The Burning Man

5

Sophie emerged from the ritual so weary she could barely stand. Using the Craft in the Far Lands was a rush, all her senses on fire, her mind experiencing things that would change her for ever. But even abilities that had been a wild dream a few days earlier could not uncover any sign of the Market of Wishful Spirit. It was as if it had never existed.

Niamh waited in the anteroom, hands clasped behind her back as she stared into a mirror with a sunburst design. She gave a troubled smile.

‘Have you had good fortune in your search?’

‘Not yet, but I’m not going to give up.’ Sophie flopped onto a sumptuous couch, feeling as if she could fall asleep in seconds. ‘Can I help you with something?’ she asked wearily.

‘Counsel.’ Niamh sat beside her. She curled her legs under her and stretched, cat-like. The movement revealed a striking vulnerability that Sophie had not seen before. ‘I cannot discuss my doubts and fears with my own people. It would be seen as a sign of weakness. If Church were here, I know he would help, but he … abandoned me.’ The final words were barely audible, but Sophie could hear the longing in them.

‘He’s got a big responsibility.’

‘I know. We all have. There is no room for the personal in our lives.’

‘But we have to have that. It’s what keeps us going through all the hard times. Everyone who knows me says I’m strong, able to cope with anything. And I am strong. But if I didn’t have Mallory, I’d be … lost. I love him so much.’

‘And he loves you?’

‘He says so. I … I believe him. Our relationship is weird. We never really tell each other our feelings. We just sort of know. Although … I don’t think he knows exactly how much I need him.’

‘Then you should tell him.’

‘It’s not that easy. I don’t want to appear weak — or desperate. And when you love somebody that much it makes you weak on some level. It makes you scared, because you have something to lose.’ Long-suppressed memories of the heartache that Mallory had healed threatened to rise. She fought to hold them back, knowing they would tear her apart again. She closed her eyes, and gradually calmed herself. Sleepiness crept up on her.

‘I understand what you say. We all fear abandonment. We need that love. For me, there are times of great loneliness … at night … during the stillness after dawn. I have grown fond of your people. I miss your companionship.’

Sophie was aware of Niamh’s closeness, the arm trailing behind her, gently touching her hair. An atmosphere of honeyed warmth enveloped her. It appeared to be exuding from Niamh, and it brought a fluttering deep in Sophie’s belly. ‘How can we help you?’ she asked lazily.

‘Advise me in my negotiations with the other courts, and in my preparation for the coming battle.’

‘Of course we’ll do what we can.’

‘Fragile Creatures … so beautiful,’ Niamh said gently.

Sophie smiled. ‘Oh, that’s good, coming from you.’

‘The Golden Ones do not see the surface. We look deep inside. And that is where the beauty lies in all you Fragile Creatures.’

Sophie felt Niamh’s fingers gently play with her hair. She almost jumped when the fingertips brushed her scalp.

‘Church opened my eyes to the beauty of your people,’ Niamh continued. ‘Each of you shines like a star. So far beyond us … rising so fast.’

Sophie lost herself in Niamh’s ethereal eyes.

‘It takes my breath away,’ Niamh whispered. ‘All of you. You.’

Niamh’s fingers exerted a slight pressure on the back of Sophie’s head, easing her forward. Niamh’s eyes pulled her in with the depth of her yearning.

‘I am so lonely,’ Niamh whispered.

Sophie felt the bloom of Niamh’s breath on her cheek, then on her lips. The shimmer of golden light blinded her. A touch on her lips, an electric jolt, pressing harder. Heat rose inside her. Slowly her mouth responded, warm and soft.