Page 30 of A Kingdom of Fire and Fury (House of Embers #1)

I was so happy to hear you succeeded in your first flight! I stayed up all night when I heard it’d been scheduled. I bothered Wes so many times with my indecisiveness. I wanted to know everything, but at the same time… I also didn’t want to know. Just in case. But I shouldn’t have worried.

You’ve always been good at defying the impossible. And now you’ve really done it. My sister, Selena, a dragon rider and member of the dragonsguard. I never thought we could reach that far! Even with all that led to it, I think it’s amazing. And it makes being over here easier.

I know dragons aren't too fond of allowing someone other than their rider to tag along, but maybe someday in the future we could fly together? I think it’d be so very lovely.

Please don't worry about me. I’m getting settled.

Wes is so very kind. I still miss you, of course, and I look forward to the days when we can see each other.

But I’m learning a lot. And it’s nice here—I feel guilty for even writing that.

But it’s nice not to have to worry about my next meal, to know that all of that is guaranteed.

And I get it now. I’m content where I’m at, but if I wanted to want for more—there’s space for that.

Within reason, of course, but for the first time in my life, I feel like I have space to want.

I’ve actually taken up painting! I’m not very good at it.

But it’s fun to make a mess and call it a masterpiece.

You should have seen Wes’s face when I showed him my artwork.

I could practically see him trying to come up with something nice to say.

I told him it was an abstract painting, because it sounded better than saying I was drawing myself standing under the sun.

I actually feel so guilty for the lie, so I’ll probably confess soon.

I hope to see you soon, but PLEASE don’t rush it. I trust the Mother will allow us to see each other soon. Until then, remember our promise and BE PATIENT.

Love,

Clara

My hand trembled as I stared at the letter. It’d been delivered this morning. It should’ve made me feel better, but I couldn’t ignore the knot in my stomach. Is she putting up a brave face? Are they forcing her?

“I’m coming in. I hope you’re not naked,” Nimue called and threw open my bedroom door.

I rolled my eyes and folded the letter, placing it in my bedstand drawer. My smile fell when I saw Nimue’s pinched expression. “Is it time?”

She nodded. It’d been three days of uneasiness.

Three days of the others going back and forth to the dungeon.

At least Nimue had confirmed the prisoner wasn’t younger than thirty, so it wasn’t Randall, but even so…

nothing about this felt right. They were so co nfident it was an Andovan spy, but I didn’t think so.

I could agree that Raven, who was connected to the dragon eggs, was from Andova, but the assassination attempt—it had to be someone who lived here.

Though there was the possibility the spies were deep undercover.

Those three days had taken their toll on everyone. Even Ben didn’t smile so easily anymore. I didn’t want to think about what methods they’d used to extract information. I’ll never do something like that. I have my limits. But if the king dangled my sister over me… I’d fold. And he knew that.

I straightened my uniform, not able to bear the thought of looking into the mirror and seeing a loyal dragonsguard.

It made the comfortable leathers feel choking.

“How awful is it?” I asked as we made our way to the dragon caves.

Every step I took made the poison lingering in my mouth taste even worse.

From a prisoner’s side, it sucked. And the thought of just standing there and condoning it while the others looked on…

Nimue exhaled. “Our job is to bear witness. Kieran does all the work. I don’t envy him for that.”

He seems to thrive off it, I thought but kept it to myself. Even with his bullshit claim of caring for everyone, he was all too happy to be Luther’s sword and shield. Kieran had a countless amount of blood on his hands, and he wasn’t exactly sleeping uneasily.

“And we’re sure I should be out in the open?” I folded my arms. “Considering the last time went so well.”

She waved me off. “They won’t be that bold. We’ll have all seven dragons staring them down. This will show them if they fuck with you, they fuck with us. That’s why we’ve still gone out and done training like normal. We can’t let them think they’ve shaken us, or they’ll get confident.”

Easy for her to say. She wasn’t the one who’d almost been assassinated. Not just once but three times. I rubbed my pendant absentmindedly. When would the target ever get off my back?

“Where did you get that?”

I paused, stopping in my tracks. “What?”

She pointed to my necklace. “That.”

I stiffened. “I didn’t steal it.”

She raised her hands. “I didn’t say you did. There's no need to bite my head off. I know it's hard to believe, but I do consider you my friend, Selena. I don’t care about how much money you do or don’t have.”

I flushed. “Sorry. I—I’m used to people accusing me when they see it. It’s why I tend to keep it covered.”

“Even if you did steal it or stole in the past, I wouldn’t give a shit. You did what you had to.” She glanced down at the pendant. “I just got curious. The design is a little familiar, but I can’t quite place where. It’s pretty though.”

I frowned. The urge to lie was on the tip of my tongue, but Nimue had a point.

As hard as it was to admit, I found a friend in a noble.

“My mother got it as a gift… by a patron.” I studied her.

I wasn’t na?ve. My mother had been a prostitute at a brothel, and despite people having no problem paying for their services, th ey loved treating them like shit afterward.

When people found out my heritage, they acted like I’d been struck with disease and misfortune.

Nimue slipped her hand in mine and squeezed it. “That doesn’t change anything. But it makes more sense. It looks old. And expensive.”

I shrugged. “My mom treasured it. She was very insistent we keep it in the family.”

“Is that why you never pawned it?”

I had to bite down a retort, that just because I was broke didn’t mean I never cherished anything.

She’s not judging you, calm down. “My mom was a foolish romantic. She thought the patron—my father—was going to take her away. He didn’t.

Of course, he didn’t. But she didn’t learn her lesson.

Same thing happened with my sister’s dad.

Once that fell through, she got sick and never recovered.

The last couple years of her life, I was the one taking care of us all.

But you know what pissed me off the most?

She never lost hope. She kept insisting that the patron would find us and give us a better life, or that we’d have a stroke of good luck.

She died with a fucking smile on her face. ”

And I’d never forgive her for that. I clenched the pendant.

“That makes me sound awful, I know. But I hated how she kept thinking things would get better. They wouldn’t.

There was no way we were going to rise up from the mud, and no way anyone would give a shit about us.

But even with all that, I couldn’t bring myself to get rid of the stupid pendant. ”

“Would it make you feel better if I said something terrible about myself? ”

I laughed despite the throbbing in my chest. “Yes.”

“My brother got sick when I was nine. That morning when they told me, I was happy, because I’d go back to being his heir.

Of course, when I saw him, I felt awful, but I’ll never forget that single moment.

I…” Her hand went slack, but I tightened my grip.

“That’s why becoming a rider was an easy decision for me.

I don’t want to go back to that feeling. ”

I stood alongside the other riders, bracketed between Nimue and Ben.

Kieran was silent the entire flight to the gallows, and no one had been in the mood to break the silence.

A crowd had already gathered by the time we landed.

I dismounted Umara, the knot in my stomach only growing tighter.

Even her nuzzling my head did nothing to improve my mood.

She hovered over me and refused to leave.

At least that was something. While the other dragons backed away to form a perfect line, she didn’t.

“We’ve gathered here because of a traitor.

” Kieran’s voice echoed effortlessly across the crowd.

The sun shined down on him, practically giving him a halo.

Like a death angel, handpicked by the Father.

“He has openly defied the king. He has consorted against Lusadia and allied with Andova. Not only that, but he has dared to try to claim the life of a dragonsguard.” His piercing gaze flicked to mine.

“Because of this, he must die. Bring forward the prisoner.”

Everyone turned to the road where guards surrounded the prisoner. It took me a second to see who it was. My heart stuttered. I knew that face. I’d seen it the day of the heist.

William.

He looked awful. He’d always been rail thin, boney, and fragile looking, but now…

now his skin looked waxy and paper thin.

Bruises marred his exposed skin, and dried blood dotted his temple.

His eyes found mine. There was so much sadness and even worse…

understanding. Terrible understanding and kindness. A kindness I didn’t deserve.

My breath quickened. Nausea hit me fast, and my legs quivered. He’s been tortured for three days. And Gareth’s been patching him up so he could endure more.