Page 120 of A Clash of Stars

She laughed, eyes icy blue focused on me, “Eh, I might be. Now come here. I’ll show you how to utilize your power.”

I walked towards her, and she grabbed my right hand to place it in hers.

“Now, I want you to focus on anything that makes you happy. Imagine peace and happiness.” I closed my eyes and imagined Evander. He smiled at me, kissed me, and told me he had loved me since I was sixteen.

When my eyes opened, her wound was healed entirely, and the ambient glow from me started to fade.

“Yep. It’s official. You have all the powers.”

I chuckled, and so did she.

“Clara, I hope you know I am completely on your side. I am your friend first. I know our task is daunting, and the unknown is horrifying, but if I had to go through this with anyone, I am so glad it’s you.”

She smiled and hugged me. Her blonde hair wisped around us as her lavender smell comforted me. We pulled back from the hug, and she looked sobered.

“What we are supposed to do next is meet with Rhysette troops to get you to Sefida. You must meet with Luna to solidify your powers and kill the King. Our timeline istight, and we need to be ready for anything. I know you said you feel like you can’t use your powers, but if you need to…I would.”

My eyes flickered to the ground before looking back at hers.

“I understand, B. We will do this—together.”

She tilted her head, “I know you wish Evander were here, but for this to work, you should be apart. You’ll be sitting ducks together.”

I nodded in agreement, understanding the vitality of this. “We will do what needs to be done. Killing the King will give me the most pleasure. That bastard.”

“I was hoping you’d say that.”

We found some old blankets and cuddled up in the barn for the evening.

“So, remember how I talked about the connection between us and the book I read—I have this idea, but you might think it’s crazy.”

She rolled her eyes at me. “Seriously, Clara. I already know you’re crazy so nothing would surprise me.”

I threw hay at her, and we laughed momentarily before becoming silent again.

“At the end of the story, it said, ‘Time itself froze in Darthium until the goddess could break the curse with pure blood and goodness.’ I wouldn’t think anything of it except my father told me before he died that I was made of pure blood and goodness. I— What do you think about it?”

I saw her eyes widen with surprise, and she took a deep breath pulling her knees to her chest before returning her gaze to mine.

“When I was little, my father used to tell me stories of this place called Darthium, and I’m assuming the same one you read about. He said that it was a make-believe place, so I never thought much about it, but is it possible that the history we feel like we’re missing is from these stories, that this place could truly be real?”

I sighed, “I’m not sure, but it feels as though the more I learn about this ‘make-believe’ place, the more this curse and the people included make sense to me. Is King Alex possibly the ‘evil one,’ god Theo? Maybe we havegoddesses and gods disguised as people we know? At this point, anything is possible. Evander eluded knowing more than he let on, keeping something from me. He also told me of a reoccurring dream he has of me in a battle with purple eyes.”

She nestled into the hay on her side, covering the blanket over her. “Clara… Do you think Evander is your mate?”

I sighed, looking around the barn lit by a torch near the entryway. “Everything points to us being mates. Maybe Madok was wrong in thinking that my mate was Eros. Maybe it’s Evander.”

Immediately a thought ripped through me of my parents. I remember seeing something between them, something important. Gods, what is it, brain? What are you trying to show me? Then it clicked.

“My parents’ eyes glowed purple around each other. One night, I caught my parents dancing to their favorite pianoforte in the ballroom. Their eyes—they glowed. Lavender. In love with one another. Mates.”

I gasped. “He is it. He is my mate. He has to be.”

I looked over to see Bethany’s reaction; she was sound asleep. I smiled and leaned over, kissing my friend’s forehead and lying beside her as I whispered.

“I feel like this is just a grain of dirt. Just scraping the surface of what there is. Deep down, it feels temporary, fleeting. I promise you, Bethany, that I will always be your friend, your twin flame. Sleep tight.”

Chapter 37

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