Page 26 of The Starlight Savior

Eva took a step back, allowing her the space to hoist herself from the floor and onto the chair. Her muscles melted into the used cushions. Eva walked over, laying a quilted blanket on Saige’s lap. The fabric was a mixture of blues and purples, a common theme in the storm kingdom. It reminded her of the ones her mother would make.

“I’m sorry,” Eva said slowly. “I didn’t realize how difficult it is for you to express your magic. It isn’t supposed to be so…painful.”

“Ten years of fighting against it will do that,” Conor said. “I imagine it will become easier to manage once you stop fighting against it and get some proper training.”

“What a curse,” Saige mumbled, pulling the fabric to her chin. The colors and concoctions painted on her face were smudged.

“Curse?” Eva’s mouth fell open. “That was unbelievable! Beautiful even! Right?” She turned to the handmaids, still huddled in the corner. “I haven’t seen such external magic since—”

“Eva,” Conor warned.

Saige’s head shot up, eyes bright with rage. “You think that was beautiful?” Her words barely came out as a whisper. “Everytime that happens, I feel magic rip through my body, as if I’m dying. How could such a thing be beautiful?”

“Saige,” Eva breathed, reaching a hand out. Before her fingers touched her sleeve, Saige flinched, drawing herself deeper into the chair.

“Imagine that happening where magic is banned. Do you think I felt unbelievable? Beautiful?” Saige’s chin quivered as she spoke. Cheek wet with tears, there was no amount of willpower that could stop her emotion from pouring out. Everything she was never allowed to utter in Brevil. “I feel like a fucking monster.”

“My lady—” One of the handmaids stepped forward, but Conor stopped them with a hand.

“Enough,” he said, “Saige needs space.”

“She has been ordered to attend the supper tonight, directly from King Vospella. And your father,” Eva said.

“They can wait,” Conor growled.

“You know very well the king doesn’t wait,” Eva said cooly, the first hint of frustration in her voice. “We sent a whole battalion to retrieve her. They need to assess whether she is notable to train.”

“Of course she is—”

“I will come,” Saige whispered, tiring of the way the two were bickering like children. She looked up, meeting Conor and Eva’s expectant and confused gazes. “I came to Etrane for one reason. I can’t do that unless I’m trained.”

Eva nodded towards Saige, her icy blue eyes glittering in approval. “With the right training, you’ll be able to live a life where you are completely in control.”

This was the life Saige longed for. A life where she chose her own path, complete control of everything going on around her and inside her. She didn’t have to choose an occupation or marry someone who she’d have to keep at arm’s length. There were no hours, days, months of living in fear.

So why did the idea of losing this feeling terrify her so much?

“I think…” Saige looked down at herself, rubbing at the coal under her eyes. “I need some assistance first.”

Conor’s smile was small as he looked back towards the quivering girls. “I’m sure they’re up for the challenge.”

The three handmaids bowed. “Yes, my lord,” the fire-wielder murmured.

When Conor looked back towards Saige, his expression was unreadable. “Do you want the cuffs back on?”

“Of course not.”

“Well”—Conor sighed—“considering they mute magic, I imagine you wouldn’t want that to happen again. Especially alone.”

“I often deal with it alone,” Saige said sharply.

“Supper with the king’s court is far from an appropriate place to control magic.”

Saige looked up at Conor and the four cuffs resting in his hands. She straightened her back, smiling softly as she flattened the skirts of her dress and freshly tangled hair. “They want me at their dinner; they will have me at their dinner. All of me.”

She half expected Conor to slap the cuffs on her wrists. It was the most convenient option. But instead, he smiled back, the cursed dimple appearing in his left cheek. “I like the way you think, witchling.” He set the cuffs on the table beside her bed. “Time to crash a dinner party.”

Chapter 12