Page 46 of Heart of Night and Fire

Every eye in the ring followed him as he grabbed a swinging handle and launched himself over a pool of murky water. But one of the ropes securing the wooden crossbar snapped, causing Aarav to lose his grip. For a moment, he seemed to hover in the air as his arms and legs windmilled like a puppet cut from its strings. The entire yard fell into a horrified silence that was shattered a moment later when Aarav popped up, gasping for breath. He dragged himself out, his dripping clothes forming a puddle where he stood.

“Recruit has fallen!” shouted one of the Khada’s lieutenants, but he didn’t move to signal whether Aarav had actually failed the task. Zarya watched several Khada eyeing one another, apparently unsure what to do.

Vikram was now conferring with General Amjal, their heads bent together. Aarav’s shoulders rounded as he watched the pair intently, his hands opening and closing at his sides.

She saw Vikram and the general shake their heads before General Amjal gestured to Aarav that he had been eliminated from the task. He was met with a mixed chorus of boos and cheers as Zarya watched the air whoosh out of Aarav like someone had kicked him in the stomach.

“Wait!” Zarya cried. “That’s not fair. It broke. He couldn’t control it.” She didn’t know why she was defending him after the horrible things he’d said the other day, but this didn’t feel right.

“I’m sorry,” Vikram said. “Things go wrong out on the wall, too. A failure is a failure, regardless of how it happens.”

She could see the apology in his expression, but it was clear his hands were tied.

“Recruits!” General Amjal said. “Congratulations on making it this far. Those of you still standing will join the Khada on the wall in one week for your final test. Keep up your training and get some rest in the meantime.”

There was a chorus of cheers from the remaining hopefuls, but Zarya’s own victory was soured as she watched Aarav, whose face was an expressionless mask. She couldn’t tell if it was the water or if those were tears running down his cheeks.

She was about to go and console him, but he pinned her with such a dark look she stopped, knowing anything she said to him right now would only make things worse.

With a heavy heart, Zarya watched Aarav walk away, disappearing through the crowds of Dharati until she could no longer see him in the distance.

EIGHTEEN

“Let’s do something fun tonight,” Vikram said at breakfast a few days later. He sat with Zarya on the haveli’s balcony off the back garden, overlooking the water, with Yasen and Aarav sitting across from them. “Things have been far too serious lately, and I’m guessing you’ve never been to a peri anada.”

“A what?” Zarya asked, sitting up in interest.

“Drinks, dancing, fun. You’ll love it,” Vikram promised with a playful smile.

Yasen sipped his chai and rolled his eyes. “Oh, this will end well.”

“Don’t be such a scorpion in the sand,” Vikram said to his friend.

“Yes,” Aarav said, brightening, as Zarya glanced at him with suspicion. He’d been even more moody than usual since his disappointment at the Khada trials. “That is a brilliant suggestion.”

“Who invited you?” Zarya asked, but hurt flashed in his eyes, and her irritation turned to guilt. Despite his foul mood, Aarav had been giving her a wider berth since their argument on the beach, and she was wary of antagonizing him in case he decided to pick up the hobby of becoming her bodyguard again. “Fine. That does sound like fun.”

“Perfect. We’ll pick you up later. Yasen and I will be at Ambar Fort today, so try not to get into too much trouble without us.”

“Please,” Yasen said, eyes raised to the ceiling, his hands pressed together in mock prayer.

* * *

Later that day, Zarya returned to the haveli after visiting the soldier who’d lost his arm in Suvanna’s macabre research with the eggs in the forest. Raj was twenty-four and had spent five years as one of Rani Vasvi’s guards. For now, the healers were managing the pain, and soon, Koura would begin the long and painful process of regrowing his arm. Raj would recover completely in time.

Nevertheless, a sting of contrition gnawed in her stomach. Zarya suspected her weak vein of magic was the reason she’d been able to touch the egg without harm. If she’d been honest with Suvanna and the others, perhaps the merdeva would never have risked Raj’s life in such a reckless manner. It would have been completely her fault if he’d died.

To assuage her guilt, she had gone every morning to visit him. He was cheerful to a point that bordered on maniacal, and she marveled that anyone could be so positive after such an experience. Nevertheless, she was relieved there didn’t appear to be any lasting psychological damage. The Chiranjivi were a mostly cold and merciless lot. Row must have fit right in.

She knew it didn’t make up for the fact that she’d lied to everyone, but she felt sure that keeping her magic hidden was tantamount to her safety. She’d always scoffed at how dramatic Row had been, but surely there had been some reason for all of his worrying? And there was still Apsara’s suggestion that they could “use her” to consider. Whatever that meant.

Zarya spent the rest of the afternoon getting herself ready for the peri anada. She wore a lehenga made of raw black silk covered with intricate black beads fastened with silver thread. The choli fit snugly across her chest, leaving her midriff bare from just under her breasts to a line low on her hips where the sweeping floor-length skirt hung.

It was nice to finally have a place to wear the pretty clothes Row had chosen for her, rather than stare longingly at them hanging in her closet back at the cottage, or worse, trying them on only to be forced to wander the beach alone and without a soul to admire them.

Vikram and Yasen arrived shortly after Zarya had finished dressing, divested of their usual uniforms. Vikram wore an embroidered gold kurta that went to mid-thigh, worn over slim black pants, and Yasen wore a kurta of dark blue that contrasted beautifully with his silver locks.

Vikram took her in, looking at her with an intensity that made her stomach drop in response. Though she had limited experience in such matters, she was sure she wasn’t imagining his interest in her beyond friendship. At least she really hoped she wasn’t imagining it. He’d basically kissed her during their picnic, and who knew what might have happened if they hadn’t found themselves in the middle of a demon onslaught? He also hadn’t mentioned it since, but she was trying not to let that bother her.