“No, I think he’s right.” Elyssa sounded delighted. “It’s typical fae superiority bullshit.” She drew closer, her voice tender. “Do you still want to get rid of your powers? Do you see now that there’s another way?”
Amira hesitated. Elyssa’s confidence in Tarnan’s theory made her belief waver. Shewantedto believe that Tarnan was right. “I’m not sure.”
“Have you ever really tried to use them on purpose? If you can control them, you might feel differently about them. You might see what Tarnan told you isn’t all that far-fetched.”
“I wouldn’t even know how to use them on purpose.” And either way, they were still dangerous and fae still hunted witches.
Elyssa extended her hand, her lips pulling up into a smile that calmed Amira’s anxiousness. “I have an idea. Come with me.”
When Amira looked at Elyssa’s hand, she could feel it on herself, caressing her cheek. A flash of their kiss burned through her mind.
Elyssa’s gaze softened, piercing Amira’s heart. “You can trust me,” Elyssa added as if it was the most natural thing.
Could she? Maybe Elyssa could handle being close to Amira. Maybe she could handle the danger it would throw her into.
Grabbing Elyssa’s hand, Amira let herself be led out of the library. “Where are we going?” she asked when they rushed into the corridor.
Elyssa’s smirk was radiant. “Some place you can be free.”
* * *
Amira was surprised when Elyssa led her to the woods. The peaceful land, shadowed in orange hues from the late-afternoon sun, was only disturbed by the songs of lonely birds. Elyssa had confessed that she had been craving the outside and had snuck out to the nearby woods during one of her many little trips outside of their quarters. As Amira gazed at the trees surrounding her, she understood the freedom Elyssa felt here.
Amira turned to Elyssa. “Now what?”
Elyssa clapped her hands, her excitement endearing. “Now you practise and so do I,” she said, removing her bow and arrow from her back. She hadborrowedthem from the palace. Amira was sure no one was the wiser. Elyssa’s boldness was infectious. While Elyssa never hesitated, Amira felt she was incapable of any decisive thought—something she wished to change.
With a precise aim, Elyssa launched her arrow. It embedded itself in the trunk of a large oak tree.
A victorious grin spread on Elyssa’s face. “Can’t wait to do that to Karwyn,” she said, her smile widening.
“What do I do?” Amira asked, hugging herself against the cold breeze.
Elyssa walked to the oak tree and pulled the arrow free. Walking back to Amira, she held the arrow out to her.
“Make it fly, princess,” Elyssa suggested as she dropped it into Amira’s open palm.
Digging her nails into her free hand, Amira drew blood. “I shouldn’t. I don’t want to.”
“Being afraid doesn’t mean you don’t want to. You’re letting fear control you. Butyou’rethe one in control. Remember that broken window.” Elyssa placed her hand on Amira’s shoulder, sending an electric wave to her heart. “Take a deep breath. I know you can do it. Try it once, and if you hate it, I’ll never ask you again.”
Amira took a deep breath. She could give it a shot, just this once, while they were outside, hidden away in the woods. “You don’t happen to have an instruction manual, do you?”
Elyssa’s laugh turned into a sigh. “It would be so much easier if Farren was here.” She twisted the end of her high ponytail. “You should try to draw from the energy surrounding you, like the wind. Picture the arrow flying.”
An image of blood plagued her mind, overshadowing her thoughts. She lowered her voice. “What if I hurt you?”
“You won’t.” Elyssa turned to her more fully. “You won’t get rid of me that easily.” Her words vibrated through Amira’s entire being. Was she only talking about now, or about how Amira had run away from their kiss?
Elyssa’s lips stretched into a teasing smile, eyeing the arrow and then Amira. “Why don’t you show me what you got? Impress me.”
Now that was a challenge Amira wanted to win. She turned her attention to the object in her hand. Wrapping her fingers around the cold iron, she tried to sense the energy coursing through her veins and the magic lingering in the forest. She focused on the breeze lifting the ends of her long hair and the ground beneath her feet.
Slowly, Amira felt her power stir. She concentrated on the arrow. She pictured it rising, weightless.
The arrow started to shake.
“Keep going,” Elyssa encouraged her.
