Their five minutes had run out before Khayrivven could say anything more than, “Don’t tell anyone.” They’d left the alcove, Lory first, hurrying toward the main door to the training yard, while Khayrivven had returned upstairs and entered the yard a minute later by jumping off the balcony where Lory and once spied on himand Anees training. Students scattered with yelps and screams as he’d smoothly landed, sabers in his hands as if expecting an attack.
Lory’s heart was still pounding from the moment of panic when she’d watched him free-fall from the elevated structure, even when she knew Khayrivven was like a cat—always landing on his feet, but the image of him breaking his neck was something she never wanted to see again. Even in her imagination.
Now she was standing at the edge of the yard, at a safe distance from the ashlings who were being called one by one to enter the parcours. Behind her, the air was warm but still cooler than the merciless sun beating down on the yard. Khayrivven had taken up his post at the center of the parcours, arms folded across his chest and the silver hilts of his sabers glimmering behind his shoulders. He seemed to be giving the trials his full attention, but judging by the glimmer of pride on his face whenever she met his gaze across the yard, his mind was on what had happened in the alcove.
He’d read her mind, but his reaction had suggested it was her achievement, not his.
Hadn’t he mentioned a long time ago that the Flames had possessed mind-reading abilities? But that sort of power hadn’t been seen in a long time. Perhaps he was the one exception. A Flame powerful enough to tap into a heritage so ancient. Perhaps he came from a line of mind readers.
There was only one way to find out.
This time, Lory didn’t even consider asking anyone else. If Khayrivven’s dreamweaving wasn’t safe because people would notice if they both fell into a trance, maybe his mind-reading was.
“Khayrivven?”She barely dared speak his name. What if there were others like him? Others who could listen in?
No response. Not even a whisper.
Wait—if he could read minds, it didn’t mean she’d hear him in return.
“If you can hear me, give me a sign, Khayrivven.”
Still no response.
Lory didn’t know what she expected, but definitely not Hadrian’s charming baritone.
“Allow me to join you, Miss Vednis.” He grinned down at her, eclipsing the sun with his tall form. His tousled, dark-blond waves caught the light in reflections of gold, and his natural, easy smile instantly put Lory at ease. So much at ease that alarm bells went off inside her head.
“Whatever you’re doing, stop it.” It was an effort, forcing herself to sound annoyed.
Hadrian’s smile only widened. “I’m not doing anything.”
“Yeah, and I’m not a criminal with shunned magical abilities who escaped the butcher’s block twice.” She shifted her weight, pushing away from the wall and folding her arms. “I’m serious. Stop messing with my emotions.”
Hadrian’s groomed eyebrows shot up. “I merely thought you could use some positive vibes. Your emotions seemed pretty messed up.”
The easiness in her chest coiled back into an anxious ball, oddly comforting.
“Bymessed up, I hope you aren’t implying that you’re spying on my emotions.”
Hadrian shrugged, the image of innocence. “Hey, I can’t switch my powers on and off as I please, the way you can with yours.”
They’d practiced enough together over the past days that Lory could securely say he was right. Shecouldflip a switch in her head by now that allowed her to control when her fire made an appearance. No more going up in flames. “Fair enough. Is there a way to block you out then?”
Hadrian tilted his head. He’d mentioned it that day he’d told her about his powers, that he needed close proximity and that some people could detect when he was using his skillset. Anees was unreceptive to it, so there had to be a way to simply block him entirely.
“Not really. But with time, you’ll learn to recognize when my powers are at work.” He didn’t appear particularly happy to admit this fact.
“What’s wrong?” Hadrian leaned against the wall right beside the drainpipe that seemed to be an artifact from centuries past when this part of Brestolya had been lush and green. The desert had spread from the heart of the continent until it reached the northern coast, the river Dun supporting only the areas close to its arms.
Lory shoved her hands into her pockets, her gaze flicking back to Khayrivven, then searching the yard for Tabi, Thal, and Jarek. “I’m just a little jumpy today. My friends are in the trials, and I can’t afford to lose them, too.”
She didn’t need to explain that she meant after Aiden, because out of all the people at Ashthorn Ward, Hadrian was one of the few who had appreciated Aiden as a friend and ally.
The Gilded phantom jerked his stubbled chin in the direction of Khayrivven’s segment of the parcours, where four black-clothed figures were running across the roof mockups. “Tabi is doing great, it seems. No one is as fast as her.”
Lory followed his gaze, finding Tabi climbing the side of an obstacle, her form impeccable and her speed impressive.
Thal, Jarek, and Eira Moonfell were a few feet above her, slower than the woman but steadily climbing.
