Page 122 of Where Darkness Falls

“I never said?—”

“You didn’t have to,” she snaps. “Your disdain for my choice is loud enough.”

“This is serious, Maeva,” I say through gritted teeth. “The Abyss is where the cruelest, most flagitious creatures that Siorai ever created are imprisoned. Tiernan asking you to go after eight weeks of training is suicide.”

The slashes of my sword against her own become more brutal as she physically struggles to keep up.

“Then… you better… train me… well,” she replies.

I swipe at her feet in an attempt to catch her off guard; however, she’s quicker than I expected. “Whatever he promised you isn’t worth this burden,” I reason.

“It is to me,” she hisses.

“It won’t be if you’re dead,” I snarl. As my anger reaches its crescendo, my shadows boomerang around the dome until one strikes Maeva’s cheek. She stumbles back a step. Her eyes widen as her hand brushes against the point of impact. My sword vanishes instantly and I’m rushing to her.

“Maeva, I–”

She thrusts out a hand, pinning me to the other side of the dome, with tendrils of her starlight wrapped around my limbs. Though I thrash against them, I’m held fast, but this time they don’t burn me like they had previously. Instead, a feeling of peace—like life—radiates from them, as if healing me rather than destroying me. The aching painin my shoulder dissipates as the tendrils sweep across the place they’d once scorched.

What a strange and beautiful ability this is.

Does she even realize her starlight does more than cause pain?

Before I can inquire as much, her hands cup my face, forcing me to look at her. Her lustrous hair floats around her as if she were underwater. Her usually dark ocean eyes are now the color of crystal, blue and calm, unlike the storm that warred within them earlier.

“I’m not going to die, Emyr,” she says softly.

“But what if you can’t handle this journey?” I ask.

“Which is why I requested for you and the Cadre to join me,” she replies. “I know I’ll be protected as long as all of you are there. You’re a skilled High General, Emyr. I know you can prepare me for this.”

“What if it’s not enough?” I ask. “What if we can’t protect you?”

She smiles sadly. “Then at least I’ll die in the company of friends,” she answers. “I have nothing else but this, Emyr. Everyone I love is gone. My life and distant memories are vacant.” Her eyes glaze over, staring at the wall behind me. “This is my chance to find the Na Fíréin and make things right. So if that means I must retrieve that cursed blood gem for Tiernan, then so be it.”

She pulls away from me then, unwinding her starlight from me. She walks quickly toward the balcony doors but stops short of the dome barrier. Turning to glance back at me, she gestures for me to lower the dome, which I do, allowing her to step out onto the terrace. I follow closely behind her, stopping short when I’m greeted by hundreds of beautiful dark maroon roses gloriously in bloom.

“What in all of Celestae,”I whisper.

The plants were withered just days ago when I shed a horrid amount of tears.

Did some of them fall on the wilted display?

Then I remember the rose Tiernan tucked behind my ear. I reach for it, analyzing it as I compare it to the roses growing along the balusters. On the vine closest to the door, one of the stemmed blooms has recently been cut off. My fingers tremble as the delicate flower drops to the stone terrace.

He sent Domhnall to my balcony.

When he’d placed this rose in my hair, he knew it was from my balcony.

“You have such a gift for growingflowers.”

Cara’s words echo in my mind. At the time, I truly believed she was merely being supportive. It’s true that I’ve always been fascinated with the life and growth of all creatures—not just plants. I thought this fascination drove my skill within the floral shop, but what if it’s more than that?

How is this possible?

“Maeva,” Emyr’s voice breaks through my thoughts. “Is everything alright?”

“The roses are revived,” I whisper.