Page 79 of Frozen Hearts and Death Magic

She lit two flames and turned them into balls of fire, which she was planning to circle around her, but then a memory came to her so fast that it even startled her.

The woods. River’s secrets. She wasn’t here to do nothing all day; she was here to find out his secrets, and she knew the woods were the key. How could she have forgotten it?

She even still had a knife strapped to her belt. What had she been thinking? That she was carrying it in case a steak appeared by surprise? No. She hadn’t been thinking—but now she was.

With firm steps, she ventured into those dark woods.

Naia foundherself in her kitchen, unsure of what was bothering her. There was something she wanted, something… Oh, she knew. Some more apple juice.

* * *

This would bethe moment when Fel should see his life pass by in a flash, but instead his mind was whirling, trying to come up with an idea on how to defeat these two men, especially the one above him, ready to stab him with a wooden dagger. His magic still called to him, as if it had a will, a desire to act, and it was searching, searching. Then he felt some metal, faint but close, dissolved…

He’d never done that, had never done anything even remotely close to that, and had no idea if it was possible, but he reached for the iron moving within the men, within their veins—and pulled it all out at once.

Fel closed his eyes, trembling, as the men collapsed, dead, then he got up quickly and ran toward where the other attacker had been hit with the sword. The man was lying on the ground, still alive, but with a pool of blood forming around him. Fel kneeled beside him, at enough distance to be safe. “Tell me who sent you and why, and I’ll spare you.”

The man had a bitter laugh. “You think my life is worth it if I fail, fake ironbringer?”

“Everyone’s life is worth it. I’m sure you’re just following orders.”

The man shook his head and closed his eyes. Something blue tainted his lips. Poison. He’d been truly afraid of surviving his failure.

Fel was still trembling, still horrified at what he’d done, but he didn’t want to lower his guard, as there could be more attackers. And indeed, he felt another presence, this time in front of him. But there was nobody, or at least nobody he could see—at first. After a few seconds, Fel finally saw someone materializing out of thin air: Naia’s fae friend.

The fae had his hands up, as if surrendering, but his teasing smirk was anything but scared or humble. “Don’t murder me with my own blood. I’m here to help.”

Fel couldn’t believe him. “You want to help me now? After I almost got killed?”

“No.” The fae frowned. “I got here a while ago, but didn’t want to interrupt your impressive display.”

“Murder is impressive?”

“Martial prowess is always something to be admired. It might be sad and violent, but there’s beauty in it. You’re quite impressive.” His admiration sounded genuine, which only made him weirder in Fel’s eyes.

“Are you interested in me or my sister?”

From playful, the fae’s face became serious. “How dare you? I’ve got a loyal heart. And it’s Naia’s.” He sounded offended. Truly. Being offended for that was stupid, but being so insistent on his devotion for his sister was something Fel could get behind.

He smiled. “It was a joke.”

The fae frowned, thinking. “A joke. Aren’t human jokes supposed to be funny?”

Fel sighed. “It was a bad and stupid joke, all right? And nonsensical. Forgive me. Now, what are you doing here and what do you want other than admiring senseless violence?”

“I don’t know why you’re angry at me.”

“Maybe because you stood there and didn’t raise a finger, now you’re trying to claim you’re here to help me.”

“Peace, human. You don’t want to owe a fae a life debt. You should be glad I didn’t intervene.”

Fel shook his head. “And how did you even know I was going to be…” A memory came to him from the ball. “Hang on. I saw you. With the Ironholds. Which doesn’t make any sense. Are you behind this?”

“I gave my word to Naia I would protect you. Sending assassins doesn’t sound like protecting, does it?”

Maybe. And if that fae wanted him dead, he wouldn’t be standing here talking. But Fel still had tons of questions. “What are you doing with the Ironholds?”

“Information. Information is always good, isn’t it?”

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