Page 100 of The Dagger and the Flame
Theo swatted it away. ‘First, we have to find a way to use it without accidentally killing ourselves in the process. And then, we’re going to destroy the monsters of Fantome and liberate the city.’ He rolled back on his heels, looking at Sera. ‘Easy enough, right?’
She told them about her idea of using the Aurore, and was relieved when they jumped at the chance to be part of her plan. It would be a thrill to be the heroes of Fantome for one night, and not just the thieves who crept about in its shadows.
The following day passed in torrential rain. While Theo flitted around the cloakroom in various states of stress, Sera, Val and Bibi came down to keep him company, chatting and laughing the hours away. Every so often, a wayward spark or minor explosion would yank them back to reality, but Theo would simply smile, assuring them it was all part of the process.
They broke for lunch and again for dinner, poring over their plan for the Aurore as more rain bucketed down. For three nights in a row Sera sat on her bedroom windowsill and waited for Ransom, tracing rivers of rainwater down the pane,but the ceaseless torrent kept him away. Meanwhile, down in the basement, Theo worked relentlessly into the night, brewing enough Lightfire to fill every flaming trough on the Aurore.
Sera didn’t dare risk returning to Old Haven to tell Ransom of their progress but as her worry about Dufort – and what exactly she was going to do about him – festered, she found herself wondering if the answer to her problem might lie with the Dagger she had befriended. If the man who yearned for freedom just as sorely as she did, might help her one more time.
If he might help himself.
On the fourth night after dinner, while Bibi and Val joined the other Cloaks for music and dancing in the drawing room, Sera brought Pippin for a walk in the garden, taking advantage of a brief break in the foul weather. It was there that Theo found her.
‘I thought you’d be upstairs dancing,’ he called from the doorway. His silver hair was unkempt and dark circles pooled under his eyes. Even from across the garden, she could feel the adrenaline rolling off him. She knew that look, sensed the rattle of giddiness in his bones. She had sensed it in Mama more times than she could count.
‘I felt guilty dancing while you were working,’ she said, holding up a pine cone. ‘Do you want to play fetch with us?’
His chuckle reached her on the wind. ‘I have something better in mind. Come find me when you’re done. I want to show you something.’
When Sera returned to the cloakroom, Theo was holdinga cloak in his hand. Only this one was different from the hundreds that hung around him. It wasn’t true black. Rather, it shimmered softly under the lights, giving off the faintest glimmer of gold. When Sera brushed her fingers along it, they warmed, as though she was holding her hand up to a fire.
‘Is that—?’
‘Yes, it is,’ he said, with a grin. A cloak of Lightfire. A cloak of flame. He nudged it towards her. ‘I used your measurements.’
She practically leaped into the cloak, feeling like her heart might burst. A delicious thrill rippled up her spine as the material fluttered against her skin, warm and sure, and for the first time in forever, she felt utterly at peace, as though she was exactly where she was supposed to be. In this place, in this cloak.
‘It feels incredible,’ she said, drawing it tighter.
‘Now, let’s see what it can do,’ Theo said eagerly.
Giddiness bubbled through her. ‘Hide-and-seek?’
He was already slipping into his black cloak. He winked, then leaped into a nearby shadow and disappeared completely. ‘Catch me if you can!’
Sera pressed her hand against the shadow and the darkness dissolved at her touch. He was standing before her again, grinning from ear to ear.
She grinned back. ‘Easy.’
He lunged for another. She dissolved that one too. He ran and she chased, catching him over and over, until she was laughing so hard she couldn’t stop. The exhilaration was dizzying. The cloak of Lightfire was far more powerful than the tiny teardrop she had worn around her neck. She waswrapped inside the magic now. Enveloping her, it became a part of her.
With the cloak around her shoulders, the shadows could not touch her.Shadecould not touch her. The darkness was hers to destroy. The light hers to wield.
When she caught Theo for the ninth time, he threw his hands up, delighted by his own defeat. ‘At least we know it works against the shadows in here,’ he said, scanning the room as they slowly regathered on the walls. ‘Let’s hope it will work with the monsters, the same way your necklace did.’
‘It will,’ said Sera, every inch of her skin tingling with confidence. ‘I really think our plan is going to work. I think we’re ready.’
Almost, cautioned a voice in her head.
Concern flitted across Theo’s face. ‘Are you sure you want to be the one to lead the monsters—?’
‘I’m sure,’ she said. ‘We’ll do it tomorrow at nightfall.’
He retrieved a small wooden chest from a nearby shelf. ‘I made these, too,’ he said, removing the lid. ‘Inspired by your mother’s necklace. Just in case anything goes wrong and you need a little extra help.’
The chest contained fifteen or so unstrung pearls, each one emitting a soft glow. Sera plucked a single pearl and felt it warm in her hand. ‘What exactly do they do?’
‘I’m not entirely—’
