Page 43 of By the Flames of Her Fury

I jerked my head up. “No, no, not at all. I’m listening. I like hearing you talk. I was just thinking.” I let out a nervous chuckle. “We’re so different, you know? We come from such different lives.”

“Does that matter?”

“Of course not. I just…” I carefully thought through my words. He still didn’t know who my family was or how Scarven entrapped us. I didn’t want his questions or his pity—even if he didn’t mean it that way.

“You talk about this life and the future you had planned, and it’s all foreign to me,” I said. “My family never really talked about what comes next. It was just about making it through each day. I’m not much of a dreamer.”

“I’m not either. Before you got here, I was convinced my life was over. I didn’t bother thinking about a future I knew I’d never get.”

“What changed?” I murmured.

There was a beat. He took a long breath, and my thoughts hinged on that sound, on the stretch between heartbeats, as something shifted in the air.

“I found something worth dreaming for.”

19

Everett

Two days after we passed the Shattered Spine, we finally made it to Saltmourne, the southernmost island state of the Triad Realm. We exited the port and took in the city, my legs unsteady as they adjusted to the absence of rocking waves. Kieran leaned against me for a moment to catch his breath, holding a cloth-wrapped arm against his cracked ribs. The ship medics put a burn salve on his blistered arm and bandaged his ribs as well as they could, but he still flinched any time he took too hard of a step on that side.

Beyond the water was a world of sand unlike anything I’d seen before, even in the tropical climate of Iluze. This was a desert. Everywhere we turned were sand dunes, white-washed towers, and golden-brown, rolling hills that went on for miles. The architecture was stunning. I couldn’t help but crane my neck as we passed, staring up into the high buildings. Some of them had windcatchers built into the towers. I remembered reading about these being used for arid climates—it helped keep the area cool. Tessa had to tug me along to keep me from stopping and staring at everything in our path.

On our way to the Harbomaster’s office, people eyed our heavy clothing with strange looks. Men and women strode by in lightweight linen tunics, dyed silks that flowed behind them in the arid wind, and scarves wrapped around their heads to shield from the sun and dust. Tessa, Kieran, and I looked out of place in our cloaks and fur-lined pants from Drakorum.

“We might need to buy some new clothes,” I muttered as we walked up a limestone pathway leading to a large, tan building—the High Council’s chambers. I pulled open the double doors to reveal white floors, marble columns, and portraits lining the hall. People filtered in and out of offices with stacks of papers and steaming mugs.

When Tessa, Kieran, and I came to a halt on the threshold, a woman with a pencil behind her ear approached. Her gaze trailed from my cloak to my heavy boots, then back up again.

“You must be the foreigners,” she said by way of greeting.

“Kieran Blackwell, ma’am,” Kieran said, ever the diplomat. “These are my associates, Everett Swift and Tessa Briar. The Empress of the Veridian Empire has sent us, at the High Council’s request.” He pulled a letter with the official seal of the empress from his jacket pocket.

While the woman looked down at the letter, Tessa mouthed, “Associate?”

“Just go with it,” I mouthed back.

“Right this way, Master Blackwell,” the woman said, tipping her head toward Kieran.

Tessa couldn’t hide her snort. “Bet he loved that.”

I helped Kieran as the woman led us up a marble staircase and to another corridor. An ornate wooden door rested at the end. She knocked swiftly, and when a deep voice boomed, “Enter,” she pushed it open.

Inside was a large man with a dark auburn beard sitting behind a desk. A plaque with the words “Fraser Bay—High Council Chancellor” sat before him. My eyes were instantly drawn to the bookshelves built into the walls behind him. My fingers itched to reach for the leather tomes adorning the shelves.

“Master Bay, your guests from the Veridian Empire have arrived,” the woman said with a little bow.

“Thank you, Rina. That will be all,” the man behind the desk said, his voice low and rough. He leaned over and stuck his hand out to Kieran. “Fraser Bay, Saltmourne Chancellor.”

“Kieran Blackwell,” he responded. “This is Everett Swift and Tessa Briar.”

“His associates,” Tessa added. I pursed my lips to keep from smirking.

“We’re happy to welcome you to Saltmourne,” Bay said. “Your arrival marks the first formal exchange between our people in…well, forever,” he added with a chuckle.

“I would say it’s long overdue, then,” Kieran replied smoothly. “The Veridian Empire values stability along its borders and its seas, and we’re honored to learn more about your land.”

The chancellor nodded. “As am I. I can’t speak for the other two chancellors in the Realm, but I hope this is the start of a beneficial alliance for us both.”