Page 65 of Prince of the Phantom Sky

Raiden rubbed his jaw, his pain so physically palpable Kora wasn’t sure whether she was genuinely feeling it or if it was through whatever fucked-up connection they had.

“It was never a choice, but I saw inside your mind. She’s not there. Whatever remains isn’t her. I have to think of what’s best for the island, and unleashing a potential trap left by Barron isn’t it, just for the sake of your memories.”

“A trap?” she repeated. Raiden shrugged in return before offering one of the pastries to Kora.

“I wouldn’t put it past him. I don’t trust anything he’s touched. His reach stretches far, and he possesses illusion mentality magic that’s never been seen before.”

Kora took the plate, her mouth already drooling at the scent of honeyed bacon and puffed pastry with a cream sauce. She took a bite, trying to suppress the moan that followed. Sweet Calypso, the food was good here.

“Is that what this is?” She gestured between them, munching on her pastry between speaking. “Do we have mind magic?”

Raiden’s lips quirked, his eyes sparking. “No, you don’t have mind magic.”

“But you do?” Kora gently sat on the edge of Erick’s cot. She didn’t trust Raiden enough to leave Erick’s body exposed.

“Of sorts.” Raiden held out the mug to Kora, the steam wafting off it enticing her as a sweet scent filled the air.

“Can you read my mind?” she asked quietly, staring over the mug at Raiden, her gaze following the trail of his muscled arm wrapped in a tawny shirt that clung to all the right places.

“I cannot read minds.” Raiden pointedly glanced at the mug, and back to Kora. She didn’t move. “We don’t know what this part of my power is, only that I can somehow push my voice directly into people’s minds, using the wind.”

Kora took the mug, her fingers brushing his. Warm sparks rolled through her, and she jerked as Raiden’s stare snapped to where their fingers barely touched. A hairsbreadth of skin anchoring her. Warmth spread, trickling its way down to her core, and Raiden’s finger extended up the length of hers in a subtle caress.

“Thank you,” Kora murmured, her body cooling as she retreated from Raiden. She wrapped her fingers around the cream pottery, seeking to replace his warmth. It’d been painted with swirling blue patterns, and the liquid inside was brown.

“Try it,” Raiden encouraged and Kora nearly jumped at his voice in her mind.

“Wind can’t enter people’s minds,” Kora replied, as she took a sip of the mysterious liquid. Sweet, silky chocolate burst on her tongue, and she gasped as the flare of heated spice followed. “What is this!”

Raiden smiled. “Good, right? It’s hot chocolate with a little . . . kick.” He chuckled lightly as she gulped it down, ignoring the burn in her throat. “I don’t know how, but my power can just do it. If you focus, you may be able to hear the faintest of wind currents when it happens.”

Kora pondered his words. She’d heard wind currents her whole ten years. She was intimately familiar with the wind, how it roared . . . how it caressed.

“How much of my life did you see?”

Raiden’s smile faded. “Not as much as you think. I tried to help when I could, but depending on how far away you were from Galen, it made it harder. I couldn’t always see when you were with . . . him.”

Kora’s cheeks burned, and her heart thudded as she pushed down the betrayal. “How did you see, though?”

“I’m not entirely sure on that either.” Raiden stood, flexing his hands as though mentioning Blake had somehow made this dynamic awkward. “I’d be sucked into the void, and there was your life, playing through your eyes. And then . . .” Raiden’s stare flashed, reliving a memory, and within a blink, a weighted gaze met Kora’s and her breathing stopped. “You were so near. I’d somehow managed to break through and guide you to the Mist. I tried so hard in hopes you could make it here by accident . . . but the pirates intercepted without realising the wider picture.” Raiden frowned. “I don’t understand why they were out there. They’ve not ventured to Peril Cove for a long time.”

Kora swallowed. Almighty Thanos. This was beyond her knowledge of magic, of the factions and Devanian history. And that day. That damned day that was the catalyst of events leading her here . . . it’d been Raiden all this time. His desperation to save her had led her right to Peril Cove.

“That day changed everything,” Kora whispered, and Raiden audibly swallowed. She couldn’t resist watching the bob of this throat, the way his broad shoulders pinched. “And this void . . . I’m guessing that’s not normal either?”

Raiden shook his head. “It manifested a few days after you were taken. Before that, you and I . . . we were connected, but it was the same as everyone else. Me talking to your mind and receiving no response.”

Just how it was now, then. Was that . . . melancholy? Kora studied him for a moment. Was he sad that there was no one else like him? Was it lonely to have these one-sided conversations, despite possessing such a unique gift?

“Maybe Barron’s magic opened some kind of magical mental rift in me? If he can manipulate my mind, he surely can do other . . . mind-related things?”

“Perhaps,” Raiden headed towards the door. “Or it’s something new entirely.”

30

Kora

You want me to do what?”