Page 57 of Of Stars and Lightning (Sun and Shadows #1)

Forty Two

BLOOD, MUD AND SALTWATER

SOL WANTED TO be angry when she learned Gina prevented Jonah and Phil from providing aid.

As soon as Cas and her rounded to the front of the Villa, the boys ran to them in tears, their embrace almost knocking them all to the ground.

Apparently, the point of the trial was to test the prospect’s efficiency against the Jinn and their judgment for quick thinking.

Sol had nearly thrown up on the woman’s shoes at the statement.

She wasn’t the only one utterly disinterested in the discourse. All four of them ambled past Hand Gina and the kingsmen, not caring to listen to their blabber. Sol remained beside Cas the entire way up the stairs, the four of them leaving the floors filthy with blood, mud, and salt water.

Jonah and Phil gave them both lingering hugs before branching off at the fourth floor to their room.

Sol didn’t know where Cas lodged, and since her room was the only one on Warrens’ floor, and there wasn’t one for Shadows, she didn’t have much of a guess.

But he didn’t try to stop at any of the other floors, only held her hand as she guided him up, all the way to her room.

She sat him on the floor to avoid the extra task of having to change the sheets into dry ones later. With a sigh, she tossed her drenched boots into a corner before heading to her washroom to turn on the bath. The water was slow to fill and tepid, but it would have to do.

Sol walked back into her room to find Cas leaning on the side of her bed, eyes shut with the most serene look on his face.

She leaned on the doorframe and smiled slightly through heavy eyelids.

As carefully as she could, she walked to him and knelt.

“Hey. You must change your clothes.” Cas only groaned slightly.

“I don’t think I have anything that fits you,” she remarked. “Where is your room?”

He peeled an eye open. “I don’t have one. I stayed with Cattya.”

The name was like a blade in her skull. She couldn’t hide the flinch. “Oh.”

“Not like that, Princess.” He reached a hand to her face, tracing the side of her jaw. “I was with her because she had intel on the trials. It was never anything more than necessity.”

Despite the fact she hadn’t asked, the confession placated the unwelcome sense of jealousy the vision of him and Cattya sharing a bed had sparked. She cleared her throat. “If you didn’t like her, you shouldn’t have put up with her, Cas.”

“I needed all the information I could get.” He dropped his hand into her lap, into her own. “To keep you safe.”

It took Sol her entire arsenal of self-restraint to not melt into him. The way his gaze flickered to her lips and his hand interlaced with her own… it almost made her lose all logic.

Almost.

Her breathing quickened, blood pooling in her chest. “Take a bath, Prince. I will find dry clothes for you meanwhile.” She tried to pull her hand away, but he only held it tighter.

“You’re not wandering this place alone.”

“Cas—”

“No.”

They compromised with Sol taking a bath first while he went to search for clothes, assuring her door was locked and within reach of his Shadows in case anything came knocking. Sol knew he wasn’t worried about the remaining prospects getting to her, but instead of any Jinn that may remain nearby.

Sol let herself simmer in the bathtub for a while longer than she should have, soaking in the lily scent of the oils and the overall peace of the moment.

She only got out when the memory of her slicing Cattya’s throat invaded.

The same moment of finality haunted her for years after the man in Yavenharrow, and the way Ezra stared at her in surprise before he flew over the edge of that cliff had been engraved in her nightmares since it happened.

By the time Sol left the washroom, Cas was once again asleep, this time on one of the sofas. The scent of sage and rosemary hugged her as she neared him. He had likely washed up in Cattya’s, to avoid having to wait for Sol.

She looked from him to her bed.

It took her a painful couple of minutes to finally settle on sliding into it alone, even as a part of her begged to call him over.

FOR THE FIRST time in a long time, her sleep was dreamless. No nightmares or strange dreams. Only silence.

By the time the sun’s light woke her the next morning, she was starving.

The first thing she did was look at her sofa, slightly disappointed to find it empty. It was alarming at first, until a small tendril of black mist twisted from beneath her door in a beckon to follow.

She brushed her teeth and changed into casual breeches and a blouse, not able to recall if the final trial was meant to be today. If it was, she supposed she would have to brave` it in a blouse and breeches.

Her mind drifted to Cas as she followed his Shadows down the stairs, wondering if he was as jolted by the previous day’s events as she was.

A naive, youthful part of her hoped he was, the part of her that boiled with flutters and desire.

The other part, though, the logical one, knew they were both better off returning to their usual, partially tolerating, behavior instead of balancing on whatever line was left between them.

Unfortunately, that logical side was losing.

Sol came to the realization it had been for a while, though she couldn’t quite locate a tangible turning point. She was Heiress to the Rimemere crown, tasked with eventually eradicating the planet’s unholiest threats. She had no time to feel giddy over a boy.

Not even a handsome one.

As the sun’s amber rays washed her path in gold, she moved on to the next problem.

Why did that Jinn save them?

Again, that incessant naive side told her maybe it was a genuine desire for their survival. Maybe… maybe there were things yet undiscovered.

Sol zipped her necklace on its chain absentmindedly as she entered the kitchen. A steaming plate of roast with a side of fruit awaited her, a mug of what looked like tea beside it. Jonah, Phil, and Cas already picked at their plates, briefly halting the conversation as she entered.

“We figured making breakfast ourselves was the best way to prevent being drugged,” Phil said with a small laugh. He and Jonah still had bruises and cuts from the day before but seemed well overall.

Sol sighed with relief before giving Cas a tentative glance. His smile bloomed a flutter in her chest. He brought a cup of tea to his lips, taking a small sip before sitting beside the brothers. “Good morning, Princess.”

Sol cleared her throat, hoping the heat on her face wasn’t visible. “Hi, Prince.”

They finished their food slowly, almost trying to drag out the moment, until a kingsman stuck his head into the room to say the final trial would begin in thirty minutes.

Sol wasn’t surprised they weren’t granted even a day of rest.

Jonah and Phil excused themselves first, leaving her alone with Cas. He exuded an almost radiant aura, as if he had the best sleep in the world and not tossed and turned for hours thinking about who else was in the room, just out of reach, and —

“You look well-rested,” Sol observed, finishing her tea. Cas peered at her over a bite of his apple.

“I am.”

I want to be that apple. Sol turned away. “Well, I’m glad.”

He extended his arm, his tattoo peeking around his wrist. “Your blood healed not only my physical wounds but also worked to calm my nerves it seems.”

“Gross, Cas.”

He chuckled and gestured her forward. “After you, Princess.”

They made their way to the front doors. Today was the day, the questions and riddles could wait. Today she wouldn’t let distractions win. She wouldn’t fail.

By the time Sol exited the front door of the Villa, Jonah and Phil were already waiting by one of the carriages.

The guards wore unusually thick and vibrant attire, every inch of their skin covered by scarlet fabric.

Sol eyed them, and the ones posted by the carriage behind, as she halted next to Jonah.

“I already asked why they look ridiculous,” he said, a brow raised.

“Did they respond?” Sol asked, working her hair into a braid.

“Nope.”

“What do you two think the Fire Trial is going to be?” Phil kicked rocks with his feet. “Emberdon’s beginning was from a volcano in Mosorrona.”

Sol shrugged. “Won’t be surprised if they found one here somehow.”

She and Cas rode in the first carriage, the brothers in the other. Mercifully, neither Fin nor Gina showed this time. Sol didn’t think she had the patience to stand either of their faces anymore.

They rode through the familiar forest for a while until tin roofs replaced the trees. Sol memorized the layout desperately, scanning the modest cottages that curled over hills and into valleys, looking for the one building she needed to end up in.

Fingers shaking and a bubbling sense of purpose flooding her, Sol closed her eyes once she located it.

It was almost done. Once the trials were over, she would do her Awakening. She would train until she could say she was a Yarrow without cowering and she would finish what her mother started—if not for her, for everyone else.

“You’re uncharacteristically quiet, Princess.”

Sol fidgeted with her nails. “I have nothing to say.”

“You always have something to say.”

She shrugged. “People change.”

The town’s delicate buildings rushed closer, bigger, but Sol kept her attention on the cathedral, the vantage point of her plan. She had to get Jonah and Phil there no matter what.

As they came to a rolling stop by the village square, an unsettling gnawing prickled at her neck. She tapped her fingers against the carriage window.

Something.

“Sol, what is it?” Cas inched closer within the already confined space. “I can’t help you if I don’t know—”

She turned to him, quickly stopping him mid-thought. His face was lined with worry, raw and intense.

Trust. She needed to learn to trust.

“I—I’m getting them out,” she said softly. Cas narrowed his eyes, urging her on. She continued, “I need you to help me get them to the cathedral.”