Change of Darkness (The Change Series Book 3) by Jacinta Jade (best new books to read txt) 📕

Siray felt the heat of someone kneeling down by her side and saw it was Baindan, his pale face making his grey eyes stand out as he looked down at Genlie. She felt his hand clasp hers and grip it tightly, and knew he was thinking that it could have been her lying there.

And it might have been, if not …

Heat, whispered a voice within her mind. Search for that warmth.

Siray stilled at the whisper, her spine going stiff. But then her breath caught as a daring hope speared through her.

Heat.

She could still feel heat … in her bones, in her blood. And it wasn’t heat from Baindan, as she had first thought. It was the fire still moving through her body, still healing and perfecting her.

Siray turned back to the pale and limp Genlie, trembling at what she was about to try. And she focused. Her mind’s eye went to that ball of power within her, but this time she wasn’t looking for a form—she was looking towards that fire that had hidden itself deeper still, and as she dived into that centre of herself, the familiar heat washed up and over her.

Reacting quickly, she thrust her hand out over Genlie’s body, eliciting a cry of surprise from Kovi.

But Siray couldn’t see him anymore. She couldn’t see anyone. She was gazing ahead at a white wall of flame that burned fierce and bright before her.

It is the gift … came the voice again, still weak but discernible, even in that place where she could perceive nothing else. It spoke again, but each word grew more faint, as if the speaker was growing weak from the effort. A rare gift that the Mother provides to us, the special few, once or twice a generation, so that we might heal and continue on …

The voice faded away completely.

Siray’s hand, which she knew was somewhere before her, began to grow warm as she focused her mind on that wall of fire, burning white and hot deep inside her. She commanded it with her mind, willed it to do her bidding.

Her vision returned suddenly as heat flowed down her arm, and she felt her hand grow hot. Instinctively, she lowered her burning palm to Genlie’s pale body, placing it over her friend’s wound.

For an instant, nothing happened, and Siray wondered if she had failed.

But then the three males gasped as Genlie’s wound began to close, the flesh of her abdomen knitting and once more becoming unmarred, her face gaining colour, and her lungs beginning to rise and fall in a normal rhythm.

Her hand on Genlie’s stomach, Siray could feel the fire beginning to dwindle. She focused harder, struggling to maintain her command over the flow of heat long enough to heal her friend … and then, the fire went out.

She collapsed forwards towards Genlie, but was caught by Baindan, who still had a grip on her other hand.

Weakly, Siray raised her head, staring at her friend, hoping it had been enough. That she had acted quickly enough.

Nothing.

But then—

Genlie’s eyes fluttered open and she took in a deep breath, as if waking from a heavy sleep.

Kovi emitted a sob that was part joy, part shock, and flung his arms around the female who meant everything to him.

Genlie was looking about herself, her brows narrowed in confusion.

‘What happened?’ she asked hoarsely.

Kovi’s only response was to pull Genlie closer to him, hugging her to his chest.

CHAPTER TWENTY

‘I SEE MY spies were not wrong about you after all.’

The deep voice was new to Siray, and she shifted on her knees slightly so she could twist and identify the speaker, although she was partially distracted by the sudden raging hunger in her stomach.

Straight down the middle of their formation, the innermost line of soldiers had parted to face inwards, standing stiffly at attention.

And walking through this newly formed aisle of deferential soldiers, with slow, measured steps, was a tall figure wearing a hooded cape.

The height alone helped Siray to identify this person as one of the three who had been watching her from the balcony before the fight had started. A feeling of foreboding went through her despite the speaker’s neutral tone.

And as the individual drew closer, passing the last pair of soldiers in their guard of honour, they lifted a hand and pushed back the hood of the cloak that had been shadowing their features.

It was a male, with long, dark hair that brushed his shoulders. His bearing was regal, and he wore close-fitting fighting gear beneath the black cape with the attached hood that draped across his shoulders. The only markings on his gear were two large golden crosses, emblazoned on the spots where the cape was fastened to his tunic.

The male walked to a spot a short distance away from where Siray and the others remained huddled around Genlie, two soldiers parting from the closest end of the formation to follow behind, their hands on their weapons.

‘If I hadn’t already been convinced you were the one from the way you fought, then the ability you have just demonstrated certainly confirms it.’ The male eyed her closely, and his eyes seemed to say prize.

Siray eyed the male right back, her expression cold, while her mind worked furiously to fill in the missing links. The male’s age was hard to place, but it looked like he had two or three cycles on her—maybe a bit older than Baindan. His tone was amicable and polished, and he was handsome in a dark, mysterious kind of way.

Siray stood up slowly, her legs a little weak, already disliking and distrusting the male before her. ‘What do you mean, “the one”?’ She had to keep him talking, keep his attention on her. That way the others could use the delay to figure out what to do while Genlie got her wits back about her. Not that this male seemed at all interested in her friends—his eyes stayed fixed on her,