*Book 1 in the DragonKin series*
Vada and her siblings spend their days carving out a living in the Rystwith Mountain village of Riska. Together they live as outcasts in a small two-story hut just outside the lowland village centre, cast out due to...
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Vada paced by the window of her bedroom while Diya groaned and huffed from the bed. Marin sat beside the young woman dabbing her forehead with a damp cloth and murmuring gentle instructions in her ear.
'Where is he!' Vada raged, Diya wouldn't let her leave and Vada pitied her terrified expression so much that she couldn't bring herself to go against the girl's wishes, even if she felt completely useless and out of place.
'We need calm, Chieftess,' Marin reprimanded in the softest but sharpest tone imaginable.
'Calm,' Vada repeated, but she continued to pace.
With a loud bang and muttered curses, Juni and Darla bustled into the room carrying a large tin tub between them. Inside, clean, clear water sloshed from side to side and sent clouds of sweltering steam into the air.
As the girls set the tub down Marin turned with a fierce frown and shook her head with a huff.
'Too hot Darla, far too hot, are you looking to scald the babe!' She complained. The young girl hung her head and Juni, her partner in crime, looked on at her sympathetically but dare not speak up in her defence.
'I'm sorry Marin-' Darla began.
'Sorry won't help, take it away and try again!' The old woman snapped, turning back to Diya to mop the fresh sweat from her brow.
As the young girls bent to collect their mistake Vada stepped forward and stopped them with a gentle shake of her head.
'Darla, you should be able to absorb the heat to cool the water,' Vada explained, 'I'm not a fire Kin, as you know, so I don't know how your powers feel when you use them. But, whatever you did to warm the water, you can do the same in reverse, take back what you gave out.'
Darla hesitated, glancing at her disgruntled mistress she shook her head, sure she could not accomplish such a thing under pressure.
But Vada urged her on. Caught between two powerful, intimidating women, Darla had to choose her next move wisely.
Vada raised her brow and gave another sharp nod towards the tub.
Quivering, Darla relented and leaned down, reached out towards the sides of the tub, only to shrink back once again when Marin tutted and huffed from Diya's bedside.
Vada scowled at the old woman's back, nudging Darla on.
'You can do it, Darla,' Juni whisper yelled, pumping her fists while casting furtive glances at their old matron.
Darla responded with a weak smile as she touched the scorching hot tub and frowned at the water, 'I... I don't think I can,' she stuttered, choking back a sob as her lip began to wobble.
'Yes, you can.' Vada asserted, in a low even tone that was so certain Darla felt instantly stronger having heard her leaders words.
Switching her focus from the water to the heat, Darla closed her eyes and took a long, deep breath that hissed its way into her lungs. With the air that she swallowed came the heat that she had bestowed.
