Let the Sky Fall (Sky Fall #1)(60)

“No, but I’m guessing your army wouldn’t be too happy with me.”

“That’s putting it mildly. And you wouldn’t be the one they’d punish. I’d be the one dishonored.”

“That doesn’t sound so bad.”

She lets out a slow sigh. “You don’t understand.”

“You’re right—I don’t.”

More silence. Then she whispers, “Honor is all I have left. The Gales. My oath. Take that away and I have nothing.”

She says it without any self-pity. But it makes me sorry for her anyway. I can’t imagine how lonely the last ten years have been for her, squatting in that crumbling shack.

“And that would only be the beginning,” she adds. “You’re our future king. They could rule my act as treason. Lock me so far underground the wind would be nothing more than a memory.”

“They would do that? Over a kiss?”

“Over a bond. Our betrothed king’s bond—one which has been very carefully arranged. Your life has to be handled in the best way possible, to benefit everyone. Including you.”

“Handled.”

“You have tremendous power, Vane. They want to make sure you don’t turn into another Raiden. Even as a Westerly, there’s no telling how the power of four will affect your mind. There aren’t any other Westerlies for them to pair you with, so they’ve chosen Solana. Her family was made up of the meekest, most humble of our kind—it’s the reason they were our royals. We chose rulers who would put the good of the masses above themselves. Who would be generous, kind, and fair. And bonding to her will enhance those qualities in you. Make you a good king.”

“But I don’t want to be king!”

“That doesn’t change who you are. And it won’t change the fact that part of my job is to make sure you don’t bond to anyone. So if you do, I’ll be held responsible. Maybe you don’t care what happens to me, but—”

“Of course I do.” The light ahead turns yellow and I slow to a stop, grateful I can turn and face her again. “I care a lot about what happens to you.”

It’s more than I meant to say, and I have to look away.

She shifts in her seat. “Then promise me you’ll stay away from that girl.”

I laugh. “Pretty sure she’d kick me in the crotch if I showed up again. I’ll pass on that.”

“Other girls too, Vane. Even me.”

The last words are a whisper. Almost a plea.

I focus on the road as we start moving again.

“You’re meant to be with Solana,” she presses. “When you meet her, you’ll realize you’ve wasted all this precious time and energy trying to prevent the best thing that ever happened to you.”

There’s zero chance of that happening. But there’s no point arguing with her. For now.

“Fine,” I mumble.

She swallows several times before she speaks again. When she does, her voice sounds strained. “You won’t regret it. I promise.”

I’m not so sure about that.

But I am sure of one thing.

I’ve never felt anything like what I feel when I’m around Audra, and if I needed convincing, feeling the difference with Hannah tonight proved it.

Audra’s the one. My head knows it. My heart knows it. Even my senses know it.

So if I can only bond myself to one girl in my lifetime, I know who it will be.





CHAPTER 34


AUDRA


I don’t want to leave the car.

Tucked in the private space, with the wind streaming through the window and the night draped around us, Vane and I reached a strange sort of truce. I can’t shake the feeling it will slip away as soon as I step outside.

Vane hesitates as he turns off the engine. Maybe he fears the same thing.

Then he opens his door and steps into the stuffy darkness.

I try to follow him, but I can’t figure out how to unlatch the absurd seat restraint. Thankfully, I find the switch before Vane opens my door to assist me—the last thing I need is another jolt of his strange heat.

“Do we still have to train tonight?” he asks, staring at his parents’ house instead of me.

He has so much left to learn. And we have so few days left. My eyes dart involuntarily to the sky, searching for traces of a storm.

The stars wink back at me, promising a calm night.

My mother must be keeping her promise. Otherwise, they’d have found us by now.

I need to make the best use of the extra time.

But I need to regroup. Figure out where we go from here.

“You haven’t checked in with your family all day. You should probably stay in tonight. We’ll get an early start tomorrow to make up for it.”

He nods. “Well . . . good night.”

I retreat to the grove before he can say anything further. On the way to my shelter I retrieve my jacket and windslicer from where I discarded them in my hasty flight. Both are covered in bugs and dirt. It’s like this place overruns everything, tainting it, smothering it, trying to ruin it. I won’t let it do that to me.

Gavin screeches from his perch on the windowsill when I stumble home. Poor bird has been severely neglected these last few days.

I stroke the feathers at the scruff of his neck and stare out the window. The moonlight’s bright enough that I can see my reflection in the cracked, dirty glass. I look pale. Dark shadows rim my eyes, and strands of hair have broken free of my braid, sticking out in wild, erratic tufts. Hardly attractive.