Page 103 of Lady of Ashes

“Show me,” Tula demanded.

Scarlett raised a hand and white ?ames danced there. Tula gasped, and Scarlett’s smile widened as she sent her shadows among them. Then she lifted her other hand and blew across it, small snow?akes ?ying into Tula’s face. Her giggles ?lled the air, and Scarlett began showing her a few other things.

“Briar is here with Ashtine,” Rayner said, and Sorin looked up from the pair to ?nd Rayner had crossed the distance to them. A moment later, Briar and Ashtine entered the hall, making their way over. Tula had plopped herself onto the ?oor, watching Scarlett with wide eyes, and a few other children had made their way over to watch, too. She clearly hadn’t noticed the other two Royals arriving.

“How is she?” Briar asked quietly.

“She is … surviving,” Sorin answered, not liking that ‘surviving’ was the word he had to use to describe her right now. “She is enjoying these quiet moments before having to go behind closed doors with everyone again.”

“Why does the child have a necklace of skystone?” Ashtine asked, seemingly oblivious to their conversation.

Sorin’s eyes darted to Tula, and, sure enough, a thick chain had slipped from beneath the shirt she wore. A symbol that could only be described as a tangled knot hung from the chain. Temural’ssymbol, the god of the wild and untamed. The amulet itself was made of some black metal or stone. The chain it hung from was ivory with silver threaded through it, but it wasn’t skystone itself. Skystone was brilliantly white with silver whorls running through it. This was too muted to be skystone. The necklace looked similar to any other spirit amulet.

Scarlett looked up at Ashtine’s question, her silver eyes bright with the use of her magic. “What is skystone?”

“Stone only found in the Shira Cliffs in the Wind Court,” Briar answered.

“On our highest cliffs that sit amongst the clouds,” Ashtine said, her tone full of curiosity. “It is said that Sefarina herself touches those stones. That they are wind-kissed.”

“What?” Scarlett asked, pushing suddenly to her feet. “What did you just say?”

Ashtine’s head tilted as she studied Scarlett. “You have heard that term before.”

“Is it rare?” Scarlett asked. “This skystone.”

“Very,” Briar answered. “I have only seen true skystone a handful of times in my life.”

“I do not think that is skystone, Asthine,” Sorin ventured. “I think it just looks incredibly similar.”

“That is skystone,” Ashtine said. “If Nasima were here, the silver visible on that chain would move like the winds.”

“Where is Nasima?” Scarlett asked, and Ashtine stiffened, stepping back from her.

“That is a topic for another time,” Briar said ?rmly.

Scarlett glanced between the two of them before she nodded. “You are sure that is skystone?”

“I am,” Ashtine replied, then she turned to Briar. “I am going to go for a walk.”

“I will come with you,” he answered, concern clouding his normally twinkling eyes. “Send a message when you are ready to meet again,” he added, before falling into step beside Ashtine.

Sorin turned back to ?nd Scarlett crouched before Tula, her ?ngers running over the child’s necklace. “Tula, where did you get this?”

“It’s mine,” the little girl replied defensively, trying to tug the necklace free from Scarlett’s hand.

“But where did you get it?” Scarlett pressed.

“I found it,” she mumbled, her baby blue eyes going to the ?oor. She clearly thought she was about to be reprimanded.

“Yes, but where, Little Bug?” Scarlett urged softly, turning the amulet over again.

“That night when the bad man had me. And you were there and Cassius and Nuri and the other girl,” Tula said, tears pooling in her eyes. “They took me away and put me in a room. I was sitting on the ?oor, in the corner, and found a hole in the wall. It was in there. It looked like the one you always wear.”

“It was hidden?” Scarlett asked.

“I took it,” she cried, her lower lip trembling. “I know it wasn’t good, Scarlett. But I was looking at it, and the man came back, and I didn’t want to get in trouble.”

“Shh, Little Bug,” Scarlett soothed, pulling the child into her arms. “I am not upset with you.”

---