Page 71 of Emylia

I didn’t realize I was still watching Maalikai until our eyes met. The flutter in my heart was instant. Consuming. I wanted to look away, but I couldn’t. His eyes darkened, swimming with shadows; there was something in them that I didn’t recognize. Intrigue? No, it was more than that.

Desire?

Lust?

What the heck was wrong with me? Maalikaimayhave some weird, inexplicable interest in me but anything other than random curiosity seemed unlikely. And this wasn’t the moment to get caught up in fantasies of what potentially could manifest between us.

Things between Sebastian and I were fragile in ways I couldn’t ignore. There was too much unspoken between us, too much uncertainty. Small fissures had started to crack the foundations of our relationship, unless we found our way through those obstacles, it would break wide open, sealing a fate that neither one of us could repair. Bringing Maalikai into that mess would only complicate everything further—it would only turn uncertainty into chaos.

Yet my skin was feverish under Maalikai’s stare, my cheeks blossoming in the brightest shade of scarlet.

Sebastian had always felt like my perfect half, like we were destined for each other. A prophecy not bound to parchment—it was scattered in stardust, scribed in the wind and built of blood and ash, carried on the breath of the forgotten Gods.

This thing between Maalikai and I, was different.

Maalikai didn’t see me for who I was, he saw me for the person I could be if I believed in myself. He found the ember buried deep within my soul and fed it with something wild. And just like that, I was no longer a spark. I was a storm of flame. I was an inferno. With him, I knew I would be impossible to stop.

How could I choose between them?

And why would I want to?

And most importantly why was I flirting with the idea that any of this was plausible?

I was eighteen, and I had only just received my first kiss.

I was pathetic.

Beyond pathetic.

Afraid Maalikai would see straight through me, I couldn’t hold his stare. My dark lashes swept down, hiding my eyes from his gaze. Heat spread down my neck, and I knew the color of freshly spilled blood stained my cheeks, only embarrassing me further. I forced myself to take a deep breath and began to count to ten.

It could’ve just been a coincidental lock of eyes, absolutely meaningless. By the time I’d reached the count of six, I couldn’t take the suspense any longer. Peeking through my lashes, I stole a quick glimpse at him.

Oh, crap.

He was looking directly at me in that sultry, ‘I know you want to kiss me’ kind of way. The side of his lip twitched into an amused smile; he was taking every ounce of satisfaction from my obvious awkwardness.

A scream broke my trance. My eyes snapped up as another scream reverberated in my ears. Everyone froze, the entire town square coming to a complete stop as people tried to figure out where the chaos was coming from. I saw my uncle looking around, vigorously scanning the crowd for the source of the commotion.

A third scream drew everyone’s attention to the road leading toward the town square from the north. It was on the opposite side of the tables from me. I peeked over people’s heads to see what the ruckus was and saw flashes of clothes saturated in thick, red blood.

My uncle swept up from his chair, and all Nexus broke loose; it was a mottled mess of chaos. I was on my feet in seconds, and so was everyone else.

It was pandemonium.

Women screamed, men shouted, and children were being picked up and taken into homes. Chairs were being pushed back and dropped; food was spilling off the tables.

What the heck was going on?

I hadn’t moved, still trying to make sense of what had caused the panic. The crowd moved without rhyme or reason, everyone frantic to feel safe. Sebastian stood beside me also trying to figure out what was happening before moving from my side. A sword was already in his hand, like he was ready to fight to the death.

Finally, in a break of the masses, I saw him properly. Scarlet stained his body, soaking what must have been taupe clothing before his injuries. His hair was matted around his face, and it looked like tar dripped down his head, but I knew it was blood.

The man stood between two buildings, leading into the center of the town. He took an unsteady step forward, swaying on his feet, like he struggled to stand. His hand clutched his side, and I saw it bulging out as if his insides were about to fall outside his body.

My jaw clenched. Fear flickered–but I smothered it. Panic might’ve broken others, but I refused to let it claim me. My hand went absently to my thighs, trying to grasp a dagger that was hidden beneath my skirts, before Sebastian stopped me

“Here, take mine, but keep it out of sight,” Sebastian whispered, handing me a short dagger. I pocketed it in my dress, still holding the hilt, thanking my mother for the foresight of creating pockets in the dress.

---