Page 5 of The Bones of the Cursed

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- ALANIS -

A NEW HOME

I’m pacing my bedroom in my small cottage after a night unable to sleep. The morning sun shines through the curtains as I hold my steaming cup of coffee. Staring out the window, I can see the outline of the city of Percius. The back of my cottage faces the Obsidian Hills, but from the front I can just make out the king and queen’s castle in the center of the city, a stunning behemoth unlike anything I expected. I always pictured dark stone walls and a moat.

I definitely expected a moat.

And a drawbridge.

When we had first arrived, it was surreal. As I disembarked the ship for the dock, I met the gaze of a blond Fae, his face rigid but his eyes bright, before I quickly glanced away. We were directed towards wagons that waited to take the refugees to their assigned homes, but he stared at me so long I had to fight the urge to look back as the wagon left the harbor behind. As the wagon bounced over cobblestone streets, I stared in awe: The castle was a magnificent white brick giant that seemed more like a town itself than a house to live in. Honeysuckle twined its way up the white brick facade, and deep purple flowers decorated thefront lawn.

Everything about my new home was magical. There was a shop specifically for herbs to help with spells. Fae used their powers for daily tasks out in the open. On my way to work every morning, I passed an older man outside a flower shop forming water from seemingly nowhere to care for his plants. A young female created a gust of wind to clear the dirt from her side walk. A child levitated a ball before tossing it towards his friend.

Back home in the Caselian Realm, magic like that would have gotten us killed. It had certainly made my mother want to get rid of me.

I stare down at my hands clasping my mug. Being in a place so accepting of magic, I no longer fear whatever powers thrum in my veins, though I still have no clue how to wield them. When I hear Elion walk into the kitchen, pouring himself a cup of coffee, I leave my room to join him at the table.

“What’s on the agenda today?” I ask, his eyes avoiding my own. The silence stretches longer than I can handle. Reaching across the table, I rest my hand on his. “Elion? What is it?”

“I was assigned a patrol mission. I’m supposed to leave tomorrow morning.”

The coffee sours in my stomach. “Where?”

“We start in Selianthe and will end at the northernmost patrol point of the Sinwood Mountains.”

The meager contents of my stomach threaten to make a reappearance as my nerves get the best of me. “You can’t. You told me yourself how dangerous those mountains are. All manner of evil creatures lives there.” I pause, catching my breath. “And what about the disappearances? Don’t think I didn’t hear you and Levi talking about your friend who went missing in those mountains while hunting.”

Elion exhales, his gaze unwavering as he squeezes my hand in reassurance. “This is my job, Lani. If I can help figure outwhy people keep disappearing then I need to do it. We know firsthand what it is like to lose a loved one, what if I can give someone theirs back?”

My eyes quickly fill with tears as I stare at my older brother. He has always been my hero, there to protect me and help with whatever I need. But I know I can’t ask him not to go. Releasing a breath, I stand, pulling him towards me for a hug. “You have to promise to send me updates so I know you are safe.”

He kisses the top of my head. “Of course. I will be back by the end of the week.”

Pulling away, I nod, wiping the wayward tear from my cheek. “Promise?”

He smirks, tugging me back towards his chest. “Promise. And when I get back, you owe me a rematch from that game of cards you cheated at last night.”

Laughing, I push him towards the door. “I didn’t cheat, you’re just a sore loser.”

He pulls me outside with him and insists on training before he leaves for work. “Just like dad always said, it’s better to be prepared.”

I go to reach for my dagger that is always on me, but Elion shakes his head. “Just fists today.”

Grumbling, I take a fighting stance. When he jabs forward, I feign to the right, ducking and quickly jabbing at his gut. His grunt is the only outward sign I made contact. “Lucky hit, sis, won’t happen again.”

Before I can even come back with a sarcastic response, he ducks low, grabbing me around the waist and effectively knocking me to the ground. I purse my lips and shove my knee up, bucking my hips to try to dislodge him, but the heavy brute presses down harder.

“Do you forfeit?” he asks with a cocky smirk on his face.

“Never.” I wiggle around, trying to find a way to escape, butsoon he’s tickling me, which I hate more than anything. It is unbearable as I laugh and squirm. “All right, all right. I forfeit.”

He smiles proudly even though he cheated. I lay there gasping for breath as he stands when a devious thought comes to me. Quickly, without making a noise, I sit up and hook my foot around his ankles. He falls with a thud, glaring at me.

I stand, brushing the dirt off my clothes and tsking when I give him my hand to help him up. “Father also said to never turn your back on an enemy.”

Elion rolls his eyes but laughs. “Don’t ever forget it, either.”

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