“Promises are meant to be broken,” Jason replied easily. “Cheers.”
“Cheers,” Allyra replied and took a small sip from the glass. The champagne was still cool, the bubbles bursting on her tongue. The temptation was there to linger with Jason, but she pushed it aside. “You’re just full of cheesy sayings tonight, and as much as I would love to hear more, I should go.”
“Stay,” Jason said quickly.
She shot him a questioning look. “What?”
“Do you even know what room they’ve given you for the night?” he asked, and when she shook her head, he gestured to his bed. “I have a perfectly good bed here, which I’m willing to share. And I’m even willing to promise not to ravish you in the night.”
She dithered for a moment, unsure.
He made up her mind for her, taking the champagne glass from her hand and getting to his feet. “I’ve fallen asleep plenty of times on the couch, so I know firsthand that it’s a perfectly comfortable place to spend a night,” he said with a small grin. He walked to the door. “Sleep, Allyra, tomorrow is going to be a big day.”
* * *
Allyra woke up to the smell of pancakes the next morning. She’d slept better than she’d expected.
Today was the day. Everything she’d done, everything she’d fought for, been willing to die for, had led her to this day. She closed her eyes and tried to focus her mind, breathing slowly in through her nose and out through her mouth. Today, she had to be focused, and she had to be strong. There would be no room for mistakes or lapses in concentration.
“Allyra?” Jason asked. “Are you awake?”
He was standing in the doorway, holding a plate piled high with a stack of pancakes. Already dressed, he was wearing a black suit, his short blond hair dark and wet from a recent shower.
“What time is it?” she asked, accepting the offered plate of pancakes and taking a bite, nearly moaning in pleasure at the taste of light pancakes drenched in sweet syrup.
“Nearly nine,” Jason replied.
“What?” Allyra exclaimed, nearly spilling the entire plate of pancakes over the bed. “Why didn’t you wake me earlier? Doesn’t the Council meeting start at nine thirty?”
“It does, but relax. You have time. Eat, shower, and there’s some clothes on the dresser for you.”
She shoveled a few more bites into her mouth. “But I wanted to get up early. I needed to prepare—”
Jason cut her off abruptly. “Allyra, if you’re not ready now, then a couple more hours of preparation won’t change that.”
She stopped her frenzied eating and took a deep breath. “I know. It’s just that there’s so much at stake, and I don’t want to make any mistakes.”
“You won’t. You’re a Five Finals champion, you’ve earned the right to go into the Between. You’re ready.” He paused and sank down on the bed next to her. “I just wish I was going with you. We’re stronger together.”
“I know, but I need you to buy me time. And more importantly, I need you to make sure Marcus stays away.”
Jason nodded reluctantly. “I have to go. Just…” His voice trailed away, and he pulled his eyes from hers. A flash of conflicted pain crossed his face briefly, but when he looked up again, he was wearing a wry smile. “Just be careful.”
He leaned in and pressed his forehead to hers in a silent goodbye.
Chapter 40 – Allyra
After a hurried shower and getting dressed in the clothes that Jason had left for her, Allyra met Jamie in the foyer of the Great Hall. She led him to the massive set of double doors and the Sentinels that guarded them. At their demand for her to speak, she whispered her name, and after the now familiar ritual of her blood being tested, the doors slid open silently.
Before she could walk though, Jamie grabbed her arm and pulled her back. She shot him a questioning glance.
“Are you sure about this, Ally?” he said, his expression conflicted.
She gave him a reassuring smile. “I know you don’t think much of this plan, but I’m not just trusting blindly. And all through The Five Finals, I’ve seen echoes of Alex Cairns, glimpses of the past that helped me understand him. On the day of the Betrayal, Alex led the Elementals into the Between motivated only by grief and a desire to make sure that no one ever lost another loved one to the Revenants again.
“And if there’s anything I understand, it’s grief. I know its terrible hold. I might not know what went wrong, but I do know that Alex wasn’t motivated by a desire for power—of that I’m completely sure.”
“But they all died. Something terrible happened—Matthew Cairns had to kill his own brothers. Surely, history wouldn’t have gotten it so wrong?” Jamie shot back. “If you can see the past, then surely you should know what really happened and not just bits and pieces of it.”
“My Gift for the past isn’t all encompassing. For the most part, I just get brief flashes. The memories I see most clearly are the ones tied to people I know. Because I know Alex, I could see him clearly. But, whatever happened all those years ago happened without Alex’s knowledge, and because he didn’t know it, I haven’t been able to see it.”
Still, Jamie remained unsure, not entirely convinced by her words, but he nodded. “Okay. But, there’s still a fatal flaw to your plan.”
Allyra looked at him questioningly.
“I’m not allowed in there without an escort,” Jamie clarified, pointing into the Council Chambers.
“Well, aren’t you lucky that I’m here to escort you? There are some benefits to being a Five Finals winner,” Allyra said blithely, not bothering to explain that she’d
