Page 71 of Winds of Ruin
Cassidee pulled up a chair behind Wyeth and wrapped her arms around her shoulders. “I wanted to kill him at first,” Cass admitted.
“Yes, well, I despised you at first, too,” Wyeth laughed out, and her hair turned a shade of green—she told a lie.
My niece sipped wine. Her eyes grew glassy as she listened to the tales of her aunts’ past lives. “That’s so romantic,” she cooed.
Amara’s warm smile stretched wide, reminding me so much of her son’s. My mood shifted, and Lark glanced in my direction as though having felt the pang.
Don’t be nosy, butt out of my head,I thought loudly enough for her to straighten and cough into her glass.
We all knew better than to ask about Amara’s Source Match. Corric Mattock had been Caym’s envoy for centuries—his andAmara’s years of love had turned into years of turmoil under Firose’s rule in the towers.
Emmerick had told me that Firose had willingly stayed in the falling amphitheater. If she’d lived, would we be able to wake him now?
“Why don’t we refill our glasses and play a bit of music?” I asked, and a bottle floated around the room once more.
I recited a Phynnic charm Fen had taught me to play the grand piano in the entryway, and an upbeat melody carried through the estate.
“Oh, I like this one!” Wyeth chirped.
Standing, I offered my hand to her. “Well, come on, then. You know I’m a better dancer than Cass is.”
“Watch it, Red,” Cassidee scoffed, but she released her partner from her embrace, letting Wyeth rise.
I lifted my arm, spinning her beneath it.
Amara seemed happy for the distraction and crossed the room to snatch both Lark’s and Asterie’s wrists, pulling them to dance too.
On bare feet, we frolicked in a drunken circle, rounding the armchairs and sofas. Fits of laughter coated our tongues, and shrieks of glee filled my home as limbs flailed and hips swung.
Wyeth wielded vines from her palms that bloomed with delicate white and purple flowers and then fitted them into circles. She tossed the Source-wielded crowns to each of us.
“If you dance around a fire like a sprite, you might as well look spritely!” she exclaimed, shouting over the piano chords as we decorated our heads with the floral bands.
Asterie’s arms swayed over her head in a movement reminiscent of flailing tendrils of seaweed. From her fingertips, blue glowing orbs rose, dotting the dark wood ceiling with shimmering beauty.
Lark burst out with a laugh when Cassidee finally joined in, lacking any semblance of rhythm but with all the enthusiasm of a boar in a porcelain shop.
For the evening, I stopped thinking about our looming threats and everything I’d lost.
Chapter 31
Emmerick
It was well after dark now, but earlier that day, Elsedora had seemed forlorn as she’d walked down the hill to let Mayra out. I hoped her sadness didn’t stem from Mama’s injury. Others had arrived soon after—her niece, Asterie, Wyeth, Cassidee, and Amara.
I tapped my foot to the rhythm of the piano that played inside. Well... Itriedtapping it. I held no real corporeal form. The music eased my mind. They wouldn’t feign cheerfulness if anything unfixable had happened. It felt like I was being pulled away, as if something was tugging me up. I refused to leave.
Lately, the curse grew heavier; with each passing year, I forgot a little more of who I used to be.
Had I liked the color blue or red more?
All I knew was I loved the swirl of brown and green in El’s eyes. I supposedthatwas my new favorite color.
Had I liked winter?
It had become my new favorite season.
When the snow coated the ground, Elsedora would dust off the stone bench overlooking the lake a quarter mile from the estate and sit facing the wind, as though the bite of cold and frost propelled her. Seeing her take a rare quiet moment had become a favorite pastime.
