Page 17 of House Ignis

Fae servers glided between tables, goblets of spiced wine gleaming beside plates of sugared fruit and pastries.

Then my eyes snagged.

The Umbra table sat at the far side, shadows pooling thick around its edges. And there he was, lounging—Asher Maddox.

Silver eyes found me instantly, locking onto mine with unnerving precision.

The smallest tilt of his lips—gods, not even a full smirk, just enough to wreck me. Like he knew exactly how rattled I was.

I tore my gaze away, cheeks burning.

"Eyefucking," Ember murmured in my ear, her voice razor-sharp. "Confirmed."

"Gods, Ember!" I hissed, swatting at her as she grinned like Luna herself. Maddison laughed, bright and merciless.

I straightened, forcing the court-perfect smile I'd practiced since childhood, pretending their stares didn't twist my stomach or make my flame threaten to spill loose.

Politics. Always politics.

We slid into our seats at one of the long banquet tables. Silver platters gleamed with roasted meats, sugared fruits, and stacks of steaming flame-kissed cookies.

The hall buzzed with expectation. Yet every time I dared to look up, those eyes were still there.

Watching. Unflinching. The weight of it pressed against my bare back, sending shivers skimming down my spine.

"Silence."

Headmaster Silas's voice cracked like a whip, echoing through the vaulted dome. Conversation died at once.

He rose from his seat at the high table, crimson sleeves whispering as he lifted a golden goblet high.

"Tonight is for celebration," he said, thunder rolling in his voice. "But we cannot ignore the shadows that linger. As many of you know, we have lost students this past year. Some to carelessness. Some to temptation. The poison of Eclipsa continues to plague our land, as it always has. Beyond the Ring, it has taken lives, even the brightest flames."

His gaze swept the chamber, then flicked to me.

My stomach plunged. I gripped my goblet so hard the metal bit into my palms. Jax.

That's what we were told—that he'd overdosed outside the kingdom's reach. That he had simply burned out like a candle in the dark.

"Know this," Silas thundered. "Your gods do not abandon their children. May Elara guide the lost back to the light. May Ignis rise with us in fire, unbroken."

We echoed the words, our voices rolling like a tide. "May Ignis rise with us in fire, unbroken."

For one breathless moment, silence hung over the hall like ash after a wildfire.

Then Silas flicked his hand, and the spell shattered. Benches scraped back, platters vanished with a shimmer of starlight, and music swelled.

"Finally," Ryven whooped, already seizing a jug of spiced wine and filling Maddison's goblet to the brim.

"To us!" Maddison laughed as Ryven tugged her close and kissed her sugar-stained lips.

"To power," I raised my cup.

"To chaos," Ember purred, flames flickering at her fingertips.

The music slowed, the strings rising in an aching swell that echoed through the hall.

My pulse rose with it, hammering too fast and too loud until it burned in my throat.