CHAPTER ONE
Caelian Starstorm’s magic was gone.
As a prominent daughter of House Celestine, her power was once of the stars, bestowed upon her by the fates. But for all that is given, something must be taken in return. And the fates never looked kindly on those who used their gifts for selfish reasons. Caelian could once hear the voices who longed for their deepest desires, who yearned for more, in her mind. Sometimes they came in whispers in the middle of the night. Other times, they spilled through broken tears as an afterthought. But more often than not, she heard them when the night sky was glittering like diamonds, when those who stopped to stare made wishes upon stars.
She was always careful, always selective, granting wishes with the utmost caution.
Until she made one critical error and wished something for herself.
Though she supposed that wasn’t entirely accurate. Out of desperation, she wished for one too many things, and in doing so, her magic was taken away as punishment.
Now, there were no more pleas. No more hushed voices murmuring through her mind.
There was only silence.
Empty, reverberating silence.
It was enough to drive her mad.
To make matters infinitely worse, the male she wasted all her wishes on was sitting directly across from her.
General Kjeld Holtstrom was a vicious thorn in her side. Some months ago, Caelian made the foolish mistake of saving his life, and she’d regretted it every day since.
Kjeld was excruciatingly handsome—it pained her to even look at him. Half of his messy blond hair was pulled away from his face in a series of small braids and twists. Cold, cruel summer blue eyes were framed by dark lashes. Though he kept his beard trimmed, she sometimes imagined what he would look like without it. Probably still stunning. There was a scar marking his bottom lip, and she often found herself daydreaming about what it might be like to trace its jagged lines with her tongue. But Kjeld was a pervasive cloud of gloom, he wore a prominent scowl and always seemed to occupy the entirety of the dining room. He was tall, hulking, and broody, and if she hadn’t known better, she would have thought for sure he was chiseled from granite. Inky rune tattoos crawled up the left side of his rather large neck, and she was quite certain he could crush her with one hand. Being fae—another wish she’d mindlessly granted for him—only amplified his ruggedly beautiful exterior.
Unfortunately, his heart was a raging pit of hate and loathing.
All of it seemingly saved for her.
The intensity of his glacial gaze locked onto her, and she quickly looked elsewhere, suddenly more interested in the untouched lukewarm biscuits on her plate. The dining hall was unnaturally quiet, what with some of the Starstorm siblings off living their own lives while the rest of them tried to maintain some sense of normalcy. Novalise lived with Asher in HouseEmberspire, Solarius and Narissa moved to a delightful row home in Celestine to be closer to the city, Tovian was in Azurvend working on his ship as he intended to set sail the moment summer arrived, and as for Nyxian…well Caelian could only assume he was sleeping off a night of revelry. Therefore the only company Caelian kept for breakfast—besides the brooding general—was her eldest brother, Ariesian, and two of her sisters. Sarelle was lost in the whimsy of her own thoughts and Creslyn, her twin sister, was in a rather intense, hushed discussion with her husband, Drake.
Strained tension seemed to hover in the air, like a sizzling current, ready to snap and strike. Every noise was amplified, louder than usual, and Caelian winced. The scrape of cutlery across porcelain plates caused her jaw to clench and her teeth to grind. The murmured whispers of Creslyn speaking with Drake blurred together in an obnoxious echo that was impossible to escape. The sifting of the breeze and the melody of birdsong through the open, elaborate windows mocked the encapsulating silence of the space.
Her palms were clammy, and she scrubbed them on her snug lavender gown. The collar of the dress was too high, too itchy, and she hooked a finger into the lace, tugging it away from her neck. Again, she tried to peel the fabric from her flesh, but it stuck to her like glue. Perhaps the waist had been cinched too tightly, perhaps that was why she was suddenly finding it difficult to draw air. She shifted in her seat so it creaked obnoxiously at the adjustment of her weight. Yet no one paid her any attention.
Save for him.
Kjeld’s icy gaze smothered her. Chilled her. Burned her. She’d lost track of the number of times she caught him looking in her direction. Never speaking, always watching. Like he was plotting an infinite number of ways to kill her.
Beside her, Creslyn and Drake had ceased their talking, though it appeared the conversation was continuing through their eyes instead.
Sweet stars, Caelian could only hope someone would gaze upon her one day with the same intensity Drake stared at her twin. In the meantime, she would be happy to even have a scrap of her magic returned to her, for then at least maybe she would not be so lonely.
She missed the cacophony of voices in her mind, the desperate pleas, and the hoarse scratch of whispers. She was not accustomed to the company of her own thoughts. Is this what it was like for everyone else? A constant hum of stillness, of soundless tranquility?
Caelian wanted to scream.
Her gaze jumped to the windows, where the final days of spring were in full bloom. A cloudless, brilliant blue sky. A gentle, fluttering breeze. Blush and buttery yellow flowers blossomed, each of them kissed by stardust, and crawling vines of wisteria cascaded down from navy blue arches.
“A lovely day today,” Caelian remarked, her voice oddly loud and grating as it echoed up into the arched ceiling. She grabbed her glass of water and swallowed a tepid gulp, her throat too raspy for the morning hour. She tried again. “Is it not?”
She asked no one in particular, and despite her best efforts to make casual conversation, she was met with awkward sidelong glances.
Ariesian’s steely eyes met hers over the rim of his steaming cup of tea. He arched one prominent dark brow but said nothing. Creslyn and Drake shared a surprised look, as though they hadn’t expected her to say anything at all. Like they’d grown accustomed to her being mute most days. And Caelian didn’t dare glance to see if Kjeld had even noticed that she’d spoken. Only Sarelle seemed to fully acknowledge her presence.
“Indeed.” Sarelle tilted her head to one side, and stardust shimmered along the length of her midnight blue hair. “Quite lovely.”
It was not the titillating conversation Caelian hoped for, and her gaze swung in her brother’s direction. “Ariesian, have all of Mother’s belongings been cleared from the house?”
