Clenching his jaw, he curled his fists. It was all he could do to keep from taking himself in hand and releasing the aching tension she’d built inside him. Instead, his only release was a heavy exhale, for now was not the time to act on his baser instincts. Not when he had an audience.
Banishing all thoughts of Cora on the dresser, he secured the top button of his trousers and addressed the woman who stood in the corner of his room. “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t spy on intimate moments between me and my future wife, Emylia.”
The woman’s eyes widened. Her form was semi-transparent and devoid of color, but Teryn had known her when they were both spirits—etheras—and had seen her with brown skin, dark eyes, and black curls.
She brought a hand to her mouth, then dropped it. “You…you can see me?”
“I can.” He retrieved his discarded riding tunic from the end of his bed and pulled it over his head. There was no point in trying to nap now. He’d been eager for rest after his hasty ride to Ridine Castle, for the activity had strained him. He hadn’t anticipated a need to reacquaint his body with riding, thinking his weapons training had been enough to strengthen him overall. But no, every activity Teryn had once enjoyed now required a period of adaptation. He still had endurance to strengthen. Stamina to increase.
At least his surprise visit from Cora had cleared away his fatigue.
With his tunic on, he turned to face Emylia fully. She shrank away from him, as if suddenly afraid. Then, with a shake of her head, she seemed to remember herself.
“I’m sorry,” she said. Her voice was soft and lacked the resonance it would have if she were alive, but he could still make out her words. “I had no idea you could see me.”
“That’s what you’re sorry for? Not that you were spying on a clearly private moment? How long were you going to watch?” He’d been vaguely aware of her presence—or at leastsomepresence, tickling the back of his neck—ever since Cora had entered his room. Strange presences had become common to him over the last several months, so he’d been able to ignore it and give all his attention to Cora.
Emylia shrugged. “I see a lot of things these days that are considered taboo or private. I suppose I’ve lost that sense of propriety.”
“Why are you here?”
“I heard you’d arrived. I wanted to see that you were well.”
“No, why are youhere? In this plane of existence. Why haven’t you moved on?”
Her expression turned mournful. “I tried to move on to the otherlife, but I was blocked.”
His breath caught. “Is it Morkai?” He hated saying the name out loud. Hated the way it made his skin crawl and made him fear he was merely a visitor in this body and not its owner.
“No,” she said, holding up her hands in a placating gesture. “It’s nothing like that.”
Relief uncoiled his muscles. The last thing he needed was for Morkai to return in any form, even to torment the dead. The mage had already conquered death once. But Morkai was gone for good. Teryn had witnessed the mage’s final death last summer, watched as his soul was burned to ash by flames of white light.
Emylia spoke again. “It’s more like…I’m the one who’s stopping me. There’s too much heaviness here.” She placed her hand on her chest.
He frowned. Emylia had told him that an ethera without a heart-center would become a wraith. But she still had her heart-center, and she was nothing like the terrifying, mindless wraiths he’d once fought at Centerpointe Rock, courtesy of Morkai’s blood magic. So what was she?
“Are you a ghost?” he asked.
She gave him a wry smile. “I’m an ethera with unfinished business, so I suppose ghost is an adequate term.” When Teryn only nodded, she added, “You’re taking this rather well. I would have expected more shock.”
Teryn debated keeping quiet about the next part but relented. “You’re not the only apparition I’ve seen lately,” he quietly confessed.
She moved closer to him. “What do you mean?”
“Ever since I returned to my body, I’ve been able to see spirits.” His eyes unfocused as he recalled his terror in the early days of regaining consciousness. Every now and then he’d catch sight of floating lights, hazy unaware figures who’d wander in through one wall and out another, or colorless specters who seemed keen enough to witness the present—much like Emylia. At first, the visions had caused great distress, sparking fears that he was one of them, or that they were here to drag him back to the spiritual plane. As months went on and none had interacted with him, much less harmed him, his fears lessened. By now, he was used to it.
Emylia’s mouth fell open. “How? Why?”
“I don’t know. I would guess it has to do with the fact that I was once an ethera. Or perhaps that I nearly died.”
Emylia didn’t seem to know what to say to that, and Teryn didn’t like the pitying look in her eyes.
“Enough about me,” he said. “Where have you been all this time? Are you trapped here? Because your ethera was freed nearby?”
“No, I can wander to any location I’ve been before, but I’ve chosen to stay at Ridine.”
“Is this where you have unfinished business?”
