Suddenly, she was falling into a memory.
She was still in the sparring room.
A man was sitting on the ground with his back against the far wall. His head hung low, held down by his long fingers interlocked against the back of his neck, with his elbows resting on his knees.
Even without seeing his face, she knew instinctively who it was.
Alex.
There was no mistaking his long, elegant lines and strong, tightly coiled muscles.
She took an unconscious step toward him, and as if he could sense her, Alex lifted his head and their eyes met.
Swirls of blue with golden starbursts rising from the depths. His eyes were almost exactly as she’d remembered, perhaps just a little more carefree and less weighed down by regret. But they lacked none of the ferocity, energy, and passion she remembered so well. Her heart thudded out an unsteady rhythm in her chest. She ached desperately to touch him.
“Alex,” she breathed out.
The dragon tattoo on Alex’s forearm came to life, reappearing as a short dagger in his hand. He tilted its tip toward her.
“Who are you?” he asked, his voice quiet and controlled. But she knew him well enough to recognize the faint note of dread.
The combination of his words and the undercurrent of fear hidden deep within them forced her backward. It struck a jarring and discordant note—she’d never heard fear in Alex’s voice.
He closed his eyes and shook his head.
“No,” he whispered to himself. “No. Please go away. I want no part of these visions.”
Allyra studied him more closely. His left arm was bare, but the familiar, silver tattoo of two intertwining dragons was on his right forearm. He chest was bare, and it bore no semblance of the jagged scar from the Ancient’s blade. Perhaps she’d always known it from the very first moment she’d seen him sitting against the wall, but now the realization was clear in her mind.
This was Alex from before, one who didn’t yet know her. One who was still struggling to come to terms with his visions of the future.
He was here. They were together. In the same place but separated by more than a hundred and fifty years.
Alex’s Gift for the future and her Gift for the past. Together, they could reach across the void of time to see each other.
Allyra took a careful step forward toward him. Slowly and gently, much as he’d once done for her. “Alex…” she whispered.
He shook his head harder, as if he could block out the sound of her voice.
“No. No. No. Please leave me alone,” he begged.
The door opened and Allyra turned at the sound. She found herself staring at Mandla. One so different from the Mandla she had known that it was almost impossible to imagine they were the same person.
It was the same body, but here, in a memory of a time before, Mandla was as he should’ve been. Strong and sure, with merry mischief dancing in his hazel eyes.
He was crunching on an apple and held one out for Alex.
Allyra felt a hollow ache take hold within her. It was a reversal of roles. How many times had she seen Alex holding out food to Mandla?
Alex didn’t look up.
“Alex?” Mandla asked, his forehead creasing with concern and almost instant understanding.
He dropped to the ground next to Alex to put his hand on Alex’s shoulder. “Did you see something again?”
Alex nodded, without opening his eyes, keeping his head low. He lifted his hand and pointed toward her.
“A girl.” Alex whispered. “A gray-eyed girl, standing over there.”
Mandla looked up, his eyes searching the wall behind her, where Alex had pointed. “There’s no one there.”
Alex opened his eyes and stared directly at her, and she knew that he could still see her, but he kept his expression neutral and nodded carefully.
“You’re right,” he said with a tight smile. “There’s no one there.”
Mandla studied him carefully, as if he knew Alex well enough to know that he was lying. “So, are we going to spar or what?” Mandla asked with forced cheerfulness, getting to his feet. “I don’t need the practice, but I thought you were getting a little rusty.”
Alex looked at her for a second longer and then averted his eyes. The dragons came to life on his arm and snaked upward, appearing as two bright and silver swords in Alex’s hands.
He smiled again, this time a little more naturally. “I’m ready.”
Allyra loosened her grip on the memory, and she came thundering back to herself, back into her own time. The vision was so clear, so real. Almost as if the power of Alex’s Gift had enhanced her own, pulling her back into the past with more force.
There was a lingering sourness on her tongue, one of dissonance and discord. It was more than a little disconcerting to see a version of Alex that wasn’t perfectly sure of himself. One that was vulnerable and yet to become the person she’d known. But this wasn’t the reason she felt foggy and unbalanced. Alex had told her to use her affinity for the past to find out the truth of the Betrayal. What disturbed her was the idea that he’d known all along what she would find.
Chapter 8 – Jamie
The string of fire flickered between red and orange. It was almost alive, constantly moving, coiling around his fingers as Jamie considered his options.
Eva watched him carefully, her eyes never leaving his, her expression giving none of her thoughts away. If she was nervous, she didn’t show it. She was watchful but relaxed. Ready, not tense.
Slowly, Jamie tightened his hold of the red Fire threads.
