Witch's Pyre (Worldwalker 3)

. . . I sneak up behind Rowan. The room is darkened. His shoulders are set with concentration, and the magelight coming from his willstone is a deep red. He’s casting a complicated spell that has all of him ensorcelled. I hate that something other than me has so much of his breathtaking focus. I admit it. I’m jealous of anything that takes his eyes off me, and I’m going to punish him for it.

I still the air around me. I place my feet delicately. I quiet my breathing, ready to pounce—

“I know you’re there, Lillian,” he drawls without even turning around from his workbench.

“How do you do that?” I huff. I’ve never once been able to surprise him.

“You’re louder than a herd of buffalo,” he teases, spinning around on his stool to face me. I launch myself at him anyway. He catches me, already protesting as I pepper his face with kisses.

“Come on, Lillian,” he groans. “I have so much work to do.”

“It’s so late, though. Come to bed,” I reply, pouting as he pulls away

I don’t have time to work on this during the day,” he says, hassled. “We’ve been so focused on keeping the other Covens in line. I’ve had to officiate three duels in the past two days.”

“Exeter and Richmond are at it again,” I say, sighing. “It’s lucky for us they’re content with singular duels instead of demanding to send their mechanics against each other in full skirmishes.”

“I don’t think that’s far off,” he says, a troubled frown creasing his brow. He rolls his eyes. “Witches. Always looking for an excuse to fuel your mechanics.”

“We do like to fight,” I admit with a shrug. The beakers in front of him catch my eye. “What are you working on, anyway?”

“Well, I don’t know yet,” he says, smiling sheepishly. “I’ve isolated an interesting compound from a squid—”

“A squid?” I interrupt scathingly. “You’re throwing me over for a squid?”

He chuckles, shaking his head. “I can’t win with you.”

“Of course you can,” I say, pulling on one of his hands and tugging him along with me toward our bedroom. My smile is a promise. “I’ll let you win right now.”

His laugh is a purr in his throat. He stops short and pulls me back to him, wrapping me up against his chest. “You always get your way,” he whispers as he lowers his mouth to mine. . . .

Lily snapped back to the here and now, a flush staining her cheeks. Enough, Lillian. Why show me that?

To remind you how much you miss him. You should forgive him.

Lily blocked her other self out.

Rowan. He had been younger in Lillian’s memory. There was so much they had shared that Lily didn’t know about. They’d essentially run a country together. Lily felt herself choking on the wild, sick feeling that thought gave her. She didn’t know if it was jealousy or longing or the shock of feeling physically close to Rowan again, but it threw her and left her feeling bare and off balance. She looked up to see Toshi watching her, the barest hint of a smile on his lips. Lily looked away uncomfortably and trained her eyes on the scenery scrawling past. They rode the trolley for over twenty minutes, passing through different neighborhoods. The style of the buildings changed from Italian villa to downtown loft to Japanese wooden temples, complete with rock gardens and sliding screens rather than walls. There was even a Chinatown, teeming with people. All of the neighborhoods were orderly, perfectly maintained, and immaculate. Flowers were everywhere, spilling from windows and rooftops and lining the streets. There were many parks, and Lily noticed that in each of the parks were four towers, one in the vicinity of each corner. The towers were taller than any building, but still shorter than the greentowers in the east, and they weren’t covered in vegetation. They were thin structures, barely noticeable, with a flat surface on top.

“What are those?” Lily asked Toshi, pointing to one of the spindly towers.

“Oh, those are for the Hive,” he said, unconcerned. “The Sisters rarely come down to street level.” He turned toward the ocean. “Just a few more blocks.”

The light was lying long across the city by the time they arrived at the docks. Ships of all shapes and sizes crowded into port, some of them so gigantic that they rose up from the water like windowless skyscrapers, hemming in the horizon. Cranes unloading shipping containers, and warehouses to store goods stretched past Lily’s field of view. From every high vantage point a cluster of Sisters hovered, barely visible, their whips ready at their sides.

Caleb and Tristan took in the enormous scope of the port with a mixture of awe and anger.

“So, is every other country in the world in on this?” Tristan asked, his bitterness strangling him.

“Most of our trade is with China, Russia, and Japan, but yes,” Toshi answered. He was sensitive to their charged emotions, but not pitying. “The whole world knows about Bower City, and they know about the thirteen ‘untouchable’ cities in the east. They also know about Outlanders, and how you live out in the wilds with the Woven. You’re legendary, actually. There’s a lot of respect for your people around the world.”

“But no help,” Caleb said. His mouth twisted into a sneer. “Not one country has ever thought to try to lend us a hand? My people are dying out there.”

Toshi didn’t try to make excuses. “Everyone knows,” he repeated gently.

Caleb made a sound between a laugh and a sob and turned away. Breakfast started to go after him, but Una’s hand shot out to stop him.

“Let him be,” she said aloud. Lily could tell by the jumble of emotions that played across their faces that Una and Breakfast were sharing mindspeak, but they didn’t include her.