I rest against Sabina's body while the van moves down a deserted road. We intertwine our fingers while she strokes my hair with her free hand, an intimate gesture that contrasts with the chaos I feel inside me.
“Why did you have to bring that stone? Now that I know I have magic, I feel really weird without it,” I protest, letting out a long sigh. “I can't feel the air. It's like being blind.”
“Welcome to the club, Nell. We all feel really weird without our magic. Imagine how Sylara must feel when she's been a magical creature for centuries. But it's an artifact too dangerous to leave behind,” she murmurs against my hair.
I grit my teeth, frustrated, but without arguments to counter her.
“At least we have the arrow,” I sigh, trying to focus on the positive.
Sabina nods slowly while tracing small circles with her thumb on the back of my hand. It's painfully clear to me that something has changed between us since that kiss at the party. Something neither of us dares to name, but that's there.
“What do you think Kaelisar will do with that arrow?” I ask, though I fear I know the answer.
“Nothing good for anyone, except for him. That's how things always are with Kaelisar,” she admits, trying to force a smile that doesn't reach her eyes.
Without even thinking about it, I move a little closer to caress her cheek, while the siren closes her eyes and lets out a tiny sigh that catches Althea's attention, judging by the smile she gives us through the rearview mirror. Her lips part slightly, and I feel inexplicably drawn to them. I need to kiss her, I don't care if Althea keeps glancing through the mirror. I need to feel her lips, seek her tongue with mine. I need to...
“What the hell are you doing, Althea?” I protest.
The van stops dead, throwing my body forward until I slam against the passenger seat despite Sabina's attempts to stop me.
The Kobold doesn't respond. Her knuckles have gone white from gripping the steering wheel so hard, and her gaze stays fixed on something in front of us.
“Shit,” she mutters through her teeth.
In the middle of the road, illuminated by the headlights like a nocturnal predator, stands the figure of Kaelisar Trothfinn.
He shows no surprise or concern. On the contrary, he smiles as if he's been waiting for us for hours. With a gesture of his hand, the van doors swing wide open. He hasn't touched anything, hasn't approached. Pure Fae magic in action.
“Good evening, ladies,” he greets with an exaggerated gesture. “I see my little team has successfully completed the mission.”
The case containing the arrow floats from the trunk to his hands. He hasn't even had to move.
“Perfect,” he murmurs, running a finger along the artifact's outline. “The Arrow of Veritas returns to me intact after so long.”
Then he closes the case and extracts from his pocket a small blue crystal box that he tosses toward Sabina. She catches it in midair, confused.
“Put the null stone in there,” Kaelisar orders. “It will contain its effect. You've done great work, it will come in very handy for me to have it,” he adds, making the small box float toward him as soon as the siren closes it.
Almost instantly, I feel a burst of energy that runs through my entire body. Magic returns with such force it makes me dizzy, and the air dances around me as if wanting to respond to my emotional state.
The temptation to attack Kaelisar to recover the arrow suddenly seems overwhelming. I could create a vacuum around his head, deprive him of oxygen until he drops the case. Something inside me screams that we shouldn't let him take it, that this artifact in his hands will only bring destruction.
I feel an inexplicable sense of urgency. It's as if the arrow itself is calling me, as if it's begging me not to let it fall into the wrong hands. The air begins to swirl around me.
“Don't,” Sabina warns in whispers, taking my hand in hers and squeezing it hard.
Kaelisar perceives what I was about to do and smiles.
“A brave thought, but stupid, Niletta,” he snorts, making a dismissive gesture and rolling his eyes. “Your control over air has improved, but you're nothing more than a novice. Just an insect before my power.”
To demonstrate his superiority, he makes an almost imperceptible gesture with his fingers, and suddenly, I feel as if an invisible hand is squeezing my throat. I can't breathe. I panic as I struggle to get air into my lungs, scratching my own neck with my nails in a desperate attempt to free myself.
“Let her go!” Althea screams as small sparks escape from her fingers.
“Or what will you do, Kobold?” Kaelisar challenges with a dismissive gesture with his chin. “Will you break our agreement? Will you condemn your mother to the disease you worked so hard to cure?”
Althea stops, and I can see how her hands tremble with helpless rage.
