Page 163 of Rising Out of the Darkness
Here, I was surrounded by everything I loved. Nature, family, Declan. For once, it felt like the dark haze that had haunted me for my entire life had been lifted. Even if it was just for this small moment, I was going to live it.
The hum of laughter skimmed over me as we approached the large wooden table where everyone was seated. Plates of meats, potatoes and vegetables were spread around the table, and everyone was helping each other fill their plates.
Sitting together with the stars as our lights was one of the most calming yet surreal moments of my life. Everyone’s smiles wound around my heart like a protective shield, filling in all the cracks and tears that life had torn in it over the years. Every one of them had given me a sense of strength when my own had faltered. I would always be indebted to them for that. They had all saved me in more ways than they would ever know.
Clara filled my cup with another long pour of wine. “Would you like to help me work on Lenora’s elixir tomorrow, and one for Declan as well?”
“Of course. Though, I’m just not sure how helpful I’ll be.”
“Pfft,” she scoffed into her cup. “Your father told me all about your brilliant brain and your knowledge of herbs and flowers.”
I looked up over my cup just in time to meet my father’s gaze. He raised his cup towards me, and I smiled in return.
“He also showed me the largest field of herbs and flowers I’ve ever seen. I felt like I woke up and stepped into the heavens.” She squeezed my biceps with glee. “I can’t wait for you to see!”
After dinner, we all helped clean the tables. Declan, Killian and my father had been talking in the corner for a while, and anxiety had begun to curl inside my stomach from their stern expressions. When Killian embraced Declan and their faces shifted to smiles, I finally was able to take a deep breath.
As I wiped down the table with a wet cloth, someone cleared their throat cleared behind me. When I turned, I was surprised to see it was Killian.
“Lena, can we talk?” He rocked nervously on his heels, awaiting my reply. I nodded, and his shoulders relaxed.
“Let’s take a seat over there.” Killian motioned me over to the center of the city, where the fire pits sat unlit. Lowering himself onto one of the giant logs, he patted the spot next to him. As I sat down, Killian extended his hand and the fire pit ignited in front of us.
“Showoff.” I smiled, and he gave me a sheepish grin.
“You looked a little cold.”
“Chivalry still exists out here in the Rebellion City.” I bumped my shoulder against him as he let out a breathy laugh. Silence lingered for a few moments as I let him gather the courage to say whatever he needed to say.
“Yesterday, your father told you about the Guardians, yes?”
I nodded.
“What he didn’t get a chance to tell you was that I was the one he was training to be the next Guardian. When you were born, I was meant to be your protector after Ascension. I’m so sorry I kept the fact that I was your Guardian secret from you. I—I never meant to?—”
Interrupting him, I placed my hand over his and squeezed.
“It’s okay, Killian, I know everything you all did was to protect me. Your secret didn’t hurt me, and honestly, I’m glad to know that I had another pair of eyes watching over me in that damn castle. Honestly, it makes sense now.” I laughed. “I was beginning to feel like I couldn’t get away from you or Liam. I was thankful when I started to zephyr because I could be stealthier.”
A grin spread across his face as he rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, it is a part of my job. Though you didn’t make it easy.”
“Declan doesn’t call me Wildfire for nothing.”
Killian ran his hands through his hair. The muscle in my jaw clenched, and I prepared myself for the words that might come out of his mouth. After the past couple of days, I expected the unexpected. Nerves woke my slumbering dynamis, and it prickled like needles against my insides.
“You need to be careful, Lena,” he said, his gaze locking to mine. “Now more than ever.” Fear rose up my throat, so I swallowed it back down. “I’m serious. You’re the last of the bloodline, and the only one in several centuries to have the Light Phoenix dynamis. Our kingdom has been waiting for you for a very long time. This is not the time to be reckless.”
I winced at the word “reckless”.
A deep sigh came from beside me, followed by a heavy hand on my shoulder. “You’re not the problem, Lena. It’s everyone else that I’m concerned about. You’ve had a target pinned on your back since they discovered your dynamis, and now that you’ve disappeared, they’ll be desperate to find you.”
Fidgeting uncomfortably, I tried to push down the increasingly sharp pinpricks of my dynamis. This would have been the perfect time to push out these emotions with my Tempest dynamis, but unfortunately, it only worked with others’ emotions…not my own.
“Killian, should I leave?” My teeth gnawed against my bottom lip. “Am I putting everyone in this city in danger?”
“We’ve always lived with the threat of danger, Lena.” He winked and my shoulders relaxed a smidge. “It comes with the title Rebellion. Promise me you’ll be careful. We cannot lose you. You’ve become a part of our family.” He smiled, then it fell. “Declan can’t lose you either, I fear—it would…break him entirely.” His eyes misted over as he fought to remain stoic.
“At first, I was upset when Warren told me to remain at the castle until your Ascension ceremony. I couldn’t wrap my head around why he didn’t want me to come with his family to Lostburrow. After a while, I realized he wanted Dec and Liam to rub off on me a little more.” He laughed under his breath. “Liam and Declan grew to be like brothers to me, and it almost shattered me when we almost lost Dec the first time.”
