Page 98 of Firstborn of the Sun
‘She will,’ Alawani said, gently turning her gaze to him. ‘I meant it. I love you.’
L’?r?’s lips curved up in a weak smile. ‘I love you too. I loved you first.’
He leaned in and kissed her, and she let him. This time softly, slowly savouring every moment their lips explored each other’s mouths.
He pulled her in further, this time more intense. He led her backwards until she reached a hard stop as her back went against the wall. She shuddered as his gaze wandered down to her cleavage. ‘I want more of you,’ he growled into her ears, and she could feel her knees buckle beneath her. He held on to her waist and lifted her. She wrapped her legs around him and smiled, glancing between his eyes and the doors. He kissed her and said, ‘We can take this upstairs.’
She gave a slight nod, her face flushed. He carried her up the stairs and shut the door with a quiet creak.
Dúrógbadé tó n d? isà ejò, bí kò bá dúró gba adé, ?m? míì yóò gbàá
A royal heir who unconscionably exposes himself to risk, hunting snakes, may find that someone else has been crowned king in his stead
31
Ìlú-Idán, Fourth Ring, Kingdom of Oru
L’?R?
At first light, L’?r? slipped out of bed before Alawani woke. Exhausted from trying to keep from falling asleep and terrified from the nightmares Àlùfáà-Àgbà plagued her with, her body felt weary, but her spirit was more determined than ever to learn more about her agbára. She wished she’d spent more time trying to get Ìyá-Idán to speak with her. To have had more time to learn about her mother. She’d spent the rest of the previous day watching the girls practising their old magic spells and even learning a few more ways to summon the god of fire and thunder. But as much as she wanted to stay, she couldn’t leave Baba-Ìtàn to die.
She glanced back at Alawani before leaving the room.
It surprised her how easy it was for her to keep things from him. Even as she questioned herself she knew she couldn’t tell him the kind of damage her powers could cause. She couldn’t tell him anything that’d threaten the bond they shared. Was it so fragile, or was that all in her head? Was she so desperate to keep him that she’d keep parts of herself hidden from him?
L’?r? walked down the stairs and found Ìyá-Idán and Márùn waiting for her. Immediately, she knew something was wrong.
She curtsied low and greeted Ìyá-Idán as she reached the table.
‘I asked you to leave tonight, I didn’t tell you to get killed trying to return to the Sun Temple,’ Ìyá-Idán said plainly.
L’?r? glared at Márùn. ‘You told her?’
‘Just listen to what she has to say, you’ll thank me.’
She heard footsteps behind her and swung back to see Alawani approaching, stumbling as he pulled on his clothes in haste. Her mouth hung open, and before she could speak he said, ‘I’m coming with you.’
L’?r? turned on Márùn, ‘Did you tell everyone?’
Márùn raised her hands, ‘I didn’t tell him.’
‘I heard you get out of bed,’ Alawani said. ‘If you’re going back, I’m coming with you, Tèmi.’
L’?r? let out the breath that had caught in her throat.
‘You will not make it out alive, Tèmil’?r?,’ Ìyá-Idán said, rising from her seat. ‘You won’t even get as far as the royal island. Àlùfáà-Àgbà made the mistake of letting you live the first time. He won’t make that mistake again. And you,’ she turned on Alawani, ‘you think that if you appear in the capital again, your grandfather will let you out of his sight?’
‘I need to do this,’ L’?r? said, pleading.
Ìyá-Idán’s face hardened, and she walked out of the room through the dark hallway and returned with a box in her hand. The stony expression was replaced with something sorrowful. She sat in her chair and opened the box, and the lid creaked as it fell backwards.
‘Your Baba-Ìtàn asked me to get you out of this kingdom. I will tell you how to get out – afterwards, it’s your choice where you want to go. But remember that your Baba-Ìtàn is one of the gods’ chosen, a survivor of the Red Stone protected by the gods and their laws, whatever his crime. You onthe other hand, they will cut down without mercy.’ She pulled out an hourglass and placed it on the table before L’?r?.
‘What is this?’ L’?r? asked, surveying the miniature hourglass.
‘This is how you get out of this kingdom. This is how you go home,’ Ìyá-Idán said, pushing the hourglass to L’?r?. ‘Getting through the fifth ring will be the easiest part of your journey north. The people in the fifth ring of Ìlú-Oní?nà will give you no trouble. They have their own problems. As long as you don’t get caught, you can ride through in a day or so. If you go with Márùn, she can get you through the magic barrier and all the way into the last ring leading out of Oru. Ìlú-Òdì – the sixth ring – is the stronghold of this kingdom. The home of the Lord General, the most ruthless man in this kingdom.’
Next to her Alawani nodded slowly. L’?r? remembered how he had begged Command to take on his training, releasing him from his mandated training with the Lord General who nearly broke him.
