The Death of a Dream [hiatus]

Chapter 15

Shimmer and Light

"How adorable," Jhilza snickered, her hazel eyes glimmering in the faint sunlight that poured into the tiny storeroom we were both stuffed into.

For the last ten minutes, I've done nothing but defend my own mother from her. My chest heaved as anger continued to lick the back of my neck and ears. She'd accused her of being a wolf in sheep's clothing; a huntress hounding the backstreets of Caledonia in search of Gifted.

"We can't keep going back and forth like this," Jhilza mumbled as she rolled her eyes.

I squeezed my hands into fists. "Then tell me the truth. Who is Camilla? And for Vagra's sake, leave my mother out of this!"

Jhilza sighed as she sat herself on the box to her left. She began curling her braid around her hand as she looked me up and down. "I'm telling you the truth, girl. Whether you believe me or not, doesn't concern me."

I took in a deep breath, trying to quell my rage. Anger would do nothing for me in a situation that required every ounce of my mind. This was a liar's game and I had to figure out who was a friend or a foe. Innes' warning flashed across the back of my mind. He was right. In my haste to feel like this city had given me a purpose, I'd forgotten the greatest gift I'd ever been given, my life.

"You had a story to tell me?" I asked, my voice low in comparison to the growling I'd done earlier.

Jhilza grinned, clearly impressed by my sudden calm. "I did and it seems as though you're ready to hear it." Her eyes drifted around the room as she patted her chin with a finger. "Where to begin—ah! How about we start with Camilla? She's quite the chameleon, this one."

I nodded, trying to agree with her choice of topic. The name still didn't sit right with me, but I had to try. "I've heard her name here and there."

Jhilza leaned back, her hands grasping the edges of the box. "Camilla is one of the Templars."

I nodded. "I know. Innes mentioned it to me. She was fabled to be one of the first Gifted. Though I'm not sure I can believe that since Vagra was the first."

A groan escaped Jhilza's lips as she raised a hand to massage her temple. "You Caledonians and your obsession with that man. Do you know anything beyond the lies he preached? I swear, I've never met one who wasn't gullible, though that older man was—"

"I don't have all day," I growled through gritted teeth.

"Well, I do." The assassin pursed her lips, annoyed by my interruption to her rambling. "As I was saying, the Templars are the original Gifted. Vagra's legend is merely the product of an era of lies and vanity."

My brows slowly lifted as my eyes widened. How could that be? How could she casually preach some rogue version of history? Vagra was the first Gifted created by the seraph dragon. He was blessed by Belveus and tasked with creating an empire to unite all of Belvegarde. Nowhere in his legend did he mention something as strange as a Templar. He was the progenitor, the heart and origin of Gifted magic. All of Caledonia knows this to be the truth.