29. Chapter 29 #2
“No one knows who was responsible, but soon after, our king and queen were attacked. The queen didn’t survive. The king was gravely injured but eventually recovered. The speculation was that the attack came from the king’s inner circle.”
He waves a hand across the table, and our food disappears, steaming hot coffees in its place, and I barely notice. “But no one was caught for that, either?”
“No,” he says, “and despite the time that has passed, there’s always been a fear of a traitor from inside playing a long game.”
“Can’t another Seer Sensory flush them out?”
“Not if the person’s true self is hidden by a powerful spellcast. Only my mother could see beyond such a thing.”
“Then she was a valuable tool to fight monsters like Jeremy.”
“And to identify traitors, which made her a threat.”
“Yes,” I say. “Yes, I can see that to be true, and I hate that she became a target. Did you know her well?”
“She came to see me often during training, but they were short visits out of necessity and based on the strict training rules.”
“You would have had more time with her after your coming of age, right?”
“Unfortunately, no. I was sent directly to the Gilded Academy, which is our version of military training.”
“For how long?”
“Twenty years.”
“Twenty years?” I ask incredulously. “The first forty-seven years of your life were spent training?”
“Yes.”
“And you want me to fight demons after a few sparring sessions?”
“There are ways to get around time, which is why we’re here.”
I want him to expand on this topic, but I’m also hyper-focused on him right now. He’s talking about himself, and I don’t want him distracted. “And your father?”
“My father is one of the eleven Select of Parliament. The Parliament rules the Kingdom of Nephilim under the Sovereign Select, which is just another name for our king.”
“Oh my God,” I murmur. “He’s royalty.”
He laughs. “He’s just like us, but with a crown, though my mother was a commoner living amongst humans when they met.”
“How did they meet?”
“He attended a Harvest ceremony, and when they crossed paths, she warned him of an enemy within and stole his heart in the process. It was unheard of for a commoner to be allowed to live in the kingdom, let alone become partner to a Parliament member, but the king has always favored my father. He allowed it to happen, though the king and my father both expected me to disappoint. I suppose I do.”
“You’re a Crystal Seer. You said that’s the elite.”
“Yes, well, that’s a random gift that shows up at birth, and no one saw that surprise coming, though she was proud. I think my mother was even pleased to put my father and the king in their places over me.”
I don’t miss the disgruntlement in his tone. “You’re not close to your father.”
“An understatement.” He shifts in his seat, as if shaking off the topic. “What’s for dessert?”
I straighten my spine, sitting up to my full height, and suddenly, I want to do this.
I want to be strong. I want to fight. If this is to be my life, Jeremy doesn’t get to choose my future.
He is the serpent, and I need to grow stronger and powerful enough to defeat him outside of Elysium.
And Micah is in the uncomfortable position of killing me or saving me, and the very fact that I’m here, in his home, tells me he wants the latter.
I shut my eyes and imagine my favorite carrot cake for two, and then open my eyes, and much to my shock and elation, I’ve done it.
I’ve delivered two slices of carrot cake displayed on two white plates, each with a silver fork and napkin next to it.
“I did it,” I murmur in stunned disbelief, my eyes lighting with the curve of my lips as I add an excited, “I did it!” My hands fly up, and I add, “Okay, no doubt the magic in this place helped, but still. I did it.”
“And it’s an excellent choice,” Micah says, lifting his fork, not nearly as elated as I am right now.
I frown. “You aren’t surprised I did it?”
“Not even a little. And I look forward to finding out just what you are capable of, Ember.”
The way he says my name, all warm and low, sets butterflies fluttering in my belly, or maybe I should say fireflies in this case. “Me, too,” I murmur and reach for my own fork, and then more firmly, “But I won’t have twenty years of training to help me fight the serpent.”
“I told you. Time isn’t the same here.”
“It feels the same.”
“It’s not. I assure you that what feels like days here are only moments on Earth.” He shoves a bite of his cake in his mouth. “Very good. Where’s it from?”
“My favorite bakery in downtown Austin,” I answer absently, focused on the oddity of what he’s just shared. “How is that possible?”
A book appears on the table next to me. “Read that one. It’ll explain the time differences, but bottom line, we have breathing room to train, or I couldn’t be here without neglecting my duties as an Overseer.
And the good news is that we have Elysium on our side.
The magic here will be your guide. You’ll even find you wake up knowing more than you went to sleep knowing each day.
I always do. It’s one of the reasons I come here. ”
I scoop up a bite. “And you don’t invite others to experience the same?”
“As I said, on a select basis.”
“Yet you invited me?”
“I did,” he confirms, sipping his coffee and offering nothing more.
“Aren’t you worried about unleashing my ‘assets’ while the serpent still has control of me?”
“It doesn’t control you unless you allow it to control you, and you haven’t gone that direction. To me, that says a lot about you. You’re stronger than it, but more importantly, you want to defeat it. And so, you will.”
I draw a sharp-edged breath, feeling as if there are shards of glass cutting my lungs. “And if I don’t?” I ask, daring to voice my greatest fear.
He leans forward and captures my hand where it rests on the table, the jolt of the touch shocking me, the collision of our stares stealing my breath.
His fingers curl around mine, warm and somehow cold to the bone, and when he speaks, his voice is rough with demand.
“You don’t have the luxury of allowing that ‘if’ to exist, Ember. Do you understand?”