Page 152 of Ignite
Soren’s crystal-clear blue eyes watch me closely, the heat from his fur warming me instantly.
I can almost feel him in the way I feel Zephyr, our connections similar in the way her emotions seem to intertwine withmine on occasion. Right now, Soren feels at ease, but there’s an underlying current of worry hiding there, too.
“Will I still feel you if I don’t find the dagger in time?” I whisper to him, careful not to wake Graylen.
Soren lets out a soft whine, his eyes turning to the window—to the destroyed market beyond.
I used to look out of this window when I was here as Amira. I would sit here beneath the moon and stars, watching the tradesmen pack up their stalls for the evening. But tonight, there isn’t a seller in sight. Just empty, rundown carts and the occasional skittering of a cat hunting in the quiet square.
Rushing into finding the dagger isn’t going to help with what happened here. Sloppiness will only cause me to make a mistake—a mistake that could cost me my life or the lives of those around me. Nightfall won’t magically land in our lap, and the people of PenythandCrea will suffer because I was too caught up in my own head to try.
This has to work. Not just for me, but for the Linnicks and Opals of Crea.
I lean my forehead against the cool glass of the window and try to focus on the icy surface pressed against my skin as opposed to the racing thoughts in my mind. With a hand resting on Soren’s head and the other across my abdomen, I close my eyes.
Soren presses his muzzle into my knee just as a feeling of safety and comfort washes over me. A soft rumble comes from his chest—a soothing sound that eases the quick tempo of my pulse.
With the reminder of what’s at stake and Soren’s comforting presence, I begin to feel the familiar sensation of drifting into the in-between—falling somewhere that isn’t quite asleep, but isn’t awake either.
Before I know it, I slip into the cracks of oblivion.
A hazy blanket drapes over my vision, dusting the dark room in a soft blur. The familiar weight of dreamwalking tugs at my limbs, weighing them slightly.
I look down, watching my own body rest peacefully beneath the window.
A smile pulls at my mouth. It worked. It’s been a while since I’ve done this—and even when I did, I was back in Penyth with Avery.
I blink a few times, concentrating on staying connected to my dream realm like Annora and Avery taught me, and the blur of my vision begins to clear enough to see fully.
My gaze finds Soren, who’s staring directly at me. Atdreamme. As if he can see me in this state, though he’s clearly still within the waking realm.
“Can you see me, Soren?” I ask hesitantly.
His tail wags, and he chomps at the air. He settles against my physical body, resting his head on my knee as if to say,I’ve got you while you’re gone.
I don’t know how this creature found its way to me, but it feels like fate.
“Watch out for Graylen, too,” I whisper—though there’s no one here to even hear me.
Soren’s eyes flicker to where Graylen is still asleep, and warmth spreads throughout my chest. It’s as if he’s letting me know he’ll keep us safe, and it’s enough to give me the confidence to glide out of the bedchamber.
I float through the door like a ghost, drifting down the dimly lit hallway and past the guards at our doors. One of the soldiers has his eyes closed and his head tipped back against the wall, while the other mindlessly cleans his sword.
We probably could’ve snuck out of here with how littleattention they’re paying to our rooms. Still…it’s better to be safe, especially when we don’t know what Moros’s plan is.
I drift through the castle corridors, moving like a wraith haunting each floor until I reach the library.
No soldiers guard the entrance—in fact, I didn’t passanyon the way here. But instead of it feeling comforting, it feels…strange. Wrong. Like there’s a perpetual chill clinging to the walls, and a darkness seeping up from the floors.
I shake my head, stepping into the library.
Anticipation thrums through my body when I see the hidden doorway already there, easily accessible in my dream realm.
Something pricks at the back of my mind: that it wastooeasy to find—too unguarded for the supposed location of a weapon that could change the course of the brewing war—but I push it aside.
A quick look inside will tell me if it’s here or not.
The easy part is finding it—the hard part is getting here in the waking realm and retrieving the blade.
