Chapter 9
9
I awoke with a start, at first not sure of where I was. But then I felt the warmth of the furs, and smelled something spicy, mouthwatering…
I sat up on my elbows and saw Callum sliding a hot plate of breakfast onto the side table next to the bed. He was wearing the same thing he had worn yesterday, with dark circles under his eyes.
“Morning,” he said, his grin lighting up the room. “I brought breakfast from the guard’s mess. And I promise this ,” he held up a steaming mug, “isn’t poisoned.”
“You rogue,” I said, my eyes widened as the smell of darkspice tea hit me. I fully sat up, reaching for the mug as Callum sat on the bed next to me.
“I know how much you love your hot drinks. Careful, don’t burn your tongue a second time,” he said, but I had already taken the hot mug into both hands and was taking greedy sips. Burning my mouth was the least of my worries as the hot liquid warmed me from head to toe.
“Have you been up all night?” I asked as I watched him run his hand through his hair, his eyes dancing as I kept sipping the tea and wincing at the heat of it.
He shrugged. “I had some things to take care of. Commander duties don’t always end at a convenient time. But I’m glad you got comfortable. Did you sleep well?”
“I did,” I said, the sheets slipping down my chest a bit, and I caught his eyes widen as I stilled, forgetting that I was naked in his bed—something he realized in that moment as the furs slipped down to bare some of my cleavage. His gaze had a hunger in it, his green eyes taking me in.
“Saffron…” he said, his voice strangled as if he was trying to hold himself back.
I set down the stone mug of tea on the side table. His eyes tracked every movement.
I leaned over, reaching for one of his hands that was gripping the side of the bed. I took his hand in mine, bringing it to my lips, and kissed it.
He reached over, tilting my chin up with his free hand as his gaze locked with mine.
“I want you,” he breathed, and I saw the pure male lust in his eyes.
But before I could say anything, breathe anything, footsteps and noises sounded in the hall.
Callum shot up off the bed, hands already going to his weapons, which had been discarded at a table by a dresser, but the footsteps passed.
“The other guards are coming back,” he said, turning to me. “Eat your breakfast and get ready. I’ll need to escort you to the ball soon.”
He was already strapping on his sword, adjusting his uniform. But before he turned to leave, he looked back at me with that gaze full of longing. “We’re not done,” he said, his rough voice full of promise.
I shivered as he left the room, but not from the cold.
After I scarfed down the hot breakfast of fluffy eggs and salty bacon, my gaze snagged on a small piece of parchment that rested on a folded length of fabric. I walked over and read the note—for tonight —and unfurled the dress underneath. It was a pale pink color, with a shimmering interlaced mesh overlay of glittering diamonds. The silk and diamonds brought such a shine to the dress that it almost looked like it was stolen from the final rays of a sunset. Beautiful . I slipped it on and went to the mirror by Callum’s rack of weapons.
As I stepped in front of the mirror, my eyes widened. Not only did the dress look like it was made of pure magic itself, but it complemented my fair skin and white blonde hair. It glittered in the warm light of the hearth, the petaled skirts unfolding around me, the delicate chain of diamonds shining at my neck. I was a dewy rose, plucked at full bloom. And I felt… pretty. Still a weak, helpless maiden in a tournament to the death with a bunch of overpowered magic wielders—but at least I was no longer dirty, no longer shaking on my cell floor in that tattered wedding dress.
Even though my reflection was still unfamiliar as I had no memory of what I looked like before this, I felt a thrill knowing Callum would see me wearing this dress. I pulled over a chair by the mirror, sitting down as I did my hair. I swept my newly washed blonde hair into a messy bun, braiding strands to wrap over the crown of my head to keep my long hair contained.
Who had taught me to do my hair like this? My mother? A best friend, perhaps? As I sat in front of a floor-length mirror in Callum’s bedchamber, I felt my heart ache. I wanted so badly to understand where all of my skills came from. Both the bloodthirsty and the mundane. I wanted to meet the invisible people whose hands had molded me into the woman who was looking back at me in the mirror.
The door of the bedchamber opened, and my heart rate sped up—and then began to beat fast for an entirely different reason as Callum walked in, his brown-blond hair mussed slightly as he took me in.
“Stunning,” Callum breathed as I stood.
I blushed, my pale skin turning pink just like the dress I wore.
“It’s decent,” I joked, turning back to the mirror to admire the gown once more.
He took a step toward me, and then stopped, as if reeling in his restraint. “Would you do me the honor of being my date to the ball?” he asked, that crooked, boyish smile on his face.
I turned to him. This warrior who had fought for me in another life. “Aren’t we supposed to be discreet?”
“I don’t fucking care anymore,” Callum said. “I don’t want anyone else to touch you.”
“When were you planning to touch me, then?” I challenged.
He took another step toward me, taking my hand in his. He kissed it, his eyes never leaving mine. “As soon as I can,” he said, and his eyes promised everything I wanted from him.
But it was time to leave, and he walked to the door, opening it and looking out to ensure there were no prying eyes, and then led me through the narrow passages of Ashguard.
Just like before, we rose to the surface on that elevator at the bottom of the silo.
Unlike before, it was just the two of us and a few stray guards who trailed us as we rose to the sunny surface and started down that dirt path. But this time, we walked past the Stone Coliseum, following the path through another dense thicket of trees.
“Where are the others?” I asked.
“They’re being escorted separately. The King has a flair for the dramatic. He likes to show off. Your official escorts are behind you.” He inclined his head toward two guards that kept their distance behind us. “And I will be forced to hand you off to them when we get closer to the palace. But I wanted to walk you as far as I can.”
“What should I know about the King?”
Callum’s gaze swept over the forest path in front of us, as if searching for listening ears. His voice was low, quiet enough that the guards behind us couldn’t hear what he shared with me. “King West wants one thing—to take back the land that once belonged to Luminaria. These trials? They’re all meant to feed his front lines with warriors desperate to fight for their freedom.”
“What happened to the past winners of The Ash Trials?” I asked.
Callum tensed. “They were sent to the front lines and never seen again.”
My heart picked up its pace. “Never?”
“The front lines of Luminaria is a ruthless place to be. The winners of The Ash Trials have their freedom if they can survive their servitude to King West. But I haven’t known a single winner to walk free. The rebels make sure of that.”
“What do the rebels want?”
“The rebels who make up the Stormgard Kingdom want chaos. Destruction. And full control over the mortal lands and Luminaria. Their ruling family was known to be bloodthirsty. The King and Queen of Stormgard were vicious warriors turned rulers, and the prince—the sole heir to the throne—hasn’t been seen since both the King and Queen were assassinated, their backward laws stating that only he can take the throne when he marries a suitable bride to be his Queen and decides to ascend to his duty. Their laws state that there will be no more royalty unless he returns. But he’s speculated to be even more of a monster than they were.”
Monster. There was that word again. That word I so often levied against myself, describing what I might have been—what I might still yet become.
There were more questions I wanted to ask—so much more I wanted to know—but I felt Callum’s warm, steady hand on the small of my back.
“Here it is,” Callum murmured in my ear, and the thicket of trees gave way to a meadow that sloped upward—the path climbing up to the Saltspire Palace.
The Saltspire Palace loomed like a permanent sunrise on the furthest eastern tip of the island, jutting out on a cliff far above the sea. The golds, reds, and oranges of the palace were formed from the way the light filtered through the prism of salt blocks that made up the palace—to keep the Isle of Embermere from cannibalizing it, I remembered being told by Rachelle. Manmade structures didn’t last long on the island, and even the Stone Coliseum had to be rebuilt each year for the trials. But the palace? It was made of such exotic shimmering salts that it survived year after year.
“It’s beautiful,” I said, my heart leaping at the view. Unlike the drab prison or the sturdy stone coliseum, the Saltspire Palace looked elegant. As if it existed just for beauty’s sake. Its spires reached up into the sky, curving to pointed tips as if trying to pierce the blue afternoon sky.
“You are,” Callum said, and his eyes were drinking me up as I turned to him. “Be careful in there.”
I frowned. “Careful of what?”
Callum hesitated. “Just stay aware. I have to meet with Cassandra and King West to discuss the upcoming events, but I’ll come find you. Later.”
The two guards stepped to my side.
“Your prisoner,” Callum said, giving the guards a hard look that promised death should anything happen to me.
The guards bowed, and one of them reached a hand for me, but I stepped back.
“I can handle walking on my own, thanks,” I said, leveling a glare at the guard.
I caught Callum’s gaze before he turned away, a ghost of a smile on his lips before he cut off down a separate path.
One of the guards motioned for me to go first, and I started walking toward the looming Saltspire Palace, wondering what the ball had in store for me.