Page 62 of Dark Bringer (Lord of Everfell #1)

Cathrynne

G avriel’s lips were warm and yielding and tasted of mint tea. He allowed her to kiss him for a few seconds, but she sensed that he was holding himself in check.

Frustration boiled over. Cathrynne released his shoulders and sat back. “I wish you would make up your mind, Gavriel Morningstar. If you want me to leave, I will. But don’t give me flowers and come uninvited into my bedroom if you feel nothing for me!”

He blinked, then gave a low, bitter laugh. “Feeling nothing is not the issue, I can assure you. Quite the opposite.” He searched her face. “Is this truly what you want?”

She nodded, her pulse beating wildly. “I’ll make sure no child comes of it. There are potions I can take. But . . . yes. Just once.”

He released a taut breath. His wings spread behind him, black as a raven, as she pulled him down, rolling to her side so they lay face to face. The window was open and she could hear the distant roar of waves against the cliff. Gavriel did not touch her for an agonizing minute.

“I was married twice,” he said softly. “Once to a human, once to an angel. They both died long ago. I could not bear the pain of losing another wife, so I hardened my heart. But you have cracked it open, Cathrynne.”

She stroked the silky hair at his nape, ignoring the stab of jealousy at the mere thought of him with other women. Dead ones, no less!

“We can never have more than this night,” she said.

His eyes darkened. “Then I must make sure you never forget it.”

Gavriel’s hand slid beneath the hem of her cotton shift, lightly tracing the curve of her hip. She arched against him, a soft sound of pleasure escaping her lips. His reserve cracked and he kissed her, his heart beating against hers, but much swifter. His hand found the swell of her breast.

Cathrynne closed her eyes, surrendering to the fever heat of his skin, the rasp of his beard as he trailed kisses down her throat.

She tentatively found the juncture where his wings met the blades of his shoulders.

They were covered with soft down. Gavriel shivered against her and she felt him stiffen . . .

Suddenly, he pulled back. Embarrassment sent a hot flush up her neck. So he’d come to his senses after all. She should have expected it. Why was she torturing herself like this?

“It’s not you,” Gavriel said hoarsely. “I would give anything for us to be together. It’s all I’ve been able to think of for days. You consume me.” He sighed. “But there’s something I’ve been keeping from you. It’s about your father.”

Cathrynne sat up, wary. “What about him?”

“After Alluin Westwind was arrested, he was brought to Mount Meru to await my father’s judgment. But Valoriel was in one of his melancholy moods. He got that way sometimes, not speaking for months, delegating his responsibilities to me or my brother Michael.”

She listened in silence, nameless dread burrowing into her heart.

“On the day your father was brought to the Censura,” Gavriel continued, “Valoriel had ordered me to stand in as regent. I was the one who passed judgment on him.”

Her hands felt cold. Cathrynne pulled the quilt to her chest, drawing her knees up. “Have you known all along?”

Gavriel shook his head. “Only since Arjevica, when I realized the Lenormands were your birth family. I . . . I had forgotten the incident.”

“Forgotten,” she repeated tonelessly. “I see. And what was his sentence?”

Gavriel looked away. “Two hundred years on the Plain of Contemplation.”

She inhaled sharply. “That is severe.”

“I see that now.” He looked miserable. “But at the time, I did what I thought was right. What the law called for. I do not defend myself, Cathrynne.” He drew a shaky breath.

“Your father begged me to show leniency. I refused. Worse still, I knew that no angel has ever returned from the Plain of Contemplation.”

The heat she’d felt moments before was steadily building, but she didn’t want to feel his hands on her, or to kiss those perfectly shaped lips.

No, she wanted to hurl him through the window.

“I wielded the Rod of Penance with little thought for those your father left behind,” Gavriel admitted. “Nor for the nature of his crime, which arose from love not hate?—”

“Get out,” she said.

The words came out calm—far calmer than she felt. His forlorn expression only made her angrier. The dream must be of her own father as he was cast into perdition by the very angel she had nearly fallen for. She felt tricked, used, and heartbroken at all once.

Gavriel nodded as if he’d expected as much. “I don’t blame you for hating me. But Cathrynne, please, I want you to know that?—”

“Just go!”

His face went blank as though she’d slapped him. He strode to the balcony doors and threw them open. Cold air rushed in. Gavriel looked back at her once, his face a mask of pain and regret, then stepped off the edge. Dark wings carried him up and out of sight.

Cathrynne stared at the fluttering curtains. She felt gutted, yet why should she be surprised? He was Sion’s chief magistrate, notorious for his strict adherence to the letter of the law.

And he had lied to her about it. Lied for days.

A small voice reminded her that Gavriel had only done what he believed was right at the time. Yet the fact that he had not even remembered her father—that was the worst part. He must have sent a great many angels to their doom to be so cavalier about it.

Cathrynne’s jaw clenched. Her first assessment had been spot-on. Gavriel Morningstar was a complete prick!

Her gaze fell on the vase filled with cheerful yellow buttercups, the bouquet he had picked for her on the moor. Cathrynne gripped the iron bed frame, drawing deep on the fiery red ley contained in the metal. An instant later, the flowers burst into flame and the vase exploded.

Cathrynne instinctively threw up a shield, using receptive magic from Lara’s ring. It deflected the flying shards. I’m learning , she thought with grim satisfaction. Luckily, the water that spilled on the floor doused the smoldering embers. She stared the mess, drawing deep breaths.

It reminded her of the nightmare. The endless plain of ice and fire. Once again, Julia Camara’s prophesy came back to her.

“When he falls from grace, you must not interfere. You must let him serve his penance, even if it lasts forever.”

“Penance for what? And why would I interfere?”

“Because you love him.”

Now Cathrynne wondered if she was speaking about Alluin Westwind. Was her own father destined to be this Dark-bringer? Because she certainly didn’t love Gavriel Morningstar.

Cathrynne’s hands knotted in the quilt. She felt a sudden urge to be gone from Everfell. She could not stand to be there another minute! She didn’t belong here, and she certainly didn’t want to face Gavriel in the morning. Didn’t want to hear his pleas or excuses—or worse, his frosty silence.

She lit a fresh candle and quickly donned her trousers, jacket and bodice, which Mia had laundered. Wearing the uniform of the cyphers made her feel calmer, more in control.

She’d make up a story. No one need know she’d been here. And Gavriel would never risk his precious reputation, so she could count on his silence.

Cathrynne left Everfell through the unlocked glass doors to the terrace and strode down the drive for a mile or so until she reached the road leading southwest towards Arioch. She did not look back.

***

The walk into the city was long and tedious, with plenty of time to think. Did her mother and grandmother know what Gavriel had done? Cathrynne thought not. They would not have allowed him through the front door if they did. No, they disliked Morningstar on principle.

Yet now that she’d cooled down, Cathrynne had to admit that he had another side to him.

Playful, kind, passionate, protective. She would be with that man in a heartbeat.

But it was impossible. At least he had the decency to come clean before they slept together.

Gavriel did have honor. She could not fault him that.

Now it was time to face the witches of Arioch. A guilty warmth spread through her as she recalled his ardent kisses, but they would never know about that. Never.

She firmly shoved Lord Morningstar from her thoughts and mentally reviewed what she would tell Felicity Birch.

She decided to stick to the truth as much as possible, especially about the kaldurite.

The stones had caused at least two deaths that she knew of, but maybe some good could come of it.

If seers had a way of blocking the ley, they might not go mad—or at least they would have more control over their gift.

And cyphers could protect themselves against the magic of full witches!

Cathrynne grew excited as she thought of all the ways that kaldurite could save lives.

She’d never had a say in important decisions before, but they would have to listen to her this time.

She was the only person besides Kal who knew exactly where the source was.

She could speak for the voiceless, for those with no influence.

Cathrynne bit her lip. Would Gavriel tell his father about the Clear Creek Mine? If so, she needed to act fast.

The sun was high by the time Cathrynne arrived at the chapter house. She went straight to Felicity Birch’s office and rapped on the door, eager to hear the advice of her trusted mentor. The familiar voice came from within, crisp and commanding: “Enter.”

Cathrynne pushed the door open and froze.

Felicity sat behind her desk, but she wasn’t alone.

Marvel Yew, head of the Satu Jos cyphers, sat in a chair opposite.

Her hair was braided tight to her head, and the burn scars along her neck and jaw were clearly visible in the bright daylight.

The flame and forge of her province was emblazoned on her jacket.

Silver eyes locked on Cathrynne, a vivid contrast to her dark skin.