Heavenly Bodies

Chapter Forty-Six

CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

The glass was so black that Elara and Enzo could see themselves in its reflection. It was cold to the touch, a thrumming power emanating from it. Elara did not possess the sight, but she could feel the otherworldly energy that pulsed from it.

‘It can’t be,’ Elara breathed, peering over his shoulder.

Enzo turned the shard that they had created, holding it up to the Light. ‘We need to find Isra,’ he muttered.

They hurried through the piazza, hope snapping at their heels as Enzo guided Elara through the maze of back alleys until they reached Isra’s place. He looked around furtively before squaring up to the large eye on the door and uttering, ‘Five of Cups.’

The new password worked, the door swinging open, and Enzo pulled Elara into the cool, incense-filled corridor. They burst into Isra’s reading room, panting.

‘Aren’t you both meant to be royalty?’ Isra asked sweetly, splayed on her couch as she held a purple crystal sphere to the firelamp above her. ‘Little Rico has better manners than you two. Hi, my love,’ she added, blowing Elara a kiss. Elara smiled back at her.

Enzo pushed forwards. ‘Iz,’ he breathed, putting out a shaking hand. Isra looked disinterestedly to the black shard lying in his palm, then noticing it, she straightened.

‘What is this?’ she said sharply.

Elara came closer. ‘We made it today, Isra. From just a chunk of stone.’

‘We?’ Her nostrils flared as she looked at Enzo, who clenched his jaw, avoiding her gaze. ‘You melded powers? Have you told her what that means?’

‘That’s enough, Isra,’ he snarled.

‘No, he didn’t. What does it mean?’ Elara demanded. Isra’s gaze bore into Enzo’s, and Elara saw her frown faintly, before her expression cleared.

‘Never mind,’ the seer bit out. ‘I’m overreacting.’

Elara’s eyes narrowed as Isra plucked the glass from Enzo’s palm and sucked in a breath. Magick began to creep through the room, Isra’s frost crawling up the table as her eyes turned white. She muttered over it, before placing it down and blinking, her eyes returning to hazel.

‘Is it what we thought?’ Elara whispered.

‘Duskglass,’ Isra breathed.

‘Dusk-what?’ Enzo asked.

Isra blinked, wonder in her gaze. ‘I had a vision of this blade, when I was just a little girl. A spell-breaker, but also something more. Something to stop a god’s magick. I saw…’ She shook her head. ‘I saw you, Elara, plunge the blade into a Star’s heart, and they died.’

‘But…but you didn’t know me then,’ Elara said.

‘Fate did.’

‘What else did you see, Iz?’ Enzo urged.

Isra’s eyes lit up. ‘The voices are whispering that it’s perhaps time to lure Ariete to your own fighting ground. To Helios.’

Enzo raised a brow at Isra’s words.

‘My shadows are nowhere near ready,’ said Elara.

‘But you don’t need them now you have this. You needed Enzo, and with his light you have what you seek.’ The oracle thought a moment. ‘I think it’s high time we let the King of Stars know you’re alive, don’t you think?’ She grinned. ‘What better timing than the summer solstice in the court of Aphrodea?’

‘Aphrodea?’ Elara frowned. ‘Why not just stay in Helios?’

‘Because of all the kingdoms in Celestia, the greatest diversity flock to Aphrodea. If you want a rumour to spread, to reach Ariete where he licks his wounds from our dear prince’s passions, Aphrodea would be the place to start.’

Enzo had flames dancing between his fingers as he reclined on a chair, shaking his head. ‘I’d need to notify Father of any plans,’ he said tightly. Elara’s eyes darkened at the thought of Idris. ‘Particularly if it involves letting a Star walk right into our home. Leyon would have to invite him.’

‘Isra’s right,’ Elara said. ‘So far, we have allowed fate to weave our paths. I have allowed Ariete to control everything that has happened to me. For once, I want to be in control. I want to be ready.’

‘Plus,’ Isra called from her couch as she idly shuffled her cards, ‘it would be cruel to leave Elara here as you go alone into Aphrodea of all places on the summer solstice.’

‘Isra,’ Enzo warned.

‘Why?’ Elara demanded.

‘You’re clever, Your Majesty. Put it together. The most heightened magickal night of the year, in the kingdom of lust and earthly pleasure.’

‘Why would you—why should that matter? Why would I care?’ Elara blustered out. Enzo looked at her, his tongue in his cheek as he tried to hide a smile.

Isra chuckled. ‘You two are about as subtle as Leyon’s life-sized statue out there,’ she said, pointing to the door.

‘We’re just friends,’ Elara said lightly. ‘He can do as he pleases.’

Enzo’s eyes locked on hers, a spark of amusement in them.

‘Yes, and I’m not about to draw the Empress card from this deck,’ Isra retorted.

Isra shuffled the cards she’d been playing with and flipped the top card on the table. The Empress stared back. Isra threw her head back as she cackled drily. ‘Oh, look who it is.’

Enzo rolled his eyes. ‘Thank you, Iz.’ He kissed the top of her head. ‘Give me a few days to think things over and let my father know of the latest revelations.’

He and Elara left, traipsing through the dusty streets, a palpable silence between them.

‘So…’ Elara ventured, turning the slice of glass over in her pocket. ‘What does melding powers mean?’

Enzo halted abruptly, turning slowly to her. ‘I was hoping you forgot about that.’

Elara raised an eyebrow. ‘We don’t keep secrets, Enzo.’

He sighed, passing a hand over his face before looking away from her. He focused studiously on the white stuccoed wall of a house before them.

‘To meld powers with someone is an…intimate act.’

‘Oh,’ Elara replied, her face warming.

‘It’s usually an act reserved for betrothed couples or lovers.’ He cleared his throat, unable to meet her eyes.

‘Well,’ she said, clearing her throat as her cheeks flushed. ‘It produced the duskglass for us, so I would hardly complain.’

Enzo’s lip quirked then. ‘Yes, I’d hardly say you were complaining at all.’

She hit his arm. ‘About Aphrodea…’

‘El, you really don’t have to go. You’ve been through enough,’ he said behind her.

Elara rolled her eyes. ‘Who’s going to believe a rumour without living proof? Any courtier with sense would see it as nothing more than baseless hearsay unless I’m there.’

Enzo looked amused as he caught up to her, veering them the opposite way to the studio.

‘What are you smirking at?’

‘Nothing.’ He shrugged. ‘This wouldn’t have anything to do with what Isra said, would it?’

Elara stopped short, and Enzo bumped into her. ‘And pray tell, what is it about what Isra said that would motivate me?’

Enzo’s smile deepened as he pulled her to a food cart, motioning to the man behind it.

‘Let’s not make a fool of either of us by spelling it out, princess.’

He tossed a few coins to the seller, clutching the paperbound goods in his hand.

‘Where are we going?’ Elara demanded as he steered her by the small of her back down a line of brightly coloured houses, the hill declining sharply.

‘To cool off. It’s sweltering today.’

Elara frowned, peering down the long hill.

‘And anyway,’ he added, ‘don’t change the subject.’

‘I’m not,’ she scowled, and became lost in her thoughts as they walked down the hill. It wasn’t that she was in denial. She was simply wary. As much as things had changed between her and Enzo, as much as she cared for him…that ugly prophecy rang through her head. She could not let herself fall in love. Not when she knew she was destined for a Star. But she couldn’t deny the feelings that had been growing, nor the physical need that had started to consume her whenever she was in his presence.

They reached the bottom of the hill, and she was jolted out of her thoughts.

‘So…’ Enzo said, plucking a peach from the paper bag. ‘You’d be completely fine with me surrounded by Aphrodean women, all possessed by Torra’s charm at its absolute peak on the summer solstice?’

Elara’s eyes narrowed.

‘Or are you forgetting what only a fraction of her charm did to you in Asteria?’

‘And what it did to you too,’ she fired back. Images of them both in the carriage filtered through, the ones that kept her awake at night, hot and wanting. ‘I don’t understand why I wouldn’t be fine. Do as you please.’

Enzo took a bite of his peach, shit-eating grin still upon his face as they came to a halt.

The conversation was flung from her thoughts once she realized where he had taken her. She stumbled down the verge, ripping her sandals off, spongy sea grass making way for powdered white sand. She flexed her toes in it, sighing, her white cotton dress ruffling in the gentle breeze. They’d reached a secluded cove, just a small stretch of sand and crystal-clear water, brighter than any she had ever seen. She turned to him.

‘I know the ocean calms you,’ he said.

Elara lay down in the sand with a contented sigh. Enzo sank next to her, propping himself up on his elbows.

‘Going back to what we were discussing…’

‘ Enzo ,’ Elara groaned.

‘I want to hear you say it.’

‘Say what?’ she snapped.

‘That the thought of me with another woman truly doesn’t bother you.’

He shifted on his side to look at her, and she couldn’t tear her gaze from his. The Light beating down on him illuminated every feature. His eyes were so molten that every shade of his magick seemed to flicker and shift around his irises. His skin glowed. He ran a hand through his black hair, pushing it back off his face. She swallowed the lump in her throat as her eyes followed the motion.

‘It wouldn’t faze you—’ his hand caught hers as he dragged a thumb down her palm ‘—for me to hold her hand like this.’

Her breathing shallowed as her entire focus went to that one gesture.

‘To kiss her neck.’

His fingers trailed over her collarbones, scraping the sensitive point by her jaw. He shifted closer.

‘Her lips.’

His thumb brushed her parted mouth as his fingers weaved through her hair.

‘To pull her hair the way I like.’ He tugged for emphasis and a ragged breath escaped Elara. Enzo rolled so he was over her but not touching, his arms bracing on either side of her. His hair fell between them as he dipped his head to her lips.

‘To not just make love to her, but to worship her.’ His lips were a hair’s breadth away. If she breathed deeply, her lips would touch his.

‘Wasn’t that what you wanted, princess? Reverence?’

He smiled slowly at his prey as she stifled a moan. His body blocked out the Light so they were cocooned in their own darkness.

‘Would it really not bother you, Elara?’ he murmured.

‘Yes,’ she breathed. ‘Yes, I would care.’

‘ Finally .’ He sprang off her, leaving her blindsided and shutting her eyes against what she had admitted. Realizing what she had done, Elara rose. Without a word, her cheeks flushing red, she stomped to the water’s edge. She refused to meet his eyes as she stripped down to her undergarments, making sure the duskglass was safely still in her skirt pocket, and waded in.

The cerulean waters lapped against her like a soul called back to their beloved. The Light’s rays hung low in the sky as she waded out, up to her waist, then her chest, until finally she was weightless, floating. She dived under the gentle waves, opening her eyes as she flipped on her back. The clear water cooled her racing thoughts, snapping her out of her lust.

Bronzed skin dipped and rose, and she saw Enzo’s powerful body cutting through the waves, droplets like diamonds spraying through the air. She scowled as he reached her with a smile, shaking salt from his damp curls. She lay on her back as he trod water.

‘Ignoring me now?’ He flicked water at her. She shot him her most scathing look before pushing herself further away.

‘For the record, princess, I feel the same.’

Her arms stopped gliding in the water, and she tipped herself forwards.

‘Is that so?’ she asked primly, still not making eye contact. Enzo swam closer.

‘Elara, if you were in Aphrodea without me during the solstice,’ he raised his hands in exasperation, ‘I would burn the kingdom to the ground.’

Her eyes flew to him. ‘What?’

‘You heard what I said.’

Her heart raced, the words coming before she could stop them. ‘If you really feel that way, then why haven’t you kissed me again?’

Enzo looked at her incredulously. She searched his face for a moment, poison on her tongue. ‘Or do you need Torra’s charm to do that?’

His eyes widened, and she shook her head, stretching her arms to swim away. His hand grabbed her wrist, yanking her back to him. Her body slammed against his in the water.

‘You wonder why I haven’t kissed you again?’ he murmured. ‘It’s all I’ve fucking thought about. You plague me, Elara. And that damned charm…I didn’t know if that was the only reason you kissed me. ’

‘Enzo, I wanted to. I—I still want to,’ she admitted.

He stared at her, a realization shining in his eyes so brightly that she almost tore away. In one movement, he pulled her flush to him. Her legs curled around his waist instinctively as she gasped, and her arms wrapped around his bare neck. She inhaled his scent, salt and amber. His thumbs grazed her waist, her soaked undergown thin against it. She suppressed a shiver.

‘Gods, I want to show you right now what I’ve been planning to do to you,’ he said against her as his hand came up to trace the curve of her neck. She tipped her head back, desperate for more than a graze. He chuckled against it, his thumb reaching behind her ear as he cradled her head.

‘But let me tell you something,’ he continued, his breath tickling her ear. ‘I’m not going to kiss you right now. Our first kiss was stolen by Torra, so the next one is going to be only ours. The next time you moan for me, you’ll have no charm to blame it upon. So be patient, Elara, and be ready.’

Delicious shivers ran up her spine. He was right; she didn’t want to rush this. The feelings rising inside her were not just a distraction from pain on a lust-drunk afternoon. She was teetering on the edge of a precipice. She knew the moment she jumped, everything would change.

And so, she only nodded silently as he pressed a chaste kiss to her forehead.

‘For that,’ she said, ‘you’re going to pay.’ And without a second thought, she dunked him under the water with glee.

Elara’s heart was aglow at Enzo’s confession. For the first time in weeks, she felt happiness. True happiness. There was still an aching place in her where Sofia resided, but it was buoyed by Enzo, by hope.

‘Thank you,’ she said to him as they arrived outside her room. Enzo had stopped at his own room as they had passed, and now he faced her in a fresh shirt and loose linen pants. ‘I don’t know if I’ve even said that to you yet. For the last few weeks; you poured your light into me.’

He took her hand, and the tension between them rose and shimmered, her lungs constricting at his burning touch. ‘You already are a light, Elara. It’s why the shadows flock to you.’

She smiled so brightly that it ached as he pushed her into the room. When he sank into the same chair that served as his bed every night, Elara bit her lip. ‘Enzo?’

‘Yes, princess?’

‘I have a request.’

‘Go on.’

‘Will you stop sleeping in that chair? I feel awful, and it can’t be good for your back. If you don’t get enough—’

‘It’s okay.’ His lip curled, interrupting her. ‘You don’t have to beg me to come to your bed.’

‘Heavenly Stars and all that is holy,’ she muttered, looking to the ceiling.

His grin widened further. ‘I’ll stay.’ He eased himself off the chair, pulling his shirt over his head. Elara flushed, drinking her fill of his bare torso, and wondered just how much she’d be able to sleep with that next to her. He lifted the sheets, settling in behind her.

‘I must say,’ he muttered, ‘this doesn’t live up to any of my fantasies about us sharing a bed.’ She slapped his arm behind her as he made an amused sound.

‘But I meant what I said in the ocean,’ he continued. ‘I want to court you properly. That means some clothes will remain on, despite how much you may try to seduce me with those sinfully short nightgowns.’

She smiled to herself. ‘I suppose I can allow that.’ A heavy arm wrapped around her as Enzo settled down. But as she heard his breathing deepen, Elara couldn’t help but think of Idris’s earlier threats, and the words of the prophecy, as she was held by the man she certainly wasn’t fated for.