Voice of Dominion (The Spoken Mage Book 3)

by Melanie Cellier

  A carefree air hung over the camp, unlike its usual tones. I knew Beatrice and Reese had been hard at work to ensure the healing tents sat empty today, and we hadn’t had a raid or attack to refill it in two days. Even the Kallorwegians celebrated Midwinter.

  I heard hardly any murmurs of, “Spoken Mage,” as I walked, few of the soldiers recognizing me in my new attire. I didn’t mind, though. I was dressed for a different audience tonight.

  Torches lined the front steps of the Bronton mansion-turned-headquarters, and I got a glimpse of what the house must have been like when a Stantorn family lived here. Not that I would ever have been invited inside in those days.

  A footman announced Coralie, Saffron, Araminta, and me, and we joined the throng inside. It looked like every mage officer not on active duty must have been invited. I spotted Colonel Jennica, Captain Carson, and Lieutenant Martin. Even unfortunate Lieutenant Jackson, who had indeed been reassigned. The only familiar face I couldn’t see was Captain Matthis. But then he seemed the type to have little patience for these sorts of events—perhaps he had requested to be on duty for the night.

  The general held court half way across the room, but he looked up at our arrival. Turning away from his companions, he made his way straight to us, the crowd parting before him.

  He nodded a general sort of welcome to us all, but his attention was on me. I had seen the brief hesitation in his step when he got a good look at my gown, and he actually gave a ponderous bow over my hand now.

  “Spoken Mage.”

  It did not escape my notice that he used my popular title instead of my name as he usually did.

  “General.” I nodded back at him.

  “I wasn’t sure if we’d be seeing you here tonight.”

  I raised my eyebrows in subtle surprise.

  “I hear you’ve been extremely busy training,” he added before glancing at my dress again.

  His message was clear. To the Devoras family I had proved my value as a weapon. But that didn’t mean they were ready to see me as one of them.

  My eyes strayed across the rest of the room. They fell first on Lorcan who was watching us with a small smile on his lips. When I met his eyes, he dipped his head in a brief nod, raising his glass slightly in my direction.

  Lorcan and Jessamine had made it clear the previous year. To Callinos, I had earned my place among the ranks of the mages. But he looked just a little too pleased to see that Devoras had not yet come so far. Seeing his desire for my loyalty only made me want to pull away from him.

  But another figure caught my attention, and I watched him out of the corner of my eye as I pretended to listen to the general extricating himself and moving on to other guests.

  Lucas.

  He stood alone in the middle of the floor, his eyes on me. Instead of his usual formal red uniform, this year he wore black. Black uniform, black boots—only the gold sash across his chest alleviated the effect.

  I swallowed and moved toward him through the crowd without breaking eye contact. Dimly, I thought I heard Coralie say something behind me, but I didn’t catch the words. Lucas drew me magnetically forward until I stood in front of him, just within arm’s reach.

  Had Finnian known what the prince planned to wear? I didn’t need a mirror to know the picture we would create together. Black for death and mourning. Red and gold for blood and power and royalty. We were dressed to match—a royal couple in the midst of war—and the audacity of it made me tremble.

  “Elena,” Lucas breathed.

  “Lucas.” Somehow my voice remained steady.

  He put out a hand, and I put mine into it, letting him sweep me into the dance as the musicians began to play. He moved smoothly, and in his arms I could almost forget I didn’t really know how to dance.

  “You look…”

  “I’m sorry,” I said quickly. “Finnian—”

  His hand at my waist tightened at my friend’s name, and I fell silent. After a breath he relaxed, loosening his hold.

  “Ah yes. I should have guessed. The duke’s son has a dangerous mix of mischief and perception.”

  I stifled a laugh. That about summed Finnian up.

  “Maybe I shouldn’t have come tonight. The general certainly didn’t seem overjoyed to see me.”

  His hand at my waist tightened again, sending little currents of warmth shooting through my middle.

  “I’m glad you did.”

  The warmth turned into a raging fire.

  Lucas had never held me so close for so long. And it was all too easy to forget we were only dancing. To forget the many reasons we couldn’t be together. To forget he wasn’t willing to fight to change the laws that would truly allow us to be together. And, worst of all, to forget that the eyes of the mageborn surrounded us.

  After a pause that was far too loaded, Lucas spoke, commenting on the party, and the training we had been doing in class. As we conversed, our light words coasting over the charged moment between us, I remembered a time when we couldn’t speak without clashing. How angry I had been with him then. It seemed a lifetime ago.

  When the music ended, it took a moment for me to even notice. But as soon as I did, I stepped hurriedly back, giving the prince a small curtsy. He gave me a half bow in return, thanking me formally for the dance. But his eyes held a smile that was just for me.

  I hurried over to the refreshment table and downed a glass of cool juice. I hoped I didn’t look as flushed as I felt. I gave myself a moment to stand there, my back to the room, before turning back to face the sea of mages.

  My eyes immediately picked Lucas from the crowd. I couldn’t help myself. He was dancing now with Natalya, and my hand tightened so hard around my empty glass that I made myself put it carefully down.

  Of course he’s dancing with Natalya, I reminded myself. She’s the general’s daughter, her family is hosting the event. But I still hated the way she clung to him, pressing closer than the dance required. He said something quietly, and she laughed loudly in response. I made myself turn away.

  “Elena.” Dariela’s greeting startled me, and I hoped my thoughts hadn’t just been visible on my face.

  I nodded at her. “You look lovely.” Even without Finnian’s assistance, the Ellington girl had managed to produce an elegant looking gown with simple, slim lines.

  “Thank you,” she said before glancing away. When she looked back at me, guilt tinged her features.

  “We had this conversation once before, or near enough,” she said.

  My brow creased as I tried to think what she could be talking about.

  “Our first Midwinter at the Academy. And after I thanked you, I just walked away.”

  Now that she said it, I remembered. The sting of the rejection came rushing back to me, although the subsequent events of the evening had far eclipsed it. But that had been a long time ago, and a different Elena. I had no desire to hold onto that humiliation.

  “I didn’t know what to think of you then,” Dariela continued. “But I resented you.” She looked down at me, an apology on her face. “Not for being a commonborn, but for being a distraction. I don’t have time for distractions.”

  She took a deep breath. “But I am not above admitting my mistakes. Or apologizing for them. So you have my apology, Elena.”

  “Please don’t think of it,” I said. “We’ve all changed since then.”

  “You most of all.” She didn’t look at me as she spoke.

  I tracked the direction of her eyes, but she was watching Lucas and Natalya dance, so I looked quickly away again.

  “Yes, perhaps,” I said. “But then you were already brilliant from the beginning. You didn’t need to change.”

  She sighed. “My parents expect it, you know.”

  I gave her a confused look, but she still didn’t meet my eyes.

  “To be top of my year, better than everyone. They’ve been training me for it ever since the first hints of what my power might grow into. When Lucas joined our year, it was something of a
blow. He’s a year older and has had even more extensive training than me.” She shook her head. “My parents seemed pleased about it, though, so I assumed they wouldn’t expect me to beat him in everything. But I didn’t appreciate your arriving and bringing even more chaos to my careful plans.”

  “That makes two of us,” I muttered. “Attendance at the Academy didn’t exactly fit in with my plans, either.”

  She chuckled. “I can imagine. I just…I wanted you to know. Friendship certainly never occurred to me. It was a distraction I could never afford. Even among my true peers.” She winced. “Sorry, I didn’t mean—”

  I waved her apology away.

  “Well, you aren’t my peer, really,” she said. “You’re something set apart, something entirely new. My mistake was in thinking that put you below me. That you were an obstacle, instead of someone I could learn from.”

  I made a soft sound of protest, but this time she was the one waving me to silence.

  “I fought creditably in that gully,” she said, and I respected her for not bothering with false modesty. “I was proud of myself even, to fight so well as only a third year trainee. But then you came along and ended the battle. And just in time for me, as it turned out. I owe you, and I’m not one to forget my debts.”

  “I don’t want your sense of obligation,” I said slowly. “But I would appreciate your friendship.”

  She raised both eyebrows.

  “Friendship.” She said the word slowly, as if it were entirely new to her. “I suppose that would be an acceptable alternative. Are you sure, though? Credit with me might be worth something one day.”

  I froze awkwardly and then laughed when I saw the joking glint in her eye. Her sense of humor was drier than I had expected.

  Clarence wandered over to us. “Hi Dariela. Hi Elena.”

  We both greeted him back.

  “Would you like to dance, Dariela?”

  The other girl hesitated, and Clarence smiled.

  “Don’t worry, I’m not getting any ideas. It would just be nice to dance with a partner a little more my height for once.”

  A reluctant smile nudged its way across Dariela’s face.

  “Go on,” I whispered to her. “It is a dance, after all. No one’s grading us on this.”

  She rolled her eyes at me, clearly not quite comfortable with being teased yet, but offered her hand to Clarence. They disappeared into the dancers, and I watched them go with a smile. Until my eyes fell on Lucas, now dancing with Lavinia.

  When I looked quickly away, I realized I wasn’t the only one watching them. Colonel Jennica stood chatting with Reese, both with a glass in hand. They watched the prince dancing with Lavinia, smiles on their faces, and I remembered that they were both Stantorns, like her.

  Stantorns like my attacker from first year who had apparently died in prison—except for the fact that I had seen him alive and well among the Stantorns. Lucas hadn’t believed me. His mother’s precious family would never be involved in treason.

  And yet here we were, with treason stalking us again. My party mood soured. Devoras might have come some way toward changing their view of me, but I couldn’t imagine Stantorn would ever see me as anything but an invading commonborn. The question was how far their disgust might drive them.

  I was considering leaving the party completely when Coralie searched me out. She looked stunning, and I could tell she knew it. Her cheeks glowed, and her eyes kept creeping to Finnian, who had barely left her side all evening. But she insisted I join them.

  Together they drew me back into laughter and the spirit of Midwinter. And I remembered that I was allowed to put the war and treason and death and training away for a single evening. All I had to do was pretend it didn’t hurt to see the glances Finnian and Coralie stole when they thought I wasn’t watching. The sort of glances I wished I could share with someone who hadn’t spoken to me since our one dance.

  Finnian broke away from Coralie long enough to dance with me. And Clarence invited me, too, despite my diminutive size. I danced with them both but rejected all other offers. Because being on the dance floor only brought me pain from the magnetic pull still connecting me to my first partner.

  As I spun around, occasionally our steps brought us close together, my heart beating hard every time our eyes swept past each other or his sleeve brushed against me, the skirt of my dress sliding along his leg.

  It was an exquisite torture, and I could only endure so much. When midnight chimed, I slipped away from Coralie and Finnian. A backward glance told me they were too distracted by each other to notice as I left the building.

  Chapter 17

  I stopped in the neglected garden of the mansion, enjoying the feel of the cold night air on my face. I hadn’t realized how hot it had grown inside.

  “You look stunning,” said a voice behind me, and I didn’t startle.

  Only now, as his voice surrounded me in a warmth all its own, could I acknowledge even to myself that this was why I had left. When midnight sounded, his birthday began, and I had hoped to speak to him alone. Had hoped he would come after me.

  It scared me to admit it, even in the silence of my own mind.

  “Shouldn’t you be inside receiving birthday congratulations?” I asked, without turning to look at him.

  The crunch of his boots on the cold ground sounded, and then he came into my line of sight. The moonlight outlined his dark hair, shining off the circlet of gold and the gold at his chest. My heart squeezed painfully.

  “There’s only one birthday congratulation I want,” he said, his eyes steady on my face.

  “Happy Birthday,” I whispered.

  “Elena, I—”

  He broke off, and I wanted to tell him not to bother. That we had been here before.

  But the words wouldn’t form. Because whatever my head said, my heart refused to accept it. And because I wasn’t so sure even my head agreed anymore.

  He stepped close. Too close. One hand reached out and gently cupped my cheek before tracing down my neck, across my shoulder and down my arm to my hand.

  My whole body trembled at his touch. But I forced myself to sway away from him.

  “Lucas—” My dry mouth struggled to say his name. I swallowed and tried again. “Lucas, what are we doing?”

  “It’s so busy at the camp,” he said, his voice low. “I can’t get you alone there.”

  “Why…why do you want me alone?” I asked.

  “I wanted to finish saying to you what I tried to start saying after the attack. When we were interrupted.” He gripped my hand in his, his thumb tracing circles on my palm, and the touch made it hard to think.

  “I told you that when we came to the front, you would realize I was right,” he said, but his voice didn’t turn the words into an I told you so. I tried to untangle the expression in his eyes.

  “But the truth is,” he continued, “I was the one to learn you were right.”

  “Me?” I shivered, wondering if the moonlight was infecting my mind or his. “But I can see it now—what you meant, what’s been driving you all this time. I can see how important winning this war is, how many lives are being lost. Only…I can’t do it.” Unshed tears gathered in my eyes. “I can’t be your weapon, Lucas.”

  He sucked in a breath. “I don’t see you as a weapon, Elena. I don’t want to send you out to kill.”

  I peered into his face, trying to read the truth of his words there. He pulled me closer to him.

  “I could never want that for you. But there are lots of ways you could help the war, lots of ways your strength could be used to our advantage. And there is always the possibility that you might unlock some further secret regarding how we access power. One that all of us could then apply. When it comes to you, the possibilities seem endless.”

  He shook his head. “Ending the war has been my focus for so long. I couldn’t let anything else in to distract me. And yet suddenly there you were, filling my heart and mind. It exhilarated and terrified me a
t the same time. I thought if I agreed to try to bring change to our laws, to our mindsets, to everything about the way we run our kingdom, I would be leading all of Ardann down the same path of madness that had swallowed me.”

  “You were trying to do what you believed was right,” I said softly, shaken by the intensity of his expression. “And I can finally see why the war has been so important to you. How important it is to all of us. Just think if all these young lives could be used elsewhere instead of needlessly lost.”

  “Yes.” His eyes were hard. “We must stop the war. But being here has helped me to see that the war isn’t separate to the rest of the kingdom’s issues. They’re entwined together.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Another gentle tug pulled me closer still. We now stood as near as possible without fully touching. Each time he breathed, his gold sash brushed against my dress. My own breathing hitched.

  “You want change,” he whispered. “Change in the way we see the commonborns. And you’re right.”

  “I…I am?” I wished his nearness didn’t scramble my brain so completely.

  “That attack in the gully would never have happened if an incompetent child hadn’t been placed in command over experienced soldiers.”

  I refrained from pointing out that the child in question was older than both of us.

  “With only mages acting as officers, we spread ourselves thin, unable to work together because we must each lead a squad. No one asks the commonborn for ideas, no one listens when they speak. Who knows what ideas, what military genius might be lying out there untapped?”

  He gestured toward the tents around the town.

  “Perhaps if we truly used all of the kingdom’s resources, we could win this war without even needing our Spoken Mage. You were right when you said we can’t afford to wait for change. We need it now.”

  The inferno of hope that burst into life inside my chest hurt me with its fury. I struggled to hold it in bounds.

  “Are you saying…are you saying you’re ready to fight for change now?”