Page 149

Her lungs burned, and tears stung her eyes. She couldn’t speak. Thoughts in her mind formed and dissipated right before she could say them out loud.

“I told you you deserve better, and I meant it. I don’t expect you to forgive me. In fact, you will never have to see me again after today, but I beg of you, because I’m nothing if not selfish, do not look at me like you don’t know me. I don’t think I can bear it. Not after everything.”

There they stood, in the pouring rain, and he had laid it all bare for her. Exposed every emotion he had hidden behind millions of layers.

And this time she knew he spoke the truth because she could feel it in her heart. He was her home.

She took a step toward him and then another. A few hours ago she had seen the coldest side of him. Now, he looked the most vulnerable. His arms hung slack next to his body in defeat. She wasn’t sure what he thought she would do next, but judging by the lines of worry creasing his forehead, he was preparing himself for a goodbye.

There were no words she could speak to summarize how she felt. She stood right in front of him, only inches away, watching the rain drip down his hair. He remained entirely still.

She used the sleeve of her coat to wipe the blood from his nose. He didn’t move a muscle, didn’t dare to breathe.

“I want to stay in Yharvan tonight,” she said. “Far away from magic.”

He nodded. “I understand. Where? I am going to call for Obryn to come and watch over you.”

She shook her head. “I want to stay with you.”

His eyes flashed, and his expression changed to utter disbelief. And then she kissed him, leaning into it with meaning, trying to erase the last few hours from her memory. Gently, he replied, pulling her closer.

And for that blissful moment in the rain, nothing else mattered. Nothing aside from the feel of his lips on hers, the scent of his Dark Magic, the strength of his arms around her.

When she broke the kiss, he remained stoic.

“We should talk to Obryn, though,” she added. “Explain everything that happened.”

Not just about Rakkley but also about her assassinating the Primemage.

“I will ask him to meet us at my house.”

“You have a house in Yharvan? Scratch that, of course you do.”

The ghost of a smile played across his lips. “I haven’t been in years.”

“Let’s go.”

They didn’t say another word as they coin traveled to the magic gates until they arrived at the final one right outside Yharvan. A muddy pathway led to a steep staircase. Yharvians called them the forever stairs, the longest in the world, consisting of 11,687 steps. They flipped their coins once more and landed at the last accessible travel point before leaving the magic spheres. Only around six hundred steps separated them from Yharvan.

They stared at the fogbank that divided the magic and non-magic spheres, keeping Yharvan from view.

The haze was so thick, she couldn’t see anything in front of her. She held on to the railing tightly as they began their slow descent. Already, the magic in her seemed to be weakening. Going dormant with every step she took. Aidric didn’t say a word, but she could practically hear him scoff at the mundanity of having to walk down stairs.

Once they passed through the fog, Yharvan stretched out before them. And when her feet hit the ground, her magic was gone. Everything in her went silent, and she took a deep exhale.

Aidric removed Rakkley’s pin and tossed it.

It was strange to watch one of the most powerful Wielders she knew walk through the streets of Yharvan, unable to use a drop of magic. He didn’t look pleased about it. While her muscles relaxed with every step, his seemed to tighten.

It took them only a few minutes to make it to Aidric’s house. Obryn was already waiting at the entrance. Mira wasn’t sure how he managed to get there so quickly, but apparently he was several gates closer to Yharvan than they had been.

Aidric picked up a stone from the front yard, turned it over, and retrieved a key from it. Unlike any of his other properties, he couldn’t rely on magic to open the door.

They stepped inside, and his place was much more modest than his other properties but still triple the size of the house she had lived in here.

The moment the door closed behind them, Aidric launched into a detailed description of the events that had unfolded. Mira fell into a chair in the corner, the exhaustion catching up with her.

Obryn listened and asked the occasional question, but his face remained blank.