Page 15 of Axis of Fire

But they weren’t.

I felt nothing.

I felt weightless—

like a feather stripped of everything.

Silence.

Maybe that’s what it feels like... after death.

“I—”

I opened my mouth to speak, but hesitated, unsure of the question I was about to ask.

“Alive?” a voice finished for me.

The same voice that belonged to those hauntingly beautiful eyes now staring straight into mine—

far too close for a stranger.

Their owner was... handsome.

Too handsome.

A high forehead.

A straight nose.

Sharp cheekbones, made even more defined by tension.

They were the second thing I noticed about him—

right after his gaze.

It was hard to look away.

But I forced myself to.

Lifting my eyes slightly, I noticed something else—

a faint glow coming from his slightly too-long hair.

Silver.

Subtle.

Unnatural.

Could sunlight really do that?

His eyes were still on me, questioning—

one brow raised, waiting.

For a moment, I forgot what he had asked.

Then I remembered.