Page 15 of A Kiss of Flame

‘I know that. What happened?’

Wren swallowed hard and then folded up to sit on the bed, her face hidden in her hands. ‘It went black. For a while. Just when Finn and I were there.’

Aelyn’s prophecy.

No, this was not happening. This couldn’t be happening. Not so soon.

‘Did he see?’ Wren nodded and Elodie sat beside her, feeling as if everything that held her upright had been cut away in an instant. ‘Did he tell anyone?’

Wren shook her head this time and Elodie wrapped her in her arms again. ‘He won’t. I don’t think he will. But he’s different with me. He’s avoiding me, avoiding being seen with me. I think maybe, he’s scared of me… or he hates me.’

The least of their problems, Elodie wanted to say, but it wasn’t the least of it to Wren, she knew that. She remembered. It was everything.

‘He doesn’t hate you. He’s probably equally scared as you. He’s from Ilanthus, remember? Of the line of Sidon? His family tried to sacrifice him to the Nox at the end of the war, to restore it. And the blood of the line of Sidon is tied to that dark power. He’s probably wondering what it means for him.’

And how to exploit it, no doubt. Elodie knew the line of Sidon too well. If Evander was still alive, he would be trying everything to get Wren into his power. Oh, he would have loved this.

Finnian Ward… that was another problem. If he was avoiding Wren for now so much the better but Elodie knew it wouldn’t last. Part of her said she should have killed him in that room in Knightsford. The pragmatic, calculating part. But he was just a young man and she hadn’t known how deeply entwined he and Wren were already. And as for what happened at the Seven Sisters…

Tearing them apart now would never work. Even if it was all Finnian Ward wanted in this world, he would never be able to leave Wren. Not anymore. She would draw him back. He was her creature whether he liked it or not. Wren had bound them together to save his life. Elodie hoped they saw it as love.

Even if Elodie killed him now, it probably wouldn’t take hold. Not for long.

She had to think. She had to work out what to do. And most of all, she had to protect Wren. That was vital.

‘Listen to me, little bird, if the time comes that anyone tries to put a crown on your head, you need to get away from this city as fast as you possibly can. Use any means necessary. I don’t care if you have to summon every shadow in the place to help you. You escape, you run and you never look back. Do you understand me? You make him help you. You command him.’

There was nothing else for it. For Wren’s own sake, and for the kingdom.

CHAPTER 8

ELODIE

Wren’s mouth fell open and her eyes glittered like shattered glass reflecting light. ‘But… but you said…’

‘I know what I said. I’m saying something much more important now. Tell me you understand.’

‘Any means necessary,’ Wren repeated woodenly, too shocked by this change to argue.

‘I wish it could be different, really I do. But… Wren, they can’t make you queen.’

‘Of course not. You’re the queen.’

‘I’m the queen,’ Elodie echoed and hated every syllable. She found a handkerchief in the pocket of her simple gown, and used it to wipe Wren’s face. She fussed with her hair and tidied her up and did all those motherly things Wren seemed to need at this moment. All the things they had never named as part of their relationship, but that were there between them all the same. And all the time her mind whirled through her options.

There had to be a way out of this.

And perhaps there was. But she couldn’t do it alone.

Elodie closed her eyes, praying for strength, for help, for anything. But she knew what she had to do.

‘Now, you need to go back to the palace. Come to see me again in a few days, if you can. They’ll let you in now. They’ll probably want to train you which might not be a bad idea. Sister Maryn is a shrewd teacher and she can help you, but never actually show them what the shadows will do for you. Only the light, understand?’

Wren nodded, words apparently beyond her now.

‘And don’t show them too much of that either. They know you’re powerful. They would expect that anyway, and they’ve interviewed everyone who was at the Seven Sisters already. But they will want your account. Just keep it simple. The Aurum helped you but you don’t know exactly what you did. And maybe… maybe they’ll believe us.’

It was a vain hope. Elodie knew they didn’t believe her, but what did that matter?