[Imdalind 01.0] Kiss of Fire
Page 34
I hadn’t touched the stone since I had used it to see an adorable five year old boy who had promised to take my pain away and who said he loved my eyes. It had been the final proof that Ryland as I knew him was gone.
I threw the necklace into the sink, the stone clinking loudly against the porcelain. I didn’t want to enter the Tȍuha ever again, yet seeing it there in the sink made me want to snatch it back up and keep it safe. I hadn’t felt the beat of Ryland’s heart emanate from it for days, though. The connection had died.
The bathroom had filled with the steam from the shower and I was surrounded by the sweet smelling fog. It smelled vaguely of plant life, making me wonder what Ilyan had placed in here to react to the steam that way. Something to help settle my nerves, I was sure. The hot mist seemed to fill my head and I swayed again, my hands clenching the sink in an effort to steady myself.
I turned the cold water tap of the sink on with one quick movement then brought my hand back to its position against the counter to keep myself upright. The water flowed over the ruby, removing bits of blood that swirled down the drain. I let it flow for a minute before shutting it off, leaving the necklace to sit in the bottom of the sink with some blood still attached to the smooth surface.
I slunk out of my pants and stumbled into the shower. My stomach shifted, the lack of contents adding to my swirling world.
The hot water scalded my skin, but I didn’t care. I let the water run over me as it burned the heavy makeup off of my face, washed the ash and blood from my body, and singed away the dirt and rubble from what had been Ryland’s home. The heat moved into me as if it was trying to thaw the emotion out.
I leaned against the side of the shower, breathing deeply in an effort to regain some stability.
It wasn’t working.
The spinning was only increasing as I looked at the faucet of the shower, trying to focus on it to steady myself. The silver fixture moved, spun, and duplicated itself, even though I was certain I was holding still.
My eyes closed as I breathed in the steam, hoping that somehow the dizziness would leave, yet it got worse. I was forced to stumble out of the shower, hair unwashed, only to have my foot catch on the shower curtain and send me slamming into the ground.
My shoulder impacted hard on the tiles while a jolt of pain seared down my spine. I yelled out on impact and frantically tried to right myself, however the dizziness expanded, and I collapsed back onto the floor where the cool tiles under my skin seemed to clear my mind a bit, so I focused on them.
“Joclyn!” Ilyan yelled through the door, his voice panicked. “Are you okay?”
“Yes.” My voice was muffled by the tile. I wasn’t sure Ilyan had heard me because he continued to pound on the door. I tried again, but his panicked yelling drowned out my voice. Great, he was going to barge in and I was lying naked in the middle of the bathroom floor.
I forced myself up and grabbed the hoodie and pajama pants from the counter, pulling them on over my damp body. Right at the moment that I pulled the hoodie down, my body collapsed again as the door was flung open, allowing Ilyan to tumble into the room with his blonde hair swinging.
“Joclyn!” he yelled.
“I’m here.”
I was surprised by how weak my voice was. I knew I wasn’t feeling well, but I didn’t think it was that bad. I shook my head hoping that the dizziness would leave, but it only got worse.
Ilyan kneeled down next to me. His hands flew to my cheeks, his magic plunging into me as he checked for any injuries.
“I’m fine, Ilyan.” I batted his hand away from me, breaking the connection.
“Are you sure?” His accent was so thick, I barely understood him.
I nodded, but I was starting to wonder if I really was. This was beginning to feel more like I was being drained than a dehydrated dizziness. It was as if someone was reaching inside me and scrambling everything together.
Ilyan wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me to standing, his body supporting me as my head continued to spin. I didn’t dare say anything, so I let him lead me out of the bathroom.
“Bacon?” I asked, surprised at the smell of bacon and eggs that had filled the small living space. Ilyan was a vegan and had eaten no more than fruit or vegetables for the last few centuries. The fact that he would even attempt to make bacon and eggs was humorous as well as heartening.
“Yes,” he grimaced, “I just hope I did it right. I think the influx of protein might help you.”
Ilyan placed me at one of the chairs at the tiny table where what was surely a full pack of perfectly crisp, browned bacon sat in all its greasy goodness before me. I hadn’t eaten meat in what felt like months and just the smell was making my mouth water.
“Thank you, Ilyan.” I smiled brightly at him, ignoring the swelling and swimming that was going on inside my brain.
His eyes were shining joyfully, but it wasn’t only happiness I saw behind his eyes, there was something there I couldn’t quite place. I was trying to figure out what it might be when the swelling in my head grew into something more painful and I called out, clutching my hands to my head.
I could barely make out Ilyan rushing towards me from the kitchenette; calling to me, yelling for me. The pain continued to grow as my vision blacked out, and the air swirled past me as I fell from the chair.
I never felt the impact, but on my way down I could have sworn I heard someone laughing.
—
Read More Now…
Also by Rebecca Ethington
The Imdalind Series
Kiss of Fire, Imdalind #1
Eyes of Ember, Imdalind #2
Scorched Treachery, Imdalind #3
Soul of Flame, Imdalind #4
Burnt Devotion, Imdalind #5
Dawn of Ash, Imdalind #6
Crown of Cinders, Imdalind #7
Ilyan, Imdalind #8
The Through Glass Series
Book One: The Dark
Book Two: The Blue
Book Three: The Rose
Book Four: The Cut
Of River and Raynn Series
The Catalyst: Act One
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About the Author
Rebecca Ethington is an internationally bestselling author with almost 700,000 books sold. Her breakout debut, The Imdalind Series, has been featured on bestseller lists since its debut in 2012, reaching thousands of adoring fans worldwide and cited as “Interesting and Intense” by USA Today’s Happily Ever After Blog.
From writing horror to romance and creating every sort of magical creature in between, Rebecca’s imagination weaves vibrant worlds that transport readers into the pages of her books. Her writing has been described as fresh, original, and groundbreaking, with stories that bend genres and create fantastical worlds.
Born and raised under the lights of a stage, Rebecca has written stories by the ghost light, told them in whispers in dark corridors, and never stopped creating within the pages of a notebook.
Find me online
www.rebeccaethington.com
contact@rebeccaethington.com
Acknowledgments
To those who inspired me:
Happy Birthday, Papa – I love you more than words can say.
For my Grandmother, whose passion for reading is infectious.
To those who supported me:
Julie Blaisdell
Wendi Fedderson
Annette Skoubye
Sheena Boekweg
And to those who created for me:
Rick Chianteretto of Dirty Boy Photography
Sarah at Okay Creations
Amanda and Carol of Natures Lace
And to the many more who have given me kind words,
warm hugs, and endless amounts of inspiration. There is not
enough i
nk in the world to thank you all.
Thank you for reading this little story that came out of my head. I hope you enjoyed it
Book Two in The Imdalind Series
Full Series Available Now