricted. Could she do it? What if she could have everything? “How does this work? Do you wave a magic wand, and she rises from the grave?”
“Magic wand? Don’t be ridiculous.” Vesper snorted and sauntered back to his seat. “Enchanted items can call her soul back to her body.”
Emmery stared at him in horror and her stomach churned as she imagined a rotting corpse waiting for the ritual. She’d heard magic was twisted but that seemed extreme. And putting a soul back into a decaying shell would be pointless. “Do you have her body, uhm, lying around?”
“Bloody Hollow,no.” His face scrunched as he threw himself back into the chair. “The items will grow a body in her image. But these are details you don’t need to worry about. All I need is your magic and help retrieving a few simple things.”
“And my magic—”
“You’ll need to pass the trial.”
Emmery’s stomach sank. Thedeadlytrial. “And if I fail?”
“You won’t.”
“How do you know?”
Vesper lifted a brow. “I just do.”
Hands fisted, she leaned across the table. Over the years she’d grown skilled in deciphering liars from bargaining at markets by watching for excessive facial touching, evasive eye contact, or covering one's mouth. All sure signs someone is manipulating the truth. Vesper gave none of these indications with his steady stare.
He leaned forward, his voice surprisingly gentle. “I can tell you’re desperate and out of options by your whole situation. And despite you deciding I’m not trustworthy, I'm your only hope.” His pale eyes glowed with urgency. “So, will you help meandyourself, or not?”
Emmery released a shaky breath, her shoulders rigid as stone.
He had her cornered from the start and he damn well knew it. It was either agree to this and get across the gate to safety or die. Because the guard would inevitably catch her. And what kind of life would she have here? Even if she did escape, itwould be an eternity of running and she just ... couldn’t bear it anymore. “If I’m agreeing to anything, I have terms.”
He smirked at this, threaded his fingers and tucked them under his chin. “I assumed you would. Let’s hear them.”
She raised five fingers. Gods help her, she had one shot at this. “One, I need you to swear no harm will come to me. Both from external danger and from you as well. Two, you’ll guide me across the Iron Gate. Three, you’ll take me to this magical spring and help me through the trial. Four, I’ll help you get the items but what happens after is none of my concern. Five, we can mutually amend this deal if necessary.” Emmery switched hands. “Six—”
Vesper barked a laugh. “Six?”
“Don’t interrupt me.Six, you’ll find someone to help train my magic. I don’t know how to do this barrier breaking nonsense, and I can barely—” Emmery clamped her mouth shut, weary of revealing how incapable and unruly her magic was.
A small smile breached his bow-shaped lips. “Need a little help?”
She glared at him. “No. I’ll figure it out myself. But I’ll need somewhere to stay.”
