Page 10 of Omen of ice
On the other hand, a small voice in the back of my mind says that maybe she’ll be good for me.
Maybe it’s her dark eyes and red hair I find engaging. She has curves and a definition to her frame that sets her apart from the others at court. A strength and hardness that make me curious what her life was like before coming here.
“Who is Buri?” She turns and closes the door, giving me an unobstructed view of her backside. When she turns around, she catches me staring. “Were you just—are you staring at my—”
“What? It’s a very nice…form.”
“I—you—” Her cheeks flush, and I like the color. It brings out her eyes.
“Oh, relax. Think of it as a compliment. I mean, it’s not like I’m the only one who saw it. The fabric back there is nearly see-through.”
If possible, the red in her cheeks gets brighter, and her mouth hangs open. She drops her hands to cover her rear and backs up against the wall. “You were saying? About Buri?”
“She’s been helping me focus my magic.” If I can learn to control it, then maybe I won’t have to donate the magic Orbik uses to keep us safe.
“What makes her qualified?” Her lips quirk, both thin brows lifting in question. “No one’s had magic in thousands of years, right?”
“She was born before the Great Drain and used to teach magic to the younger generations in town. My uncle sent her to me.”
The druid rolls her eyes. Brownish green with tiny flecks of gold, they remind me of the jasper vines that grow in the field behind the estate. Creeping things that twist around whatever they touch, luring you in with their beauty…then choking the life from you. So far, the comparison seems dead-on. “Is that wise?”
I stare. “Iswhatwise?”
“Trusting someone so implicitly.” She pushes off the wall, forgetting about the dress, and steps farther into the room. “Considering a beloved teacher, someone you knew from childhood, just tried to gut you not an hour ago…”
“I never said he wasbeloved.” I point to the empty decanter on the table next to my bed. “This conversation might go better if we both have a drink. I have a bottle of wine around here someplace…”
“So, hedidn’tlike you?” She clasps her hands behind her back and tilts her head. Several strands of hair fall across her face, but she ignores them. Why the hell do I feel the urge to brush them aside? It’s the color. That must be it. I’ve never seen hair the shade of wildfire.
“Like I said, maybe he heard about his daughter and me.” There’s far more to it than that, but I have no reason to tell my newfriend. If I have my way, she won’t be sticking around. “I suppose he might have been annoyed.”
“Everyone here loves me. That’s what you said less than an hour ago, isn’t it? Seems you were wrong.” She leans against the wall a few feet from the bed. Her dress is torn in several places. The vines in the back hang, swaying loose over her bare skin, but that, too, escapes her notice. “Who else mightlikeyou the way he did? Maybe this Buri is harboring deep-seated feelings of hatred?”
“Buri harbors deep-seated feelings, but they aren’t hatred.” She would be easier to deal with if they were. “And I doubt my uncle would have me trained by someone he hadn’t properly vetted.” I touch a finger to the bedspread. A small section of it ices over, the frost glinting against the soft light coming in from the moon. Tonight’s been stressful. Sometimes it helps to release the magic a little at a time to keep it from building. “I’m the only known living Fae with magic. I’m too important for Orbik to risk.”
“I bet it’s a lot of pressure, huh?” She sits on the other end of the bed. The mattress barely dips beneath her small frame. Cunning and agile… My mind wanders to her fight with Fleeting, to the way she moved.
Definitely agile.
“Ahh. Now I get it.” She’s just trying to be nice, to form the bond that’s supposed to take root between us. Problem is, I don’t want it. Bonds like that only cause more problems in the long run.
“Get what?” she asks.
“Why the druids picked you to come to the Winter Lands. They found you completely annoying.”
“Yep. That’s it.” She rolls her eyes. “You’ve uncovered their secret. They wanted to get rid of me.”
I brush the frost off the bedspread. “Makes sense. You just got here, and I find you irritating.”
“I guess you’re going to have to learn to live with the irritation, then, Valen. I’m not leaving.”
“There has to be someplace else you’d rather be.” I jab my finger toward the large map tacked to my wall. “Anywhere in Derriga! Say the word, and I’ll send you.”
“I’m right where the Goddess wants me to be.” The corner of her lips twitch, and a pang of regret washes through me at the hint of sadness in her eyes. “The relationship between a Fae and an Aphelian is special. It’s a bond unlike anything else. It should come easily, but if you insist on fighting it, then I can’t stop you. But that doesn’t change things. My job is to ensure you continue sucking up oxygen.”
“And wine. Don’t forget the wine.”
She sighs and gets to her feet, shaking off defeat and smiling. “It’s getting late. Where am I supposed to sleep?”
