Heart of Fire

Chapter Three

Standing between the two princes as I walk up to the King of Narva, I suddenly feel suffocated. Bastian looks down at me from where he sits atop his throne, a thick golden crown resting just above his brow. Queen Evelyn sits beside him, lovely as ever, with a small smile upon her face. Looking at Bastian now, I can see the clear resemblance he shares with his sons, with tanned skin and hair dark as coal. Though he is not the strong, young king that I remember him as. With age sitting on his shoulders, he looks weary, and almost weak. My hatred for him, however, has not weakened.

My fists clench at my sides, trying my hardest to conceal the heat that rises within them. The boys walking on either side of me show no emotion, their faces revealing nothing. It's something they've always done when in their father's presence, most likely an instinct to them by now. I try to mimic their stoic expressions, not wanting to lay myself bare in this room. After what seems like an eternity of walking, we reach the steps that lead up to the King and Queen.

"Adira Farrington, what a pleasure it is to see you again." Bastian bellows, his voice booming throughout the large room.

I don't respond to this, he doesn't deserve a greeting from me. I take steady breaths, masking my rage with a calm exterior, as if I am not bothered at all. He clears his throat before speaking again.

"Word has come to me that you obtain supernatural abilities, is this true?" He asks.

He already knows this is true, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't. He's simply trailing around the questions he really wants to ask me.

Still not giving him the satisfaction of me speaking, I nod slightly.

"I can sense your anger with me, but I can tell you that I am not out for your head. I simply want to make an offer to you. Think of it as my apology." He says, his voice not faltering.

At this, I scoff. "Is that what you think I want from you? An apology and some pity? Forgive me your majesty but you are terribly mistaken if you think that an offer to me is going to bring me to my knees for you." I spit, not hiding the anger in my voice.

I can feel the eyes of the men standing next to me boring into my skull. I don't care if I overstepped, he deserves every bit of my anger towards him.

"Your feelings towards me are justified, I understand why you are upset. Yet, very few in Narva possess these supernatural abilities. It is rare when we see this happen, so you can understand why we want to take precautions in this situation. I can offer you hospitality here in the castle and we can train you to control your abilities and use them correctly. You will be treated like royalty and respected as such. In return, I only ask you to cooperate with us." Bastain says.

I think about his offer. He must have a motive behind this, there is no way that he is offering this out of the kindness in his heart. I'm positive he doesn't have any.

"What's the catch?" I ask simply. If I am to stay in this horrid place, I want to know every intention he has.

"If you are able to prove yourself to be useful to us, I would like to use you as a weapon to my dispense. I will send you on missions with our men, or even use that pretty face of yours to get information on individuals we have reason to suspect." He explains to me.

There it is. He wants to use me to his advantage, as I suspected. If I accept this offer, get him to trust me, that's when I can ruin him right under his nose. I just have to get stronger, learn to use my power, and he can provide that for me. Not only will I kill him, but he is going to help me do it. However, I have to be smart about this, I cannot be too eager to jump on his offer, not accept it right away. I have to be hesitant to join him.