Page 67 of The Last Aether

That piece of information had warmth sweeping through me. “I love the bond you guys have. It’s rare.”

Kai kneaded the muscles on the back of my neck. “It is. We’ve been through so much together, and even when some of our families wanted us to hate each other, we never gave in.”

I nuzzled in closer to him. “I’m glad you didn’t.”

Kai was quiet for a moment. “Will you tell me what brought on the panic attack?”

My muscles tensed and Kai kept massaging my neck, trying to take the worst of it away. I worried the inside of my cheek. “King Zephyr said something to me as he was leaving.”

Kai’s fingers stilled. “I didn’t hear anything.”

“It was in the air. He swirled it around me, and I could hear it in my head.”

Kai went ramrod straight. “That’s a violation. Those with air affinities can carry messages into your mind, but it’s a serious no-go. He never should’ve done that.”

I picked at a loose thread on my skirt. “He said that I looked just like her and he wondered if I’d scream just like her too.”

Kai’s grip on my neck tightened as his entire body vibrated with fury. “He what?”

Gripping his arm, I turned in Kai’s hold. “Don’t. Don’t let him take you to that place.” I didn’t want Kai to descend into the kind of ugly rage where King Zephyr lived.

“I can’t—I—he filled your head with that vile—”

I cut Kai off with a kiss. “And you helped take it away.”

“It’s not enough.”

“It’ll have to be. For now.”

He pulled me tighter against himself, as if he could protect me from all the ugliness in the world with just his embrace.

I sank into that hold, feeling safe and loved. Such warmth in the middle of cold cruelty. “There was so much hatred in his voice. Does he hate aethers that much? Anyone who descended from them?”

Kai’s mouth pressed into a hard line. “Zephyr has always been power-hungry. There were rumblings a few years ago that he was preparing his army for battle. That he was going to make a play for some of our lands.”

Stiffening, I struggled to sit up. “But there’s been a truce for centuries.”

He shrugged. “Zephyr has always wanted more. Riven has discovered countless plots to undermine the other kingdoms. He’s done what he can to help, getting messages to us or throwing off things on his dad’s end. But Zephyr has succeeded too.”

I could feel a fraction of the weight that had been resting on Riven and it was almost unbearable. “What did his dad do?”

“So many things. A couple of years ago, he unleashed beetles that destroyed the Kingdom of Terra’s crops. Their people were starving until Atlas was able to broker a deal with Phoenix’s father for trade. He’d hoped to weaken them and then swoop in to take their lands.”

“He’s heartless.” Who would do that to families? Children?

“That’s only the tip of the iceberg. He’s sent assassins for industry leaders, destroyed historic sites, stolen cultural artifacts. Anything that will eat away at the other kingdom’s psyche and way of life. And he’s smart about it too.”

I looked up at Kai. “He’s not going to walk away from his rule without a fight.”

Kai sighed, holding me tighter. “No. He’s not.”

38

Kai climbed to his feet with me still in his arms. The sun dipping below the horizon was the only sign of how much time had passed. We hadn’t spoken much after we’d discussed King Zephyr. Because what was there to say? Neither of us had a solution for the problems he might cause.

Instead, we simply basked in each other’s company. I could feel that slight buzz of Kai’s presence when I really focused. It was a reassuring steady hum I no longer noticed most of the time. But the knowledge that it was always there was comforting somehow.

My feet found the floor as Kai righted me. He brushed the hair away from my face and pressed a gentle kiss to my lips. “I think we need some fun.”