Emberhawk - Jamie Foley Page 0,123
Mayla and Gael—both barefoot and speckled with dirt and soot—appeared with Aegwyn on their heels.
Ryon had never not wanted to see them so badly before. He almost yelled for them to leave as Mayla cried, “You’re awake!” and took a flying leap onto the bed.
“What’re you doing here, booger?” He grabbed her awkwardly with his forearms, trying not to smear aloe gel in her slate-colored hair. He looked longingly at Kira, but her smirk had grown into a full-blown grin. She knew they were coming!
“Iggy said the big bird beat you up,” Mayla said. She pulled back and looked at his discolored chest with an enormous frown.
Ryon scoffed and tickled her, and she squealed and writhed for an escape that didn’t exist. “Did you think I’d let a big stupid bird get me?”
“No!” Mayla laughed and squirmed until Ryon relented. “But Gael did. I heard him crying in your loft.” She pointed at the boy, who still stood near the door with Aegwyn.
“I was not!”
Ryon didn’t have to see Gael’s face clearly to know he was doing his signature pout with his bottom lip pushed out and chin lifted high. The familiarity warmed his heart.
Mayla turned to Kira and grinned from ear to ear. “Mister Felix said you saved us. Thank you very much, chocolate lady!”
“Chocolate?” Kira looked confused.
She doesn’t know what chocolate is? Ryon grew a devilish smirk of his own. It made sense that she’d never had chocolate before—the milky, sap-sweetened substance probably melted before it could make it to Navarro from the Emberhawk tribal lands, whose jungles grew the strange bean. Or if an elementalist transported some into Malaano territory, it probably sold for a fortune.
And if Kira liked it half as much as Gwyneth and Aegwyn did, Ryon would have weighty leverage in the teasing game she’d just started.
Kira smiled politely at the little girl. “I’ve always wanted to try some.”
Mayla’s silver eyebrows furrowed. “But Gael said that people get dark skin from eating too much chocolate.”
Ryon bit his lip to keep from laughing out loud. That was quite possibly the most adorable thing he’d ever heard, and the look on Kira’s face said she thought so too. They called Lysander “Mister Milky” after all, and he was only half Valinorian.
“Well, I guess that’s not true if I’ve never had any.” Kira tucked a dark curl behind her ear. “Have you ever tasted chocolate?”
“Of course! Mister Uncle Ryon brings it for us sometimes.” Mayla looked at Ryon and swooned. “It’s so good. Can we have some more, please?”
“I don’t know. Did you eat all of the honey candy from the chieftess already?” Ryon tickled Mayla again, and she squealed and scrambled away.
Gael stepped forward until Ryon could see his face clearly. “The cherry stuff is better than chocolate, anyway. Do you have any more?”
Ryon squinted around the room. “Uh, I don’t know where my pack is. I’ll get you some later, okay?”
“Cherry stuff, huh?” Kira crossed her arms over her chest. “Sounds good. Where do you get it from?”
Ryon flashed an enrapturing smile. “Well, there’s this cattle ranch with a little cherry orchard on the Navakovrae border. The girl who lives there is absolutely gorgeous.”
“Nice try,” Kira said, but her smirk betrayed her.
“Why don’t you two go and ask Miss Gwyn how you can help her in the kitchen?” Aegwyn said from the door. “There’s a lot of work to be done.”
“Oh, wait.” Gael’s stern young face grew even more serious. “We came to tell you that—”
“They took Mister Chocolate!” Mayla interrupted. She bounced on the bed. “We have to help him!”
Ryon’s spirits fell. He looked at Aegwyn, wishing he could discern his sister’s expression. “Tekkyn?”
“He was arrested a few minutes ago,” she whispered, eyeing the children. “He couldn’t really have been involved, could he? But the azure masks don’t make mistakes.”
Kira’s mouth fell open. “Where did they take him?”
“They think he’s a bad guy,” Mayla said, still bouncing. “They’re bringing him to the witch lady!”
46
KIRALAU
Kira’s thoughts jumbled into a panicked maelstrom. Tekkyn was innocent. But he technically had been a part of the Imperial unit that had aided this catastrophe. Did the Katrosi already figure it out?
They were bringing him to the chieftess. And when she’d seen her brother less than an hour ago, he hadn’t been wearing his armor, but his tunic, belt, and boots were standard issue for all Malaano troops.
“Don’t worry, balemba.” Ryon grunted as he pushed himself to his feet. “Brooke will listen to me.”
Brooke. Everything Kira had ever heard about