Page 28 of The Stones for It
I swallowed down the urge to tug her closer, to take comfort in the conviction of her words. If this tiny mortal could stay brave in the face of such odds, then so could I.
With a steadying breath, I called on my magic. Dark swirls filled my palm, tingling beneath my skin until they condensed into a small throwing star. Like all my shadow weapons, an onyx gemstone decorated it. This time, it was embedded at the centre of the five points, creating a textured grip.
A covetous gleam lit Kelsea’s eyes as she stared at the little weapon, and I was half-tempted to summon more, just to see if she’d bite that luscious lower lip and ask for a closer look.
Instead, I focused my intent, shaping my will into the magic until it sought the essence of Neiron’s power in the ash. His magic was a wild, burning thing, scorching my insides as if I inhaled fire. I ignored the discomfort, latching on to the source and forcing his signature into the dark gemstone.
It glowed like a banked coal in my hand and tugged me in the north-eastern direction.
Kelsea’s attention hadn’t left my shadow weapon. The power of the gemstone reflected in her eyes until they seemed to hold a light of their own.
I hated how easy it was for her beauty to distract me.
A sneer creased my features. “Keep up, human.”
Chapter twelve
Kelsea
Dense ash crunched beneath my feet, but it was still softer than the rest of the jungle, despite the burnt twigs and crispy leaves hiding within. It was the only sound to pierce the tense silence of the charred graveyard.
At points, Vrath’s long strides forced me to jog to keep up, but I was eager to move. To feel like I was at least doing something.
I’d tried so hard to rid myself of both my fae mates, only to end up frantically searching for them. The irony wasn’t lost on me.
If it wasn’t for Vrath, I’d be sprinting around the forest, trying to shake answers out of anyone I could get my hands on. Sort of like my original plan before Neiron crashed into my life.
We crossed from the burn zone back into the lush jungle glow, but the heavy scent of wood smoke still cloyed my throat.
I couldn’t keep my anxiety from bubbling up a minute longer. “Just how accurate is your magic?”
Rattle had used a spelled rock to hunt me through the Scottish Highlands when I’d been Selected. It had seemed glitchy at best.
Sure, the Gargoyle King’s glowing shuriken was a thing of deadly beauty, but could it actually lead us to Neiron?
He glared at me over a spiked wing. “Do you have any better ideas, mortal?”
I suppressed an eye roll. “Not exactly.”
“Well, then, maybe hush those pretty lips and let me concentrate, hmm?”
I tsked at the giant’s back. “Such a sour sediment.”
“Do you enjoy baiting me, little one?”
“Yeah, actually. You’re so easy to rile up, Vrath Daddy.”
He lengthened his strides, pulling ahead, so that I had to jog again. I chuckled, but really, I was the one getting more twigs jabbing at my hurried feet.
Not exactly smart.
I’d only been to a rainforest once in the human realm. My unit had been sent on a military training exercise in case we were ever deployed to fight the more tropical fae castes.
The press of life had astounded me, before I’d realised I was getting eaten alive by the insects, and that any vine could be a secret snake ready to poison me. Oddly, not a single insect had bitten me here, but I was even more wary of the vines after one had strung me up for lamia bait.
I’d take a simple viper any day.
Given my role in the navy, I’d spent more time learning about aquatic fae. With hundreds of castes in existence, we were only briefed on the most important ones, such as the common water nymphs or rare but powerful sea dragons, like the surprisingly sweet teen who’d gifted me the scaled sheathe for my fae blade.
