you.”
“Well, I’m sure Ethan would like to know about it.”
Lylinora folded her hands in her lap and leaned forward. “But you won’t tell him, my dear.”
“More threats?”
Lylinora shook her head. “This is not a threat. This is a fact. Because if you tell him, I’ll simply deny it.”
“Ethan will believe me,” Kat snapped back.
“Really? What makes you so sure of that? Ethan is in love with me, not you. Why wouldn’t he think you’re simply lying in order to drive us apart?”
“First of all, he’s not in love with you. Lust or infatuation maybe. Though I don’t expect you to know the difference. And second, he’ll believe me because he’s my friend.”
Lylinora waved her hand dismissively. “Lust, love…it doesn’t matter. What does matter is that he wants me. And he wants me enough to believe whatever I say. If you tell him any of this, all that will happen is you make yourself look like a jealous fool, and I appear the innocent victim of your anger.”
She paused to give a smile. “But even that is not the main reason why you’ll keep quiet.”
Kat sneered. “So tell me what is?”
Lylinora’s smile broadened. “Because you love him, and you hope one day to have him for yourself. Of course, I cannot allow this to happen. He is far too important to waste his life on you, my dear.”
Kat didn’t even bother to try and deny her feelings. Although struggling to remain calm, the smug look on Lylinora’s face was sending surges of rage racing through her.
“I know that my words insult you,” her tormentor continued. “But there is no other way to put it. I am the last living mage in Lumnia, and he is the son of Praxis Dragonvein, the most powerful mage of his time. It is our duty to restore our kind.”
Kat laughed scornfully. “That’s what this is all about? Bringing back the mages? You really think Ethan cares about that?”
“No,” she admitted. “Not yet. But he will in time. Gradually, he will come to understand the importance of our kind. The importance of the good that mages do for the world. Once he sees this, there will be no other choice for him but to be with me.”
Kat’s hands trembled. She knew Lylinora was right. Yet her feelings for Ethan would not allow her to accept the situation. “I can use magic,” she offered weakly. “At least a little.”
“Indeed you can. And that’s precisely the point I’m making. I am the only one who can teach you to develop that skill. But if you say anything, or if you try to come between us, I will refuse to do so. Any hope you may have of gaining Ethan’s affections will then be gone forever. Not that there is much hope to begin with. It will be many years before you are old enough for him…at least in his eyes.”
With that, Lylinora stood. Though not exceptionally tall, her posture gave her an imposing appearance. “And as long as you love him, you will continue clinging to that hope.”
Kat could only glare, her tiny fists clenched. A single tear fell forlornly down her cheek.
Lylinora drained her cup and turned toward the exit. “You can stay here until you collect yourself. But you will stay gone from my sight until we depart. Am I understood?”
Without bothering to wait for a reply, she left the room, tossing the cup into a corner as she moved along.
Hugging her knees to her chest, Kat remained absolutely motionless for several minutes. Eventually, her head lifted and her voice was filled with resolve as she softly swore an oath.
“I won’t let you have him,” she repeated over and over. “I won’t – I won’t.”
Chapter Six
L ylinora’s checking of the elders and house staff was completed sooner than anticipated. To everyone’s great relief, none of them had been afflicted by a curse. And though King Halvar remained apprehensive over the installation of the barrier, he took solace in the fact that when the announcement about it was eventually made, there had not been a single voice
“Well, I’m sure Ethan would like to know about it.”
Lylinora folded her hands in her lap and leaned forward. “But you won’t tell him, my dear.”
“More threats?”
Lylinora shook her head. “This is not a threat. This is a fact. Because if you tell him, I’ll simply deny it.”
“Ethan will believe me,” Kat snapped back.
“Really? What makes you so sure of that? Ethan is in love with me, not you. Why wouldn’t he think you’re simply lying in order to drive us apart?”
“First of all, he’s not in love with you. Lust or infatuation maybe. Though I don’t expect you to know the difference. And second, he’ll believe me because he’s my friend.”
Lylinora waved her hand dismissively. “Lust, love…it doesn’t matter. What does matter is that he wants me. And he wants me enough to believe whatever I say. If you tell him any of this, all that will happen is you make yourself look like a jealous fool, and I appear the innocent victim of your anger.”
She paused to give a smile. “But even that is not the main reason why you’ll keep quiet.”
Kat sneered. “So tell me what is?”
Lylinora’s smile broadened. “Because you love him, and you hope one day to have him for yourself. Of course, I cannot allow this to happen. He is far too important to waste his life on you, my dear.”
Kat didn’t even bother to try and deny her feelings. Although struggling to remain calm, the smug look on Lylinora’s face was sending surges of rage racing through her.
“I know that my words insult you,” her tormentor continued. “But there is no other way to put it. I am the last living mage in Lumnia, and he is the son of Praxis Dragonvein, the most powerful mage of his time. It is our duty to restore our kind.”
Kat laughed scornfully. “That’s what this is all about? Bringing back the mages? You really think Ethan cares about that?”
“No,” she admitted. “Not yet. But he will in time. Gradually, he will come to understand the importance of our kind. The importance of the good that mages do for the world. Once he sees this, there will be no other choice for him but to be with me.”
Kat’s hands trembled. She knew Lylinora was right. Yet her feelings for Ethan would not allow her to accept the situation. “I can use magic,” she offered weakly. “At least a little.”
“Indeed you can. And that’s precisely the point I’m making. I am the only one who can teach you to develop that skill. But if you say anything, or if you try to come between us, I will refuse to do so. Any hope you may have of gaining Ethan’s affections will then be gone forever. Not that there is much hope to begin with. It will be many years before you are old enough for him…at least in his eyes.”
With that, Lylinora stood. Though not exceptionally tall, her posture gave her an imposing appearance. “And as long as you love him, you will continue clinging to that hope.”
Kat could only glare, her tiny fists clenched. A single tear fell forlornly down her cheek.
Lylinora drained her cup and turned toward the exit. “You can stay here until you collect yourself. But you will stay gone from my sight until we depart. Am I understood?”
Without bothering to wait for a reply, she left the room, tossing the cup into a corner as she moved along.
Hugging her knees to her chest, Kat remained absolutely motionless for several minutes. Eventually, her head lifted and her voice was filled with resolve as she softly swore an oath.
“I won’t let you have him,” she repeated over and over. “I won’t – I won’t.”
Chapter Six
L ylinora’s checking of the elders and house staff was completed sooner than anticipated. To everyone’s great relief, none of them had been afflicted by a curse. And though King Halvar remained apprehensive over the installation of the barrier, he took solace in the fact that when the announcement about it was eventually made, there had not been a single voice
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