Then, a room I don’t recognize is filled with riches and grandeur. Fur rugs and duvets piled high.
My breathing hitches as the visions slam into me over and over, like tastes of our future. A teasing, happily ever after that’s just out of reach.
Sorin’s grip tightens around my waist and I’m snapped from the visions.
“I’m not done with you yet, love,” he whispers in my ear, scooping me up before walking and gently setting me on the bed.
My stomach flips with anticipation.
“And I’m still angry.” He bites my earlobe before pulling away. His body glistens under the light of the oil lamps as he towers over me, and I have a hard time focusing on where to look. Every inch of him is beautiful. And every inch of him is mine.
“But we will find a way to get out of your bargain,” he whispers, running his fingers down the tops of my bare legs. His fingers still, wrapping around my ankles lightly. “I promise.”
“And how will you have me now?” I ask in a whisper, propping myself up on my elbows and forcing myself to forget whatever just happened in my mind only moments ago.
Leaning down so his arms bracket either side of me, Sorin’s lips brush mine but he doesn’t kiss them before he whispers, “Turn around.”
Elwyn
It’s beentwo years on this Mother-forsaken mountain. Two years of ice and wind and snow. Two years of knowing we’ll never truly be safe again. Two years of avoiding the inevitable.
I run my hands along Nevek Peak; the frosted stone burns my fingertips. The Awakening Stones rest inside, their shimmering light shining through the growing darkness.
Corbin caws above me. He’s been visiting far too often, but I’d be lying if I said his presence wasn’t a welcome one.
Especially tonight.
Because tonight is Elora’s birthday. The night she’s been waiting for her entire life. The night of her Awakening Ceremony. There were only so many excuses I could use to postpone, and being that she’s as strong willed as I am, it was a useless argument.
Corbin lands on Nevek Peak, his black feathers rustling. He caws several times before I run my fingers over his back.
“How can I convince her it’s not safe?”
His head cocks to the side, his eyes watching mine intently.You know your destiny, Elwyn.
My stomach sinks.
Of course, I know my role in this life. In any mother’s life, really. To keep her child safe.
But tonight is different, and though my visions have been less and less fruitful lately, something wrong lies within the wind. Flakes fall from the sky, littering Corbin’s onyx feathers with dusts of white. He moves to my shoulder and nudges my cheek. I kiss his beak before he darts upward.
We’ll be waiting for you.
With the bird gone and the snow growing thicker, there’s no other choice but to head back to the hut and meet Elora.
The warmth of the small fire inside melts the snow from my lashes and cheeks. Elora and Cade are already here. She hardly looks at me when I walk in, still angry that I’ve not agreed to her Ceremony.
Yet.
I glance at her bare arms and feet. “You’re going to want to dress warmer than that for the Ceremony tonight.”
She nearly spills her tea as she turns to me abruptly. Her eyes narrow, as if she doesn’t believe me. “You’re doing it?”
I suppose it’d be difficult to believe me after our argument today. She was so insistent it had to be on her birthday.
Had to be tonight.
My stomach churns as I take a seat at our small table.
