The Glass Queen (The Forest of Good and Evil #2) - Gena Showalter Page 0,69

more love a heart contained, the stronger it was. Right now, I had to agree. When it came to action versus emotion, the emotion behind the action mattered more.

A gift given in hate meant nothing. Give the same gift with love, and it meant everything. Leonora gave to get. Ashleigh gave to give. How very Cinder.

And fast as wind? That was how quickly this potential little cinder girl had tied me in knots. Unwilling to bend? No one fit such a description better than Ashleigh. She flittered about, making me crazed, and I did the bending for her.

A cool breeze kissed the back of my neck, scattering my thoughts. Someone approached from behind. I reached for a dagger, preparing for an attack. When the scent of lilacs wafted my way, I didn’t have to turn to know who’d just arrived.

My tone flat, I said, “Hello, Mother.”

12

There’s only one feat that matters.

Did you leave his heart in tatters?

Ashleigh

As I sat in the sea of feathers, raking the multicolored bounty into a large pile before separating the green ones into an even larger pile of their own and shoving all the rest into a bag, I twittered with excitement. I thought—hoped—I’d collected enough of the green ones to embellish a gown. I would look like I belonged at Saxon’s side, not at his beck and call.

My ears twitched as voices wafted on a cool evening breeze. I thought I heard Saxon arguing with a woman about...duty? They were so far away, I had trouble making out every individual word, but whatever the topic, he was in full-on Craven mode, furious but controlled.

I scanned the rest of the field. So many feathers, so little time. But, uh, for a reincarnate of Craven the Destroyer, Saxon sure didn’t know how to oversee a proper punishment. Picking up feathers as they blustered like snowflakes? The horror! What would he tell me to do next? Search for a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow?

Why had he danced with me? Why had he held me so tightly, as if he couldn’t bear to part with me? Why had he looked at me with longing? Why had he allowed me to comfort him after his sister’s visit? Why had I tingled and ached for closer contact...a deeper touch...a kiss? A kiss. My first. From Saxon.

Only one answer made sense. His character was as literal as mine, rather than symbolic. Saxon Skylair was my fairy-tale prince, and he had found his Cinder tonight. My certainty could not be shaken. Not anymore.

We were fated to experience a happily-ever-after.

Had I realized this yesterday, I would not have seen a way for it to happen. Tonight, he’d ordered me to remain at the palace for six days, just to protect me from his mother. He cared about my well-being.

I loved his concern. I did. But I shuddered at the thought of being housebound. Having spent years trapped in a bed, then a cluster of trees...having tasted freedom for the first time at the party, I hated the thought of being cooped up in the palace. Give me fresh air, moonlight, starlight, firepits, and wide-open spaces.

A sudden pain tore through my head, spurring a hiss. I clutched my temples, but the ache had already started to fade.

In the back of my mind, I thought I heard a woman purr happily, as if she, too, were experiencing fresh air and open spaces for the first time.

What the—a terrible heat flared in my fingertips, and I waved my hands about, trying to cool them off. But I continued to heat until...

An actual flame ignited at the ends of my nails, disintegrating the feathers I held. I sucked in a breath, staring at the charred remains, unable to make my brain work. But, but...

The embers spread over the sands. With a gasp, I contorted to snuff them out with my feet. Finally, my brain decided to work again, thoughts aligning. I’d started a fire? I’d used magic? I’d used... Leonora’s magic?

Tension shot through me, ice-cold and sharp as a blade. Trembling, I lifted my hands to examine my fingers in a brighter beam of torchlight. Was that a smear of soot? I cast my gaze to the ground where pieces of feather ash had fallen. Grains of sand had turned to liquid before hardening into smooth, cool glass.

The truth settled in my bones, changing the very fabric of my being. I had used Leonora’s magical ability. I was a reincarnate or possessed by