“Because he will save Alyssium.”
“So he says.”
“If he doesn’t, then I’ll do it.”Even in my mind, I’m out of breath.“I’ve given up thinking either of you is looking out for anyone but yourselves, and that’s fine. But at least if I choose King Malachi, Alyssium stands a chance.”
Wilder chuckles, and I feel him retreating before I pull the thread closed.“Just to spite him, I hope you do.”
He fades from my mind, and I let out a breath. My hands unclench as my eyes open. And that’s when I see the glowing white threads weaving from my fingertips, illuminating the room. Magic dancing all around me.
Chapter 36
Elorie
The sun peeksthrough the clouds on the morning of the blessing. But there’s no warmth to it. No peace.
I brush my fingers over a small pile of snow collecting on the bricks. Tempest snow would never form a snow animal like the ones the children in the village would build in the square. It’s too soft and flaky.
It falls from my fingertips as gently as it fell from the sky this morning. I brush it off my hands, but my fingers aren’t wet, just cold like the rest of me.
My dress for the blessing flutters and shimmers with shades of midnight blues and grays. It ties around my neck, covering my front but revealing my back. A spiked, silver spine of gems connects the tie at my throat to just above my backside.
A kiss of the breeze makes my nipples peak beneath the smooth, silky fabric. Goose bumps prickle my skin.
The atrium is empty while I wait to be called into the blessing room. I’m surrounded by white stone with doors lining every wall. But I keep my eyes to the sky.
To the crystal-blue morning.
A small fire crackles in a hearth at the center of the atrium, but it does little to warm the space. Closing my eyes, I let the faint cracks and pops of embers settle my nerves.
How many fires did I stare into sitting beside Father? How could I have known we reached our last one?
A door creaks, and I glance at Wilder walking toward me. The king is already in the blessing room meeting with Lady Reah before we get started, but no one else is here. Thankfully, this isn’t a spectacle like everything else seems to be, so there’s no one to witness if I don’t survive the day. While the blessing is a fraction of the intensity of the Rite, there’s still a chance my human heart won’t withstand it.
Wilder’s strides are long. His hands relaxed at his side.
He has the presence of a king, when sometimes I forget that he is one.
His dark shirt is loose where the strings aren’t tied at the top, breezing open with his steps to reveal rune markings and solid muscle. His sleeves are rolled up, showing off the veins in his forearms, and his dark pants hug his thighs perfectly.
In nature, the most beautiful things are the deadliest. Wilder is proof of that.
His golden eyes take me in at his approach, but unlike the guards who gawked and whispered, his expression remains passive when his gaze meets mine. I’m sure he’s bedded such gorgeous females that even in my most beautiful gown, I’m unimpressive to him.
Humanto him.
“You’re going to pick your fingernail off.” He glances at my hands, where I’m twisting my fingers around each other and digging at the corner of my nail while I wait.
I brush my long hair back off my shoulders, moving from one form of fidgeting to another. “You actually arrived on time. No grand entrance like the night of the promise?”
Wilder smirks, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning against a pillar. “Wouldn’t want to keep you waiting, Elorie Vale.”
The way he says my entire name makes my skin feel too tight.
“What is going to happen when I go in there?” I ask, pacing to the hearth and watching the fire.
The heat of it pales in comparison to Wilder’s magic, now radiating through the atrium, stripping the chill from my bones.
“You’ll face the mirror of Echme.”
