by Elena Lawson
“You aren’t dressed yet?” Alaric asked, bemused, but looking dapper in riding leathers and armed with more than a few blades. Beautiful. Dangerous. Mine.
I had half a mind to request Tiernan leave and remind Alaric what he promised me all those days ago. My stomach tightened at the memory. I bit the inside of my cheek, “Why? Should I be?” I said instead.
Alaric rummaged through my wardrobe, selecting a pair of brown colored trousers and a gossamer-light blouse from behind the wall of hanging gowns and dresses.
He set them down on the dressing table and turned to leave without any explanation.
“Training,” Tiernan offered, “We’re going into the woods, away from the prying eyes at court.”
I had forgotten I asked for his help—to see if I could control the element of earth as he did. But, wait, “Outside of the palace?” I couldn’t help the note of high-pitched excitement from entering my voice.
Alaric smiled, “Better hurry,” he said with a wink, “We’ll wait outside.”
We trotted down the main road for a time, me in the saddle with Tiernan, and Alaric on his own steed. Kade and Finn would meet us later after they’d finished whatever task Alaric had requested of them. As we put more distance between us and the palace, the roads became narrower and we passed several sleepy villages, their inhabitants coming out to start their day.
Children played in the fields and dueled in the roadways while parents chastised them. A male kissed his family goodbye, leaving to work in the larger towns, or perhaps to hunt in the woods to the North.
We continued in an easterly direction, and the villages became fewer and farther between. None approached us or paid us any mind, and I realized they didn’t recognize me. In my trousers and blouse with my hair tied back in a simple braid and no jewelry, I could’ve been anyone. It was a joy to see my people in their normal day-to-day workings. Playing. Working. Eating.
It reminded me of my days spent on the Isle of Mist, before I traded in my trousers for constricting gowns, and before I took all the time spent alone for granted.
We veered off the main road and onto a small footpath, having to leave the horses behind, tied to an especially wide tree to continue on foot not far into the trees. My backside was sore from the slow ride. Tiernan helped me down from Marron, his jaw tightening when I winced at the discomfort.
“We’re almost there, Liana. One of the others can fly you back to the palace. It takes time to get used to being in the saddle.”
Alaric finished tying his horse, and reached for my hand, which I gave without hesitation. It felt natural—the closeness between me and my males, as though they were a part of me. Without them I couldn’t feel whole. I missed him—Alaric.
He’d been busy the past weeks. Hunting for Thana’s corpse, as well as overseeing the execution of Ronan, and investigating the Wastes where Silas’ scouts found the bodies of three of the missing Fae. Now there was Valin’s return, too. I ached for his company.
A pang of guilt throbbed beneath my breastbone. I had to tell him the truth. About the Mad King. About Thana. The Blessed Blade—all of it. I only hoped he’d forgive me for not telling him sooner.
Alaric led me through the shaded path. Sunlight dappled the forest floor, illuminating it in patches of earthy brown and richest green.
A clearing materialized ahead, and we stepped out of the shade and into the full light of the sun. A placid pond reflected the early morning light off to our right, surrounded by long, lush grass, and tall reeds. It was peaceful. Quiet. I reveled in the freshness of the air, and the absolute silence I could never find within the walls of the palace.
“And we won’t be seen here?” I asked Alaric, releasing his hand.
He shook his head, his dark hair falling forward with the motion, “No, we should be safe to practice.”
Despite all the work he’d been doing lately, Alaric looked refreshed and at ease in the forest. His steel-blue eyes shone brightly in the light, and he was quick to smile upon seeing my staring.
“Any word on Valin?” I asked, working the kinks out of my joints before we began the day’s lessons.
Tiernan stepped up to me, helping me to balance as I pulled my legs up behind me one at a time to loosen the tight muscles. His grip on my waist was enough to awaken the Grace of fire in my core. I quivered, stepping back from his touch.
Alaric cocked his head at me—at Tiernan, before shaking his head, “He’s awake,” he said, “He awoke early this morning, but Loris said it would be best to give him the day to recover before questioning him. It seems his memory is disjointed—foggy.”
Tiernan clucked his tongue, “Of course it is,” he said with a slight roll of his eyes, “I don’t trust him.”
Alaric narrowed his eyes at the other male, “You don’t know him. He’s ancient. They still sing songs about his glory in battle.”
“Where has he been, then? We found nothing on the North road, not even tracks. It’s as though he appeared out of thin air.”
I was inclined to agree with Tiernan but would say nothing until hearing what the warrior had to say for his whereabouts. “We didn’t come here to argue, we came here to train.”
Tiernan offered me his hands, “That we did,” he said, raising a perfect brow to me in challenge, “Lets see what you can do, my little lamb.”
After trying for hours, I was ready to give up. Each time I thought I felt something stirring within me, it evaporated before I could harness it. I could produce flame with a flick of my fingers, and ice just as easily, but Tiernan’s Grace of earth wouldn’t come.
Although I’d tried before, Alaric too attempted to awaken his power over emotion within me, but that too had no effect. He released my hands, and gently stroked the inside of my jaw, bringing my face up to meet his gaze, “You didn’t expect to have every Grace, did you? Don’t look so disappointed.”
“I’m not,” I said, though it was only half-true. Kade and Finn would arrive soon, and Alaric would have to go back to work. If I was disappointed, it was only because soon, he would have to leave again. From the look in his eyes, and the way he’d barely let me go even once throughout the afternoon, I’d say he felt the same.
“Trust me, feeling the emotions of others isn’t exactly a blessing.” His gaze flicked to Tiernan and back to me, and I wondered offhandedly if he knew I was attracted to the golden male too.
“I’ve missed you,” I blurted, my cheeks inflaming. Alaric stroked the side of my neck, sending a delicious shiver down my spine, awakening the flames at my core.
“I’ve missed you too,” he whispered, leaning in close so Tiernan wouldn’t hear him from where he crouched, blossoming small white flowers at the water’s edge. “Are you… rested?” he asked, his voice husky, reminding me of what he said to me the last night we spent together, you need to rest, my queen. You’ll need your strength for what I intend to do to you.
My chest tightened, and I swallowed, my skin tingling. “Yes.”
He licked his bottom lip and laid a kiss on the base of my neck. The flames within me grew to a blaze, and a warmth spread deep in my belly.
Tiernan approached and Alaric loosened his hold on me, taking my hand and placing it into Tiernan’s.
Confused, I looked to Alaric, and then to my hand, and back again.
“You have my permission,” he said, and I gasped as the meaning of his words sunk in. “I can feel your emotions, Liana. I know you want me, but you want him too.” He turned to Tiernan, “I’m trusting you. Don’t make me regret it.”
My chest ached. Alaric cared more for me than I ever imagined. He knew what I wanted—what I felt, and regardless of his own wants, he was willing to give it to me.
Tiernan clasped my hand between both of his, and brought it to his lips, kissing my fingertips. I shivered. “Is that true?” he asked, a devilish grin turning up the corners of his mouth, “That you want me?”
Alaric turned away, but I pulled him back, leaving Tiernan’s question unanswered for the
moment. Alaric growled at the force I used to draw his lips to my own. I kissed him. He kissed me back with a hunger bordering on pain. The fire at my core stirred, the flames building into a wild-fire. I only remembered Tiernan was there when he swept my hair from my neck and laid a trail of slow, hard kisses down the back of my neck.
I wanted them. Both of them—right there in the clearing.
The gratifying sound of tearing fabric preceded a gentle breeze and warm hands on my bare back. I moaned and both males tensed in response to the sound. Alaric moved his hand down the curve of my neck, between my breasts, and lower still. My breathing hitched. The fire burned hotter, brighter, blinding me.
“Is this what you want?” Alaric asked me, his breathy voice caressing my cheek—his hands hurriedly unfastening the belt at my waist.
I couldn’t speak through the waves of desire and flame coursing through me. I was drunk on their touch. It wasn’t only my own desire, I could feel Alaric’s too, as he unconsciously pushed his own emotions into me. It was so much. Too much.
It was a raging storm, building to a precipice within me. I couldn’t contain it—the fire. It was so strong. I had to let it out. It was taking every ounce of my concentration to keep from burning them where they touched my skin.
“Liana,” Alaric murmured, his fingertips hesitating on the top button of my pants, waiting for my permission.
Tiernan gripped my waist, his fingers digging into my skin. I shuddered, opening my eyes to find Alaric gazing into them, his expression changing from one of passion, to one of fear.
It wouldn’t be held in any longer. It hurt—like a pressure from within, my bones felt near breaking. My breaths came quickly, and gooseflesh rose on my skin. I cried out at the force of the Grace within me, begging to be released. “Get back!” I shouted and burst into flame.
Chapter Five
It engulfed me in a torrent of fire. It was all I could see. It licked up my arms and down my legs, turning my clothes to ashes at my feet. It didn’t hurt, but still I screamed as though burning. My tears evaporated to steam on my cheeks before they could fall. I couldn’t see them through the wall of fire, couldn’t hear them over its roar.
Tiernan. Alaric. Did they move back in time? How far did the fire spread? It was everywhere. There was no end to it. I had to make it stop.
Ice, I needed Finn’s ice. I tried to calm myself, drawing on my fear to form the frost at my core.
But it turned to steam before I could get it past my fingertips. No.
Strong hands gripped my shoulders, and I spun, met with a pair of glowing yellow eyes. Kade.
“Liana,” he said calmly, his own clothes falling away from his body in burning swaths and patches until he stood before me, naked, and in flames, “You can control this. Quiet your mind. Focus.”
“Where’s Alaric? Tiernan?” I cried, my body shaking.
“Don’t think about that. They’ll be fine… but you have to stop this.”
“I can’t.”
He gripped my shoulders tighter, shaking me, “You have to. The forest is burning faster than Finn can save it. Close your eyes and listen to me.”
I did as he told me.
Kade pulled me against him, wincing. Could my fire hurt him? His chest rose and fell steadily, “Breathe with me, that’s it. Slow. In… and out.” He rubbed soothing circles into my back, “Nothing matters except this. You and me, here. We’re alone. Safe. You’re safe, Liana.”
My breaths evened out, matching the rhythm of Kade’s bare chest pressed against my own. The tension broke and my body sagged against him.
“Good,” Kade said, “Now pull it back.”
I clenched my jaw and heaved, calling the fire. It came crashing back in a great wave.
“You are its master. Control it.”
The fire rebelled against me, fighting for another chance at escape, but I wouldn’t let it. I pulled and pulled—feeling the ball of flame at my core grow smaller and smaller. The searing orange light behind my eyelids lessened, until finally it was gone, and I stomped out what remained of it within myself.
Kade cupped the back of my head, “I knew you could do it,” I heard him say before my knees buckled and the world tilted. I slid from the edge and into the abyss.
No one spoke of what happened in the clearing. I had awoken in my bed, clothed, with my four males around me. It was night, and I had the distinct feeling none of them had left my side since our return to the palace.
“I’m sorry,” I said, relief flooding me at seeing all of them well and unscathed. My hands were clenched fists beneath the covers. I could still feel it, the power within me. Though it no longer begged for release, it was there, simmering beneath the surface of my skin.
Only days before I couldn’t conjure more than the flame of a candlewick. But today I burned an entire forest and nearly destroyed the neighboring village. It was a miracle no one was hurt.
Alaric reached for me from where he sat near my feet, but I recoiled from his touch. I was a danger to them. Until I could control my Graces, I would be a danger to my entire court.
Tiernan regarded me with sadness in his eyes, “It isn’t your fault. You didn’t ask for this.”
But I got it. Whether or not I liked it, it was my burden to bear. The guilt of what I’d done weighed on me, mingling with the guilt of not being honest with my males. I promised myself I’d come clean to Alaric and tell him the truth about the Mad King and the Blessed Blade, but I’d been a coward. Selfish. I didn’t deserve them… but I wanted to. And I would make it right.
“I haven’t been honest with all of you,” I began, mentally kicking myself—forcing the words from my mouth.
They listened in silence, not once remarking or interrupting me until I was finished.
“You should have told me,” Alaric said. The hurt in his eyes cutting me deeply—wrapping a vise around my heart. He set his jaw, and turned, rising from the bed. “Don’t let her out of your sight,” he said to the others, his voice straining, and walked from the room.
Finn let out a long breath, “I should go to the archives. See what I can dig up about the blade.”
Kade nodded, “Go, we’ll stay with her.”
None of them were looking at me. They were all still processing the information, trying to work out a solution. The Mad King was supposed to be dead. The Blessed Blade was supposed to be a myth. It was a lot to take in.
Finn offered me a small nod as he stood, “We’ll figure this out. It’ll be alright.”
“Will it?” I challenged him, a dual meaning in my question. It wasn’t only my own life I worried about, it was theirs, and the fear they’d never trust me again.
He narrowed his eyes at me, tilting his head to one side, after a moment he said, “It will,” and left.
I was utterly drained, and all I really wanted was to be alone, but I knew now that would be impossible. There would be no more exploring the tunnels in the middle of the night or concealing my nightmares from them. They were duty bound to protect and serve, but it was more than that. The fear was plain on their faces. If the Mad King could corrupt my own handmaid, then there wasn’t a soul in the palace who we could trust.
I knew it. And now they knew it too.
Tiernan went out onto the terrace, the faraway look in his eyes telling me he was in deep thought, trying to work out the problem I’d presented him.
Kade moved from his seat in the far-off corner of the room, extending his hands with a half-hearted smirk on his face, “Come here.”
When I didn’t obey, he pulled me from the bed and into a heated embrace, trapping me against his still-bare chest. “You’re an idiot,” he stated, whispering the words against my hair.
I half laughed, and half cried, wrapping my arms around his middle. At least I couldn’t hurt Kade. He could withstand both my fire, and my ice. The immense relief calmed my racing heart, “But I’m your idiot.”
“Yes. You are.”
Chapter Six
Life had to go on as though nothing had happened. The Fae of my court couldn’t find out what we knew about the Mad King. And having burned an entire forest to cinders, it was more imperative than ever that my Graces remained a secret. So, when the council requested a feast in Valin’s honor, I couldn’t say no. I had to smile, and nod, and say yes, of course. What a brilliant idea. And, yes, of course I’ll attend.
With Valin back on his feet, Alaric had been a ghost. He’d been questioning the thought-to-be-dead warrior and trying to get to the bottom of where he’d been the past several years since he vanished from court.
“It seems a little too convenient, doesn’t it?” Tiernan mused, getting that faraway look in his deep green eyes again. He paced the length of my bedroom with long purposeful strides, making me even more on-edge than I already was.
Kade and Finn were readying themselves for the feast, and Alaric was gods-knew-where. He was avoiding me again—though this time I didn’t blame him.
I fussed with my hair, unable to force it to conform to the shape I tried to put it in. I really needed to select a new handmaid. A sharp pain lanced through my chest at the thought, and I worked to expel the memory of Thana from my mind.
“Maybe he just needs more time to heal, then he’ll remember,” I said, “Besides, we have bigger problems, don’t you think?”
Finally, I was able to secure the pin in the right place to hold my long silver hair away from my face, and sighed, dropping my arms to my sides.
“About that,” Tiernan said, falling to one knee before me and taking my hand. “You said you got this from Morgana’s chamber, right?”
I pulled my hand away, spinning the ring on my finger and nodded. “It’s the missing stone from the Blessed Blade.”
He shook his head and rose to his full height, looking like a dark prince in his black and purple tunic. “Not that, you already told us you saw the missing stone. My uncle—he was a scribe, and he practically raised me. He had a store of old scrolls at his house. He had this… obsession with ancient myth and old verses. There was this one I remember—it told of the Blessed Blade.”
