Frozen Tides (Falling Kingdoms 4)

Lucia watched fear flicker in their eyes as they watched the strange fire entangle the thief.

The thief stared at Kyan with wide eyes. “No! Don’t—whatever you’re doing—don’t do this!”

“It’s already done,” Kyan replied simply.

“You—what are you? You’re a demon! An evil beast from the darklands!”

The flames engulfed his mouth and face until his entire body, head to toe, became a torch. Then, suddenly, the fire turned from deep amber to brilliant blue—just as Kyan’s eyes had.

The thief screamed. The shrieking sound reminded Lucia of a frightened rabbit caught in the jaws of an ice wolf.

The crowd around them scrambled, tripping over each other in their rush to get outside. The thief continued to burn, and the fire caught hold of the dry wooden chairs, wooden tables, wooden floor. Soon the entire tavern was ablaze.

“He deserved to die,” Kyan said, calmly.

Lucia nodded. “I agree.”

Still, Lucia felt shaky as she followed him through the flames—flames that didn’t burn or even touch her. She glanced over her shoulder as the screaming finally stopped and watched as the thief’s body shattered like a blue crystal statue hitting a marble floor.

Once outside, Lucia took one more look at the burning tavern.

There was no one in this world who could stop them from reaching their goal. A god and a sorceress—they were the perfect match.

Lucia glanced down at Kyan’s hand.

His wound had healed so perfectly, it was as if it had never been there in the first place.

CHAPTER 5

FELIX

AURANOS

It was fun being one of the bad guys again.

No remorse, no conscience. Free to be cruel and uncaring. Creating chaos and instilling fear wherever he went with a song in his heart.

Good times.

Felix had just spent three very enjoyable days in shiny and extravagant Hawk’s Brow, the largest city in Auranos. First, he’d beaten up a man for no particular reason and then stolen his clothes, only to find that his fine leather shoes were disappointingly tight. He’d bedded two gorgeous blondes—identical twins, in fact—and hadn’t even bothered to learn their names. And then he’d robbed a busy tavern of nearly two hundred centimos while the barkeep had his back turned.

Felix Graebas, a highly valued assassin for the Clan of the Cobra before his short leave of absence, had returned to the life he was meant for.

He tossed his Kindred crystal up into the air and caught it, enjoying the familiar weight of it in his grip.

“Where to?” he asked the air magic swirling inside the orb of moonstone, then held it to his ear. “To the City of Gold, you say? What an excellent idea. Let’s you and I pay a visit to the king.”

The last time he’d seen the king, he’d been given a very special assignment: find Jonas Agallon and infiltrate his band of rebels, learn as much as he could about their plans, kill Jonas, and then swiftly return to report his findings to the king.

Instead, Felix had decided that this would be the perfect time to redeem himself for his past wrongdoings and become a good, upstanding citizen rather than a cold-blooded killer working for the King of Blood.

What a laugh.

Hopefully, despite the unexpected delay in his travels, the king would welcome him back into the fold with open arms. He’d be back to cutting throats and burning villages by the following week.

Felix was passing through a small village nestled in a forest when he heard someone call out to him.

“Young man! Young man! Please, I need your help!”