Secret Heir (Dynasty #1)(98)

I think he must be talking about his hopes for me to succeed him as the head of the Evenstar Dynasty, something I can’t even imagine myself doing. But there’s something about the way he’s looking at me which makes me think there’s more to it.

“Care to elaborate on that one, too?”

“Yes.”

My optimism at his words is short lived.

“When the time is right.”

I let out a groan of frustration.

“Do you always have to speak in these mysterious riddles?”

He flashes me an amused smile, and I take that as a cue to ask more questions, although I don’t think Magnus is likely to answer them.

“How about swapping some of those riddles for the truth?”

The amused look disappears instantly.

“The truth, when revealed at the wrong time, is a dangerous thing, Jazmine.”

His words aren’t entirely wrong, but the look in his eyes makes me think that there are far more dangerous things on the horizon than just some wrongly timed truths.



“What are we doing here?” I ask Magnus later that afternoon as we stand at the center of a large courtyard on the palace grounds, overlooking the wide expanse of rocky coast beneath.

“I’ve been hearing great things from Professor Roman about your progress with elements training, so I’d like to see for myself,” he replies.

“You’re a natural it seems. Just like I said you would be. Hardly surprising given your heritage. Your father was certainly the best in his generation.”

I feel my body bristle at the mention of my father. I haven’t really allowed myself to dwell on it since arriving on Eden and I’ve made it pretty damn clear to everyone around me that it’s not a topic for conversation. But I know it’s something that I won’t be able to avoid forever. I’m just hoping to delay the inevitable for a while longer, I guess.

Magnus gestures to the center of the courtyard expectantly and I gape at him in response.

“You want me to duel with you?” I ask, which earns me a bemused smile.

“My dueling days are long behind me, I’m afraid. But I would like to see how your powers have developed and help you along, if I can.”

It’s clear from his expression that he has no idea exactly who is responsible for my progress to date and I keep it that way, because something tells me that he won’t be pleased to learn the truth.

I take a deep breath and make my way towards the center of the courtyard, with Magnus walking beside me.

We start with unleashing shadows, Magnus letting me show him what I know before he precedes to show me how to hone my skills.

I see from the flashes of pride in his expression, that he’s pleased with what he sees and despite myself, I feel a strange rush of warmth at that. It’s been such a long time since I’ve felt anything like it. Before my mom died, I remember feeling something similar whenever she used to gush over my drawings, but I’d been so young then, the memories merely ghosts in my own mind.

“You have raw power. In fact, I’ve never seen anything like it,” Magnus says, as we take a break from the latest round.

“But you’ll need more than that in a duel. You need to control the shadows instead of letting them control you. The darkness should be at your beck and call, ready to act on your command.”

I feel my brow furrowing in response. What is it with everyone here and dueling? Magnus seems to have the same enthusiasm for it as Raph does and while admittedly, I’ve come to enjoy dueling, I still don’t see why everyone here seems to think it’s so important. I suppose it’s a way of displaying power. But I’ve never been one for showing off.

Still, I can’t deny that Magnus’s tuition is already helping. Raph may be the best in this generation, but Magnus’s experience and wisdom is invaluable, and while Raph’s training has been instrumental in my progress, Magnus is able to teach me to perfect the powers that Raph himself doesn’t possess. Namely the power over the night. The power of our bloodline.

“Again,” Magnus says, gesturing for me to continue, but this time, with a tighter leash on the shadows.

We continue to train for what feels like hours and I lose all track of time until the sun dips low into the horizon, signaling the shift of day to night.

I look up at the sky above as Magnus allows me another pause. The ghost of the crescent moon and the stars above grow more prominent in the darkening sky, and I feel the familiar call in my veins.

Magnus is silent as he stands beside me, but I know he can feel it, too.

“Take my hand,” he says as we stand there, side by side, looking out at the horizon.

I feel his power flow into me and my own flowing into him as we silently paint the horizon with night.

It’s not like that night at Rockford Cape when Raph and I shared our powers. This connection completes some other part of me in a different way.

As night descends on this part of Eden, in that moment, I feel the connection to the only family I have left in the entire universe and suddenly that universe becomes a little less lonely for it.



“It’s been okay so far, I guess. Magnus trained with me earlier and he says that he wants us to keep training together while I’m home for winter break.

“But he’s being his usual cryptic self and every time he looks at me, I get the feeling that he knows exactly what’s been going on at Regency these past few months ...”