A Rip of Realms (A Shade of Vampire #39)(34)

“I am.” I smirked. “What have you been doing?”

The blush intensified. “Nothing much…helping Ruby with the rooms and…stuff.”

I nodded, waiting for her to come clean.

“Did you do much?” she asked brightly.

“No. Not much.”

Her face fell, and she pushed a falling strand of her hair behind her ear. “Oh, okay.”

Before I lost the last vestiges of my self-control and wrapped her up in my arms, I decided to let her out of her misery.

“So, you saw the ceremony, then?” I asked dryly.

“It was an accident!” she protested. “I was looking for you in the garden, and then I saw…”

“It doesn’t matter. I was on my way to tell you anyway.” I pulled her toward me, making sure she knew I didn’t mean any of it seriously—I had decided to stop keeping secrets from Hazel after the harm my silence had done in causing her transformation. Her fingers tentatively snaked up to my left pectoral, finding the warm damp of the wound beneath my shirt.

“Does it hurt?”

“Not badly.”

“What is it?” she asked, trying to pry open my shirt as her curiosity was piqued. I unbuttoned the collar, exposing the mark so she could see. It was difficult to make out the symbol—it was smudged with drying blood, but it was three short lines, crossed with another three lines the same length, representing the six kingdoms, and then a circle around the cross to represent their unity.

“Will it scar?” she asked, her fingers tracing the lines.

“Yes, it’s supposed to.”

I grabbed her hand, kissing the tips of her fingers. I could taste the bitter iron of my own blood, and Hazel squirmed as my tongue flickered against the sensitive pads.

“How do you feel about it—the position, I mean?” she asked softly.

“Nevertide needs it; we can’t accomplish anything with kingdom-less guards and commanders.”

She was silent for a moment, then looked up at me, her eyes troubled.

“Is it permanent?” she asked.

“I don’t know.”

She nodded. I could tell she was a million miles away, thinking into the future.

“I can’t answer any of those questions, Hazel.”

I didn’t know what was going to happen if we survived the entity and Queen Trina, and knew even less about what would happen when the borders opened and the humans were finally free to return home. I knew what I wanted to happen, but I was fast learning that it didn’t make a blind bit of difference.

“I know you can’t.” She sighed, taking her hand out of mine, but wrapping it around my waist instead as she leaned her head against me.

“I think we should start practicing—develop your new powers, what do you think?” I asked, partly to distract her, partly because it needed to be done—Hazel would be better able to protect herself if she had some concept of what she was capable of.

“Yes!” she answered instantly, then hesitated. “I don’t know if I can though—the potion that Abelle gave me…”

“You should still be able to practice. I’d be amazed if it neutralized your powers completely.”

Amazed and furious.

“Okay, good. Where do we start then?” she asked, breaking away from me, her eyes sparkling in anticipation.

“True Sight,” I replied. “It would be interesting to see if you have the ability.”

“Really?” she asked doubtfully. “I thought True Sight was rare? What about barriers instead?”

“I have True Sight – all the Hellswans have been blessed with the ability,” I said. “If your sentry powers are the result of our bodies and souls joining, then I wouldn’t be surprised if you had the ability as well. Additionally – you know you can create barriers.”

“In an emergency,” she objected, “with your help. I want to be able to do them by myself. What if I need to protect Benedict or Julian?”

“After True Sight. Trust me, the effort it takes will help sharpen your mind.”

“I honestly didn’t realize till today that you had the ability.” She looked impressed.

“Well,” I replied reluctantly, “It’s not actually as advanced as Ash’s ability – as much as it pains me to say it.”

Hazel hid a snicker behind her hand, and then agreed to progress with the lesson.

We sat down at one end of the room, facing the wall that adjoined the room we were in with the humans’ sleeping quarters. I sat a few feet away from her, giving her some space so she wouldn’t be tempted to syphon by mistake. I wanted Hazel to be able to use her powers without drawing off others’ energy; it was harder, but would be necessary.

“I can only see wall,” she announced glumly after a few moments. I suppressed a laugh at her impatience.

“Try imagining what’s beyond it—and don’t stare at a fixed point, try to see the larger picture, almost as if the wall isn’t really there.”

“Oh, that simple, huh?”

“That simple.”

She rolled her eyes, then closed them briefly before starting again. I waited patiently next to her, unbothered by the time passing. It was a rare pleasure to have time with Hazel when we weren’t in immediate danger, and under circumstances where I could just sit and stare at her, without her becoming aware of me and therefore embarrassed.