Chapter 29 #2
Her fingers threaded through his hair, sending pleasant tingles through his scalp.
She pressed closer to him, and he kissed her neck if only to stifle the groan at the intoxicating press of her body against his.
It would be so easy for him to continue, to lean into her touch that sent waves of pleasure through him.
Adara’s eyes shot open, face suddenly twisting into a scowl, no doubt loathing herself for letting him touch her. She was no fool to the Thief of Hearts’s sensuous ploys.
The moment the guards were out of sight, she staggered back and shoved him away, ripping him out of his heady thoughts. Dominic shot her a flirtatious smirk. “Too bad that’s not always going to work,” Adara said, curling her fingers into her palms.
Dominic cocked his head to the side, attempting to remain impassive, as if he hadn’t been enjoying it as much as she was. “I guess I’ll have to try harder then.”
Adara’s fist flew through the air, but he caught her hand and wrenched her arm behind her back in the blink of an eye. Her eyes screwed shut in pain and he loosened his hold. “Are you done throwing a tantrum?” he scolded.
She huffed, but nodded. Luckily, the citizens of Lykrios were too occupied with the festival to be paying them any attention, and the guards had moved on, searching elsewhere.
He released his hold on her, and she stood upright.
Grasping her hand, Dominic led her back into the crowded streets.
By now, the sun had disappeared beyond the horizon, the only light that of the lanterns illuminating the kingdom in their soft yellow glow and the stars twinkling high above in the black abyss.
Strolling toward the harbor, Dominic caught sight of Adara’s nimble fingers dipping into a pocket in her dress.
She held up the silver earrings, dangling them triumphantly in front of him.
The star-shaped metal gleamed at the end of the thin chain they hung from.
Dominic chuckled. Adara’s lips pulled upward at his mirth while she placed them in her ears. To see her smile at him like that again, he’d give anything to hand her the stars on a chain, but helping her steal the earrings would do for now.
Bloody Hel, what was he thinking? It was like this damn city was making him insane, addling his brain with some unseen toxin.
“Eyes of Elysian!” A vendor shouted from a wooden cart parked along the edge of the street, tearing Dominic from his thoughts. “They’ll bring hope and good fortune!”
Adara’s head turned abruptly toward the merchant, a disgruntled noise coming from deep in her throat.
“Not a fan of hope and luck?” Dominic asked, veering toward the cart.
Reluctantly, Adara followed. All kinds of strange things littered the wagon: a fluffy tail of what he guessed was a fox, a ring of feathers that sat upon a mannequin head, a string of fangs that the merchant said was “a necklace worn to bite the heads off demons that come to you in dreams.”
Dominic and Adara exchanged a glance, hardly suppressing their laughter.
Dominic held out a hand to which the merchant placed the jar of “Elysian’s eyes” with great care for him to inspect.
He made a show of tilting the jar, assessing it from all angles as if he might purchase it.
“What do you think, love? You could use a little hope in your life.” He rattled the jar in front of her, red, veiny eyes rolling inside.
Adara cringed away from it. “Gods, that is horrendous!” She took another step back, features contorted in abhorrence. “Put those back, they’re not even real.” She waved a dismissive hand to the cart, eager to move on.
“Oh, I’m sure they’re real,” he said, returning the jar of eyeballs to the merchant.
Adara quickly took off down the street.
“I meant they’re not Elysian’s real eyes,” she said as he caught up to her.
“And how would you know?” he challenged.
“Your lack of piety perturbs me.” She tilted her face to the sky.
“Blemythians believe Elysian’s eyes are in the sky.
When a god leaves this world and returns to their realm, Sengui, they appear as stars to us.
Elysian’s eyes are the two brightest. I’ll show you when we have a better view.
” The towering turrets of the distant castle and all the decorations hanging above the streets obscured the constellations.
Dominic leaned over to speak softly in her ear while they walked, his arm brushing hers. “And what would you say if I offered you a jar full of stars?”
Adara halted, turned to face him. Her cheeks were flushed, but her eyes were harsh, her lips a tight line. “I’d say you’re a shit liar,” she retorted. “And merely manipulating me so you can place my heart upon a shelf like some trophy alongside your precious keys.”
He chuckled. His fingers found hers, and he lifted her hand between them.
“Let me just say that all the brightness of the stars on the darkest night could not outshine your beauty.” Perhaps manipulation was simply an instinct to him now.
But that was all he could think to say to her—the truth.
Warmth flooded his lips as he bent to press a kiss to the back of her hand.
When he rose, Adara turned from him and continued walking. But not before he caught a glimpse of the blush on her cheeks, accompanied by a smile she tried to suppress. Seeing the effect it had on her, Dominic smiled, too.
The closer they got to the docks, the louder the noise of the festivities grew.
Music, so lifting and ethereal, played in the distance for all to hear.
Dominic took note of the sudden skips in Adara’s steps and the way her skirts flowed in time with the tune and would sway with the music.
She looked like the Goddess Elysian herself, with the flower crown atop her beautiful hair cascading down her back in gentle waves the color of soil.
The silver jewelry and beading of her dress shone in the light as she frolicked and danced her way through the town without a care in the world.
This, he knew, was not a part of their act.
Adara had once been in a caring home, full of friendship and light and love.
A place she could no longer return to. He wondered what horrible things she’d faced that made someone so lovely and full of light turn into the girl they called the Phoenix, so full of rage and vengeance.
Whatever it was—whoever it was—Dominic would help her burn them to the ground.
Because the Adara he saw now—filled with joy and fascination—he’d like to see more of.
This side of her was just as alluring as the clever Flamecarrier, who was courageous enough to challenge the King of Keys in a game of love.
He’d help her destroy whoever did this to her.
Not because he liked her, not because whoever it was deserved it, but because he didn’t want her to end up like him.
She was already walking a dangerous line between her morals, and he didn’t think her gods would forgive her choices.
If he could save her from abandoning herself as he had, he would.
Sometimes, having a void in his chest where his heart used to reside was more of a curse than the freedom he’d thought he was claiming when he tossed it away.
He knew if he had not gotten rid of it, it would be beating rapidly right now. But instead, there was only the silent, empty cavern inside of him, dusted with cobwebs. His magic was the only thing keeping him alive, and that was trickling away.
They neared the end of the street, which opened to a wide stretch of cobblestone before a short cliff.
A parapet lined the edge, with gaps every so often in the wall to allow for a set of stairs to descend to the docks.
People sat along the ledge, unafraid of the drop.
Dominic supposed it could be their way of appreciating life, knowing they could fall from the parapet and splatter onto the docks.
But there were smiles on their faces as they looked out over the open ocean.
He wondered how many of them were dreaming of leaving this place behind, of sailing to another continent and making a new life there.
But it would be extremely difficult. Those who wanted to reach Enfider would have to cross the Plagued Sea or risk the longer journey of heading north, then east, then back down south.
He supposed they could fly, but dwodis were extremely expensive and hard to tame.
They could sail south to Jeotom, but most wouldn’t want to go to a frozen land and discard their beliefs in magic and gods.
There was no magic to be found in the tundra of Jeotom, as if the gods had taken their gifts after those in Jeotom stopped believing in them.
Perhaps there was somewhere else out there, full of wonder, waiting to be found in the vast world.
He turned to face Adara, but she was already gone, jogging over to a wide space occupied by people in colorful dresses and doublets, dancing a waltz to the musicians playing along the parapet.
She slowed to a halt at the edge of the crowd gathering.
A tender, sad smile settled onto her features as she watched them twirl to the music.
Her fingers drummed against the sparkling fabric of her dress over her thigh.
Suddenly, Adara was being pulled into the crowd of dancers.
“Don’t just stand there, come on!” Asher’s hand found hers, an amicable smile lighting his ocean eyes, dimples emerging on his cheeks.
She laughed and let him drag her deep into the crowd, which now, Dominic noticed a few of the others dancing as well.