Embrace the Fire (30 page)

“If you fear them, I will protect you, Your Grace.” Lianna's eyebrows arched over her brilliant blue eyes.

Sebastian laughed and drew her arm within his as he led her into the darkness of the woods. “How did you get past my lines?” he asked.

“You are the only Andrachen in your armies, Your Grace,” Lianna answered. “It was easy enough to blind your men to my passage.”

Sebastian removed his cloak and laid it on the ground at the base of a tree, inviting her to sit on it. Through the copses, they could see the dancing torchlight and the campfires beyond, but where they were was dark and quiet.

Sebastian leaned against the tree, an arm slung loosely over his knee, and waited. Lianna's gaze was on the nearest campfire that flickered through the woods. “Why did you come, Lianna? Not,” he added, “that I'm complaining; I quite enjoyed our time together in the mountains.” He brushed a finger over her hand where it rested on the cloak. Ice curved across the skin before vanishing. She jerked her hand away, but her smile was alluring as she turned to him. She lowered her voice into a purr. “Do I need an excuse to seek you out, Sebastian?”

“In wartime? Yes.” The chill in Sebastian's fingers subsided. He did not fear this woman, and he felt his control over his Ice-Touch strengthen. She, however, feared him, though she hid it well.

She moved closer to him. “Then let my excuse be that I wish to talk, Sebastian.” She touched his arm, tracing down his sleeve to his hand.

Sebastian's fingers intercepted hers, and she yanked them back, her breath hitching. She dropped her gaze to her lap.

Sebastian lifted her chin. “For someone who is attempting a seduction, you seem to be quite ... torn.” He leaned forward, tasting the skin of her jaw. She smelled sweet.

“I—I simply have a proposal, Sebastian. It's why I'm here.”

“Yes?” Sebastian's breath feathered where her slender neck slid into her shoulders. “What do you propose?”

“Only an exchange, Your Grace,” she whispered, gasping when his lips traced her collarbone.

“An exchange of what?”

“Cedric—for the Amulet. You've told me that Commander Lanier holds it in his possession.”

Sebastian chuckled deep in his throat, exploring the other side of her neck. “We've discussed this already, Lianna.”

Lianna clasped both sides of Sebastian's face, bringing his gaze directly to hers. She took a deep breath and leaned forward, pressing her lips against his, leaning him back until he lay on his cloak.

“You'll not consider it, Sebastian?” Her voice held all the charm of a Pixie, and even though he couldn't be swayed by its magic alone, her hands beneath his tunic clouded his thoughts. He pulled her closer, and she didn't resist. “Please, Sebastian?” Each time Sebastian opened his mouth to reply, she swallowed his words with her own mouth, and darkness covered their tryst.

At last, Sebastian scooted against the tree and tucked Lianna's head against his shoulder. A new plan formed in his mind. “You say, Lianna, that you wish to give me Cedric in exchange for the Amulet?”

She raised her head, victory washing across her expression. She quickly schooled her features. “Aye, Sebastian.”

“I discovered my Commander Lanier guilty of treachery.”

Lianna sat up, surprise lighting her eyes.

Sebastian stroked his beard thoughtfully. “What do you say to an exchange of prisoners?”

The light in her eyes dimmed as a shapely brow rose. “Prisoners, Your Grace?”

“If one of the prisoners carries the Amulet?”

There was no hiding the victory in her expression this time. “Commander Lanier with the Amulet in exchange for Cedric?”

“Aye.” He laid his mouth against her cool, pale skin again. “I wish to punish Lanier, and it's a fair trade,” he said, hiding a smile. When Lianna found no Amulet on Lanier, he would have the power of the Dragon-Master once again within his own armies. He leaned back. “What would you have done if I had refused an exchange?”

She laughed softly. “I intended to employ force.”

“Force,” Sebastian chuckled as her lips met his in an alluring kiss. “I enjoy your brand of force.”

“Swear it by the Stars, Sebastian,” she whispered. “You've agreed to an exchange, but I want your word beneath the Great Star, a binding oath.”

Sebastian traced a finger down her side and swore by the Stars in which he had no faith.

When she rose from the cloak at last, she lifted her mantle hood over her head with an enigmatic smile. “It has truly been a pleasure, Your Grace. We will see what tomorrow brings.” Slowly, she placed a lingering kiss on his lips that set his pulse on fire. She slid her hand from his shoulder, down his arm, releasing his fingers last before turning and disappearing into the dark night.

K
inna's heart
lodged in her throat when Ayden and the dark-haired girl landed in a burrowed area hidden from Sebastian's army camps. They slid off of Ember's back, but Cedric's auburn hair and tall, sturdy figure were nowhere to be seen.

“Where is Cedric?” Kinna cried, rushing toward them. “What happened?”

Ayden caught her hand as she passed by him on the way to Ember. “Kinna.” His voice stilled her feet. “I'm sorry.”

A hole opened in Kinna's stomach. “Is he ... dead?”

Ayden shook his head. “No, but wounded. An arrow took his shoulder as we were escaping. He used his Dragon-speak to command Ember upward or I never would have left him.”

Ayden's face blurred behind a curtain of tears. She blinked them away, but more arrived to replace them. Ayden quietly pulled her against his chest, cupping the back of her head, and Kinna cried into his tunic.

That night was one of the longest Kinna had ever spent. Chennuh and Luasa were overjoyed to be together again. They found a nest in a rocky area farther up the slopes of the Marron Mountains, and they lay curled together, their heads each slung across the other's back, deep huffs of satisfaction rumbling through their chests. Ember bedded down in the same area, though he remained stiffly guarded against the two Mirages.

Lincoln paced on the slope, gazing into the valley at ClarenVale. Ashleen, Kinna, and Ayden sat in tense silence as they, too, watched the campfires of Sebastian's armies.

“Linc!” Kinna finally snapped. “Just sit down, why don't you?”

Linc shoved his fingers through his hair. “I can't, Kinna. I need...” He stopped and looked at her for a long time.

Kinna grew uncomfortable. She glanced at Ayden before returning her gaze to the Pixie. “Okay, Linc, I give up. What's the matter?”

Lincoln looked back down at the castle. The moon highlighted its glistening turrets and walls in silver. Lincoln rubbed his arm across his face, and Kinna realized with a start that he was crying.

“Lincoln!”

Lincoln swiped his arm over his wet cheeks. He approached Kinna, sinking into a crouch before her. “Kinna, my daughter lives in ClarenVale.”

“Your—daughter? In—the Lismarian capital?”

“Aye. Marigold. A more lovely Pixie has never been born.” Pride lit his voice. “She is an apprentice to the palace apothecary. She makes her home down in the lower city, though.”

Kinna gaped at him. “I had no idea, Linc.”

He shrugged. “It doesn't matter anyway.”

“It doesn't matter? Of course it matters, Linc.” Kinna straightened, her hand seeking Lincoln's. “You have family, a daughter. That means everything.”

Lincoln scratched in the dirt. “It would mean everything—if she even knew I was here, and—you know—forgave me for leaving her when she was a mere child to be raised by a silversmith and his wife.” He sighed. “Even if she could see me, she wouldn't let me in anyway.” Bitterness tinged his voice. “But I have to see her. The walls are heavily guarded with Sebastian sitting at the city gates, but I can likely catch a glimpse of the house where she lives from outside the walls.”

“So far?” Kinna's heart cried for Lincoln.

“So near. It's been many years since I've been close enough to see her. And my eyesight is keen.”

Kinna was about to protest that it was far too dangerous, but the iron in Lincoln's expression silenced her. “Be careful, Linc.”

“I will.” He stood, and then crouched once again. “Kinna, I told you that I'd explain about—Helga.”

Ashleen and Ayden both drew closer at these words, their faces alive with interest. “Ayden gave the Amulet to Sebastian during the Tournament four months ago.” Lincoln flicked a glance at Ayden, whose taut expression made him seem dangerous. “When—you and I went to Helga's house soon after, she asked me to take back the Amulet that Ayden had given Sebastian.”

“Where was I?” Kinna cried.

“Recovering from your Poison-Quill wound. When we returned to The Crossings to try to free your father from Sebastian's dungeons, I found that Sebastian had entrusted Lanier with the Amulet's disposal. So,” he shrugged, “I knicked it.”

“You—
you
stole the Amulet?”

“Aye. I returned it to Helga when we next visited her home; she hid it, placing multiple safeguards around it so it would be nearly impossible, even for herself to regain, unless she wished to undergo some rather painful rigors—her best
taibe
went into protecting it.”

Kinna couldn't stay seated. She rose and paced. “What—where has she been all these months, then? Why hasn't she come to help us, to find Cedric? Didn't you write to her that we needed her?”

Lincoln stood, playing with a plucked blade of grass. “She had questions about the Amulet and it's power; she wasn't yet satisfied that it had solved Ayden's Ash-Touch, though it did seem that way—”

Ayden approached the Pixie. “What are you saying, Linc?” His voice could have dented steel.

Lincoln held up his hand. “Helga took the matter to the Seer Fey Council to ask for their advice, not aware at the time that the Seer Fey had begun to rift into two opposing factions around the question of the Amulet. When she spoke before the Council, telling them of her doubts about the Amulet's Touches—”

“Her
doubts
?”

“Just let me finish, would you, Ayden?” Lincoln stared at him in irritation. “The Council had her imprisoned. They hoped that she had brought the Amulet with her, but she'd already hidden it. So they kept her in captivity in their caverns until I sent her the message after we received Cedric's Dryad request informing us that he needed Seer Fey
taibe
to release Ashleen from the tracking spell. The Dryads were successful in infiltrating her prison, and she escaped her captivity, though she is very weak now from navigating the
taibe
. She is recovering until we bring her the maid—Ashleen.”

Kinna's thoughts crammed so tightly inside her mind that she felt her head would burst. “Linc—how—do you know all of this? Why—what would—”

“What kind of relationship do I have with Helga that I would know all of this?” Lincoln sighed. “She is my mother.”

“But—Helga is my adopted mother's mother as well!”

“Aye. Joanna is my sister.”

Kinna couldn't speak; she could only stare at the orange-haired Pixie she had thought she'd known and understood.

Lincoln nodded decisively. “I'll be back, Kinna. Later. Ayden, keep her in one spot and don't do anything too crazed until I get back.” With those words, he took off down the hill at a run and disappeared into the trees.

Kinna stood, watching him go. “But—what was—I don't understand...”

Ayden faced her, resting his hands on her upper arms, massaging them lightly. “Let him go, Kinna.”

“I've never seen him like that. He's always—I mean, he's never done that before.”

“Done what?”

“Told me that he was going to do something—without waiting to see what I thought of it.”

“He's always put you first.” Ayden's words were simple, but suddenly Kinna realized how selfish she'd been. He
had
always put her first; he'd barely left her side since she'd departed from her home in the Pixie Glades last year. He'd rarely ever mentioned any other agenda or desire, and she'd somehow assumed that he'd wanted to be there.

She was shocked at the wave of dislike she felt for her capacity to think only of herself and what she thought needed to be done. Looking into Ayden's eyes, she realized he knew her struggle.

“Don't blame yourself, Kinna. He takes his responsibility seriously.” His mouth twisted into a grin. “Hard to believe, I know, when it doesn't seem like there's a serious bone in his body, but he would die for you.”

Ashleen stood and discreetly went to check on the Dragons, leaving them alone.

“That's the thing,” Kinna said, resting her fingers lightly on Ayden's hips. “I don't
want
him to die for me. I don't want
anyone
to die for me.”

Ayden brushed her cheek, bringing his hand to rest on her neck beneath her thick fall of hair. “It's not only who you are, Kinna. You represent a past that was better than the present, and the possibility of a hopeful future. And if someone believes strongly enough in that future, your future, they might conceivably die for it. Does that make sense?”

“But I am not my father!” Kinna twisted away, tossing her hair over her shoulder. “I am not his—his policies for Lismaria, I don't have his knowledge of government or—or his ability to dissolve tensions between countries, talk treaties, whatever he did. Ayden, it's too much. I have to be me, not Liam.”

Ayden didn't speak, and Kinna turned back to find out why. His figure was a statue, a dark silhouette against a moonlit-silver sky. “It's bigger than you, Kinna,” he whispered, and shame coursed through Kinna.

Yet again, she'd thought only of herself. What kind of a leader thought of herself first?
The kind that West Ashwynd knows only too well.

She turned back to the valley, blinking away more tears. Ayden moved close behind her; she felt his comforting warmth, and her eyes slid shut. Shivers raced up her spine as his hands tangled in her hair, brushing it to one side where his warm lips could kiss the skin of her shoulder, the place where the tattoo had never stayed, a symbol of her exclusion from the Pixie Clan.

Kinna turned in his embrace, and the passion that stirred within her met the fire in Ayden's touch. Heat wrapped them together as she gave her mouth to his.

“Kinna,” he breathed, pulling her closer so Kinna could feel the heavy thud of his heart against hers. “You know I love you.”

Kinna stilled, slowly sliding her hands away as she stepped back. Pain knifed through her, sharp as the familiar fear. “Ayden, my father—even if Sebastian were to lose this war, we still wouldn't be free to—my father would become Erlane's prisoner, and then who knows—”

Ayden grasped her shoulders again, urgency in his grip. “Just—let me finish, okay?” His silver eyes flashed with pain. “You know I love you, Kinna, but as we were just saying, some things are bigger than us. You have a responsibility to fulfill, ties to a country that is crying for leadership and escape from Sebastian's rule. And no matter what I feel or what you feel, that is the higher purpose. And so...” he stepped back. “That's the last time this will ever happen.”

No
, Kinna cried inside, but she held herself as still as stone.

Ayden went on as if saying the words hurt like a blade. “I will see you crowned, Kinna, queen of your inheritance. I will fight for you and perhaps even die for you.” He rubbed his hand over the rough stubble on his jawline and took a step toward her. “But where so many others will die for the idea of you and your leadership and Cedric and his, I will die for the love of my queen and the flame within her. I will embrace your fire, and all the water in the world will never snuff it out.”

Ayden sank onto one knee, and his hand reached for hers. He drew it to his lips and pressed a lingering kiss to the back of it. The weight of Ayden's words hung over Kinna, and she pulled in a shaky breath and withdrew her hand, turning away.

She hiked up the hill and into the Dragon's nesting area, burying her head in Chennuh's neck and crying for a long time.

When she raised her head, Ashleen's silhouette leaned against a nearby boulder. Embarrassment spiraled through Kinna. She picked at Chennuh's scales, and the Dragon twisted his head around to nip gently on her fingers. She scratched his snout.

“He's a good man,” Ashleen said.

“Yes.”

“He would make you happy.”

Kinna swallowed the lump in her throat. “He is not for me.” She gave a watery smile to the black-haired girl and moved to the side of Chennuh that shielded her from everyone. Curling up between his two long forelegs, she laid her head on his mirrored scales and fell into a troubled sleep.

L
incoln shook
her awake before daybreak. “Time to go rescue your brother. For the second time.”

Kinna sat up, staring groggily at Lincoln. “What?”

“Get up, sunshine. Cedric needs rescuing, remember?”

Iolar's presence behind Lincoln pulled her up straight. “Iolar. When did you arrive?”

“I arrived with the army, Your Grace,” the Elf said, bowing. “After I healed in the medic tent, I've been traveling horseback with the rest of the soldiers.”

“He brings news, Kinna.” Lincoln helped Kinna stand.

“What news?”

“I've watched Sebastian closely, Your Grace. Last night, I discovered him in a tryst with the Lady Lianna, and I overheard him detail a plan for an exchange of prisoners—your brother for Commander Lanier.”

Ayden broke in. “When is the exchange to take place, Iolar?”

“I understood it to be today. They—were otherwise occupied for some time, but before the lady left, they had settled on meeting on the northern slopes beyond ClarenVale, out of sight of Sebastian's northern flank.”

A plan began forming in Kinna's mind almost before the Elf had finished speaking. “Wonderful. Thank you, Iolar.”

The Elf bowed again, and Kinna glanced through the predawn gray to the gates of the castle and then back at Lincoln. “Did you see your daughter?”

Lincoln's gaze found the ground and his boot scuffed the dirt. “From afar. She—looks happy.” He didn't smile.

“Oh, Linc.” Kinna squeezed his hand. “I wish things were different.”

“I know where my loyalty lies, Your Grace,” he said, and the rare title felt strange from his lips. “You will always have it.”

“But not at the expense of your family.”

“Aye. Even at that.”

Silence stretched between them. She couldn't fail now; so many people had given up so much to smooth the path she needed to take.

She straightened and adjusted her braid. “I have a plan for rescuing Cedric.”

All heads turned to her. “What is it, Your Grace?” Ashleen asked quietly.

Kinna pulled in a deep breath. “If Sebastian is planning a prisoner exchange, what if he and Lianna were not the only ones present?”

Iolar swiveled to glance at the northern mountains, squinting. “Does Your Grace mean to interrupt the exchange?”