Onyx stared at my hands before, ever so slowly, lifting his gaze to my face.
He knows.
“Evan?” Reign stared at me and trembled. “You’re… gods, how are you…”
Draven grabbed his shoulder to steady him, then looked at me, visibly shocked.
“His mana, V,” Reign rasped, using Draven’s childhood nickname. “It’s so bright.”
Rowan stepped away from the wall, joined by Lake and Callum.
“Love?” Briar stepped up beside Maddox, his concerned gaze pinned to me. Slower, he took a step toward me and held out his hand. “Why don’t you come sit down?”
Instead, I shuffled back from him, putting more distance between us. Tears pooled in my eyes.
“Give me your hand, love.” Briar stepped closer.
“I… I’m sorry,” I said, shaking so much I barely got the words out. “I don’t know what happened.”
“You nearly set us all on fire, little treasure, that’s what happened.” Rowan studied the scorch marks on the mantel. “Question is how.”
“I’ll never forget the way her hands sparked as she dug her fingers into his chest and ripped out his mana. Like blue fire.”
I felt like I was going to throw up. Bile rose in my throat, and I ran for the door. Maddox called after me, and I heard the scuffle of boots against the floor. They pursued me, their steps echoing behind me in the corridor.
“Ev!” Callum shouted.
I sprinted faster, lungs squeezing and tears welling in my eyes. The dramatic exit from the room would probably embarrass me later, but the only thing I felt right then was fear and the need to be alone.
Reaching the side door near the kitchen that led toward a courtyard, I burst through it and kept going, running as fast as my legs could carry me.
***
A glowing blue fish swam up the edge of the pond. Felt like it was staring right into my soul. I sat on the grassy bank, knees drawn to my chest and arms wrapped around them.
“Have you come to eat me?”
The scales along its back pulsed, then shifted from blue to an aquamarine with streaks of gray, blending more in with the shallow water and rocky bottom.
“No way. Chameleon fish?” I peered closer. Then nearly shit myself when the thing splashed the surface and dove back under. I shrieked and plopped backward in the grass. “Ow.”
The view on my back was pretty though. A moonlit sky of twinkling stars and cloudlike clusters that seemed like far-off galaxies. Iridescent branches of the trees around me shimmeredin shades of green, purple, and light blue. A luminescence that was invisible during the day. It had two sides to it, just like me.
Being a child of light and dark, both types of magic existed within me. The power to purify but also to, apparently, set things on fire. Remembering the blue sparks in my fingers terrified me. Even more unsettling was the deep anger in my core that’d triggered them.
I never wanted to feel that way again. Never wanted to surrender to that anger.
Much to my surprise, my men hadn’t found me yet. Then again, considering how Lake could sense my presence and find me no matter how far I wandered—Oreo too—I suspected they knew exactly where I was and were watching me from a distance. Giving me space but being nearby in case I needed them.
My theory was proven true as a whisper of wind ruffled my bangs, bringing familiar scents with it. Warm spice. Magnolia blossoms. Another breeze brought traces of peaches and black cardamom, then something sweet and comforting.
I smiled up at the swaying branches. “I know you’re all there,” I said loud enough for my voice to carry.
“No, we aren’t,” came Callum’s voice from the section of trees to the edge of the pond. There was a tiny snarl, followed by the leaves of a bush rustling. “I let you chew on my boots earlier. Be nice to me.”
“Please bite him,” Rowan said.
“Yoyo,” Maddox said in a warning tone. “Behave.”
