Taming Fire

by J. L. Weil

  For a moment, I was just a frightened girl seeking solace, seeking to forget the world. Then we were fused together, two hearts beating as one. This was home.

  I was encased in a battle of fire and ice, the two opposing forces raging through my veins. Issik withdrew slightly, his frosty eyes glowing as he studied my face. I was on the edge, so close to tumbling over as I moved my hips against him, urging him deeper. He obliged, thrusting back in. And out. Then in.

  The three of us were a tangle of limbs and hands. Hungrily, my teeth scraped across the vein throbbing on Issik’s neck and I was rewarded with a low rumble in the back of this throat. I flicked my tongue over his skin, tasting the frosty sensation of him.

  Zade feasted on my neck with his lips, rubbing the hardness of him against my round behind, and the three of us moved in perfect sync. Together, Issik and I found release; shudder after shudder pulsed through our bodies in harmonious rhythm. I bit my lip to keep from screaming, but Issik growled my name as if it were both a thing of great pleasure and a curse.

  In a flash, I was spun around, facing Zade who was eyes danced with animalistic need. He breathed my name when my fingers landed on the lower planes of his torso. The muscles there jumped at my touch, and I dragged my hands lower. He trembled, anticipating where my fingers were headed, and his mouth found mine.

  I wasn’t going to be deterred. They had done all the worshiping all the touching. It was my turn. Issik’s hand glided to my breast, filling his hands with the weight. They weren’t going to play fair. Neither would I.

  My fingers wrapped around the length of Zade, my thumb rubbing over the sensitive tip. His teeth came down on my lip, growling into my mouth, and just like that, desire swept through me, so quickly, I hadn’t been prepared to feel it so soon.

  Even as I moved my hand, I felt the restraint beneath the skin. I didn’t want controlled. I wanted him to be free, as they had freed me.

  His fingers came to my shoulders, lifting me up and pressing me closer to him. My name tumbled from his lips in a half growl, half moan, when he sheathed himself inside me with a slow thrust, thawing the ice left behind from Issik. I nearly came undone around him instantly, the cold and hot combination heightening everything for me. He pulled out a few inches, the muscles in his back stretching and tightening under my nails and slid back in with one powerful thrust that sent my body singing.

  “Don’t move. Just hold on, I need to—”

  I couldn’t figure out if he was talking more to himself or to me, but my hips weren’t listening to anything he said. They clenched around the fullness of him and pushed upward, sinking him fully and completely inside me. “I want it all.”

  “Sweet Jesus,” Zade moaned, his control snapping.

  Issik sunk his teeth into my shoulder, and for a second time that night, I lost myself. The orgasm ripped through me. Seconds later, Zade followed, his body shuddering with pleasure.

  For long moments afterward, the three of us lay together in a jumble of limbs and sweat. My body never felt so sedated before in my life. My bones were liquid. The cuts on my body were dulled by the sweet bliss still coursing through me. I was content to stay in bed forever.

  What had I just done? Not one descendant, but two.

  To keep things fair and stop any bloodshed from happening, I was going to have to sleep with Jase. Not that it was a chore, or something I wouldn’t look forward to doing. Nope. Just the opposite.

  Jase Dior… I didn’t doubt every glorious inch of him would be worth waiting for.

  I wouldn’t keep what happened between us a secret. I wouldn’t hide my feelings or my desires, not anymore. Life was too short, and I would find happiness wherever I could.

  Weary and satiated, I closed my eyes and fell asleep with the stars, Issik and Zade on either side of me.

  Chapter Seven

  Specks of blood sprinkled the ground. My blood. Her husky laugh echoed in my ears, a sound I couldn’t get rid of no matter how hard I tried.

  “I’m coming for you, Olivia dear,” she purred, a nail tracing down the side of my temple as if a talon was scratching my mind.

  Fear like I never thought I’d feel again paralyzed me. Twisting my head from left to right, I searched through the utter blackness for a sign of the witch. She was nowhere… and everywhere. My skin crawled with prickles of her magic.

  No. I didn’t want to be here. Not again. Not ever again.

  Wake up! I screamed at myself. Wake the hell up!

  Drip. Drip. Drip.

  More blood splattered on the floor, a ground I couldn’t see, but knew was there under my feet, supporting me in a sea of darkness.

  A dim light appeared near my face and I glanced down. There was a dagger in my hand, the one she had used to siphon my blood. I tried to drop it, but my fingers wouldn’t budge. Wide-eyed, I stared as my arm moved, turning the blade toward myself. I couldn’t stop it. I couldn’t prevent the dagger from slashing across the inside of my other wrist, couldn’t stop it from stealing my blood. My body wasn’t chained or restrained by her magical binds as before, but I was still a prisoner.

  My mind wasn’t my own.

  Was she controlling me? Was that what this was?

  The idea was terrifying.

  Her chortled resounded again. Another game. Another reminder she was in control, and I was only a pawn in her game. “You’re mine,” she whispered in my ear. “They can’t save you.”

  “No,” I rasped, my voice weak.

  “When I need you, I will call.”

  “No.” This time, my voice was stronger and forceful when I rejected her demands. My hand lashed over my arm again. “I won’t,” I refused, burying the stinging of the knife on my skin, but my muscles moved a third time, scoring the flesh so my forearm was covered in marks and blood. “No!” I screamed.

  The scream still clawed at my throat as I threw myself awake. I forced myself to swallow back the fresh fear that had followed me from sleep. The darkness still surrounded me, and the panic spread over me, heart racing. Ten seconds past before I realized my eyes were closed. I peeled them open, and welcomed the bright stream of light that encompassed the entire room.

  Frantically, I rolled out of bed, clutching my stomach as I dashed to the bathroom. Vomit expelled into the toilet, my stomach heaving, while my fingers clutched the side of the porcelain bowl.

  You’re okay. You’re safe. Just a dream. You’re okay. You’re safe. Just a dream. Just a dream. Just a dream… I muttered to myself with each calming breath I took.

  I repeated the words until my chest eased and my breathing steadied. Though, it took great effort. Leaning back, I hugged my knees to my chest. This was real. But so were the cuts on my body. No new lacerations, only the old ones that were healing, as I would… with time… and once Tianna was burning in hell.

  I sighed through my nose and unloosed my fingers, letting my legs stretch out on the tile floor. Bile coated my throat, and I pushed to my feet, moving to the sink to rinse out my mouth. Downing a glass of water, then another, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d given my body fluids. The water was refreshing and crisp on my tongue.

  My head lifted and I caught a glimpse of my reflection in the mirror. An audible gasp escaped my lips, as I took in the gnarly scar that ran down my once flawless cheek. It brought a harshness to the creamy color of my skin. Tears clouded my vision as I gently traced a finger over the tender mark. What had she done to me? She had broken me. Scarred me.

  Even now, I still felt like her prisoner, and I loathed her for it.

  Teeth ground together, hatred imprinted in my eyes to the point where I didn’t recognize the girl who stared back at me. She was a stranger. If Mom could see me now…

  I blinked, banishing the spiral of dark thoughts from my mind. The now was all that mattered. Not the past, but the future I had yet to carve out for me, for the descendants, for the Veil.

  Rubbing a gentle hand over my face, I turned to draw water into the round pool sculpted in
to the floor. Marble surfaced the tub, and the water funneled from a spigot in the wall, splashing over the smooth bottom. Of all the castles, this bathing room was the closest to what I’d had at home. I hadn’t known how much I needed that familiarity until this moment.

  My fingers went to the hem of my shirt, only to find there was no shirt. I glanced down at my nakedness.

  Holy crap.

  A small smile twitched my lips as I remembered why. My night with the fire and ice dragons had been spectacular. Never had I imagined my body could feel such bliss, especially after the horrific pain it had felt the day before.

  Less than a day. That was how long it had been since escaping my capture.

  I dipped my toe in, testing the temperature and sighed. No matter how many baths I took, I doubt it would ever erase the stain Tianna had left on me, but didn’t stop me from trying. I settled in for a long soak, resting my head against the edge of the pool. It seemed a lifetime ago when I had my first bathing experience in the Veil. Harlow. I sneered at her name now. The jealous mean girl. How much simpler it was having her for an enemy versus Tianna.

  The water lapped gently over my shoulders, smelling of eucalyptus and lavender and eased the aches along my body. The cuts stung a little at first, reacting to the warmth of the water, but it was a different kind of sting—a healing one. I stared at the miraculous little bottle of oil on the edge of the tub, grateful for its healing abilities. I’d still be in bed if it weren’t for the relief the oil delivered.

  Even though I tried, I couldn’t shake the horror from my dream or the feeling of foreshadowing. Had that been a warning? Had Tianna wanted me to know she was far from done using me? Was I now some kind of unknown spy in the descendant’s life, feeding information to the wrong side? Was it safe for me to be here? Listening to the descendant’s plans? Was I putting them in danger?

  I didn’t know the answers, so I couldn’t be certain of anything.

  It could have very well been only a nightmare.

  I desperately wanted to believe that was true, but until I was absolutely certain one way or the other, I intended to be cautious. I refused to be the cause of their downfall, but swore to be Tianna’s destruction.

  A while later the bath water had gone cold, and my sudden solitude was no longer a place of sanctuary. I wanted people, the comfort of being surrounded by the descendants, and food. Plates of fruits, meats, and breads.

  And coffee. Pots of coffee.

  Hastily, I went through the motions of washing my hair and body, before draining the tub to towel dry. Wrapping the cloth I found in the bathing room around myself, I padded into the bedroom in search of something to wear, but stopped in my tracks. The view from my room at the height of sunrise was spectacular. The windows for walls made it feel as if I was right at the center of the land. Plains of grass. Blotches of black sand. Dazzling streams of lava. And the volcano. Rays of yellow and orange crested from behind Titan Mountain, the heart of Crimson Kingdom.

  I quickly changed into some clothes I’d found in the dresser, and headed out the door in search of two things. The descendants and food. In that order. My bare feet were silent as I padded down the stairs, not bothering with shoes, and crept down the hallway, admiring the pieces of painted art lining the walls. The black and white tiled floor was cool under my soundless steps. Husky voices grew closer as I neared the first floor and I listened, following the sound of my dragons.

  The tenseness in the voices floating up into the grand staircase had me pausing at the bottom landing. It was wrong to eavesdrop from the shadows, but I heard my name. My fingers clenched onto the banister as I listened.

  “I hope you know what you’re doing,” Issik snapped, in that familiar stony tone.

  “We don’t have much time,” Kieran reminded with a dangerous quiet tension that had the hair on my neck standing on end.

  “Don’t you think I’m aware?” Jase barked back, tiredness and frustration lacing his words.

  “We can’t sit back and do nothing, while the curse seals our fates and ruins our world,” Zade added.

  “Who says we are?” Jase countered. “Olivia needs time to heal, and we all know what Tianna is capable of. We’ve all been victim to her games.”

  I chose that moment to make my appearance, not wanting to hear them theorize about the ways the witch had tortured me. I’d lived it once. I wasn’t about to relive it every second of every day.

  A breeze carrying heat and citrus fluttered over my cheeks when I turned the corner, finding the four shifters in the dining hall. No surprise. If there was food in the vicinity, the descendants weren’t far away. They had opened the terrace doors, letting the morning sun and warmth into the room. It wouldn’t be long before that balminess turned to blistering temps.

  All four heads whipped in my direction then, but I kept my palm steadied on the doorframe. “Good morning,” I greeted quietly. My cheeks heated when my gaze passed over Issik and Zade.

  Dear God.

  How am I going to get through the day without thinking about what we’d done between the sheets?

  Zade cleared his throat. “Join us. You must be famished.”

  I was, and I deliberately took a seat beside Kieran. He continued to look busy, pushing around his plate of food, a plate I noticed he had barely touched. This had to end. His guilt. I had to find a way to ease the remorse and blame he felt.

  “Did you sleep well?” Jase asked, eyeing me as if I was a fragile doll about to break. I could feel them tiptoeing around me, afraid to say the wrong thing, but in this case, my cheeks flamed with embarrassment.

  “I managed a few hours,” I answered, causing Zade to smirk and Issik’s eyes to actually glimmer with amusement.

  The conversation picked back up while I helped myself to something similar to oatmeal, toast, and fruit. Jase handed me a mug of coffee as he discussed the security of Crimson Keep with Zade. Gratefully, I accepted the hot beverage, and thanked him with a silent smile, his lips curved in turn. The strong and rich aroma reached my nose when I lifted the cup and sipped, then proceeded to dig into my breakfast, savoring each bite.

  My bowl of porridge was near gone when I tuned into the discussion around the table. They had moved from security, to finding the next stone.

  “I saw you…” I took a moment to clear my throat, realizing what I’d been about to say without thinking. I guess I was ready to talk about it. “When I was being held,” I finished. The entire table fell silent as four sets of eyes swung in my direction.

  Jase brows furrowed. “What do you mean ‘you saw us’, how?”

  I broke off an end of crust from my toast, steeling myself to trudge through the difficult question, but it had to be done. I didn’t have time to be coddled or the luxury of waiting. “One of the chambers in the mountain contained a pool. The Pool of Mirrors, she called it. I was able to see you in the reflection of the waters. I saw that you were looking for me.”

  “That must be how she knows what we're up to,” Jase concluded, sitting back in his chair. The others went back to finishing their meal, or sipped their coffee in deep thought at my revelation.

  “More likely than not,” Issik agreed, ice forming in his eyes.

  “You were held in a mountain?” Zade asked, picking up on that little detail.

  I nodded. “In the Nameless Lands.”

  Zade stilled, but I could tell his mind was wheeling. “It makes sense she would use Tobias’s forgotten kingdom as her home. What a better place to hide.”

  “And watch,” Kieran added, his hands propped over his plate.

  Jase’s stare was thoughtful, assessing. “What can you remember of the mountain? Any detail big or small could be important.”

  “I’m going to need more coffee,” I muttered, gazing down into my empty cup.

  “I think we all will,” Jase agreed, smirking.

  One of the kitchen staff came out moments later with another carafe of coffee, and I took a deep breath, preparing to dive back i
nto those haunting memories I so desperately longed to forget.

  “She’s anxious and upset,” Issik announced, looking at me with concern and understanding. “Maybe this isn’t a good idea.”

  “No,” I blurted. “I can do this.”

  Kieran’s fingers reached across the table and intertwined with mine. I smiled at him. He and I were going to have a talk, but for now, we could offer each other support.

  “The griffins flew me to the mountain. It was dark. I couldn’t see much among the barren land, no landmarks that I recall, just dead trees, miles of gritty sand, and tumbleweeds blowing in the wind.”

  “Sounds like the Nameless Lands,” Zade muttered.

  I wanted to ask what it had been like when Tobias had been alive, but now was not the time. “The mountain was huge. I know that is not a lot to go on, but she had a network of tunnels that webbed inside it. Caverns. A throne room. And the space where she kept me.”

  Kieran’s fisted knuckles went white against mine.

  Issik barred his teeth.

  Jase’s jaw tightened.

  And Zade lips turned down.

  Before one of them decided to flip the breakfast table, I continued, and by the glare tightening the corners of Zade’s eyes, my money was on him losing his temper first. “She took me out once to look for the Star of Fire,” I confessed.

  “You were here?” Zade interrupted, his hands flattening on the table and shaking the plates.

  I nodded.

  “I knew it,” Zade roared, jumping out of his chair, and nearly taking the table with him. He had finally let loose that temper I had sensed at the surface. Pacing the length of the room, he combed a hand through his tousled hair, as if this was one of many times he’d done so. “I felt you, but by the time we arrived you were gone.”

  “It was the only time. She was testing me, looking for a connection between the stars and I. I tried to tell her it didn’t work like that, but like the stubborn ass she is, she didn’t listen.”

  Jase’s lips twitched. “I hope you gave her hell, Cupcake.”