1. Chapter One
1
CHAPTER ONE
ELODIE
T he warmth from the fire washed over me, my mind drifting away from the cosy, overstuffed armchair I was sitting in. The heat of its caress replaced by a warm breeze ruffling through my hair, bringing with it the sweet smell of honeysuckle.
I found myself in a large, circular clearing; wildflowers of every colour filled the ground around me with an abundance of trees ringing its edge. Different from the rest and directly ahead of me was a single large willow tree, its long, leafy branches stretching out in all directions, casting dappled shadows onto the small pond it stood beside. Its graceful reeds dipping into the still water without casting a single ripple. Something small tugged deep in my heart as I looked at it, a familiar hum of energy running through my fingers. I clenched my fist against it, my nails digging into my skin. My gold rings clinked together lightly; the sound amplified by the quiet of the clearing.
There was a faint light emitting from the depths of the pond, growing stronger the longer I looked until the entire surface of the water was covered in a soft glow.
Where in the gods was I?
This wasn’t anywhere near Nanna Alba’s house. A buzz from the bees dipping in and out of the flowers caught my attention, their fluffy bodies covered in yellow dust ready to take back to their hives. As I watched, the gentle hum of their wings turned to a crackle, the crackle to a roar that could have nothing to do with the beating of tiny wings.
I spun on my heels, eyes darting towards a huge oak tree standing sentinel, as a fiery blaze spread from the large trunk up into its aged boughs that reached up higher than any of the others, burning with a sudden ferocity that I could feel from where I stood.
It raced along the branches, consuming all in its path, leaping around the clearing onto the other trees and burning everything it touched in a way that was definitely not natural. Heat smothered the space, tendrils of smoke that made my eyes water and my lungs burn with every breath.
I felt the tug in my heart again — stronger this time — and my hands were vibrating with the energy that was now pulsing through them. Angry orange flames leapt from tree to tree with impossible speed until it began moving around the sides of the clearing following the curve of the meadow. Slowly I turned, unable to look away as the fire walled me in, lighting the branches that ringed the space until both sides clashed together, culminating at the willow tree before finally merging into a complete, fiery circle.
As the rope-like fronds that decorated the willows boughs began to burn, a line of fire broke off carving a fiery path straight through the flowers I was surrounded by. Their destination was clear, and my heart pounded painfully in my chest as I watched it consume everything it touched.
Coloured petals of doomed flowers evaporating into puffs of ash as though they were never there to begin with. I tried to move, but my feet were rooted to the spot. Terror rose inside me as the fire gained ground, growing in speed with every bloom it devoured. Faster and faster the flames jumped forward to lick their way up my body ?—