Falling Ashes (11 page)

‘It doesn’t matter, anyway,’ I said, waving a hand.

‘Doesn’t it? I reckon the people of Phoenix Arch would like another Fire-Mage to lead them.’

I couldn’t help but laugh. ‘You’re joking, right? I’m a wanted criminal-’ I stopped abruptly.

Gretchen shrugged. ‘I reckon you could round up a few followers. Just sayin’.’

This gave me much to think about. Perhaps Frost Arch …
no
…
Phoenix
Arch was a safe place for me.

‘I reckon the people would stand behind the Fire-Mage that ended winter,’ said Gretchen.

Chapter Eight

Unwanted Encounter

‘Look, thanks for your help, but I really have to find my friend,’ I said, turning for the door.

Gretchen pursed her hairy upper lip. ‘Last I heard, she was heading back to her hometown.’

‘Her hometown?’ I repeated. ‘Where is that?’

Gretchen shrugged. ‘Beats me. She never talks, does she?’

If only Gretchen knew.

I sighed and grabbed the door-handle.  ‘Thanks.’

As disturbed as I was by Gretchen’s words, I decided that it was most important to find somewhere to stay for the night.
The last few days had been quite lonesome, and I was beginning to miss Jack quite a bit. I couldn’t help but wonder where he was at this very moment. Would I be safe staying in this city? Of course there would be someone who desired the bounty money more than they desired the old Phoenix Arch.

No. I couldn’t risk it. I was feeling tired and emotional. Too much had happened in the last few days, and I was completely drained. I wanted to relax. Was that too much to ask?

But
where
? Where was I supposed to go? I’d run out of options, and the only thing I could think of was living rough. I had no money, no food, no shelter, and no one to talk to. The only thing I had was Hawthorne … my silent companion and mode of transport.

I could go anywhere I pleased; perhaps that was the definition of freedom.

I sped along the street, heading back to Ræven’s house, where I knew Hawthorne would be loitering. I was walking so fast that I ran into a tall man; he was so broad that I fell backwards onto my bottom, my hood slipping off.

‘S-sorry,’ I muttered, quickly pulling the hood back over my head and fixing the scarf back into position.

The man held out a hand to help me onto my feet. I took it, without thinking, and was hoisted upward by his strong arm.

‘My apologies,’ he said in a deep, yet gentle, voice.

I avoided eye contact and made to slip around him, intent on getting back to Hawthorne, but the man grabbed me by the shoulders and held me, staring.

‘Get off-’ I began, but I froze when I saw his face. He had shoulder length, dirty blonde hair, a square jaw, and deep-set eyes. I had to stop myself from gasping his name. It was Noah Forsythe.

‘Avalon?’ he said in disbelief.

I shook my head quickly. ‘You have me confused with someone else,’ I squeaked. He dropped his hands, and I took the opportunity to duck under his arms.

I didn’t get far. He grabbed my cloak before I had taken two steps. The collar was tight around my neck. Coughing, I spun around ready to defend myself, but found that his expression was one of desperation.

‘I’ve been hoping to run into you!’ he said with wide eyes.

‘I’m sorry, I don’t know you,’ I croaked, positioned so I was ready to sprint at any moment. Part of me wanted to attack, the rest wanted to run.

‘Please,’ Noah said quickly. ‘Will you talk with me?’

I shook my head vigorously. ‘No … no. I have to go.’

This was not something I had planned on, seeing Noah. It was because of him I’d lost my Power for several weeks.

I pushed the thought from my mind.
Don’t think about that
, I told myself.
Don’t think about what he did
.

His hand clamped around my wrist.

‘Avalon,’ Noah’s gentle voice whispered. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

Noah stared into my eyes. Slowly, he raised a hand and took the fabric between his thumb and forefinger, tugging it below my chin.

He gave a sigh of relief as he observed my uncovered face, before removing the hood from my head.

‘What do you want?’ I said with as much venom as I could muster.

‘Please,’ he said, ‘let’s go somewhere and talk.’

‘You don’t deserve my time,’ I hissed, wrenching my arm from his grip.

‘You don’t understand-’

I was furious. Enraged. I stood on my toes and poked Noah in his broad chest. ‘How
dare
you,’ I said through gritted teeth. ‘How dare you even
talk
to me after what you did. You’re lucky I don’t set you alight at this very moment.’

Noah looked genuinely surprised. ‘You … you got your Power back?’ he asked.

‘No thanks to you!’ I spat.

‘Oh, thank goodness!’ He seemed genuinely relieved.

‘
What
?’

‘I thought … well … after Madeline-’

‘What does this have to do with
her
?’ I asked.

Noah chewed his bottom lip and looked around nervously. ‘Please … won’t you talk with me in private?’

‘Why should I?’

‘I need to explain … I need to apologise.’

‘Why should I trust you?’ For all I knew, Noah could be planning to hand me over to his father, with whom I was on bad terms; because of having broken his nose, destroying his possessions, and escaping his Human dungeon. Or worse, he could alert the guards and have me arrested.

Or
, said a tiny voice inside my head,
he might genuinely want to apologise.
Would it be stupid of me to believe him? Probably. But then again, I wasn’t known for making the smartest decisions.

‘Say what you need to,’ I said, looking over my shoulder, worried that passersby might recognise me.

Noah looked around too, his heavy brow furrowed in concern. It seemed he was not too thrilled about talking in public, but one thing was certain; I did not want to go anywhere alone with him.

He nodded to a tavern down the way that had a large, wooden sign featuring a griffin hanging above the door.

‘Let’s go to the Griffin Inn,’ he said hopefully.

‘How can I trust you?’ I was breathing hard through my nostrils. Luckily, I was wearing my fireproof ensemble, because I could feel my core temperature rising at an alarming rate.

‘Look, it’s a busy place that gets a lot of weird folk. No one is going to pay any attention to either of us, even if your face is plastered across every city in the country. Just wear your hood and no one will ask questions, okay?’

My breath hitched in my throat. ‘O-okay.’

Noah stepped past me and led the way towards the Griffin Inn, a place I had never entered before. Without knowing why, I fell into step behind him, tagging along in his shadow.  My legs felt as though someone else were controlling them because they were moving of their own accord.

We entered the crowded Inn; I followed the path that Noah created through the crowd as he led me to a two-seater table at the back of the room.

He pulled the chair out for me to sit on. I scowled beneath my scarf and yanked the chair from his hand before sitting down. With a sigh, Noah took the opposite seat and leaned against the table, staring intently at me.

‘What do you want?’ I said as calmly as I could muster.

‘I want to explain,’ said Noah. ‘I can see that you are furious with me, and you have every right to be-’

‘I should have set you on fire the moment I saw you-’

Noah held up a hand to silence me; I flared my nostrils angrily.

‘I know I did something terrible … and I know you will never forgive me-’ I opened my mouth to speak, but he continued quickly, ‘-and I don’t expect you to. In fact, I don’t want you to forgive me, because I can’t forgive myself. But I wanted to chance to explain-’

‘What is there to explain? I don’t think there is an acceptable excuse for your behaviour all those months ago.’

‘You’re right,’ Noah said. ‘There cannot be an excuse.’

I swallowed hard and was thankful when a barmaid approached our table to ask if we wanted any drinks. I was about to shake my head, when Noah said: ‘A mead for me, and a cider for my friend, I think. She looks a tad parched.’

The barmaid jotted the order down and whisked away.

‘I don’t need your charity,’ I snapped at once.

‘I do apologise. I thought it might look odd if we sat here without drinks.’

I was, however, grateful. I was extremely dehydrated and drank the entire cider in a few gulps before it even hit the table. The sweet liquid was heavenly.

Noah leaned against the table and stared at me. ‘You do look so much like her, you know?’

‘I wish I didn’t.’

‘You know … I heard there’s a Mage in Germany that can alter appearances. Maybe you can talk to them about it-’

‘You did something to me,’ I interrupted, scowling. ‘That night … in your chamber. You used your Power against me.’

‘I know, and I have been very sorry ever since.’

‘You stared into my eyes and told me not to fight back,’ I said, remembering the horrific incident. ‘As soon as you said those words … my body went limp. I couldn’t move.’

‘I know,’ Noah hung his head and clutched his mead tightly.

‘I couldn’t regain the use of my Power for weeks afterwards.
Weeks
!’ I hissed. ‘
Why
?’

Noah took a deep breath. ‘My Power of hypnosis becomes very deeply ingrained inside the mind. When I told you not to fight back, it repressed your Power – your one form of defence.’

‘So why didn’t it come back once I was able to move again?’

‘You are a far lower Power level than I,’ he said, his expression apologetic. ‘You’re lucky you got it back at all.’

I pursed my lips. ‘You said you were surprised I still had the use of my Power. Why?’

Noah shifted uncomfortably. ‘I have witnessed - that is to say - I think in some cases it may be permanent. The instruction becomes so embedded within the mind through hypnosis, the host cannot fight it.’

And then it dawned on me. ‘You’ve done it to someone else before, haven’t you?’

Noah sat back in his chair and surveyed me. ‘Unintentionally, yes.’

‘Madeline,’ I said, leaning across the table. ‘You did it to your fiancée.’

A vein throbbed in Noah’s temple. ‘You’re talking about things you don’t understand.’

‘I understand better than you think. You said Madeline grew frail and sick before passing away. But I think you used your Power on her, and she went
mad
.’

Noah slammed his fist on the table, knocking over the mead. A few people in the Inn glanced over their shoulders nervously.

Composing himself, Noah stooped to pick up the pint and placed it back on the table. ‘No doubt your Healer friend has filled you in on all the dirt. I see that he too vanished at the same time you did, according to the manor staff. What else did he tell you?’

I didn’t respond. No one needed to be under the impression that Jack was an accomplice. ‘I figured it out myself,’ I said. ‘I know I almost went mad without my Power. Do you want to know what I think happened?’

‘Enlighten me,’ he drawled.

‘Madeline went mad after she lost the use of her own Power. I don’t think you meant to take it from her … I think it was an accident. For some reason, I believe that you loved her. Your healer, Jack Greenwood Senior, couldn’t make her well again, because she wasn’t sick. He can’t cure mental illness, or bring Power back.'

‘How did
you
get it back?’ Noah asked, fingering a scratch on the tabletop.

‘I needed it to save someone,’ I said honestly. ‘But Madeline lost hope. I think … in the end … she killed herself.’

Noah was staring at me, his jaw clenched tight and his fists curled; but I couldn’t stop there.

‘You felt so guilty,’ I said quickly. ‘But you put the blame on someone else – Jack Greenwood Senior. He fled, knowing that you would have him hanged because he hadn't been able to save Madeline. And that is why you travel, why you leave Frost Arch for months at a time. You’re looking for Jack Greenwood Senior because he is the only one who knows the whole story.’

‘And you,’ said Noah.

‘What?’

‘You and Jack Greenwood Senior are the only ones who know the truth. Strange, isn’t it? One might even think you’d met Greenwood Senior.’

‘Don’t be stupid. He’s dead,’ I lied.

‘And how do you know that?’

My hesitation said more than words ever could.

Noah smirked, his eyes travelling down my neck, until his gaze fell upon my locket. Instantly, his expression turned sour.