Page 179 of A Fate in Flames

He staggered back, laughing like a maniac and rubbing his arm.“Ow!But come on, that was impressive!I didn’t know Tavrik had it in him.”

“No, I didn’t see, and I don’t want to know,” I snapped.“I’m going to spend the rest of my life pretending this never happened.”

Theo leaned closer.“But did you at least hear them?Sounded like—”

I slapped my hand over his mouth.His shoulders shook with silent laughter.

Jasila emerged from the room.

We both whipped our heads in opposite directions, searching desperately for anything else to look at—the ceiling, the walls, our own feet.We must’ve appeared like idiots, spinning in frantic circles like children playing a demented game.

Jasila hurried past us, but not before our eyes met, for one brief, mortifying moment.A smile tugged at her lips before she disappeared around the corner.

My heart swelled for them.For the connection that had finally bloomed between them.

Until it didn’t.

Too many people were going to get hurt.Including myself.

Tavrik came out next, and the smugness radiating off him was visible.

It was the happiest I’d seen him in… well, ever.Joy suited him, made him look younger somehow.

But of course, Theo couldn’t let the moment exist in peace.

He slung an arm over Tavrik’s shoulder, grinning sheepishly.“Tell me everything.And I meaneverything.”

Tavrik shoved him off, sighing as we walked away.

Theo trailed behind us.“What?What did I do now?”he called out with mock innocence.

Tavrik and I shared a sideways glance before bursting into laughter.

The sprawling landscape stretched before us like woven tapestry, dotted with tiny figures moving in purposeful chaos.Wooden tables scraped across uneven ground, leaving gouged trails in the earth as hands worked to drag them into position for the evening’s feast.

We spotted Mira among the bustling crowd, her face lighting up as she caught sight of us.Her arm shot skyward in an enthusiastic wave, bouncing on her toes.We mirrored her movement, my own hand lifting despite the heaviness in my limbs. The warm atmosphere wrapped around my shoulders, seeping into the cracks of my fractured purpose.

I needed to speak to them.To confess what had been eating me alive from the inside out.

I swallowed hard, gathering the fragments of courage scattered through my chest.

“I know what I’m about to say is crazy, but…” I paused, my throat tightening.“I don’t want to do this.I don’t want to hurt him.I don’t want to leave.I…”

Each word tore something loose inside me.

Tavrik’s hand landed on my shoulder, his eyes distant with something that looked like grief.

“I know, Elira.I feel the same way.”His grip tightened.“But I don’t think we have a choice.”

I whipped my head to Theo, searching his face for any sign of disagreement.His lips pressed together until they turned white, his nostrils flaring.

“I feel the same,” he admitted.“I never thought I’d want to stay here… but I do.”He chewed on his lower lip.“They’re just so alive.Sofree.”

I nodded, understanding exactly what he meant.

“I don’t believe they want to break the Veil.I’ve seen no proof of them eventrying.”

My voice rose with each word.I gestured with my hands, reaching toward them as if I could physically make them see what I saw.