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My eyes shot up to his as he spoke.

“Have you thought of this plan since yesterday?” I asked.

“Yes, I want to get it over with so we can put all of this behind us,” he frowned. “Cerithia is very reactive with their armies. If we create a big enough distraction at the borders, they’ll send their forces to defend them. That would be a good time for you to get into the castle, find the stone, and get back with the smallest amount of resistance.” Cassius paused for a moment. “How does that plan sound to you, Captain? You were always better at strategic planning for war than I was.”

A sly smirk crept over his face.

“Yes, it sounds fine to me. When should we plan for this? You’ll need to help me learn how to work your shadows.”

“We’ll work on it now,” he agreed.

“You’ll let us know when you feel ready to go, Thea, and we will make it happen.” The king smiled.

I nodded, and Cassius grabbed my hand, leading me out of the room with Haden, Kace, and Zade. They all followed silently before Haden started laughing hysterically.

“You really should have seen Onyx throw Cassius into the creek; it was the highlight of my time in Crimson.”

I started laughing with the guys, and Cassius narrowed his eyes at me with a playful smirk.

“You are supposed to defend me, my love, not encourage their behavior.”

“I’m sorry,” I chuckled softly.

Cassius stepped forward and pulled me to him as shadows wrapped around us. A moment later, the shadows disappeared, and we were deep in the forest.

The sun was hiding behind clouds, and the cold air was telling of a storm headed our way. I glanced at Cassius, who just watched me closely. His dirty clothes were now clean.

“Let’s practice with shadows.”

I nodded but couldn’t turn my attention away from how handsome he looked. His dark hair was disheveled from his earlier excursion. The dark sky only made him look more powerful as he stood confidently in front of me.

“Are you distracted?” he teased.

“A little.”

His smile widened, but he got back to business.

“Moving through shadows is quite simple. All you do is summon the shadows and concentrate hard on where you’d like to be.”

“That’s it?” I asked skeptically. “Seems too easy.”

“Try it, but take me with you too.”

I nodded as I stepped toward him, but he stepped away.

“Try to take me without touching me; it’s harder to do but something that will be beneficial for you to learn. Take us to our cliffside.”

I stopped and summoned the shadows forward. They burst from me, swirling around us in a whirl. My mind tried to clear away all thoughts as I focused on the cliff by the waterfall. A moment later, I lifted the shadows back up, but we hadn’t moved. Frowning, I tried again, but this time I closed my eyes and pictured it in my head.

When my eyes opened, Cassius was gone, and I was on the cliffside by myself. Shit. A moment later, Cassius appeared next to me.

“You forgot me, my love.”

“Sorry, that was harder than I thought.”

“Try again.”

I did, but again, I moved without Cassius back to the forest we had been in. After waiting a few moments, he didn’t follow me, so I went back to the cliffside.