Chapter 39
Aresoundingthumppounded against my bedchamber door.
“Quazar!” Ellabeth yelled. “She’smybest friend. You can’t just put shadow locks on her door so no one can get in but you. That’s not fair!”
I blinked up at him without pulling away, relishing in our proximity.
“Youwhat?”
He shrugged, trailing my bottom lip with a thumb.
“I put shadow locks on your door. The Zamarien youngling tried getting in here once. I taught him his lesson, then I made sure it would never happen again.” He tilted his head. “Does that upset you?”
It didn’t at all.
“No.”
“Good,”he said, down our bond. He drew me closer, back to closing the gap between our mouths. He squeezed my thighs again. I arched into him on instinct, opening my mouth for him.“Now where were we?”
“VALORYEN.” Ellabeth pounded on the door. “Open this burning doornow.”
Quazar sighed.
“Butof courseyour best friend is as demanding as you.”
I grinned wide, pulling away from him.
“I’m coming, Ellie,” I called, shoving my feet into slippers and rushing down the gilded steps before hopping to the door of the bedchamber.
“You’re awake?” she cried. “Valoryen.”
“You know, I prefer hearing my name that many times onyourtongue.”
I snorted into my palm.“How in the stars do I unlock a shadow lock?”
“Easy. Just get close. It’ll detect your ethèr, and automatically respond to your starfire, opening on instinct.”
“Wait. I’m not the only one with starfire. Granmanmi?—”
“She could never.”His gruff voice cut in.“I made this shadow lock, Starling. It only reacts toyou.”
Well, it was time to test that theory. I padded to the door. Before I could even lift a hand, the shadow lockclicked. Ellabeth immediately shoved the door open and threw her arms around me. We held each other tight.
“Thank you for taking care of me,” I whispered into her hair.
“I thought I’d lost you. I…stars.”
I brushed her hair as she wept. I could feel the weights falling off of her. Relief. Worry. Fear.
“Kazemir paces every dawn, completelyfyused. Daelun, Isandra, and Omarion have gone after Tharic.Twice. I keep catching Amayah reading about undetectable poisons…Everyone is just angry. This temple…”
“Isn’t what we were told it would be?” I finished for her. I pulled back and gave her a small smile.
She nodded, swiping at her tears. “At all.”
“You’ll have to catch me up on everything I missed. Burning Zamarien won’t let me live it down if I fall behind.”
“Trust me. We know.”
