Chapter 24
MARLAK
No. What a stupid thing to say, and yet I have to say it, even if it makes no sense. How can I even explain that I can’t use the magic I was blessed with? They’re all staring at me, their expressions a mix of surprise and condemnation.
“I’m not ready.” I don’t even know how I manage to say it, to voice these thoughts. “At all, and it was a foolish thing for me to try to defeat the Witch King. Foolish, foolish. I…”
My voice cracks, and yet I need to keep going, even if there’s no reasonable justification for my fear.
“I can’t deal with fire. It just…” Breaks me from the inside, takes me back to the worst moment of my life.
I close my eyes. I’m not there. It’s over.
But it’s not over. “It’s embarrassing, I know.
Ridiculous. Quite ridiculous. Childish, perhaps.
” My body’s trembling as I struggle with my confession.
“I should use my fire. I know I should. But it doesn’t make sense to promise to do it, then get there, and when it matters the most, fail. ”
I swallow, wishing I could dig a hole and hide forever, the only thing tying me to reality being Astra’s hand in mine. She must be so disappointed. And I’m so ashamed.
She looks at me without a trace of reproach on her face. “It wasn’t your fault he didn’t die last time.”
I shake my head. “I know. Even if I had no issues with my fire, he would have survived because of the anchors. I know it, and still… Still I failed. My fire failed. I didn’t burn him.
Crisine was there, and I’ve been telling myself that she distracted me.
It’s true, sure, but there will always be some kind of distraction, won’t it?
I won’t find the Witch King alone in an empty room, waiting for me.
Maybe, yes, if he stays in the cell Queen Berta put him in, but what about the others? ”
I feel so pathetic and ridiculous. So silly.
Astra then says, “What if I used your fire?”
I knew she’d say that, and I hate her words, while at the same time, I know she has a point.
I look at her. “The worst thing you can make me do is put you in danger, but… We’ll be in danger while the Witch King and his anchors are alive.
It might be the right choice, but you’ll need to plan it right. ”
“We will.”
Across from me, Azur says, “Now that I’m free, I could take her to where they are. I think the worst is reaching them. Once she’s in their presence, if she uses your fire, it should be fast.”
“I know,” I say, even if my heart hates this solution.
Astra smiles. “Then it’s all good. It’s all good.”
“Should we go in the morning?” Azur asks.
“No.” She shakes her head. “They’ll be expecting us. We need to go at night.”
I frown. “Ghouls and other creatures are active at night.”
Astra clicks her tongue. “Soon they’ll be active at any time of the day, and the Witch King is getting stronger and stronger. The more we wait, the worse it will be.”
“Yes,” Nelsin says. “But eat and rest. You just came from the Heart, where you used healing magic. I have no idea how borrowed magic works, but if fatigue is a thing, you want to avoid it. Lie down and rest, even if only for fifteen minutes, then you go. We brought nuts and dried fruit from the island. Eat.”
My heart jumps in my chest. The idea of letting Astra face these dangerous men right away is horrific. Somehow, I was thinking we’d have a few days, even if I can see their point.
“Azur, you’re going, then?” I ask.
“Yes, of course,” he says.
I’m not even sure why I’m relieved to hear his answer, and say, “I’m going too, and—”
“With all due respect, no,” Azur interrupts me. “There are bloodpuppets after you, and Zorwal’s after you and has your magic traced. You’ll put her in danger if you go.”
His idea is ridiculous. “I could go and not use my magic.”
“Then what’s the point?” Azur asks.
“A million points,” I say.
Renel says, “Ziven should go—if he wants. He was the only one whose magic worked once the Witch King created a circle of magic.”
Ziven nods. “I can go.”
“Who else?” I ask.
Nelsin raises his hand, but Astra says. “That’s enough. The fewer, the better.”
“So the four of us, then,” I say.
Azur points at me. “You want to endanger your wife that much?”
I feel like punching him. “I want to protect her.”
He raises an eyebrow, his tone haughty. “Then do the right thing.”
I’m about to reply, when Ziven says, “What you did now, it was very brave.”
“What?” I glare at him.
“You could lie to yourself and to everyone else that your fire is fine. You could try to convince yourself that you’ll be able to do it when the time is right. Instead, you were brave enough to step forward, accept your limitation, and find a workaround for it.”
His words dig deep within my skin. Limitation. And yet he’s right. I hate that he’s right. And I know what else he’s implying. If fire can mess me up, can make me blank out, why do I think I can help my wife when she’ll have to use fire? The truth is dreadful.
“Right.” The annoyance is clear in my voice. I turn to her. “What do you think?”
“It’s best this way. The fewer, the better.”
My question was actually on her preference, but she chose to take it as a confirmation that I wouldn’t go with her. It is the right choice. Painful choice, but right, nonetheless.
Azur gets up. “If we’re going to rest, which is in fact a good idea, I’ll show you to your rooms. Most of them are single beds, unfortunately.”
We follow him up the wooden stairs, and then I find myself in a bedroom with Astra, its bed with a colorful quilt over covers and a pillow, everything clean, very unlike an abandoned house. The room also has a large window and a desk.
Astra sits on the bed, and smiles. “I agree with Ziven. That was quite brave.”
“I… still want to hide in a hole. It brings me so much shame.”
I sit beside her, and she touches my hair, her fingertips lingering at my temple before tracing a slow path down to the sensitive skin behind my ear. “You should be proud.”
“Yeah, that’s not going to happen, wife.” My chuckle is bitter.
The smile she gives me is sweet and enchanting and everything that’s good in the world. “I missed you calling me wife.”
“You never called me husband again.”
She laughs. “We were doing it in jest.”
“I was serious.”
“Fine. I need your magic, husband.”
“You want some of my blood?”
She looks up, her expression playful. “Not really.”
I pinch her nose. “What do you want, then?”
“We don’t have a lot of time. Can you… do it like you did in the cave?”
She can’t mean what I think she means. “What cave?”
“When we first met.”
The image of her on all fours flashes through my mind—her back arched, my hands gripping her breasts as I drove into her from behind—and my pulse quickens. Still, I say, “That was… a vision.”
“A shared vision we both conjured. And I wanted it. I wanted you since that day.”
“That early? We weren’t even together.” My lips get close to hers, and I let out a relaxed chuckle. “But I wanted you too. It felt wrong.”
“It felt good.” She kisses me.
I deepen the kiss while unlacing her blouse, undoing her breastband, and freeing her breasts, her nipples hardening against my touch.
My hands then roam her back, tracing the delicate curve of her waist, feeling the softness of her skin, as her gentle moans make me hard.
I break the kiss, then turn her around, pushing her face against the bed. She bends her knees, her back arching. Slowly, I lower her trousers and underwear, getting even harder at the lovely sight of her core already glistening with desire.
My hands caress her firm, round ass, feeling the softness of her skin, tracing her perfect curves, then spreading her even more open.
She’s so wet, so mine. I grab her hips, and, in one swift stroke, thrust into her with a force that makes her gasp.
She clutches the quilt with her delicate hands, as a soft moan tears from her throat, giving me permission to continue, and thrust again. And again.
Just like in the cave, I slam into her with abandon, as she rewards me with the most delicious moans.
Past and present mingle. It’s our first meeting, and it’s this moment, when all the dangers hanging over us fade away.
LIDIANE
Azur is showing everyone their rooms, and I don’t think he noticed the nasty look I’m giving him. Perhaps my expression can never get really nasty when I look at him.
Finally, he leads me to the last room, with a large four-poster bed, a painting of the ocean on the wall, and two large windows. There’s also a writing desk and a corner with a pitcher of water, a basin, an empty bathtub, and even a partition that might hide a bucket. A master bedroom.
He closes the door and pulls me in for a kiss. Kissing Azur is like floating on a cloud, drinking sunshine, and then sliding on a rainbow all at once. I still can’t believe I love him so much.
And yet I push him away. “I have a few questions for you.”
He still has his arms around me and kisses my cheek. “Ask anything.”
“What exactly did your family do for a living?”
His arms slacken, and he stiffens. “You’re a princess now. I mean, you’ve always been. Does it change how you see me?”
“No, but I saw you opening the door. You need a king’s blood to do that. This is Clare Beach, the land of the Nether Court, and I can’t help but wonder.”
“My family had access to his house, and so do I.”
“Yes, and it was well kept through all these years?”
He blinks. “Yes.”
I step away from him and sit on the bed. “Why do you have to hide things from me?”
“Ask what you need to ask.”
Fine, if he wants me to be direct, so be it. “Are you the prince of the Nether Court?” My pulse quickens as I wait for his answer.
He sits beside me. “No.”
A weight is lifted from me, and I sigh, but only partly. “But you’re related to them?”
His chest moves up and down slowly. “Yes. Is that a problem?”
“As far as I know, they’re enemies of the Crystal Court.”