Page 33

“ W hat are you doing here?” My stomach bottoms out, the flame and wicked ire with it.

Hune .

Ridge hasn’t moved away from Orion. He stands with his arms folded over his broad chest, assessing from a distance.

“And you .” I spin to face Ridge. The sweat beading on my neck has little to do with the sunlight hitting the all-black outfit I’m still wearing. “You said you had something for me. Some thing —not some one .”

Ridge shrugs a shoulder, tipping his chin up. “Semantics, really, my love.”

“I’ll deal with you later.” I direct my attention back to Hune. “How are you here?”

Hune’s lips tug upwards slightly, my attention snagging on the hooped piercing through his bottom lip.

That's new.

“I could ask you the same.” His eyes slide to Ridge, his smile finally breaking across his face. “And what are you doing with mean ol’ Ridge?”

Incredulity clouds my vision, my thoughts.

“You knew.” I trip over my words, barreling down the hill of disbelief. “That night, when I fled the city. You told me you knew what I was.”

“Abovesake, you had floating nightlights in your room, Aledrya. You were hardly conspicuous.” Hune chortles, his black hair even longer now, past his shoulders. A visible marker of the time that has passed since I’d last seen him.

“Is Eon safe? ”

Hune’s expression fades to something I can’t place, his dark eyes shuttering. “He is. He followed us into town the night the guards came. When I started back to the cottage, I found him at the edge of the group.”

My pulse hammers. “Where is he now?”

“I have connections, I was able to utilize them to get him out of Torrent, with a family that will keep him safe. You know I’d never leave him in a perilous situation.”

“I want to know what happened to our parents.” My heart wrenches, thrashing against my chest cavity at the answer before it’s been given.

The way his breath catches tells me it’s not a pleasant story. “They went down fighting, Aledrya. They knew what you were. What we were. I got there too late, and I’m so sorry.”

His demeanor changes, shifting on his feet.

“You have nothing to be sorry for,” I whisper.

Don’t those words sound familiar.

Their faces have taken up residence in my nightmares over the last months. I study Hune fully now, seeing how he’d transformed from a gangly boy into a full-blown warrior. His chest is broad like Ridge and Laz, his skin a deeper caramel color than I’d ever seen it. With his hair now long, he looks the perfect part of a true mercenary.

His words snag in my brain, looping back around.

“ Wait . We?”

Then my gaze snaps to his ears. Pointed ears.

“How did this happen?” I gesture between them, grasping for understanding, my questions piling up.

Ridge finally tears his eyes from Hune, and when we lock eyes, the love and adoration I find there makes my knees weak. “Hune has long been part of the Ravels, Aledrya. We never would have left you with people who were not ours.”

He nods toward Hune, but I don’t stop staring at Ridge. “I brought him here because he felt like a missing piece of this. He has been in Torrent this whole time, and can provide answers that I cannot. I thought you’d want him here. I would have brought Eon back too, but Hune told me he was safer staying put for now.”

I walk to him, closing the several feet as quickly as I can. When I’m inches away, I place my hands on his broad chest, clutching the soft fabric of his worn black shirt under my fingers.

“You are truly a pain in my ass,” I whisper, my eyes searching his. “Thank you for bringing him here.” I kiss him lightly on the lips, lingering there. “Don’t you ever let someone fly on my bird again.”

“You know I do love when you’re territorial,” he murmurs against my lips, brushing my hair off my shoulders so he can caress the back of my neck. “Almost as much as I adore seeing you happy.” His voice drops lower, turning smoky. “I’m trying to unravel all of my secrets for you. I promise.”

Aware of Hune waiting for me behind Ridge, I lean back ever so slightly. “I never should have jeopardized all that you’ve worked for.”

Ridge leans in again though, touching his forehead to mine. “I’m not saying I wouldn’t have let you take out the damned Wall, but I would have put precautions in place,” he grumbles against my mouth, nipping my bottom lip. “You are infinitely more important than anything else.”

“ Ahem .” I hear Hune clearing his throat behind us. “If it was anyone other than Ridge you were hanging all over, I would say something.”

“Yet the words are still leaving your mouth, Hune,” Ridge remarks, but his gaze never drifts from mine.

A word upstairs when you’re done. His words make me want to drag him upstairs to hash this out right now. Instead, I step away from his hold.

Noticing the sun already making its way toward the trees, I reach out and grab Hune’s hand. “I have questions for you, and we have limited time before the ceremony.” I tug him with me toward the sand below the grassy walkway.

When we reach the white sand, I drop his hand to pull off my boots and socks, setting them to the side. I let my toes dig into the velvety sand. The grains are so fine, so soft, they feel like a warm blanket around my feet. The gentle crashing of the sea ahead dulls the roaring in my ears .

We find a spot near the water’s edge, sitting side by side. Hune lets his hands sink into the sand, holding it up and letting it fall away slowly, studying it as if he’d never seen such a thing. We sit like this for several heartbeats, admiring the waves roll in and the birds calling to one another above.

“We all knew what you were,” Hune reiterates as he clears his throat, not taking his dark brown eyes from the scintillating blue water. “That first night, father told me a Fae was coming for you, so I dumped the water out and moved the bucket. I was terrified for you, even though I knew it was for the best; it meant I wouldn’t be able to protect you any longer.”

My voice nearly gets stuck in my throat, thick with emotion. “I almost didn’t leave. I never knew they had so much knowledge of the Fae.” The tears threaten to overtake my words. “I have missed each of you every day since I left. Why did they not share this with me?”

“I’m not sure.” He picks up a small rock, sending it across the top of the water. “Regardless, if they’d told you, wouldn’t you have felt pressured all that time? What if you had been happy in the Human Realm?”

I have no answer for that.

Hune smiles, finally sliding his gaze over to me. “We have missed you something fierce, but that does not mean you need us. I always knew you were going to set the world on fire. I just didn’t know it would be so literal.”

Despite watering eyes, I snort, tossing sand at his long legs stretched in front of him.

He pushes me lightly on the shoulder. “You can truly summon the power of fire?”

I arch an eyebrow, holding up my hand. I think of Ridge, of Artemis, and ember flames begin dancing at my fingertips. Hune stares in wonder, as if it’s his first time seeing such a thing.

I think of Laz’s eyes, the ice in them, how much depth they have. I wonder if Hune knows that I have a true, full-blooded brother. My fingers engulf in a light red flame that has Hune startling. He smiles though, and whispers, “Incredible.”

“Did you ever go to the creek after I disappeared? ”

Hune chews his lip. “Yes, but not before the Torrent guards. They found the mystic light you left. I got there right as they were clearing the area. I saw them pocketing that light. I was praying to every god I knew you were out of the Human Realm by that point.”

Letting the flame dissipate, I really look at Hune. “Did you know I have a brother?”

“Yes,” is his only reply, tearing his eyes from mine and looking back toward the water.

“Tell me why you’re here, Hune.”

I can feel Hune tense next to me, and he runs a hand through his long, wind-whipped hair. “As you now know, I am part of the Ravels, too. My family comes from the Wastelands; my father was a spell-master and my mother was Fae. They fled when the king attacked our city. They smuggled me into Torrent and left me to be found in town.”

“What did the Wastelands have that he wanted?” I ask quietly.

Hune's face is contemplative as he stares at the water. “Rathian Zan knew the folklore that the Unborn Vase was in the Wastelands. I had orders long ago that I would go into the Torrent army to collect information, then get out. I was always working with Laz and Ridge. I couldn’t have shared that with you without unraveling everything else. You would have asked a hundred questions.”

My eyebrows nearly meet my hairline. I wait, giving him space to tell his story.

He smirks, rolling up one sleeve, and revealing dark markings up his arm. They match the swirled design of mine, but thicker, and are tipped with leaves.

“I could finally allow the power to take over and mark me after I fled Torrent,” he says, looking at his own bicep and forearm. His covers much more than mine does; it’s lining a deeper black from the fresh inking.

“Why leaves?” I peer at the artfully drawn marking.

“I make things new.” When my eyebrows raise, he chuckles and adds, “I can regrow where there has been destruction and suffering. I have more to test, but so far it works on nonfatal injuries. Destruction of buildings or land.”

“What a marvelous gift.” Pride wells in my chest at what he is capable of. “That gift truly mirrors who you are. But I have to say, I never thought I would see you on this side of the Woven Wall.”

Hune cocks an eyebrow at me. “What Wall? That is why Ridge moved up our plans.”

Embarrassment ripples through me. “I may have reacted spitefully in nullifying the Woven Wall.”

Hune only nods slowly, like he understands, but his lips tighten. “Yes, the king certainly did see your message. He rallied his armies, and I split. I took stock of everything they have. I’ve already given Ridge a full report of what is in his arsenal and where he can expect Rathian to move first. Swiped one of the army maps before I went.”

I see movement from the corner of my eye, spying a familiar head of silver, thick hair on our balcony. Turning slightly, I can see Ridge speaking to Laz before they both move into our rooms. Our tether nudges me, a push to be near him.

I pivot back to Hune, who’s already grinning at me. “Go. I’m going to stay out here for a moment. I’ll be at the house later.”

Nodding, I rise and collect my shoes. I carry them up the grassy walkway, making my way back into the house through the side door. My feet pad across the cold marble, smelling the freshly cut flowers in their vases as I aim for Ridge’s and my room. Laz passes me in the hall, a smirk on his face, but I ignore him.

I keep moving, purposeful strides to Ridge.

The heavy wood door creaks open as I step inside. Seeona is finishing changing the sheets and straightening the room. Her pale green dress billowing in the breeze, and her bright red hair tied back.

She flicks those green eyes at me, pausing. “I am sorry to hear of your friend,” she offers earnestly, folding her tiny hands in front of her curved body. “I know you loved her very much.”

I swallow against the dryness in my throat, nodding at her. “Thank you, Seeona. ”

She waves a hand toward the bathing room as she briskly floats to the door. I follow her silent wave, my feet padding across the marble. I hear her gently close the bedroom door behind me. As I cross the threshold, I lean on the heavy frame, watching Ridge at the basin, his chest bare as he runs wet hands through his hair.

A new marking lines his side that wasn’t there this morning. It’s shaped like a sun, with lines crossing through it, meeting in the middle. It’s delicate, so different from the thick markings across his chest.

I close the distance between us, and he drops his hands from his hair. He turns his tanned, handsome features to me, and I shiver under his assessing gaze. I trace along the new marking with my index finger, admiring the beauty of it from up close. They’re etched on the most perfect landscape of skin and muscle I’ve ever laid eyes on, but the marking itself is eye-catching.

“When did this appear?” I ask, still staring. My hands don’t leave his skin, idly tracing my fingertips across those dark lines.

His hands find my wrists, pulling me into him. I loop my arms easily around his neck, standing on my toes to breathe in his scent. He leans his forehead to mine, a piece of his silken hair falling to his face as he takes a deep breath, as if drinking me in.

“In Torrent,” he starts, drawing his fingers up and down my sides. I let myself lean into him even more, unable to get enough of him, of his very existence. “I went to get Hune, as you know. But I made a stop in the woods where Lamond found you.”

There’s more edge to his voice then, but it fades quickly. “No matter what happens when we inevitably go to war, you come first. You will make decisions with me, as my equal. I will choose you. Every. Single. Time. You are my reason for existing.”

His broad hands tighten around my lower back, his strength seeping into me. It’s as if he can sense what I need right now, that I need his touch despite the unbearable grief .

I lean in to kiss him lightly, and he scrapes his teeth along my bottom lip. It splits my lip once more, but he ignores it. My hands find his hair, tangling my fingers in it.

“What does the marking mean?” I inquire, pulling back so I can raise an eyebrow at him.

He leans in again to kiss away the drops of blood forming along my bottom lip. “Don’t know. Don’t particularly care. If it means I have you, I don’t give a shit what it looks like.”

“Well, I quite like it. It has flames, and that’s all that matters.” His booming laugh makes my heart positively burst.

My grip on the ends of his hair tightens and he growls at my touch. “I asked the gods to give me you. Begged, actually. You are all I want, Aledrya. If I have you, I have everything.”

I stop breathing, my hands still. My sight is fixed on him and nothing else. We’ve said words similar to this, but something instinctual tells me this is different.

“No distance could separate me from you.” His words are so final, finding their way into my veins and implanting themselves into my very soul. “If I lived for ten thousand more years, I’d still wish to spend every three and a half million days that passed with you.”

I couldn’t separate my body or my hands from him, even if I wanted to. I slide my hands from his hair to his face, tracing his jaw. He turns his head, catching my wrist and kissing my palm.

I know in my bones he’d find me no matter the obstacles we faced.

As if sensing my thoughts, his eyes twinkle. “I will always come back to you.”

My hands tremble as he drops my wrist to run his hands down my back.

Something shifts between us. There are so many things left unsaid, but it’s like Ridge already knows what I’m thinking. “Do you want to wager against the whims of gods with me? ”

My heart expands. I can feel our tether threading itself into something more, something far stronger and more permanent. I watch his throat work as he senses it, too.

“More than anything.” My answer must be a declaration to the gods, because my power boils to the surface, lapping beneath my skin.

A primal calling grips me, Ridge’s eyes flashing at the energy surrounding us. Gold flames dance around their edges as he picks me up, cinching my legs around his waist. He sets me on the counter as I lock my lips to his, claiming him with a kiss so deep we share the same breath.

Tension in my chest becomes more akin to a crushing sensation, and Ridge separates from me, eyes locked onto mine. A darkness creeps over the bathing chamber, offset by gleaming bursts of light now floating through the air. Within moments, Ridge and I are standing in pitch blackness, only to be met with a firework show of bursting stars above.

The glitter cascades down on us, yet it fizzles out as it makes contact with flesh. The lights dance through the air, as if their only purpose is to captivate and astonish.

The building discomfort in my chest floods to a beckoning warmth, a push and pull to Ridge.

My hands still draped over his shoulders, he dips his head down to my skin, pressing gentle kisses where the light turns to dust. “I won’t gamble you, Aledrya. But for you, I’d gamble the world,” he promises against my skin. Those delicate kisses bring him face to face with me once more.

Leaning my forehead against his, I drag my fingers across the stubble at his jaw. “I’d give every power I possess over to the gods for you.”

In response, my powers wiggle, eager to break free of my hold and get to Ridge.

With my words, the darkness relents, slinking back into the corners of the bathing chamber. The sparkles of light seem to hesitate before following suit, winking out piece by iridescent piece .

A tingling at my side has me peering down between us. Ridge gently tugs on the hem of my shirt, pushing up to reveal my torso. On my ribcage, a new marking swirls into place. A delicate rendering of starbursts appears, exploding over crashing tidal waves.

The world goes utterly still.

He sucks in a breath, looking physically pained. “We have to go,” he manages, releasing his breath. “The Ceremony of Rebirth.”

As we meet each other’s eyes, something deeper takes over. It feels as if the Above is crashing down on me, reaching into my chest and rifling around. Ridge’s eyes flare, telling me he feels this too. He grabs my hand, stroking my thumb soothingly. For once, I’m not afraid. They could take it all so long as they gave me Ridge.

It's over as quickly as it started, that hand ripping out of me, leaving in its place a tether more intense than I could have comprehended. Still fully encased in an ember flame, it feels unbreakable. As if tied to the gods themselves.

A strange, consuming sense of fulfillment fills me, a contentment so deep it vibrates through my bones.

I blink, realizing I can feel him, feel his emotion, in me.

I feel the words in my chest before they leave his mouth. “No going back now,” he murmurs into my ear.