Chapter Five
Avari
Landing in the Shadow Isles, I shook off the lightheadedness from my father’s shaky use of darkness and shot him a perturbed glance. The man stood beside me, humming something that vaguely resembled jazz and seemed unfazed by the recent events.
As he transported us back, he didn’t even break a sweat, whereas just the idea of using enough shadows to transport a dragon the size of Anya made me queasy.
‘Just what exactly are the limits of shadow-portalling?’ I asked while Anya stretched her wings, visibly disturbed by the way remnants of father’s black smoke clung to them.
His brow furrowed. Then he grinned and laughed outright. ‘The what? What did you just call it?’
I took a good look at him and suddenly understood where my brother’s inclination for mockery had come from.
I rolled my eyes despite myself. ‘Portalling?’
Father dragged a hand down his face. I inhaled slowly, trying to stop his taunting from getting to me when he announced, ‘Miriam will get you books. I had assumed that your tutor would have taught you enough to know it’s called jumping.’
That actually made sense. It did feel like jumping through miles of distance while eternal night catapulted us through to step out somewhere entirely different.
‘He probably mentioned it, but I was a little preoccupied focusing on being entrapped, then the whole former Fire Queen kidnapping fiasco, which eventually led to the grand finale of my mother admitting she stole my powers…’
The Lord of the Isles scratched his beard, his face dropping as I went on. The way my recollection wiped the grin off his face didn’t please me as much as I hoped it would.
‘Fair,’ he started, but before he could continue, a sequence of pings coming from my pocket tore through our discussion.
Pulling out the new gift, I saw River had already taken the liberty of adding his number. Not that I didn’t expect it the moment he gave it to me “to coordinate our schedules”.
It was a load of crap, but I needed the device anyway. I should have asked for one a long time ago. Though considering the queen was on the run, perhaps it meant I could finally get hold of my funds and cease being a financial burden.
If I could ever escape everyone’s attention long enough to use River’s portal and retrieve my banking card…
Should be simple enough, right?
Maybe not.
Risking my life for money did feel a little vain.
Are you free in two days?
To explore one of the areas.
The sooner we start, the better.
Let me know.
Ugh.
Was he one of those people who sent every sentence as a separate message?
Typing my answer, I pressed enter, smiling as I envisioned his flustered reaction. It would make him overthink the way he always forced me to.
K.
‘You look really proud of yourself there,’ Anya’s voice rumbled in my mind, snatching my attention back to her.
I smiled, admiring her beautiful beady eyes. ‘That will show him.’
‘Yeah.’ My beast snorted. ‘That you can’t spell. Or type. Don’t know which is more disturbing.’
‘Shouldn’t you be happy that I am making him pay for betraying me?’ I asked.
‘By losing letters? Gods have mercy, I bonded a moron,’ she roared, throwing her head back and howling like a wolf. ‘I told you to scorch his hair, at least set his shit aflame.’
Tugging on the bond to make her face me, I was pleasantly surprised the land recognised and allowed it.
‘Why does everything have to be so violent with you? Maybe I want to make him pay without physically injuring him?’
‘You think these fangs bejewel my mouth for wallowing or action? Seriously, are you that whipped?’
My jaw slackened. ‘Whipped? Where are you getting these words?’
‘I’ve spent some time with Isla when you were away.’ She huffed, and a puff of smoke sent my hair flying.
‘The sweet little girl uses words like “whipped”?’
‘Well, she overheard a family friend telling her father that Emily whipped him,’ Anya explained. ‘Children pick up on more than you’d think.’
Oh.
‘I believe there is a part to that phrase that she didn’t pick up on, and thank Gods for that. That would be disturbing.’
She lowered herself to keep our eyes level. ‘What’s the full phrase then?’
‘Pu—no, I’m not telling you,’ I refused, snickering.
‘You can be insufferable, you know.’
I rubbed her nose the way she loathed. ‘I’m well aware.’
Cutting the corner around the porch, I hurried to the front door, the image of my bed so tempting I could almost feel the cool silk of the sheets against my skin as I drifted off.
Almost two days had passed since we arrived in Fogoya, and my body demanded sleep. For the last hour my eyes were starting to take longer to open after every blink. They burned and struggled to focus, as did my brain. At some point—soon—I would just collapse.
Hopefully, not outside.
But even exhausted and not thinking clearly, I couldn’t get the images of what happened in Ortensia out of my head.
I tried hard not to think about it. Not about the sight. Not about the smell. Not about what it meant for the future, either.
But the more I tried to focus on anything else, the quicker they rushed back. My mind rarely obeyed my preferences. I should be used to this.
The door pushed open, nearly smacking into my face. A different nightmare stepped into view, stopping me in my tracks. I couldn't believe it.
‘You?’ Willow screeched, holding on to the handle for dear life. Her hair looked matted, and her skin had lost its spark. My eyes roamed around her body as she seethed, ‘Where the hell are we?’
Just my luck.
Anya would get her wish. I was going to turn violent, or I would self-combust and take down half the estate with me.
‘Isle of Shadows,’ I muttered, noting the way she swayed.
Would I care if she dropped dead? Taking in her dishevelled state, I could see she had recovered from her grave wounds to some extent, but the danger wasn’t past her.
Daring another glance, I noted that she seemed smaller than I remembered. Fragile. Weaker.
Not nearly as much of a threat.
Sweat dripped from her forehead, clinging to her eyelashes like tears when she demanded in a forced, harsh tone while her voice quivered, ‘Where is their portal?’
Never had I seen her look so dull and worn. The witches had done real damage, yet she stood before me, looking down as if I were nothing. Her beauty used to make me so self-conscious I couldn’t bear it…
‘You look atrocious,’ were the only words I could muster. ‘Unless you want to stay outside when you drop, I suggest you get back where Alec left you.’
The pale skin of her cheeks flushed as she attempted to feign strength by straightening. Her resolve might have been commendable, but I saw the way her eyes glossed over with pain. I just couldn’t bring myself to care for it.
‘Who do you think you’re talking to, Ava? Guide me towards the portal, now!’ The infernal wretch raised her voice while her hands trembled.
Was she scared or feverish? Perhaps both.
My lips curved slightly. How could this girl ever intimidate me?
Pushing past her, I ignored the nauseating stench of blood clinging to her clothes and barged inside looking for the lord’s exasperating firstborn. It seemed like yesterday that I tore into him for making reckless decisions like kidnapping me into the Isles. This was even worse.
My witchcraft pried open his bedroom door, accidentally ripping it off its hinges. The top half splintered, leaving a wide crack trailing through the elaborate carvings.
‘What’s happening?’ he asked, his voice lacking the usual cockiness. His eyes widened as he waited for me to explain.
Fire and witchcraft surged to the surface—irritated, heated, and vengeful.
I had been patient long enough.
‘What’s happening?’ I snapped while my power locked the wrecked door in place. ‘Let me paint the picture for you, Alec.' My voice trembled, betraying me. ‘You kidnap me into a foreign land, calling it my home…’
Pacing around the room, I watched him pale and fidget while tracking my movement. ‘Call me greedy, but this was supposed to be my safe space. I accepted it and want it to remain mine! Why, for fuck’s sake, is that absolute trollop here?’
He hesitated, hands restlessly fidgeting with the cuffs of his shirt. ‘She’s your family—’
A dark chuckle rushed out of me. ‘That’s rich. So is my mother; do we have a spare room for her?’
‘No, that’s different. Tell me why you don’t want her here,’ he pleaded, looking a little worn out himself. The dark circles under his eyes weren’t there two days before.
‘Why do you want her here?’ I demanded, something cracking within me at the prospect of losing the Isles. I wouldn’t share them; they were mine or at least felt mine.
My brother's gaze dropped to the floor, and he stayed silent for what felt like an eternity. Barely above a whisper, he tried to explain, ‘You know better than anyone you can’t choose things like that.’
The roof might as well have caved in for all I cared.
Could my life get any more complicated?