Page 124 of Ashborne Forged

It was Koa in my head.

I sat with my back to the door. My hands fisted in the skirts of the voluminous nightdress I’d been given.

‘He’s locked me in, Koa.’

‘I will flame you out—’

For one, brief, glorious second I imagined it—letting her come to my aid. Steal me away.

She’d do it. I had no doubt. Koa was feral, accustomed to both defending and hunting for herself. The people—this building—were no match for her.

But a moment later, I also saw the fallout. Breckon likely was no longer anywhere near this chamber. To get me away, she’d have to leave him. And his pursuit would be vindictive—and quite possibly bring two nations to war.

If I ever wanted any chance at a life of peace with Voski…

‘No! No, you can’t,’ I hushed to her. ‘We have to—I have to… just give me a moment to figure this out. Please, Koa, just speak to me. Words, or images, whatever you see. Whatever you know. Just speak to me. Things that are true. Please.’

And she did.

She had no news of Kham or Voski, and they hadn’t drawn close enough to reach her mind, but she felt her mate moving toward her and she was certain he would find her.

She’d circled the estate several times already, from high above, and had located every building and person. She would find me anywhere.

The evening was beautiful outside, and she gave me clear skies, and the wind in my face and…

I blew out a breath, then inhaled slowly. Eyes closed, I tried to sense Voski. Desperate to be out of these walls, away from this house. But there was nothing I could do. I stretched. I reached. Aching. Pleading with God to make him clear to me. Yet, all I knew for certain was that he existed, somewhere south of here.

But Koa knew.

‘He comes for you. As my mate comes for me. They come, Firebird.’

I nodded, and tried again. And again. I stretched my mind to its limits, reaching for him across the void, keeping my eyes screwed tightly closed. And I kept trying. I would keep trying. I wouldn’t stop.

I would get out of here, and back to him, no matter what it took.

40. Into the Web

~ VOSKI ~

Sweat dripped from my brow as I crept through the House of Ashford, instincts shrieking. The ghosts of this house haunted me tonight.

‘You are not alone,’ Kham reminded me.

I swallowed, and nodded as I slipped into the room, closing the door quietly behind me. It took a moment to find the courage to turn and face this space.

This had been my father’s office until his death. Now, it was my mother’s den.

In my peripheral vision, I would have sworn a black figure slipped behind the curtains that draped from the double-height window that stood over the gardens. But I didn’t turn. There was no point. The true specters of this place wouldn’t reveal themselves, and the ones my mind made up faded into air when I faced them.

I swallowed hard and pushed away from the door, creeping silently across the room, mentally cataloguing everything I was there to do, not allowing myself to think. Only do.

Unstop the wine carafe on the side table below the window.

Pour half a goblet of wine, and allow the wine to drip down its side so it would leave a circle in its wake when it was placed on the table alongside the settee.

Take a sip, leaving lip marks on its side.

Leave the resulting red wine residue from the goblet’s stem on my fingers, and wipe it impatiently on the thigh of my trousers.