Sparks and Shadow by Ceara Nobles

Author:Ceara Nobles [Ceara Nobles]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Ceara Nobles
Published: 2022-01-21T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fourteen

“I don’t like this, Aki.” Mina paced in front of the fireplace, wringing her hands, her pale hair flickering orange in the light from the fire.

I sat in an armchair nearby, still in my evening gown, and sipped on my steaming mug of hot cocoa. Part of me craved a cup of Mina’s coffee flavor of the day—some Thiosian roast I’d never heard of and cardamom—but it was late and if I wanted to get some sleep for once, hot cocoa was a better option.

Aki sat in the armchair across from me, an ancient text open on the table between us next to an identical mug of hot cocoa. He, of course, hadn’t touched it. “I do not see another choice,” he said calmly. “The queen will not grant us weapons, and we cannot take the gate without them. The Thiosians in our outfit are not prepared to use their magick against Seraphine’s wishes, nor would I ask them to without proper training.”

“If she catches you, she’ll imprison you or even sentence you to death.” Mina’s blue face was pale. “You won’t be around to fight Asmodeus or help Thios.”

I shivered despite the fire warming me. The queen’s scary power and her attempt to keep me in the palace were too fresh. But another part of me reveled in the thought of taking the weapons from her. She was terrifying, but she was also cold and mean and I had never liked authority figures anyway.

“Woo-hoo,” Gideon yowled from the kitchen table. “I say, let’s give the queen what’s coming to her. It’s about time we downworlders show her what we’re made of.”

I met Shadow’s eyes across the room, where he leaned against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. A flicker of a smile passed his lips, and then it was gone again.

“We will not show her anything,” Aki said, leveling a look at Gideon before returning his gaze to Mina. “The queen will never know the weapons are missing.”

“How?” Mina settled herself cross-legged on the rug in front of the fire, facing us.

“A heist,” I said. Excitement thrummed through me. “Please tell me we’re going to go all Ocean’s Eleven on the armory.”

Everyone looked at me like I was crazy. Right; no movies in Faery.

“You know, a heist. We sneak in there, grab the weapons, and sneak out before she realizes we’re there.”

“Precisely.” Aki nodded. “A heist.”

“The armory is well-guarded,” Shadow said. “There’s only one entrance, and four members of the Reyan Guard patrol the front. From what I’ve gathered, they’re the strongest magick users in the queen’s retinue. Sneaking past them would be near impossible.”

“Then we’ll need a distraction.” Gideon grinned. “I can take care of that. It’s my specialty.”

“We’ll need you to open the door,” Aki said. “Shadow will provide a distraction. We’ll need something big enough to draw all four guards away.”

“Understood. I have a few ideas.”

“While they’re gone, I will take the weapons we need and carry them out.” Aki closed the book beside him and returned it to the bookshelf next to the fireplace.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.