Page 2 of Shardless

“Okay!” The young fey girl placed a sloppy kiss on her mother’s cheek before lunging for the bed. She bounced once, then twice before throwing the faded quilt over her head.

“Eyes closed!” Breena said, watching the lump on the bed suspiciously. Almost immediately, the blankets started to rhythmically rise and fall.

Satisfied that her daughter was truly asleep, Breena dimmed the lamps and followed her brother down the stairs.

The main room of the cottage consisted of a sparsely furnished, open space with a blue door that led to the garden path outside. A ceramic sink with a rusted iron spigot occupied one corner of the room, and a plain, wooden table and three mismatched chairs had been carefully arranged in the center of the kitchen area.

Breena slumped into a chair, shaking her head when Esmund offered her a cup of wine from an unmarked bottle.

“Someone almost saw her today.” The knight leaned against the sink, scowling into his own cup. “I thought you reinforced the spells.”

“I did,” Breena said with a tired sigh. “She burned through them again. Her magic is developing too quickly for me to keep up. Every time I try to lock it away, more bubbles to the surface.”

Esmund watched her impassively. “We’re only a few weeks out now. Once the Aion Gate opens—”

“I know. We’ll be back in Faro. Cori will be safe.”

“You don’t sound convinced.”

Breena sighed, picking at a crack in the table. “You were there that day. You saw the same thing I did, Essie.”

“That was just a human walking in the woods.”

“If you believe that, then you’re a fool.”

Esmund went quiet. Because hehadbeen there that day. He had seen the afternoon light dissolve into shadows. And just like her, he had quietly been making his own preparations.

After several long moments, Esmund pushed himself off the sink and strode for the door. “It’s time for my patrol.”

“Essie,” Breena called out, rising from the table.

Esmund paused, but didn’t turn.

“Thank you,” she said. “I’ve said it before, but… thank you.”

“It was my duty to come.”

“No, it was your duty to hand Cori over to the Crystal Guard.” And that’s exactly what he had tried to convince her to do—before she had shownhim why that wasn’t an option. “This went beyond duty. You didn’t have to come, you didn’t have to believe me, but you did. So… thank you.”

Esmund jerked his chin. “You’re my sister, and Atlas is my friend. There was never a decision to make.”

Breena smiled sadly, sinking back down into her chair as she watched her brother retrieve his sword and slip out into the night.

The soft snick of the door felt strangely final.

The first thing that Breena noticed was the heat. It was still early spring, and the chill of winter lingered in the air. Most mornings, she would bury her nose further underneath the blanket at the first sign of wakefulness.

But the heat was oppressive. It demanded her attention. Even in her languid state, she could sense the sweat beading and rolling down her skin.

“Breena! Wake up!”

Someone was urgently shaking her now. Finally coming to, she opened her eyes to find a very distressed Esmund standing over her.

“Essie? Whatever is the matter?” she mumbled, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

“The village is being attacked.” He moved frantically about the room, a blue aura emanating from his form and filling the tiny space. He held a crystal in his hand, casting water dousing spells ineach corner of the bedroom. The heat began to abate, bit by bit, as the harsh glow of the flames outside started to dim. “There was a commotion in the town square when I was doing my rounds. A mob—maybe 15 fire mages and a handful of water and shadow mages. They were asking about a girl. A time mage.”

Dread coiled in her stomach as Breena spurred into action, rushing out of the bedroom and into the main room. She could sense water magic casing the walls, holding back the tendrils of flames that already lapped at the exterior of the little cottage. Water crystals had been placed at each corner of the room, anchoring the spells that had been haphazardly woven together into a protective web.

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