The Iron Butterfly (Iron Butterfly #1)(57)

Through the flames and smoke I could see Kael standing there watching me. I started to reach out to him for help, when I remembered what he had said earlier about wishing he had let me die. I dropped my hands limply to my side, my eyes burning with tears, refusing to ask for help. The flames burned brighter and the smoke made it impossible to breathe.

Choking on the smoke I fell to my knees, my fingers digging in the dirt as I tried to breathe in the fresh air that was lower to the ground. But every breath burned fire down my lungs, as I felt myself suffocating from smoke inhalation. The flames licked at my skin, making it burn and pucker.

I could see Kael, angry, standing over my prone form, his mouth forming words I couldn’t hear. Kneeling down, he yelled out again but I was deaf to them. Refusing help I closed my mind from him. He wanted to let me die, so I was giving him his wish, I would let myself die in this dream world.

Feeling my world fade away, I felt him grab my shoulders hard and force me to look into his eyes. Barely being able to stay conscious I made eye contact with his angry eyes and I heard him clear as day, shout into my mind. “WAKE UP!”

I awoke gasping for breath, coughing. I felt a hand pound my back and speak my name.

“Thalia, it’s okay, you’re alright. Just breathe.” Joss’ words calmed me.

Looking around my room in confusion, I started to cough and spit up black stuff into a handkerchief. Pushing him away I tried to stumble over to the window as if the room was still filled with smoke.

Throwing open the windows, I leaned out coughing and let in the fresh air. It was now midmorning and the sun was shining. Joss brought me over a glass of water, I drank all of it. After I had settled down, I collapsed on the couch and asked him. “What happened?”

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Joss explained. “I was asleep, when a loud sound woke me up. I went to check on you and you had stopped breathing. I could feel power in the room and I couldn’t get you to wake up. I tried to look into your mind but it was blocked.”

I told Joss about my dream, not feeling comfortable in revealing that I was dreaming about Kael, I left him conveniently out again. I was doing that a lot lately. Joss looked worried, as I described the burning cell and how I felt I was dying of asphyxiation when I suddenly awoke.

“Thalia, you were attacked by a Denai in your sleep,” he said.

“How can you know for sure?” I asked.

“Because … Thalia, look at your wrists.”

Sure enough, small burn marks appeared along my wrists and arms.

“And,” he paused. “I can still smell smoke.”





Chapter 24





“That’s it! I’m outta here.”

I scrambled from off the couch, ran to my armoire and started throwing clothes into a bag. Joss came over and tried taking the items of clothes out my bag and putting them back into the closet.

“Thalia, what are you doing? You can’t leave.”

Joss tried to grab a shirt out of my hands. We both tugged on it until I surrendered it to him with a glare.

“Oh, yeah? Watch me.”

I grabbed a pair of socks and threw them in my bag. He reached in my bag to pull out more clothes and pulled out one of my undergarments. Face turning beet red, he sputtered and dropped the garment on the floor as if it bit him. Giving up on the unpacking approach, he instead tried to reason with me.

“Thalia, you’ll be even more unprotected in the city than in the Citadel.”

“Hasn’t worked so far,” I argued. “You were even in the same room with me and I was still attacked. He’s here, Joss. The Raven is close, he could even be in the city right now and he could still reach into my mind.”

“That’s because you haven’t been fully trained. If you stayed and learned how to use your powers, you could shield from these attacks better.”

“While I’m sleeping?” Somehow that didn’t seem possible.

“Once you’re trained, using your power can become as natural as breathing. But if you leave now, you leave yourself open to more attacks.”

“I can’t fight the same way you can! I can’t do anything the same way you can.” My voice raised in pitch despairingly.

“Truthfully, Thalia, I’m at a loss when it comes to what you are capable of. I know what my limits are. But you are different, the rules are different.”

Turning from him, I let out a sigh, and threw my whole bag back into the closet, shutting it with a slam.

“Joss, I have no idea what I’m capable of either. The only thing I’ve been able to do was subconsciously, when I pulled you into my memories, and being able to speak with Faraway.”

“Who?” Joss raised one eyebrow at me and folded his arms across his chest while leaning against the armoire. The pose showed off his muscles and his tall stature. My eyes went wide and I lost my train of thought for a second until I felt a faint familiar brushing of my mind.

Stop staring and continue with what you were going to say.

“I...I...What?”

You were about to tell him how you are bonded with a very intelligent horse, who is charming, quick witted, handsome, can run like the wind…and…

“Who’s as vain as a prince?” I interrupted his thoughts. “Now leave me alone, before he thinks I’m completely nuts.”