Page 6 of A Blaze of Fire
“Ansel, please!”
Alec rolled his eyes and snatched the phone from my hand. “All right, brother, you had your chat. See you on the flip side.” And with that, he ended the call.
With my mouth ajar, I stared at Alec. “How could you—”
“Easy. I pressed the redendbutton.” He shrugged breezily and slipped his phone back in his pocket.
I fisted my hands at my sides, my blood boiling. “I wasn’t done talking to him!”
Alec whirled on me. “Well, I was donelisteningto you talk to him!” he barked. “You two are like a broken record. ‘Please let me sacrifice myself for you! No, please let me!’” he mimicked in a dramatically falsetto voice. “It’s exhausting! Neither of you are going to die for the other. Get over it!”
Alec stormed out of my room, leaving me dumbfounded. I stood there and wondered if I should follow him and argue some more.
I decided not to.
3
ALEC
The moment of truth was finally here. If I was being truthful with myself, there was a ball of nerves in my gut that wouldn’t go away. At any moment, Kazimir would breeze through the front door and demand to see what Violet could do, and I would have to try like hell to convince him that a test of the elements was a much better choice than a full-on demonstration. Kazimir wasn’t someone with whom you successfully bargained. You either did what he said or he killed you. There was never a third option.
Yet here we were.
Even though I was nervous, I couldn’t show it. I wasn’t kidding when I told Violet the Unseelie could smell fear. That was why I was sitting on the sofa with a bored expression while Violet paced the small basement, her emotions clearly written all over her face. If she knew how nervous I was, she would be even more terrified. I couldn’t do that to her.
The dreaded knock on the door finally came and Violet let out a squeak. I looked up and rolled my eyes at her before casually standing and striding across the room to open the door.
Before me was Kazimir, looking scarier than he ever had. He pushed past me without bothering to be invited inside. “I hope I’m not wasting my time,” he snarled.
“Never,” I replied easily. “But maybe it was hasty of the King to send you here when he could’ve just sent an escort with a message to take us to the Unseelie Court,” I suggested.
Kazimir froze and peered over at me with barely disguised distaste. “And why’s that?”
“You see, Violet’s powers have been dormant for all her twenty-five years, tamped down by an iron anklet. Kindling her powers will take time, but if we do a test of the elements, it’ll clear her immediately,” I said quickly.
Kazimir watched me carefully for any weaknesses before turning his attention to Violet, who looked nervous as hell. “And you think you can pass this test of the elements?” he asked pointedly.
I nodded emphatically behind him so she could see how I wanted her to answer.
“Y-Yes,” she stuttered.
“You don’t sound very confident,” Kazimir hinted. He whirled back around to face me with a disbelieving glare. “How sure are you about this girl?”
“Very sure.” I ignited my hand and strode to Violet, taking her hand in mine. Just like before, the fire spread and she grasped it like it was her own.
Kazimir tilted his head and crossed his arms over his chest, scrutinizing the display. “She could just be a fire elemental.”
That was true. And since Kazimir was a fire elemental, it would make sense. But her mother was the owner of the orb, which meant it must have passed to Violet when she was born.
“That’s why we must do a test of the elements to confirm she’s the owner of the orb,” I answered carefully.
Kazimir’s face was glacial, his stance threatening. “I told you not to waste my time,” he said coldly.
“I didn’t waste your time,” I argued. “The King did.” Baiting him like this would either save me or put me on the chopping block. Even so, there was only one way to find out.
Kazimir watched me closely as several excruciating minutes ticked by. When he finally chuckled, I had to stop myself from flinching from the bizarre sound. “You’re right. He did,” he agreed. “Well, then. Get your affairs in order, because first thing tomorrow morning, we’re leaving for the Unseelie Court.”
* * *
