Page 27 of Burn Bright
"How did you get the wood to burn?" Most of what I'd seen in our travels wasdamp.
"Magic."
Magic?I suddenly noticed my own pack was open, the contents rifled. Any heat that had made headway through my body suddenly vanished, and my gaze jerked to his. Suddenly the sheer fury of the fire madesense.
"Keeping secrets, are we?" hemused.
"You found thefeather."
"A firebird's feather," he said, turning his attention back to the flames. "Packed away in your bags in some sort of glass tube. You must have forgotten to mentionit."
"My father found it in the woods one day, and gave it to my mother as a wedding gift. I didn't— I didn't want Evaron to take it away. It's myfather's."
I reached for my bag, checking to make sure everything else was still inside it. There were dry clothes inside, and I hauled my unmentionables and a spare pair of leather leggings out, giving him a slightly raised-browlook.
Casimir turned away in surrender. "I'm not going to tell him. The feather'syours."
"Thank you." Dragging my leggings on beneath the furs, I wriggled around, trying not to flash too much skin. It wasn't as though he hadn't seen it all, but there'd been no way around thatthen.
There wasnow.
He stared into the flames, clasping his hands in front of him. The firelight lit the stark line of his cheekbones. "It wouldn't start. I was searching for flint, as mine is missing. Where did he find thefeather?"
"He'd never say," I said, with a sigh. "Just that he'd found it within the heart of theforest."
"So someone has been through thosethorns."
"He didn't talk about that either." I frowned. It wasn't as though my father had any secrets to keep but... It was weird, now I thought about it inhindsight.
"If we can't find the firebird, then at least the feather might assuage the king's fury," Casimir saidquietly.
"No."
"Look, I'm not going to say anything. And I know its yours, but you don't know theking—"
"No. I'm fairly certain if the king sees the feather, he's not going to rest until he gets the rest of the firebird. The woods will be crawling withsoldiers."
"Fine. Your decision." He held up his hands. "Yourconsequences."
I stared at him. It couldn't be thateasy.
"What?" hedemanded.
"I'm finding it difficult to believe that if push came to shove, and the choice was between Evaron's life and keeping your secret, that you wouldn'ttell."
Casimir had a way of looking at me that felt like it stripped me to the bones. "I'd hope you would make the right choice if it came down to that. I know what its like not to be able to make your own choices. I wouldn't take yours fromyou."
When balanced against a man's life, what was a feather? I sighed. "Prince Perfect would know you'd kept it a secret fromhim."
"Maybe." He flickered a curious glance my way. "PrincePerfect?"
"Breathe a word of it and I'll tell him you knew about the feather," I muttered, though it was alie.
I wouldn't be the one who was punished for this secret.Your secret, my secret,I said silently, and he nodded, seeing it in myeyes.
"Where did you get the fur from?" I muttered, not liking where the conversation had gone. His cloak lay by the fire beside mine, sodden andheavy.
Silence greeted myquestion.
