Kindle the Flame (Heart of a Dragon Book 1) (33 page)

Hurry
.

Cedric's last glimpse of the royal box showed it empty. Lianna must be returning to the palace.

Chennuh crashed through the gate. The bars had swung shut, but the metal was no match for Chennuh's velocity, and they thundered open, scattering rioters and palace guards below them.

Ember bypassed them and streaked over the castle turrets. “Chennuh, follow!” Cedric shouted. “The far side of the palace.”

The beat of wings lifted them high into the dusky sky. The sun was setting behind them, and the palace cast a black silhouette. Ember shot like a flaming fireball into the distance. Cedric's jaw tensed.
I can find him. But I have to get Lianna first.

Cedric checked the ground. The guards had swarmed out of the arena. Riots clustered and swirled around the gated area, but guards broke free of the crowds, running toward the palace.

The turrets of the palace slid beneath them. “Down, Chennuh.” The city lay like a dark mass beyond the walls, but the front gardens of the palace were clear.

Chennuh circled, settling onto the gravel path. Kinna lay limply across the Dragon's neck, and Cedric swiftly checked her respiration. “I'm fine,” she croaked. “Do what you need to do.”

Cedric swung himself down. “Was it this one, Chennuh?” he asked softly, touching and turning the fins on the Dragon's neck until he reached the one on top of Chennuh's head. As soon as he twisted that one, the Dragon and Kinna vanished completely from sight.

“Amazing. I'll be right back. Don't move.”

Chennuh huffed a response, the smoke from his nostrils wafting in the dim twilight.

Cedric sprinted to the south side of the palace and the entrance to the Dimn's quarters. Palace guards weren't considered necessary at that spot because the Dimn were constantly coming and going. A corridor twisted from there to Rennis’ old chambers.

Almost there.
Cedric could hear the shouts of the guards. He slipped through the doors as two guards appeared around the corner. Running through the bunk rooms, he exited into the stone passageway that led to the inner portions of the palace. Rennis had told him his old chambers were on the left at the end of the hall.

Cedric had just reached the doorway when he heard voices from the wider corridor in front of him.

“T' Ember escaped, and no one's seen t' King.”

“What 'bout t' mirrored one?”

“It's gone, too.”

“Bloody convenient t'ey got away on a Mirage. Hard as hell to see at night.”

“What're the orders, then?”

“Lanier's taken over, given orders that we're to search the palace and grounds. Then we'll spread to surrounding areas.”

“They can go fieldspans on a panicked Dragon before we even leave the castle gates.”

“Aye, but t'em's the orders.”

The voices faded away, and Cedric released his pent-up breath. He slipped into Rennis' room, locating the massive stone fireplace in the slats of moonlight that filtered in through the high thin windows.

The stones drew a maze of designs across the hearth. Cedric ran his fingers along the stones, stepping into the fireplace and straightening when his head was inside the soot-blackened chimney. He touched the stones in front of him, prodding each until one moved. He dug his fingers into the hardened mud around the stone and pulled it loose.

Inside the hole, three scrolls lay bundled in a piece of twine. Cedric seized them, stuffing them into the waistline of his breeches. With a fleeting wish that he still had a tunic to hide them, he ran on silent feet toward the door.

The dark passageway outside the room swallowed him whole as he ran across the stones.

When two hands grasped his arm, his free hand flew around in a deadly fisted flight, stopping short as a moonlight shaft shone on Lianna's pale features. Her eyes stared nearly cross-eyed at his shaking, frozen fist.

“How did you find me?” he whispered.

She shook her head. “It was a chance guess. I wondered if you would have spoken with Rennis.”

Cedric opened his mouth to reply, but stopped short when he heard pounding footsteps in the corridor and a distant shout. “The Mirage! It's on the East Lawn!”

“No!” Cedric snatched Lianna's hand and pulled her down the passageway, throwing caution to the wind. No longer caring about whether or not they were heard, he sprinted along the stone passageway to the Dimn quarters, bursting out the side door. Guards streamed from the dark battlements toward the East Lawn.

“Run!” Cedric shouted. Lianna was a Pixie, and easily kept pace with him as they flew around the corner to the front.

“There's the Dragon-Master!” A shout from behind pushed Cedric even faster. The moon had come out in brilliant fullness, and in the silver light, the wafts of smoke from Chennuh's nostrils curled in lucid visibility upward where anyone could see them.

“Up, Chennuh!” Cedric shouted. He launched himself at where he estimated the Dragon to be, swinging Lianna behind him. Kinna's weak hand met his, and he curved himself around her, keeping her seated. Beneath him, the shuddering beast lurched into the air. A spear clanged off of Chennuh's invisible armor, and more followed, but they were up, reaching high into the heavens.

Free.

T
he days
that followed had been rife with exhaustion and tension. Cedric, Lianna, and Kinna had made their escape from the castle and hid in the surrounding countryside where Lianna had Pixie-charmed a cloak and some clothes from a peasant to replace Cedric and Kinna's battle-scarred tatters.

Cedric pulled the cowl of his cloak far forward, hiding his face in its depths as he wandered into the outskirts of the city. He was worried about Kinna, and he needed more herbs.

The driving rain soaked the ground, the buildings, and any person who was foolish enough to be out in the weather. The skies had opened soon after their escape and showed no signs of letting up even three days later.

Cedric squinted at the signs that lined the alley where he stood. A healer's symbol hung in front of the building at the corner past three public houses on the left. He bent into the sheeting rain and started forward.

As he passed the last pub, two patrons beyond the corner of the open entryway caught his attention. He slowed and then stopped, his heart hammering in his throat.

The two patrons were cloaked and hooded, seemingly in deep conversation, but a patch of orange hair peeped out from the smaller one’s hood. Cedric turned an abrupt left and entered the pub.

He threaded his way through the tables, careful not to make eye contact with anyone until he reached the corner where the strangers sat. He stood, hesitant, by the table. Both cloaked figures remained frozen.

“Sit, Cedric, before you draw every eye to us,” Rickard hissed. “Sebastian's guards are thicker than the rain out there. Haven't you seen the parchments that paper the walls of every public house?”

Cedric kicked the leg of the chair and sat, glancing out the door into the rain. “I've seen them. I had to come, though, and get some herbs for Kinna's treatment.”

“Kinna!” Rickard leaned forward. “Tell me, is she hurt? Why should she need herbs?”

“She will recover, Rickard—”

“Ayden. Palace guards are looking for Rickard now. My given name is Ayden.”

Cedric nodded. “She'll recover, but she needs rest, a bed, some place clean. Right now we're in the hills outside the city, and any place in The Crossings will turn her in for a reward. I thought about trying to return her to her parents—”

“Nay,” Lincoln interrupted. “I know just the place.” He glanced at Ayden. “Helga's house.”

“Aye.” Hope flushed across Ayden's shadowed face. “That's the place to go.”

Cedric raised his eyebrows. “Helga's?”

“A
taibas
with great healing powers,” Lincoln explained. “Tell us, Cedric, did you escape with Chennuh, by any chance?”

Cedric nodded and explained the events of the last three days. “But I can't leave yet,” he said. “I gave my word to Lady Lianna that I would help her escape West Ashwynd and return to her uncle. And yet, Kinna needs attention immediately.”

Ayden leaned closer. “Then let me take her. Linc needs to get word to Kinna's parents, so he'll return to Pixie Glade, but I can fly Kinna on Chennuh to Helga's home and stay with her until she's better. Then she can return to her Clan.”

Relief soaked through Cedric as much as the dripping cloak he wore. “Aye, it's a good plan. I'll see Lianna off safely and then travel to Pixie Glade where I'll meet Kinna. We ... have some things we need to discuss, and she's been too weak to do so yet.”

Pain flashed across Ayden's face. Wordlessly, he stretched his hand across the table. Cedric shook it firmly.

“Well, let's get a move on, then,” Lincoln muttered. “The barkeep's been shooting us black glances for the last ten minutes, and I don't want to have to Pixie-charm a whole room.”

T
he Channel of Lise
was choppy and black in the continued dense rain that blanketed the night, chilling Cedric to the bone.

It had taken some stealth and planning, but Ayden had at last spirited Kinna away on Chennuh’s back, and Lincoln had departed for Pixie Glade. The sheeting rain continued, flooding The Crossings and the surrounding countryside. It had taken a solid day and a half to find a captain willing to risk a trip across the Channel in the endless rain, but at last, one had settled for the sack of sceptremarks Cedric had laid in front of him.

Now, the petite, cloaked figure of Lianna faced him, turning her back to the wind-whipped pier. She tipped her head back so she could see beneath Cedric's deep cowl.

“Will you not come, Cedric? Sebastian has issued a warrant for your arrest, and I can hide you in Lismaria. Indeed, with my uncle as the King, I have the power to keep you safe.”

Cedric reached for Lianna's hand. “My lady, I swore to you that I would return you to your country, that you would not have to marry Sebastian. But I have unfinished business here that I must see done.” His thoughts skittered briefly to his twin sister. She was unaware as yet who he was. He thought, too, of the scrolls that hid inside his cloak. Rennis had told him to send them with Lianna to Nicholas Erlane, but Cedric knew if he did so, warships would arrive on West Ashwynd’s shore within days. No, he would keep the peace for as long as peace would keep.

“My lady?” The captain of the sailing vessel stood behind them. “It is time.”

Lianna cast a glance over her shoulder before turning back to Cedric. “I will not say goodbye, Cedric. I know we will see each other again, and soon.” Standing on her toes, she brought her wet face up to his, and the warmth of her kiss heated his bones in the frigid downpour.

“'Til we meet again, then, my lady,” Cedric whispered. He stepped back unwillingly, and the last sight he had of Lianna was her shrouded figure standing on the pier, half hidden in the whirling blackness of a million raindrops.

D
ark shapes
and light shapes cluttered Kinna's consciousness for a long time. She was burning hot, then teeth-shaking cold, and then hot again. Only when she sank into a comfortable warmness, and the feel of a smooth bed supported her, did she open her eyes.

She recognized the place immediately. It was Helga's cottage. She lay in the bedroom where she had slept the night before arriving at The Crossings. The coals of the fireplace lit the room with a soft glow, and curtains fluttered in a gentle spring breeze.

“I've been wondering how long you were going to sleep.”

Kinna jerked her head toward the voice. Ayden leaned against the wall near the head of the bed, his eyes silver even in the room's dim light.

“Ayden.” She smiled as she took in his familiar face. He came to where he could see her better, and she noticed his bare hands. Her eyes widened and her gaze flew to meet his. “It worked?”

He smiled, his face peaceful for the first time since she had known him. “Aye.”

Kinna reached out, her finger touching the skin on the back of his hand, grazing the light hairs that covered it. He shivered visibly.

“Help me sit up,” she commanded.

“No, you need to rest—”

“Don't be stubborn, Ayden. I want help sitting up.”

Ayden rolled his eyes and sat on the edge of her bed, pulling her into a sitting position. “There. Better?”

“Mm-hmm.” She shifted against her pillow, wincing as pain shot through her sore leg. “How did it happen?”

“I did what Helga told me to do.”

“How did you get Sebastian to take the necklace?”

Ayden glanced down at the bed. “Someone willingly sacrificed a—a huge part of herself to make it happen.”

Kinna saw the pain flash across his face. “What happened?” she asked quietly.

Ayden told her. He told her of Selena's touch, the rain of ashes, the bittersweet feeling of possible freedom, the pain of having caused another death. When he spoke of the letter he had opened afterward, Kinna knit her brows together, disbelieving. “You're saying that Selena claimed Sebastian had concocted a truth serum to evict truth from his court counselor before he died under torture?”

“Aye, so the letter said.”

“And she hid the serum because she felt that Sebastian had taken matters too much into his own hands, so for the greater good, she sacrificed herself.”

“She was unhappy, Kinna, and had been living a lie for quite a while, but I think somewhere inside, she'd finally made peace with the good she was intended to do. Sebastian had been working on this truth serum during the Tournament preparations, and had finally succeeded in creating an effective potion. He kept the serum in his secret room, and he hoped to use it to his advantage in his war on Nicholas Erlane. So after she hid the serum, Selena wrote the King that detailed letter, confessing what she'd done, knowing that it would bring him running. Alone, so that he could keep his secret. Alone, so I could do what I needed to do.”

“How did she know what you needed to do?”

“She was a Seer Fey. She had visions of what would happen.”

Kinna's eyebrows flew upward. “What?”

“Aye. Helga told me that the Seer Fey are the guardians of the line of the Dragon King, Aarkan. She was Sebastian’s assigned guardian.”

“But she—she betrayed him.” Kinna traced over the story Ayden had just told her. “Not that he didn't deserve it, but—”

“I think she saw it as trying to save him from himself. She was in love with him, Kinna. She admitted as much in the letter.” Ayden's eyes burned silver fire. “She explained very carefully that she saw his manipulations, dealt with them as best she could, and protected him as only she could, but when she saw his intentions for the serum, she knew he had traveled beyond her power.”

“So she hid the serum and then ended her life rather than live with the pain of knowing what he would do to her.”

“Aye.” A sad silence settled over them.

At last, Kinna roused herself. “How did I get here?” She glanced around the room again.

“It was hard work. You tore the arena apart and sent the King's men scurrying all over the city trying to find you and Cedric after your Dragon fight. You caused a lot of trouble.”

“
I
caused...”

“Hush. You're supposed to be resting.”

Kinna's mouth twisted, hiding a grin. She'd rarely seen Ayden's humorous side before; it was always buried under a well of bitterness and pain. She felt a light touch on the back of her hand, and she dropped her eyes to watch his fingers trail along the outside edge of her palm.

She didn't pull away.

He did. He took a deep breath. “Kinna, the King has ordered my arrest, and Cedric's, providing he can find us. He's ordered yours as well, but he's stated that you will be returned to Julian and kept in captivity until your wedding.”

The words settled into the still air between them. Familiar confusion blanketed Kinna's mind. Her pulse thumped erratically in her throat. She had trouble linking one thought to the next; they scattered like leaves in the wind.

Ayden linked his fingers in front of him and leaned his elbows on his knees. “I'm leaving, Kinna.”

“Leaving?” Her voice sounded dead in her own ears.

“Yes. There's no reason for me to stay.” He slanted a sideways look at her. “Is there?” It was not a question.

Kinna stared miserably down at her lap. She didn't look up even when Ayden stood.

“Where will you go?”

“I haven't decided.”

Kinna angrily dashed aside a tear that insisted on escaping the rim of her eye. “I'll miss you.” Her voice sounded foggy.

“I know.”

Kinna finally raised her eyes to his face and saw that he did know. His silver eyes met hers, and still silence pulsed loudly in Kinna's ears. Slowly, Ayden slid his fingers beneath her jaw, along the side of her neck. He brought his head downward until his breath whispered against her cheek. Kinna's eyes slid shut, an ache opening up inside of her.

His warm lips brushed over hers once, so lightly it might have been a butterfly's kiss.

“Goodbye, Kinna.”

Kinna's eyes fluttered open.

“Ayden...”

But he was gone.

Kinna wished she could cry. The tear that had escaped earlier had dried up in a desert of torture. Her temples throbbed, the pain threatening to rend her head in two. Tears would have been a welcome relief. But her eyes burned, hot and dry as she stared at the open doorway.

Helga entered, her gaze sympathetic. “Perhaps it's for the best, dearie,” she said. “You both have a lot to work through.”

Kinna turned her face to the wall and saw nothing.

K
inna peered
down onto her Pixie homeland from Chennuh's back, her eyes tracing the fields outside of the small town and the winding creek to the west where the trees covered its snaking course. She had longed to arrive home and land on the cobblestones of her courtyard to show the Pixiedimn that she wasn't a failure after all—that she
could
connect with a creature, just not the creature they had always expected.

With a sigh, she singled out a large copse of trees some distance south of the town.

Chennuh snorted in disagreement. He liked her first idea of the main square better; the notion of frightening a few Pixies was delightful to him, but Kinna firmly turned his head away.

The Dragon landed with a grumpy snort.

“Wait here, Chennuh.” Kinna stroked the Dragon's snout briefly as she glanced at the darkening sky and pulled her cowl over her head. Her singular fire-red hair was a dead giveaway, and she wanted to blend.

She trekked through the trees toward the open field, glancing once more behind her at Chennuh, who stared mournfully after her. “I'll be back soon. I promise,” she whispered, though she knew she didn't have to. He already knew.

She purposely chose the village's quiet streets, her eyes glancing from shadow to shadow, fearful of any sentry who might bear the royal mark on their armor. Thus far, she saw only Pixies and the people of her village.

An orange-haired lad just ahead sent a surge of loneliness through her. She hadn't seen Lincoln since The Crossings. Helga had told her that he had departed for home; he hadn't been with Ayden when Ayden had brought her to the house.

As Kinna drew closer, she stopped short. The orange-haired Pixie glanced her way and then did a double take. He looked back over his shoulder and strode toward her.

It
was
Lincoln.

Kinna threw her arms around him, and he staggered backward. “Oy, m'lady, you'd think you were glad to see me.”

“I
am
glad to see you, Linc.” She kissed his cheek, and he flushed a shade of scarlet that clashed viciously with his hair.

He glanced around once more. “Best keep it to yourself then, Kinna. The King's got men on patrol here, looking specifically for you.”

Kinna nodded. “I know. I need to see my parents, though.”

“Kinna!”

Julian's dear form emerged from an alley. He ran toward her, snatching her arm and pulling her into the shadow of a building. “Are you mad to return here?”

“You
knew
I would come home, Julian.”

“I
hoped
you'd have sense enough not to!” His hands rested on her shoulders, and his deep brown eyes surveyed her face, studying every angle of it. Lincoln stood nearby, studying the townspeople passing the entrance of the alley.

Julian gave an exasperated sigh and pulled her into his arms, resting his chin on the top of her cowl. His hand cradled her head against his shoulder. “I was worried about you.”

“I'm sorry.” It seemed an inadequate apology for the winter of worry she'd put him through, but it was all she could find to say. She rested against him for a moment before stepping back and taking his hand. She squeezed it. “I'm glad to be back.” A thought hit her, filling her with excitement. “Maybe I can take you for a ride on Chennuh while I'm here!” He was a Pixiedimn, but if she had formed such a strong bond with another creature, then he surely could as well.

He was already shaking his head. “First of all, Kinna, you're a
wanted fugitive
. Don't you understand what that means?”

Kinna stared at him, dread circling in her stomach. Of course, she had known it, but for some reason, she had tricked herself into believing that once she returned home, talked to her parents, and slept in her own bedroom, that everything would work itself out.

But that was it, wasn't it? Her home was not here. Not with the Pixies, not even with Tristan and Joanna, much as she loved them.

Joanna had told her the day she left home that she needed to discover and embrace who she was born to be, to ignite the flame of her existence. Her home was where she could be herself, full of flame, the fire of her own life warming those around her. And she obviously could not do that in a place where she was hunted as a fugitive from an enraged King.

Julian's eyes softened as he watched her.

“Come. Let's go see my parents,” she said as she started on the familiar route. But Julian tugged her in the opposite direction. When she stopped and stared up at him, questions released from her mind like soap bubbles in the air.

“You can't go back to your house. It's watched.”

“Where am I supposed to go then?”

“My aunt and uncle's.”

“Won't they be watching your family, too? We're...” She choked over the word
betrothed
.

“I know. They're watching my parents' house, but not anyone else's.” He took her hand and led her farther down the street. Kinna glanced over her shoulder. Lincoln had disappeared.

“Where—?”

“He went to go get your parents. They'll meet you there. Kinna.” Kinna glanced up at his face, alarmed by his tone. “I know your parents will want to spend time with you, and I don't have long.”

“What do you mean?” Kinna stopped walking, nervousness shooting through her at the expression on his face.

He smiled sadly and wound his arm around Kinna's neck. “I'm leaving at first light.”

“What? Why?”

“Part of my deal with the King to release you from his dungeons was that I take a post at the head of the Pixies in his regiments. I leave tomorrow.”

Kinna clutched his tunic, stopping him. “Julian, no.”

“Aye. We are on the brink of war, Kinna. I must go.”

Kinna shook her head, knowing it was useless. “But—what if something happens to you?”

Julian smiled, his lips twisting into the crooked grin that was so familiar to her. “I'm touched that you would think of that.” He grazed the corner of her mouth lightly with the tip of his finger. “It would—make me happy if you could send me off, Kinna, with a little bit of hope.”

Kinna pushed away the meaning behind his words. “Julian, what am I going to do without you? You're my best friend.”

Julian smoothed a strand of hair behind her ear. “I'm more than that, Kinna, and I think you know it.”

A denial sprang to Kinna's lips; she didn't want to believe there was more to her feelings than friendship, but as the words rose up, she checked them. She was no longer sure. A deep fissure rent her heart in two. A dark-haired youth waited on one side, a silver-eyed blond on the other. Eventually, she would have to decide. But not tonight.

Julian leaned down and gently brushed his lips across hers, sighing lightly as he lifted his head again. “Come. Your parents will want to see you, and I must return to my own family.”

Julian led her down the shadowy streets to the door of his uncle's home. He hugged her one final time on the doorstep, a lingering hug filled with longing, and Kinna gritted her teeth in rebellion. Why must she always say goodbye to the people who mattered most in her life?

A moment later, Julian was gone. She stared at the empty street, her lips set in a firm line. Screwing her courage into place, she turned to the door and knocked lightly. Lincoln immediately opened it. He invited her in, his normally lively eyes strangely quiet as he surveyed her face. “Don't worry, lass,” he said, his voice low. “You'll have the rest of your life with him.” A grin quirked the corner of his mouth. “Poor Ayden.”