56. Zai
Zai
The books wobbled on the shelves as Lora yanked them out and shoved them back. My gaze tracked the tension in her shoulders, her tight jaw, her jerky movements.
Heat rolled off her in waves before cold magic surged through her, fighting to regulate her temperature. The internal war only stoked my craving to tease her further, to coax out that defiant glare and watch color bloom across her cheeks despite her efforts to hide it.
The way her body had pressed against mine in that alcove blazed through my mind. The rapid flutter of her pulse beneath my fingertips. Her shallow breaths warming my neck. Her body tense and yielding all at once.
I wanted to keep pushing the limits of that carefully maintained control she wrapped around herself like armor. Lights above, I wanted to close the distance between us and crash my mouth against hers.
What in the sunless void was I thinking? She was a scorching moon wielder. Besides, her heart already belonged to another. Not to mention, she hated me. She was off limits in every possible way.
My jaw clenched as I pulled out more books, glancing at each cover.
Her tiny squeal pierced the silence.
I whipped around, muscles coiling, flames already sparking at my fingertips. Her eyes gleamed bright as she stared at a worn volume in her hands. A genuine smile curved her lips, radiant and spellbinding.
“I found it!” She turned the book toward me, voice bubbling with triumph. “Look, it says Uma’s Cookbook, right here!”
I couldn’t focus on the book. My gaze traced the lines of her smile. Utterly breathtaking, like the full moon breaking through storm clouds.
Her smile vanished as she stashed the book into her bag. “Now, let’s find a sun stone and get out of here.”
“Right.” My throat tightened as I tore my gaze away. “Should be this way.”
I led her deeper into the Archives, hyper-aware of her footfalls behind me. My light orbs drifted above us, illuminating towering shelves crammed with confiscated artifacts.
A stone chest loomed against the far wall, its lid propped open to reveal a heap of sun stones inside. Ebony surfaces gleamed in the light, golden veins threading through their black depths.
I reached down and plucked one, holding it out to her.
Instead of taking it, she crouched in front of the chest, fingers tracing the bottom rim. Fine lettering had been carved into the surface.
Her voice dropped to a hushed murmur, almost reverent, as she mumbled the words.
A King and Queen in marriage forced
Will hide the truth to seek divorce
As centuries pass, the world in veils
With stolen stones, the ritual fails
When sun and moon combine their might
A rift shall tear and free the blight
“The prophecy,” she breathed. “With four added lines before it.” Her gaze lifted to mine, confusion flickering in those dark eyes. “What does it mean?”
“No idea. I’ve never noticed that writing before.”
Fascination burned in her eyes as she traced each word, lips moving silently.
“Come on,” I said, nudging her shoulder. “We should leave.”
She resisted for a heartbeat, reading through the verses once more before grabbing a few sun stones and shoving them into her bag. She rose, snatched the one from my hand, and stuffed it in as well.
I raised a brow, fighting a smile. “Why not take the whole chest while you’re at it?”
She scoffed, but a smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. “It’s not like they’ll notice a few missing. And it can’t hurt to have a few extra.”
My gaze lingered on that defiant gleam in her eyes. My insides ached with the need to keep pushing her, to drive that captivating blush to her cheeks.
But this wasn’t the time. I broke away and led her back through the maze of shelves, extinguishing the floating orbs one by one until only a single flame hovered above my palm.
At the vault’s entrance, I pricked my finger with my knife and pressed a drop of crimson to the obsidian surface. The door clicked open.
I shot her a crooked smile. “Not so aggressive this time, was I?”
Her lips pressed together, but she couldn’t suppress the amusement gleaming in her eyes. “I guess.”
A fuzzy warmth spread through me. I raised a brow, voice dropping low. “See. I can be gentle… when I want to.”
Delicious heat raced up her throat and flooded her cheeks. A wave of cold chased after it, battling the flush. Her throat worked on a hard swallow.
That sound. Sun’s glory, that sound. Hunger clawed through me, igniting a desperate urge to pull her close.
“Keep telling yourself that,” she huffed, slipping past me into the corridor.
My jaw clenched as I pulled the door closed behind us. Extending my heat senses as far as they would reach, I mapped the corridors ahead.
When two heat signatures approached, I snuffed out my flame. Darkness swallowed the corridor. My fingertips grazed her elbow, guiding her through the twisting passages, away from the guards.
She followed without protesting. No sharp words. No complaints. Just the soft rustle of clothes beside me. Trusting me to lead her to safety.
A feeling I couldn’t name stirred inside. Pride, maybe. Or something more fragile.
She had no choice, of course. Complete darkness, unfamiliar corridors, and no way to navigate without me. Trust by necessity—because she had to.
But ashes and embers, I wanted her to trust me by choice.
My hand slid from her elbow into her hand as I navigated by memory and heat alone, savoring her cool skin beneath my fingertips.
At the royal entrance, I let go, leaving her in the dark while I pricked my finger one last time. Already missing the steady pressure of her palm, I sheathed the knife and took her hand again. With a deep breath, I pressed fresh drops of blood across the obsidian surface.
Cool night air rushed over us as we stepped outside. The door rumbled shut, sealing away the Archives’s stale mustiness.
A radiant smile bloomed on her lips. “We did it. We actually did it!”
My breath caught at the unguarded joy on her face. Her blush might have been intoxicating, but that curve of her lips transformed her features into something utterly mesmerizing.
As her gaze dropped to our joined hands, the smile faltered. She yanked free, throat working. “Let’s get back to Erion and Kestrel.”
She marched away. I followed her through the shadowed streets, with the echo of her touch still lingering in my palm.