I swallowed hard, the fear gnawing at my insides. Dinner with the king... it couldn’t be anything good. Nothing good ever came from being summoned by a man like him.
I turned the note over, hoping for something, some sort of explanation, but there was nothing more.
I stood there for a long moment, my heart pounding in my chest, the weight of the dress and the note pressing down on me. How had things become this twisted? The king had his eyes on me now, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that it was far from innocent.
I had no idea what to expect. But one thing was certain—I was going to have to face him. And I couldn’t let my fear show.
Chapter 18
Thorne
Phoenix was unusually quiet as he sat before our campfire, the flickering flames casting eerie shadows across his face. His eyes were distant, glazed, staring into the forest as though he could see beyond the trees, beyond the reach of reality. His gaze was unfocused, as if he were lost somewhere between the present and a memory he couldn’t shake.
The fire crackled, sending sparks into the air as the night stretched on around us. The woods were alive with the soft rustling of leaves and the occasional hoot of an owl, but there was a heavy silence hanging over the camp, one that I couldn't quite explain.
I shifted my weight, watching him closely. "What’s on your mind?" I asked, my voice quiet but carrying the weight of curiosity and concern.
He didn’t answer right away, his fingers absentmindedly tracing the edge of his dagger, the motion slow and methodical. It was as though the question had to find its way through the haze in his mind before he could respond.
"I’m thinking about the soldier we tracked," he finally muttered, his voice a rough whisper against the night air. "He led us to that thin path, and then... nothing. It’s like he vanished."
I nodded, the frustration of the failed trail tugging at my chest. We’d been so close, so damn close to catching him, but now... we were back to square one. “You think it’s magic?”
Phoenix glanced at me, his eyes dark but clear for a moment. "Could be. Something’s off. I feel like we are missing something." His hand clenched around the dagger, the grip tight before he let it go, his posture stiffening as though he’d just shaken off a bad thought. The air around us felt thick, as if it, too, was waiting for something—waiting for the other shoe to drop.
I leaned back against the rough bark of the tree behind me, the cold wood pressing into my spine, grounding me. "I know, it does seem strange. What I want to know is why take people at all? Are they hostages? Forced conscripts?"
Phoenix exhaled, his gaze returning to the forest's edge, the shadows thickening with every passing moment. He didn’t answer right away, lost in his thoughts, but then something shifted in his stance, and I felt the weight of his next question before it even left his lips.
"Do you think they made it back safely?" Phoenix asked abruptly, his voice a low murmur against the soft rustle of the leaves.
I rubbed the mark on my hand absently — the faint, scarred reminder of the blood link, a tether still binding me to the others, no matter the distance.
"Yeah," I said, a little more certain than I felt. "I think Elira’s fine."
Phoenix flicked his eyes to mine, and for a breath, I caught a flash of vulnerability before he buried it deep.
"I wasn’t just talking about her," he said quietly.
"Sure, you weren’t," I muttered with a sigh.
His gaze drifted across the darkened fields, squinting as if trying to find something — or someone — just out of reach.
"I’ve never seen Slade get hurt like that," he murmured. "He must’ve taken on a hell of a lot."
I let out a grunt of a laugh, bitter at the edges. "Did you see that pile of bodies?" I shook my head, trying to shove the memory away. "We’re lucky he was only hit once."
Phoenix’s eyes caught mine again — a brief flicker of something unspoken passing between us.
"Guy’s a machine," he said.
I nodded, though my gut twisted at the thought of Slade lying bloodied and silent.
"He’s tougher than anyone gives him credit for," I said quietly.
Phoenix stared into the fire. "So is Elira."
I didn’t look at him. Just let the silence stretch longer than was comfortable.
