Page 8 of A Bond of Ice and Glass (Crowned By Wings #2)

“ I can smell them on you.” The man’s voice hisses in pure, undiluted fury.

I freeze and then spin around, the mist swirling around my legs like heavy gowns on a skirt when I’m only wearing a thin nightdress.

I come face to face with him again.

I knew the minute I closed my eyes, I’d see him in my dreams, and I don’t know whether I dreaded this or wanted this.

It might make me mad to admit I wanted this.

He’s a complete stranger to me, and yet, these dreams feel like home. They feel like safety and peace and, at the same time, like I’m burning inside.

I roll my eyes over him, over his features that seem to change like a flame in the wind. His hair is flicking between dark and light, his eyes hopping between gold and green. I can’t make out who he is, what he is, only that I want him closer.

I shouldn’t, but I do.

There’s a feeling deep down in my stomach that longs for my dreams, for the only moment’s peace I get from the real, very dangerous world where my memories are not coming back.

He storms towards me. Every footstep like someone banging on the door of a house, desperate to get in.

I put my hand up between us, like it’ll stop him.

It doesn’t. My hand just touches his warm chest instead as he crushes himself to me, and I feel scars under his thin black shirt.

His other hand curves around my back, easily holding me in place as he tugs me to him.

The sad thing is, I’ve noticed I feel more alive in my dreams with him than I ever do when I’m awake.

“Where are you?” There is no warmth in his demand, only vengeance, only hate and spite. “Tell me so I can burn a road for you to walk home to me.”

“I…” Something screams at me to tell him every detail of where I am, of everything, but I don’t.

I don’t think he is real, this is just a dream, but the secret of where I am isn’t something I can tell anyone.

Not even him, my crushingly handsome man locked away in just my dreams. I just stare at him like I want to absorb more of his features that are forever changing like water spinning down a river.

I reach up, touching his cheek, and he doesn’t stop me.

“I can’t. I don’t know who you are, but I like that you come to my dreams.”

“Don’t say you don’t know who I am. Every inch of you knows exactly who I am, Mist.” He presses his forehead against mine. “You need to focus. Push past the magic. I will kill them for whatever they’re doing to you to make you like this. Not even Freyren can break through it.”

Freyren. The name settles into my blood with a longing I didn’t know it was possible to feel. I repeat the name over and over… Who is she? Why does her name make me feel… sad and angry all at the same time?

His hand slides up my back, to the back of my neck. He pulls my lips against his for a deep, passionate kiss that I feel everywhere. That I crave. Our noses touch when he breaks away, our breaths mingling every time I breathe in.

“I will find you. I will get to you, but you need to tell me more. Don’t make me beg. Because I would beg. I’ll beg on my knees for you to come back, if that’s what it takes.”

“Come back where?” I whisper, searching his eyes. They are different now, one gold and one green, and so hauntingly sharp as they cut through my soul.

“You know who I am. You know who Freyren is. Our bonds to you cannot be drowned out by magic forever. Fight it, Maelena!” he shouts at me. “I’ve always been yours and ? —”

I stop him because I need to know something.

“What’s your name?”

He opens his mouth to tell me, but he’s dragged away from me.

Dark tendrils of magic, like Nymala’s but black instead of gold, wrap around his body and rip him away as he roars and screams, reaching for me, clawing for me. No!

“WAIT!” I scream, desperately shouting into the mist, and I run after him, hearing his roar.

I run for the stranger that I don’t know, feeling a desperateness clawing at my throat to get to him, to stop whatever’s happening.

I run through the mist that turns to fire, that turns to red roses, and soon it turns to ash, all in front of me in one go before I crash straight down ? —

I wake up like I always do, with a fright and a half scream that I smother so no one comes to check on me.

My heart is racing as I blink at the bright stream of sunlight coming through the window, wincing at the feel of my sheets stuck to my body from sweat.

Remembering everything in the dream is always so difficult.

It’s so broken up and every time I try to remember more, it slips out of my grasp.

Freyren.

The name slams into me like a rock, and I touch my heart, feeling it beat faster. Freyren. Freyren. Freyren. Who is she and why does it seem so important that I remember? Maybe she was someone I met when I was with the king?

I could ask Noble. He might know.

My breakfast is waiting on a tray at the end of the bed.

There’s always a green aloe vera plant in a little yellow pot on the tray, a reminder from Loch of the plant that was outside my window in the convent, and he used to break off parts of it to heal me, but for some reason, all I see is roses in a beautiful vase on the tray.

I blink and it’s gone. That’s enough. I need to get out of this room more and hope to the gods my memories come back soon.

After eating some of the breakfast that never tastes quite right, I wash myself and braid my wet, rose gold hair before getting changed into one of the many red dresses in my wardrobe.

This one is slim and ties at my back, and I’m glad it’s here because the rest of the dresses have tight corsets, and they are all a little too small.

I finish pulling on my boots, not the dainty shoes at the bottom of the wardrobe, and go through the door just as it’s pulled open.

Nymala is in all-mourning black, making the gold of her eyelashes and markings on her skin all the more bright in the dark room. “Ah, there you are. You’re always up so early, Princess.”

“Maelena. Or Mae, Lena—whatever you want to call me. But not Princess or Queen or Your Majesty. Please,” I whisper.

“We’re friends, right?” She tilts her head slightly to the side.

It’s like she’s still trying to figure out if she can trust me.

Truthfully, I’m doing the same. “Also, the only way you know I’m up so early is if you’re up just as early. ”

“I have to clean a certain amount of things in this dreadful place or I won’t get breakfast.” My stomach drops and I immediately want to tell Loch to change that, but her rose gold chains catch my sight.

She did kill Noble’s father, but even this seems cruel.

“Like this morning, I was downstairs, past the dungeons. Did you know that there were things that were saved from your parents’ rule?

The books, in particular, were heavily raided and taken out before the castle was burnt down.

When many of your people saw signs of dragons coming, they started taking everything that was worth any value, like jewels and gold.

But of course, the librarians took the old forbidden, treasured books and ran.

Many called them stupid for it. I thought they were the smartest ones. ”

She winks and I agree with her.

“I think my mother would have agreed with you. She once told me a book is worth more than its weight in gold sometimes, but we need gold to survive; therefore, it had to come first.”

“Maybe we need old knowledge of those who lived and died and put everything in books to make sure we don’t repeat their actions.

” She shrugs. “Anyway, the books were brought here to the library that’s underground here.

It’s sort of a secret place. Well, secret from the royals of this world, not so much from the common folk around here. Would you like me to show you it?”

“Yes!”

I nearly jump in excitement. She doesn’t have to ask me that more than once.

I’ve seen the village just once, and since then, I’ve been kept on this side of the castle for a week straight now.

I haven’t been feeling my best, and Loch didn’t want me going far, but I feel better today.

I need to leave these six rooms and find something else to see.

Nymala leads me out, past the guards who whisper to each other when we are further down the corridor.

Nymala opens the locked door at the end with a key from her pocket, and her eyes find mine as she slips it back into her pocket, showing me where it is before we leave.

The castle is busy, filled with servants rushing about.

Many don’t even notice us, and it makes it easy for Nymala to lead me through them to a staircase hidden behind a wall.

It gets quieter the lower we go, until we come out to a long, dark corridor with nothing but stone walls and fire pits.

“There’s stolen witches’ history down here too,” Nymala whispers. “I haven’t been able to find out who brought them here, but they are interesting.”

“I don’t know much about witches,” I confess. “Well, no more than fairy tales from my parents that I vaguely remember, but not much. Your kingdom’s to the far north, right?”

“Yes, you’re right. We have a city there and many towns, all kept well hidden from the elements and non-magic folk,” she explains softly, like speaking to a child. “If you want to learn our history, maybe I should start at the beginning? A princess should know, Maelena.”

The doors to the library are guarded and locked, but the minute the guards see Nymala, one of them unlocks the door before they both immediately move to the side.

I spot a flicker of fear in their eyes as they watch her go past, and she wiggles her pinkie finger at them.

The blond guard on the left looks at her a bit too long with rage in his eyes, and she glares right back at him.

Only when the door is locked behind us, leaving us at the top of another dark staircase, does she explain.