Page 15 of Heart of Night
Air leaves me in a rush. “Why? Not that I’m intending to go…”
“Ephegos is bound to send a lady’s maid with you if you are to join Erina’s court,” she explains as if that’s all the reason she needs to participate in a journey of doom.
I need to sit on the edge of the bathtub before my knees give out. “What makes you even think I would want to take you with me? You poisoned me last time we met.”
Kaira’s brown eyes widen then narrow as if she’s pondering her response. Her hand glides over her leathers, smoothing out some of the awkward angles where they aren’t properly secured. She appears harmless, yet the steel on her body tells me she can strike fast if she wants to.
“I merely brought the tea.”
I blow out a breath, letting both my fear and anger dissipate on the wafts of steam.
“All I wanted was to meet you, and the tea gave me a perfect opportunity.” She twists her mouth as if realizing she just said too much, but the words are out, and I’m like a bloodhound now that I have someone in front of me who might have answers.
“So, why did you want to meet me so badly?” I fumble with my torn sleeve, pretending curiosity isn’t burning a hole into my belly. And definitely ignoring the sense of dread that every passing moment conjures in my chest at the thought of going back to Tavras.
Kaira gestures at me as if that’s answer enough before she explains. “You’re a legend already. You broke a millennia-old curse on a mythical people. Crows are fairytale creatures in Eherea. Even in Askarea, hardly anyone has seen them in over a hundred years. You are a human turned Crow Queen. And—” She lowers her gaze, blushing to her hairline as she fidgets on the spot like a little girl.
“And what?” I don’t let her out of my sight even for a heartbeat. I’ve learned my fair share of trusting fairies, Herinor being the latest addition to the list of creatures who hurt me despite what they speak in words. His warning floats to my mind.
I’m your ally. Probably the only one you have in this place, so play along
If Herinor is to be trusted, Kaira might be just another enemy. But something about the way she glances up at me tells me there is more to her than just the part-Flame.
“Spit it out, Kaira.”
The woman nods, shoulders lifting with an inaudible sigh. “You found love strong enough to break a god’s curse.” Her eyes lock on mine as if searching for answers there.
I’m almost certain all she can find is a mirror of the pain crashing through my chest at the mention of said love. A love strong enough to break a god’s curse. But also a love that has destroyed me.
“It doesn’t matter now how I feel for him, does it? He’s dead.”
Kaira flinches at my words, but she recovers quickly, straightening her spine and gesturing at the water behind me. “Why don’t you take a bath while we talk? I promise not to poison you.” She adds the last words with a little smile, and I almost want to smile back, but it hurts too much, the memory of the male who brought my heart back to life only to leave me behind in this realm of the living where suffering has no end.
“Tell me what the poison was for, and I’ll think about it.” It’s the least I can do. She snuck into the bathing room behind Ephegos’s back after all and came to tell me about what his plans are.
She picks up a washcloth from the stack on the shelf beside the tub and holds it out to me. “I already said I merely brought the tea. I didn’t add any poison.”
“How do I know you’re telling the truth?” I’ve been burnt too many times trusting the wrong people. If I open up to anyone, trust anyone, and it proves to be a mistake, I don’t know if I’ll survive it.
Clio and Royad are the only people left who I can call friends, and I have no idea if Royad is still alive with the Flames hunting for survivors, and Clio… I wish I had any indication she survived the explosion. A heaviness settles in my chest at the thought of how truly alone I am in this mess.
“How many Crows are left in the Seeing Forest?” I ask Kaira, eyeing the russet cloth in her hand warily. “Did the hunters return successful?”
Kaira gives me a long look. “The hunters came back two men short.”
Hope surges in my chest. If two Flames died on the hunt for the Crows, they might still be out there, fighting. Maybe Royad is among them, taking his place as Myron’s heir and the Crow’s rightful king.
It takes me a moment to notice the sadness in Kaira’s words, but when I do, I lock eyes with her, finding the inconspicuous brown of her irises full of worry.
“Was one of them a friend of yours?” It’s not exactly a question I should be asking a fairy I don’t trust and who has no reason to trust me, but I’m curious about the dynamics of the Flames’ community, their hierarchy. The more I learn about the enemy, the better.
At least, for a heartbeat, I think so. Then I remember I’m about to be taken back to Tavras, far from the fairylands.
“I wouldn’t consider anyone here a true friend.” Kaira’s voice is hushed to a near whisper, and she glances over her shoulder, hand at her weapon as if expecting to find Ephegos in the doorway—or one of the other Flames she doesn’t consider a friend. Only when she’s convinced herself the door is still closed and we’re alone in here does she relax and her features turn less guarded.
“Look, I know you don’t trust me or anyone in this house, but you can believe me you’re not alone in that. I don’t trust anyone who considers Ephegos a friend. Our Matrone does, and so do our warriors. They followed him blindly into a quest to regain our old seat of power. For thousands of years, the Flames have been scattered across the lands of Askarea, the borderlands to Tavras, and some have even moved on farther south in hopes of making a new home. But there’s a core of Flames who aren’t willing to let go. Matrone Jeseida is a direct descendant from the line of Flame leaders who fled the palace in the Seeing Forest. Her ancestors never gave up plotting to take back their home, but there were never enough Flames ready to aid her cause. It’s only since Ephegos joined our ranks that my people have been rallying for a final strike.”
My blood is pounding in my veins as she lays out Flame history in front of me like a peace offering, and it costs me all I have not to attack her with hundreds of questions. There is only one I need to ask since Flames are actual fairies and I have no knowledge of their workings. “When you say line of Flame leaders, do you mean Flames are mortal? Like humans?” Because if they are, it might give me an advantage when I try to make my escape the moment they put me into a carriage to Meer.