“We will discuss it again after the Winter Solstice celebration and you’re magic is announced. Things are too uncertain at the moment.”
I pouted but didn’t push. If Alric didn’t even want to train me in secret then there were bigger things happening behind the scenes. “One day you’re going to have to let me in and tell me what’s happening in my kingdom.”
“The moment the kingdom is yours, so will all the whispers be.”
CHAPTER TEN
JUNIPER
It was two weeks until the Winter Solstice celebration and it had been a week since Ryven disappeared again. Regret and rejection were common friends as I fought the urge to go look for him. Were the things he said real? Was he angry with me? I didn’t even get to see him the next morning before he was gone. I didn’t speak to Alric about it, but he tried to reassure me that it was nothing I could have ever done. But he didn’t know what happened. At least that was the game he was playing.
Reva, Ash, and Grove would be back today. Alric kept promising they would be back sooner but I had a feeling they were up to something out there that they couldn’t just leave behind. They’d nicknamed themselves The Three for a reason.
Boredom followed me everywhere I went. As much as I longed to practice my magic, I didn’t want to be incapacitated for hours on end afterwards either. I probably needed to build up my endurance but there was no telling if this was something that would go away or if it was the plague of the magic that lived within me now.
“The bitches are back!” The front door slammed open and Reva made her grand entrance. Her hair was piled up on top of her head and there was a bruise under her left eye. Dirt anddust were caked on her clothes like she’d been rolling in a hole somewhere instead of fighting bad guys. Grove was the next one in and made me do a double take. Her dark hair was cropped close to her face and she didn’t look happy. Her lip was split and there was dark bruising around her neck.
My eyes widened. “What happened to you?”
She held a blood-caked hand up. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
Alric leaned against the wall like he already knew about all of this. He probably did. What would it take to surprise him?
Reva grinned despite the view I was taking in. “We ran into a little trouble on the way home. Someone thought they could sneak up on us and grabbed a handful of her hair.”
Grove rolled her eyes and shook her head as she stalked out of the room. “So much for not wanting to talk about something.”
“Where’s Ash?” Alric’s eyes watched the door thoughtfully.
Reva scowled and sauntered back to the entrance. “She was right behind us.”
Ash kicked the door open with the bottom of her foot and flew into the entryway. “I like to have my own dramatic entrance.”
A snort escaped me as Alric rubbed his temples. These three were entirely too much. At least I wouldn’t be bored anymore. Well, I could hope I would be included in their shenanigans once again. I missed their excitement and love of life. I missed them.
Reva threw her arm around the back of my neck and shook her head at the other woman. The other woman that didn’t look at all like she’d gotten into any trouble on the way home. “She was sleeping.”
“She slept through a fight?” I asked in disbelief.
Reva’s lips flattened. “Yep, our camp was attacked and she slept through it all.”
“A girl needs her beauty sleep,” Ash yawned dramatically.
“I’m glad you all made it back,” I wrapped my arms around Reva’s waist and squeezed her affectionately.
“What happened while we were gone?” Ash’s brows bounced on her forehead.
My eyes jumped to Alric and he bit his bottom lip before he joined Grove in the kitchen.
Coward.
“My magic came in!”
Reva ripped herself from my arms and grabbed my shoulders with a gentle shake. “What?!”
I nodded my head enthusiastically. Reva turned an angry glare to the kitchen just as Alric was coming out. He held his hands up in surrender but didn’t say anything to help his cause.
“You didn’t tell us her magic came in! If you had, we would have come back without delay and dallying!” Reva shrieked.
