Page 56 of The Spark that Ignites
“If it helps, my father chose mine to honour our crest.” He fingered his cloak insignia of the wolf howling at the night sky. “Vesper means brightest star.”
“Well, it’s probably the first and only time anyone has called you bright.” Emmery shot him a smirk but her attempt to crack Vesper’s cold expression was unsuccessful. “And your sister?”
“Izora means guiding moon.” He quieted again. “If only my father had known she would be the wolf. But she was taken too soon to prove herself.” Vesper stared ahead, lost in memories.“This was one of our favourite places as children. The Sacred Lands were used for rejuvenation, to restore magic, and exist in stillness. But now it’s off limits.”
Glancing behind her like she’d find someone following them, she asked, “What happens if we trespass?”
“Not sure. Maybe the gods will smite us?” At her unimpressed side eye he added, “Relax. We’ll be fine. The gods haven’t walked the earth in hundreds of years, and they’ve been silent since they ordered the gate closed.”
So that must have been what he meant about the gods abandoning them like the Waking Wood. Between the gate being sealed and the flame going out, it was no wonder he felt that way.
Vesper jerked his chin at the forking path. “There’s an impassable barrier up ahead, I need you to break it down with your magic.”
“So, what we’re doing is illegal.” Emmery chewed her lip nervously. “And immoral.”
“There’s a flower we need. I wouldn’t ask you if there was another way.” Vesper pulled his cloak tighter around his shoulders though the cavern wasn’t cold.
“What’s this flower?”
“It’s called a celestial trumpet.” Vesper pulled a dagger from his belt. “They don’t grow anywhere else, and Kahlia kept them locked up once she realized what people were using them for. Only a few grow in a human lifetime so they’re pretty valuable.”
“What were people doing with it?”
“It’s a potent aphrodisiac.” While he would have normally punctuated that with a fiendish smirk, his expression was impassable. “But we’re obviously not using it for that.”
Emmery’s face reddened and she fidgeted with the clasp on her cloak. Anything to busy her hands. “But wearestealing it.”
Waving his dagger in the air, he said, “Stealing is a harsh word. I prefer the term borrowing. Indefinitely.” He shrugged. “It can only be used once, anyway.”
“Yes, but stealing is wrong. UnlessKennavalues are opposite humans. Which I doubt.”
“If I remember correctly,youwere the one who stole that coin pouch.”
Guilt twinged her gut. “That was different. It was my first time, and I was desperate.”
Vesper tilted his head. “Who says I’m not desperate?”
Unsure what she was looking for, she searched his face. Perhaps for something that would justify this situation. “You don’t seem the type.”
His jaw hardened. “You should know, I would do anything for my family.”
“Like defy the gods and make questionable bargains?” She raised a brow.
He tossed the dagger and snatched it from the air. “Exactly.”
Emmery could barely look at him as they walked in silence, her stomach twisting into knots a hundred times over. And she couldn’t let it rest anymore. “Are you still angry with me?”
His dark brows drew together. “Angry? For what?”
“For that.” She gestured to his burned arm.
Vesper’s mouth twisted. “This tiny thing? Why would you think that?”
The fear she’d seen in his eyes was unmistakable and her cheeks heated. “I don’t blame you. I ... hurt you.”
“It’s not your fault.” He speared a hand through his hair and exhaled a long, hot breath. “I told you it’sfine, Emmery. Bloody Hollow, let it go.”
“It’s not fine,” she argued. “If it’s fine then why are you acting like that?”
