She knew her mother wouldn’t approve. Although the mere thought of her pained Lora, at least her mother didn’t know she had ever used her power.
“Hey.” Rhay’s voice brought her out of her memory. Lora hadn’t realised she was no longer staring at the weapons in the room, instead, she was looking at her hands, the deadliest weapon of them all. “Whatever you were just thinking, that’s your block. Tell me.”
Lora laughed. What was she supposed to tell Rhay? That she’d killed a bunch of fae? That she might have killed Karwyn too if her mother’s life wasn’t bound to their agreement?
Her block might be because of what happened in Rubien. It might be because she thought it made herwrong.Or it might be because if she could control her fire, she was signing her own death sentence. Once her training was done, there would be nothing stopping Karwyn from invoking that ancient ritual.
It was nothing she could share with Rhay, who was now looking at her as if she was crazy.
Rhay reached out and took one of her hands. The touch was unexpected, but she didn’t want to pull back. There hadn’t been a lot of comfort coming her way lately. “If you don’t want to tell me, I can take a guess.Fear.” Lora swallowed hard. “You fear your powers because you were never taught how to use them. It’s overwhelming. I’ve seen it happen to the best of them. When your emotions are high, your powers can suffer. But that’s why it’s so important that youdouse them. These powers, they areyou.You can’t not be you. And you shouldn’t be anything but you.”
His words hit her square in the chest, twisting her heart. If her powers were her, what did that make her? Lora squeezed her eyes shut, imagining her mother’s face. Her voice floated through her mind:Bury it, don’t let it out. Keep it hidden.
Shutting down her train of thought, Lora looked at Rhay again, forcing a smile onto her lips. “And here I thought you couldn’t read my emotions?”
Rhay’s grin widened. “Sometimes, I don’t even need my powers. One of mymanytalents.”
Lora laughed, embracing the casual conversation. “What are your other talents?”
He leaned in, a dazzling smile on his face. “I’ll show you all of them if you’d like, love.”
Lora’s breath hitched, but her skin felt frozen. His flirtatious tone was a nice distraction, but it only made the hole in her heart grow larger. It reminded her of what it had felt like to tease Eyden, to rile him up until the tension between them reached a breaking point. Until his lips would meet hers and she’d melt, needingmore.
“I would give a lot of silver to know what just went through your head,” Rhay said, studying her again.
Lora shook her head and stood up. “You don’t want to know, trust me. Now, should I try again?”
“Go ahead, love. Don’t let fear keep your fire contained.” Rhay got up from the bench and straightened his jacket. His outfit was so out of place here. Lora was wearing wide-cut black trousers and a long-sleeved grey shirt made from the softest material she’d ever felt. It wasn’t exactly a training outfit either, but Rhay looked as if he’d stepped out of a disco.
Lora extended her arm and focused on her hand. If this power was hers, then she would keep it to herself. As long as she only burned herself, she was safe. She imagined the fire flowing through her veins, building in her heart and spreading through her body. She forced it to her fingertips. All her energy, all her emotions—the fear, the anger, thehopelessness—she pushed it all in one direction.
Her right hand felt like it was on fire, and then a spark ignited. Her fingers held tiny flames. Against her instinct, Lora let out a cheerful laugh. Rhay looked almost proud. He was about to speak when the door to the training room opened.
Lora’s eyes fell on Karwyn first, whose gaze locked on the fire spreading from her fingers. At once, the flames extinguished, earning her a scolding look from the king.
Following him was Amira and another fae who held a resemblance to the princess. His skin was the same olive shade and his eyes were purple too but lighter, a beautiful shade of lilac.
“Well, I have to say, when His Majesty mentioned fire powers, I pictured something a little more threatening,” the stranger said.
Karwyn’s eyes narrowed. “She is in training. You should feel grateful I am letting you meet my cousin before anyone else.”
The other fae didn’t give into the taunt, yet he replied, “Of course, Your Majesty.”
“Loraine,” Karwyn said, moving further into the room. “I would like you to meet Wryen Rosston.”
The fae stepped forward. “KingWryen Rosston of Allamyst.” His tone was sharp.
“And this is Princess Amira Rosston, my fiancée,” Karwyn added.
Amira looked like she wanted to be anywhere else but here. Lora noticed the princess’s hand was twitching. When Amira caught Lora staring, she hid her hand behind her back and gave her an annoyed glance.
“What a nice surprise,” Rhay said, “for all of you to visit our little training session. I’m afraid it’s not all that exciting.”
“Clearly,” Wryen said. “Loraine, was it?” He came up to her. “How about I show you how it’s done?” His smile gave the impression of playfulness, but it lay on the edge of disturbing.
Lora smiled back anyway. “I go by Lora.”
“Well, Princess Lora, let me give you something to aspire to.” Wryen turned to the black wall, and in a matter of seconds, the whole wall was burning. Lora looked from the flames to Wryen’s face, the fire reflecting in his eyes, turning his features menacing.
