Page 61 of Kiss of Fire

“So have you got time to help me with my power?” she asked eagerly. He nodded.

“Let’s find somewhere a bit more private.”

Tor led her out of the castle towards the stables. They checked in on Martha and Strider. Both horses were contentedly munching hay in their stalls.

“Here?” asked Raya. Tor looked at her as if she was mad.

“A barn full of straw? Somewhere less flammable, I think.”

“Oh yeah. Good point.”

They wandered to the back of the barns and Tor pointed to a low stone-built building.

“There. I was hoping the castle would have one.”

It was a forge. A large hearth dominated the centre of the room, heaped with wood and charcoal. A table next to it held various implements; bellows, hammers, an anvil. And all around the walls were piles of finished ironmongery. Raya cast her eyes over a beautiful sword and a quiver of steel arrows. In one corner was a heap of discarded horse-shoes, in another a set of farming tools.

“Where is everyone?” Raya asked. “Why is no-one here?”

“Everything slows down in the run-up to the Melae. Blacksmith’s probably knocked off early. But it’s fireproof, so its perfect.”

Raya took a breath.

“Okay. So how does this work?”

“With your permission, I’ll take a look at your aura. I also may need to touch you. Just your face, maybe your hands. Do I have your permission?”

“Yes,” she said. Her throat was dry. If this didn’t work, she didn’t know what else to do. Shade wouldn’t help her find her mother if she was no use to him.

“There are no guarantees, Raya,” Tor warned. “I may not be able to help. If the reason you’re having trouble is physical, rather than in your head…”

“Just try, Tor. Please.”

“All right then. Hold still.”

He stared intently at her. No, not exactlyather. Into her. Through her. Beyond her. She couldn’t explain it.

His hazel eyes deepened, changed colour. Fascinated, she watched as his irises became green, the same green as the forest. The hairs on her arm rose, as if there was static electricity in the air. He held out a hand, tracing an outline around her face, her shoulders. He didn’t touch her, but she felt something ripple lightly across her skin.

“Interesting,” he murmured.

“What? What do you see?”

“Two distinct auras. That’s normal for a halfling. But your human aura and your fae aura should be blended. Instead, yours are separated by… I’m not sure how to describe it.” Tor frowned and traced an invisible shape with his forefinger. “It looks like bruising. It’s dark and jagged. It’s keeping the two sides of you apart.”

“What do you think it is?”

“Some sort of damage. Guilt, maybe? It’s burned itself into your psyche. I think it’s stopping you from accessing your fae power.” He looked down at her, and his voice was gentle. “What are you holding onto, Raya? What are you guilty about?”

Ice gripped her heart, squeezing until she thought she couldn’t breathe. Of course she was guilty. She had done something terrible. Something she could never put right. Now she was paying the price.

She was damaged, all right. She was broken. And she deserved to be.

“Raya?”

Tears spilled down her cheeks.

“I found something out recently. When I was a child, I started a fire. It was an accident but I… I killed two people I loved very much.”

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