Nightbane (Lightlark, #2)(25)

By the time she sensed the rock, it had already hit her shoulder.

She winced. The bruise was sure to look like a storm cloud.

“Focus.”

“I am,” she said through her teeth.

Another rock hurtled at her. She sensed it and shot out her hand but missed. It hit her hip.

Isla felt something rising through her ribs, uncurling in her chest.

When the next rock hit her in the stomach, it unleashed.

“Put your arms down, Isla.”

Were they even up? She ripped the blindfold off, only to see sharp blades made from branches, dozens of them, levitating in the air, all pointed at Oro. Rocks hovered between them, vibrating with intensity.

Isla gasped, and they fell to the ground with a lifeless thump.

She took a step back. “I—I’m sorry.” She hadn’t even realized what she was doing. Her power had taken over.

Oro stepped toward her. “I was never in danger.”

But what if she did hurt him one day? When he was asleep? When she wasn’t paying attention?

“You need to work on controlling your emotions when using power,” he said. “But.” There was a but? “That was impressive.”

“It was?”

“It was focused, at least. A lot more controlled than when Remlar initially released your powers,” Oro said.

“So, what you’re saying is, I am getting more efficient at trying to kill you,” she deadpanned.

“Precisely.” His expression turned serious. “Emotion undoes control,” he explained. “When you’re emotional, your power has no constraint. It might seem like it makes you more powerful, but it can be dangerous. It can drain you completely until there’s nothing left.”

Isla trained harder. She tested the limits of her control, working to keep her emotions steady. Her life narrowed to just her, Oro, and her Wildling power. For over a week, there were no more memories. No more voice inside her head. No sightings.

The shadow of Grim had disappeared, and Isla hoped she never had to see him again.





ENYA


“I want to continue my training on the Wildling newland,” Isla said.

They had worked together for weeks. She was still far from a master, but she felt in control enough that she wouldn’t be a danger. It had been too long since she had visited her people. She needed to make sure they were taken care of, then she needed to start preparing for the inevitability that Grim was coming for her. He had likely orchestrated the drek attack.

What was next?

“And I need help. I don’t just want to bring them provisions. If it’s possible . . . I would like to see if anyone would volunteer to teach them skills they didn’t need before. How to prepare different types of foods, for example, and a dozen other things I can’t think of. I don’t really . . . I don’t really know—”

“I know someone.”

“What?”

“I know someone who will know some of what they will need,” Oro said.

Her brows came together. “Who?”

“Do you remember Enya?”

Isla remembered the tall Sunling at the dinner with the dark-red hair and freckles. She hadn’t looked unfriendly but not exactly friendly, either. Appraising, maybe.

“She taught Sunlings how to survive in the dark, after the curses. How to set up systems that allowed for crops to still grow, and life to still happen, even though we couldn’t be outside in the daylight. She’s good at coming up with solutions for problems that don’t even exist yet.”

That person sounded perfect. “It sounds like she has been a great Sunling representative.”

“More than that.”

She raised an eyebrow at him.

“Remember I said I had friends?” Oro said.

“It was the shock of my life.”

He gave her a look.

“She’s one of them?” she asked, incredulous. They hadn’t seemed that close at the dinner, but she supposed it had been a serious function.

He nodded. “She’s one of them.”


The Sun Isle castle looked dipped in a pot of gold. Enya sat at the head of a long dining table, with her feet propped up on the chair beside her. Her red hair was tied into a braid. She had an orange peel and a knife in front of her.

They had met before, but Isla was suddenly nervous. She hadn’t known that she and Oro had been friends. Would the woman judge her? Did she know about Oro and Isla’s . . . connection?

He placed a gentle hand against her lower back, as if sensing her nerves. His touch was fire. It was such a simple gesture, but it immediately made her feel better. She looked up at Oro and found him watching her. His fingers flexed against her spine—

“It’s a wonder either of you train at all, with how much you look like you want to bed one another.”

Her eyes snapped back to the woman sitting across the room.

“Enya . . .” Oro said smoothly. “At least give Isla a few minutes before she’s wishing I hadn’t brought her to see you.”

Enya shrugged and swung her legs around. She wore dark-gold—almost brown—leather pants, and a gold metal corset over long-sleeved chain mail. Armor, it looked like, though somehow casual. Her metal-plated boots clanked against the floor as she walked over, beaming.