Inside the depths of her wide, blue eyes lurked concern. A slight crease marred the space between her eyes. To her, he supposed, his reaction to the sound of the advancing strikes would seem unusual, possibly even frightening.
Only she didn’t look scared. She looked curious.
And he—thunder rumbled in the distance—could not help but be restless.
He should be out there. Out there in the rain.
He found a kind of release as the pellets fell around him and he dared the deadly white streaks to try for him again. Only a storm without had ever been able to fully silence the constant storm within.
And he’d give anything for that inner silence.
He grabbed her hand. “Come outside with me.”
“Outside?” She jerked back. “You’re mad.”
“No.” This was urgent. “Well, yes. A little. It’s just something Imustdo.”
Her concern turned to horror, and then, when the next rumble had him reaching for his dressing gown, to resolve.
“I’ll go,” she said, already shrugging into her shift. “If I cannot keep you from going.”
He kept her hand in his firm grip as he led her through the corridor. Instead of going out the way he’d come, he opened the panel that led to her room.
“You’ll need a cloak,” he said.
“And you?”
“I’ll be warm enough,” he replied.
He bundled her into her cloak and, together, they crept onto the landing. Deftly, he made his way through the dark. The tower contained a spiral stair ending in a rarely used egress. They made their way down, him leading and her, close behind.
He released her to lift the board that served as a bolt, and before he could set the wood down, she had already opened the door.
A flash rent the sky, blanching her features just before she stepped into the rain.
“Wait!” he whispered harshly.
She did not heed him.
In the next flash, he saw she was still moving, face pointed up toward the sky. He was conscious of a sensation, a jolt like he’d had in the garden, the first time their eyes had met.
Whatwashe doing? What had he asked her to do?
Hefaced the storm.Hedared the capricious skies. But until this moment, he had not truly understood that he had been taunting death to make himself feel alive.
A loud rumble ended in an earthshattering crack. White light lit up the night, the briefest of visions brighter than day.
“Beautiful,” she breathed.
No.Not beautiful.Lethal.
God Almighty. His breath came fast and heavy. Bringing her out here had been as reckless as his father’s choice to go out in the storm.
Worse, really.
His heartbeat thumped in his ears. He leapt forth and seized her as the lightning struck so close, the old door rattled, and the rumble shook them both to the bone.
He swept her up, cloak and all into his arms and dashed back inside, kicking the door closed with his foot.
