‘That might be so, but I wouldn’t underestimate the cousin, if I were you. She’s a ruthless little thing. You heard about the way she fried that dragon’s skull.’
I freeze.
‘True enough. But the boy’s just as gifted, and better-liked.’
‘Being well-liked has nothing to do with it. Smiles don’t win you a crown.’
The voices are so close now. Their owners must be standing right on the other side of the hedge. I remain completely still, listening.
‘And what of his sister?’
There’s a guffaw, then an unpleasant sound – the sound of a man spitting on the ground. ‘It’s a Gods’ damned miracle they’ve let her get this far.’
‘I have to say, she’s surprised me.’
‘Surprising or not, there’s not a soul alive who would accept her as a ruler. Mark my words, the Veridian desert will turn to ice before the Storm Weaver is crowned Queen of the Fish.’
Their voices fade out of earshot, but their words remain, lingering on the air, turning it sour. I stumble blindly down a pathway, then another.
I thought tonight I could be anybody, but I was wrong. The past is not a skin I can shed. I carry it with me every day of my life. And it doesn’t matter how grateful or graceful I am. It doesn’t matter how hard I try. Because it will never be enough.Iwill never be enough for these people, who would sooner see me dead than sitting on a throne.
It hurts, accepting something that you’ve known all along.
I break into a run, darting between the high hedges, utterly directionless, until suddenly I hurtle round a sharp corner and collide with something tall and solid. Wincing, I pull down my mask and cradle my forehead in my hand. My nose is instantly filled with the acrid scent of liquor. When I look up, squinting into the face of the person standing before me, I feel my heart sink into the pit of my stomach.
‘You know, I wasn’t sure I believed them when they said the Storm Weaver made it through the second trial. But here you are, alive and well. Or at least, alive. I must say, you’ve looked better.’ Cole smirks as he reaches out and plucks a twig from my hair then lets it fall to the ground between us. In his other hand he holds a half-empty bottle. ‘What a perfect spot for a catch-up, don’t you think? I so enjoyed our last get-together.’
I remember the way his eyes had bulged while he choked, trying desperately to prise his frozen tongue from the roof of his mouth. Warily, I take a step back.
‘What’s the matter, Blaze? Have somewhere you need to be?’
‘Actually, yes.’
‘And where’s that?’
‘Anywhere,’ I say. ‘Anywhere away from you.’
Cole smiles. The next moment we are encircled by a ring of fire.
‘I think it’s time you were taught some respect,’ he murmurs softly.
My voice sounds strangled. ‘You wouldn’tdare.’
‘Oh, wouldn’t I?’ Cole brandishes the liquor bottle and sloshes the contents over my dress. ‘You underestimate me, Blaze. And you’re not the only one, it seems.’
My gown is dripping in spirits. One flick of his wrist and I will be engulfed by flames.
‘See, the only reason you’re still breathing is because most people are scared of what your death might bring. Another storm, a plague, a curse, perhaps? Meaning that your miserable little life is untouchable, for the foreseeable at least. But, aside from killing you, there really are no limits to the ways in which I can make you suffer.’
I grit my teeth so hard I wonder if they might crumble into dust. ‘Even you wouldn’t be this stupid.’
Cole shrugs. ‘There’s no stupidity in justice.’
Justice. I think about the guard who tried to poison me all those years ago. He thought he was carrying out justice, too.
‘I’m not scared, you know,’ Cole continues. ‘Of retaliation from the Gods. Why would I be, when I’d simply be righting a wrong? Destroying something that should never have existed at all. They’d call me a hero.’
The flames leap higher. I try to summon the rain, to conjure ice. But fear, raw, genuine fear, has taken over, clouding my thoughts.
