I looked at him, his hand a vise around mine, his magic throbbing through me with a powerful flood of energy I knew was more in warning than in healing.
I stared at him for one moment, knowing I needed to trust him. I needed to trust myself.
And I nodded.
I could breathe up here. Even though the lingering smell of smoke saturated the air, I didn’t feel quite as confined as I had in the mad house that the cathedral had become.
Thanks to both the destruction of the chapel and the makeshift hospital going up in flames, everything had become crammed. Crammed and crazy.
It had been less than a day, but already, tensions were higher than they had been hours before.
Sain had revealed himself for what he truly was, leaving his followers wondering about the deceptions they had been told, about what they could trust, if anything.
It would have been nice if they hadn’t believed in Sain’s games, in his lies. But that wasn’t the case. After all, everything Sain had said fit. And many of the rumors refused to die. It was only after I had stopped screaming that the hospital burned, and I was found inside of it, miraculously unharmed.
Now everyone was crammed into tents and tiny rooms, living on top of each other as we rebuilt from the attack. Tensions were high. Even watching them from up here, I could see them huddled together, the gossip never ending, the arguments I had come up here to escape continually breaking out.
And here I was, thinking it would get easier after I revealed Sain for what he truly was.
Is that why you left me alone to dispel this mess? Ilyan asked into my mind. The quick response made it clear he was tuned into me, something that had been a little more common since yesterday and all the sights I had been trapped in.
I couldn’t really blame him. I just wished he wasn’t keeping me out of his mind quite as much. That was new, and I didn’t like it.
“I don’t see it as dispelling so much as ‘handling’ with a greater finesse than I could ever muster.” I laughed as I said it, and his own chuckle joined in.
Taking a deep drink of the Black Water I held, the warm liquid warming me from the inside out, I closed my eyes, blocking out the endless sunset I was surrounded by, if only for a moment. Besides, Ilyan, it’s beautiful up here. You should join me. Leave Ryland to clean up the mess.
Spoken like a true queen. I couldn’t see it, but I could hear the wide smile in Ilyan’s voice. The humor in the situation leaked through our connection and filled me like a deep, warm bubble.
I felt so warm and relaxed from the connection, my heart moving into a familiar rhythm as it thumped to match his, our souls binding together. It was enough to make me leave the safe confines I had closeted myself up in and find him. Almost.
I leaned forward from where I was hiding near the roof of the ancient cathedral, over the old stonework of the flying buttresses that connected to the low spires to the chapel. I could see everything from up here, even beyond the bustling courtyard, beyond the barriers of Ilyan’s shield and into the city.
The soaring heights of the building lifted me above the world below and gave me that same freedom I had sought after for so many years. After all, it wasn’t the first roof of a building I had found sanctuary on. Although the gothic cathedral was stuck in a state of architectural disarray, thanks to the little mishap Wyn and I’d had, this was still secure. This was still one step away from flying.
I needed that right now.
Long stretches of stone leapt through the air high above the ground, lining the roof, or what was left of it. Each swath of stonework stretched forward with intricately carved shapes lining the surface. I clung to one as I looked for Ilyan, the stone knot slick from the ash of the fire, the gargoyles that surrounded me wearing beards and hats of grey. I considered finding ash to match, if only to hide better.
I am queen, I whispered back, forcing as much feigned prissiness as I could muster into my voice.
You are my queen, Ilyan’s response came, his voice deep as his magic flooded me, the powerful connection pulling me right to the tall blond-haired man who stood in the middle of the space, his face turned up to where I was hidden, his lips spread into a wide smile. My beautiful queen.
I couldn’t help the way everything heated and relaxed inside of me. My heart beat faster as that amazing love he shared with me filled me from my head to my toes.
Giggling like a lunatic, I pressed the mug to my lips again, only to hear Ilyan’s chuckle move through me, his love swelling before someone pulled his focus and made him return to the traumatic reality we were surrounded by. It was something I couldn’t avoid much longer.
“Just one more,” I said with a sigh, more to myself than anyone else as I refilled my mug with one pulse of my power.