Page 73 of Heart of Night and Fire

At that moment, Vikram also stirred from sleep, where he’d dozed off next to her.

“You’re looking better,” Kindle said.

Zarya sat up, and Vikram rose from the bed and pulled on his boots.

“I need to be at the fort,” he said, grabbing his coat. “And I’m already late.”

Zarya nodded and smiled. “I’ll see you later.”

He pressed his hands together in Kindle’s direction with a quick bow and then left the room. Kindle watched after him, something conflicted in his expression.

“Zarya, I offered to be here if you need someone to talk to, but in Row’s absence, I feel it’s my duty to ask that you be careful about who you get close to in the palace.”

Zarya wondered where this was coming from. “I don’t believe that’s any of your business.”

“No, I suppose it’s not.” He glanced back to the door. “Just… be cautious. You have been sheltered from the realities of life.”

Zarya opened her mouth to argue, but she couldn’t deny it. It was true that despite how capable she liked to think she was, she didn’t know much about life on the outside. Books could only account for so much. Still, she wasn’t a complete fool.

Kindle sat down in the chair next to the bed so he was eye level with her.

“What happened? Tell me what you saw when you were bound.”

“What do you mean, bound?”

He sighed. “Someone placed a binding on you. But it was not like anything I’ve ever seen before. It was beyond my ability to break.” He hung his head in his hands. “I’m sorry. I can only assume this was Row’s doing, but it’s not something any of us recognized. We all tried. Dhawan, Apsara, Suvanna. Every time we had a hold of it, it would slip away. We couldn’t hang on and even if we could, it was incredibly strong.”

Zarya was surprised at the emotion in his voice, wondering why he cared so much.

“You don’t need to be sorry. It wasn’t your fault.”

“How did you release it?”

She faltered. “I didn’t,” she replied, knowing she’d have to reveal something about her visions but feeling compelled to keep the details as vague as possible.

Details like the fact she knew Rabin’s name but didn’t know who he actually was. He might have rescued her, but she sensed he was dangerous. His warrior’s disposition, the scars, the overwhelming intensity in his eyes—everything about him spoke of something dark and elusive. Mysterious and wild.

Her cheeks flushed as she remembered the way he’d looked at her and the way he’d said her name. She could still feel where he’d touched her, like a memory dipped in warm honey and wrapped in shadowed silk.

But he’d helped her. If he’d meant her harm, surely he wouldn’t have done so?

“I was in a forest,” she said. “It felt like a dream. There was a stranger.”

“Who? Where?” Kindle sat up straighter.

“I don’t know where it was. It was just a forest, and the person was hooded,” she replied, massaging some of the details for her convenience. “I didn’t see them. I don’t know who it was.”

Zarya flexed her hand, remembering the flare of fire she’d brought into existence. How it had danced before her eyes. A creation born of her very soul. She searched for that spark now, finding it twirling in her chest where it curled and purred.

“I don’t understand. This makes no sense,” Kindle said, furrowing his brow. “Was it a vision?”

Zarya shrugged, not meeting his eyes. “I’m not sure what it was. It felt more like a dream.” That wasn’t really the truth, either, but it was the only way to describe it.

He pursed his lips, clearly unsatisfied with that answer. “And now? Do you notice any difference?” he asked. He looked her up and down as if he could see a change tattooed on her skin.

“I’m just tired.”

At Zarya’s lie, Kindle’s shoulders slumped.