Page 44 of Of Stars and Lightning (Sun and Shadows #1)

Thirty Four

TO SURVIVE

THE FIRST THING Sol could think to do was elbow Ezra in the stomach. She put her entire, adrenaline-fueled strength into the move, then let herself fall to the ground, hoping the sudden shift in weight would throw the man off balance.

As he released her, Sol made a mental note to give Leo the biggest hug whenever—if ever—she saw him again, for teaching her basic self-defense skills during their childhood.

She crawled away from the Earth Caller and swirled to face him. Ezra’s clothes were singed and smoke-stained, even after the quick but fierce deluge Cade had called.

Now, in the silence after the storm, Sol stared at the man, calculating her best chance for survival. The wind had slowed, rolling into soft caresses. Dirt swirled in tendrils around them, sending leaves adrift within it. She stood, unwilling to seem small before him.

The cliff they stood on wasn’t wide enough for her to back away without the threat of falling, and Ezra cleverly positioned himself before the opening to the exit.

He angled his head, the motion mixed with the mess of blood and ash on him making him an utter terror.

“I was planning on taking us to the end, you know.” He chuckled humorlessly and sheathed his sword.

“But seeing your attitude, I think I’d rather just get rid of you and take the benefits of a Semmena court mate instead. ”

Sol shrugged, trying her best to seem calm between uncontrollable tremors. “You’ll likely fit in better there anyway.”

His eyes flashed. “Careful, Princess. There’s no one to save you here.”

“Good.” A smile pulled at her lips, ignited by vengeance. “Because if anyone is going to put you in your place, it’s going to be me.”

Bold words, dove.

Sol flinched. She looked down at the palm that held her dagger. The scar there flared red, and she could feel the blood pumping beneath her skin.

“What the—”

The distraction cost her.

Ezra slammed into her, throwing her down to the ground with merciless force. All the air left her as her back collided with the rock, the distinct taste of copper filling her mouth.

Breathlessly, she spit it out. “Coward.”

Ezra laughed. “You would’ve made a terrible Queen, just like Irene.

” He retrieved a dagger from his belt, pressing it against the center of her chest. “Such a shame.” He pinned her with a straddle, pressing his inner thighs to her hips, making her unable to shift beneath him. “A waste of a pretty face.”

Panic gripped her as she fought to breathe and escape him simultaneously, especially as his eyes glazed over in a way she knew all too well.

Ezra replaced his blade with his palm. “The only thing I regret is that Xanthos won’t be here to watch.”

Fight, Soleil.

Again, the disembodied voice echoed in her ears, as if it was both within her and around her all at once. Her hand burned. Realization struck that she still held her dagger and Ezra had underestimated her, so she crushed it into his exposed side.

Ezra fell from atop her with a yell, frantically pulling at the blade as Sol rolled sideways and away from his grasp.

“You bitch.” The clatter of her blade on the ground was enough to tell her the injury was nothing crucial, and she was now without a weapon.

Still, she stood and faced him. She would fight, even with just her fists.

For Zeri, who had no chance to.

Let me in, dove, the voice sang. Let me end him.

This time, the voice was familiar. Slightly different, but clearly Lora.

Sol pressed her hand to her chest, not quite knowing if to respond or if she was in such a stressful situation she had merely gone insane.

She barely saw Ezra lunge again, this time bringing his dagger forward at a ferocious speed Sol couldn’t completely avoid.

The blade slashed her exposed chest in a diagonal gash across her collarbone.

Biting her tongue to keep from screaming, she evaded his next maneuver, landing on her stomach nearly at the edge of the cliff.

“You fucking whore.”

Before Sol could stand and flee from the precipice, he dug his sword into the side of her blouse, holding her in place just long enough for him to press his dagger to the back of her neck.

He knelt next to her face, and Sol could hurl from the sight of him being so near.

Killer.

Pervert.

“You’re a disgrace to your goddess,” Sol whispered through tight teeth. “I would’ve given you a fast death, you know. But you kill me, and I doubt my Court will be as kind.”

Ezra gave her a vile smirk, running a hand along her thigh, then hip, then shoulders. Each squirm only made him go slower. “Once I’m part of Semmena’s court, I’ll ask for Sawyerlynn as my wife.” He lowered his lips to her cheek. “And I’ll be sure to remind Rimemere just how easy you were to kill.”

End him, Sol. Let me in and end him.

Sol breathed heavily, the sting of the knife at the side of her throat was nothing compared to the ache over her body. Again, her aunt chanted in a haunting song: in, in, let me in, dove.

“But of course,” Ezra flipped her over, not caring as his dagger fell over the edge. He held her in place with a forearm to the neck, then moved his mouth to hover over her own, the reek of the blood from his neck wound making her hold her breath. “I must first know how you taste.”

Sol shut her eyes. Come in.

A ghastly laugh shook her very bones before a spear of cobalt light shot from her palm, penetrating Ezra directly in the chest and sending him flying over the edge of the cliff.

CAS

AS SOON AS Cade Lane tackled him into the exit slit, Cas knew they were fucked. Not just him and Sol, but anyone and everyone who got in his way on the other side.

They landed with a heavy crash at the beginning of a prairie, and Cas wasted no time.

He sprang to his feet, dragging Cade up by the collar of his leather battle suit. The asshole laughed, spitting in Cas’s face.

“Your Princess is so fucking dead, Xanthos.”

Cas punched him in the face. Again. And again,

Cade went down with unbelievable ease, his back colliding with the ground as Cas continued to pummel him, then after deciding it wasn’t enough, unleashed his Shadows to pin him down, sure to tell them to burn.

To scorch.

To kill.

“Casimir and Cade.” Vaguely, Cas heard Jeriyah call to them from a few yards away. The old man waved a paper at them. “Now, now, we are still on Winderlyn’s premises—killing will result in a penalty.”

Wards replaced Cas’s fists, singeing Cade with each blow. “I don’t give a—”

“Gods, Casimir.” Arms wrapped around his chest pulling him off Cade. “He’s not worth you getting on Winderlyn’s bad side, you fool.”

He shrugged out of Cattya’s grasp. “Do not touch me.”

She brought her hands up in mock surrender. “I’m not the bad guy today, love. Your Princess begging me to save you pulled at my cold, cold heart.”

“Where is she?” Phil ran forward, his hands shifting frantically. “I—She’s not here. I can't feel her.”

“You left her?” Jonah’s expression darkened, even through the exhaustion. “Your job is to protect her, and you left her?!”

Cas didn’t need the Dianese Heir rubbing it in. Not knowing what was happening behind the sealed, towering wall was quite literally killing him. Even his Shadows seemed to turn against him.

Where is she, where is she, where is she, they chanted.

“Lower your enchantment, Jeriyah,” Cas demanded, marching to the old man. He watched the wall with a bored, blank look, whispering mumbles and oaths to keep his makeshift ward intact.

Cas hated the Dark Magic enchantments. They were an abomination to Warren’s Wards, to the Light Magic that birthed the skill.

Rimemere would rather put souls in peril than ask for assistance from Wardens in other territories—though they were scarce nowadays.

The wretched enchantments often glitched or caused tunnels to crumble, since they were mostly used beneath land.

Or, like today, when they seemed to be testing his morals and his patience.

Because he could just knock Jeriyah out… that would drop the thing.

As if sensing the unspoken threat, Jeriyah took a step back. “Trust in her, boy.” The Scribe gave him a long look. “Trust.”

“Screw your trust, Jeriyah!” Cas yelled, stalking toward the stone, to the wall of thick, oily ripples that would tear him to pieces if he tried to cross. “Let me back in.”

Cas’s magic rebelled inside him, begging to be unleashed. He gritted his teeth and cut a small wound along the edge of his tattoo to relieve some of the charged, incessant surge of power. Having two gods call to him was madness, especially when mixed with adrenaline.

Take the blood, Warren, and let me breathe.

Cas knew Loumallet wouldn’t take his blood offerings—he never had. He had no temple.

How he continued to grant him Shadows was a mystery Cas hadn’t bothered to decipher.

“Please, Ezra is doing us a favor,” Cade spat, still kneeling on the ground. His face oozed red. “I won't be yielding my status at the end for her—we will have more fun fighting amongst ourselves for the spot in the Semmena court.”

Cas peered at him over a shoulder, slow and lethal. “You were never going to make it to the end, Lane.”

The laugh the man exhaled gave Cas just the edge he needed to continue beating him. Until the crackle of the enchantment made him pause.

Sol looked devastating.

Her pants were torn, tattered at her knees and thighs.

She dragged herself forward with pure will, her boots pulling the vines wrapped around her ankles.

The sleeves of her blouse were ripped from her shoulders, her pale hair now completely out of the braid she usually wore.

Every time she was near, he saw the embodiment of the sea, lethally beautiful.

Right now, though, she looked like a storm.

Cas stepped forward, unsure what to do.

Her skin was smeared with mud and soaked from the rain, blood, and cuts and—

“Sol,” Cas breathed, reaching to the gash on her chest. She evaded his touch, her usually bright, emerald eyes muted.

She continued forward, slowly passing him, giving him only a light touch on the shoulder to signal it wasn’t about him.

And Cas understood.

“Princess!” Phil sprinted forward, burying his face in Sol’s waist. She placed a gentle hand on his head, but her expression remained ice cold.

Jonah strode forward as well, his attention shifting from her, to his brother, then finally to Cas.

Cas shook his head slightly. Don’t talk about it yet.

“I assume you are the final prospect, Miss Yarrow?” Jeriyah lowered his hands, killing the enchantment.

Sol nodded bleakly.

“Great. I will send kingsmen to search for the bodies of the others.”

Sol ambled forward, Phil still in her embrace. She stopped beside Jeriyah, but looked straight at Cade as she said, “You will only find Zeri’s. There is no body left of the other to search for.”