An Orchid of Kings and Curses by Kira DeSomma

Author:Kira DeSomma [DeSomma, Kira]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Independent
Published: 2022-01-31T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

The next morning arrived with an otherworldly hunger. I felt it in my bones as I rose. The bed beside me was empty, and I felt a strange silence within me as I listened to Cayden’s shower run. I had a million things to worry about — fixing things with Sibylline, protecting my family, stopping the queen’s dark magic from returning… but without Cayden immediately next to me, I felt my true north shift. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Who could I possibly talk to, who would understand all of this…?

The name rose to mind and I stood and dressed quickly. I didn’t even stop to make the bed, just climbed out onto the fire escape. I thought of how Tabitha had effortlessly scaled the building, but that kind of move took years of training, didn’t it…? Either years of training or… one dumb idea. I took a deep breath. It was the fastest way to get to lower level, but this time there would be no brakes to pull. I needed to get there and back before Cayden got out of the shower, or at least before he started to worry.

I took another deep breath. I hadn’t really used the extent of my magic yet — I kept telling myself I was recovering from Crow’s tea, even though it had been days. I kept telling myself I didn’t need to use the power that was readily available to me. I kept telling myself I wasn’t ready. But there were people counting on me now, people who needed me to be able to defend myself and them. People could die if I didn’t deliver — people would die if I didn’t deliver.

I gripped the railing, grit my teeth, and hauled myself over the edge of the fire escape.

It all happened so quickly I barely had time to process it: I was falling, and then landing on a ledge, and feeling my legs beneath me — but instead of feeling them break, I felt them reflexively bend and catch my weight easily. I looked down. I had landed on a steel flower box dressed with tiny red flowers. I swallowed hard, and then looked around for the next spot I could jump to. It was a storey down — another fire escape. I leapt and landed quickly and easily on the rusty metal. The strangest feeling of triumph rose in my chest as I scaled down the side of the building — not as gracefully or effortlessly as Tabitha, but just as effectively.

I arrived in Lower Level Donlea and sprinted through the dark alleyways, hoping I could reach her. I finally got to the familiar marketplace and wove my way through lines of strangers to see an empty booth where Aunty Lina’s dumpling stand had once been.

Of course, I thought stupidly, trying in vain to catch my breath. Of course she wouldn’t be selling dumplings now — it was the early morning and she had other business to attend to.

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