lantern by her bedside.
“I will wait for you,” she replied. “I’ll be ready.” And on impulse, she offered her hand; Kai Sen clasped it as if they were sealing an oath.
Kai Sen returned two days later in the early afternoon, scaring Zhen Ni half to death when he tapped softly on her lattice window. All her handmaids were in the adjacent reception hall, preparing the multiple trunks she would take with her to the Bei manor as a new bride. Zhen Ni lifted a hand, indicating that he should wait for her, and he disappeared from view like a ghost.
She sent all her handmaids away, asking them to leave her alone for the rest of the day and used the stresses of the impending wedding as an excuse. It was the perfect ruse to gain some precious privacy—almost impossible to have when she had servants tending to her every need from sunrise until bedtime.
She made herself even more sharp-tongued than usual, so that they left her alone gladly. Zhen Ni smiled at herself in the bronzed mirror, looking like the neighbor’s dog that had made off with a stolen sausage. She’d been a good daughter ever since she’d returned home, following all the rules of decorum, even agreeing to marry some wealthy man she had never laid eyes on. She could allow herself this—one last escapade to see Skybright again.
And if Kai Sen did manage to save Skybright from that horrible man called Stone, would Zhen Ni be able to continue to have a relationship with Skybright? Would she come with Zhen Ni to serve her in her new husband’s manor—despite her mother’s objections? Zhen Ni gave a sharp shake of her head to dispel such notions. How could they ever return to how things used to be?
A soft tap at the reception hall door leading into the courtyard broke Zhen Ni from her reverie.
“Enter,” she said softly.
Kai Sen slid the panel open and peered inside, before coming in and closing the door behind him. “I saw everyone clear out like a fire had been lit under their feet.”
She chortled. “I can make myself very disagreeable.”
“I believe you,” Kai Sen said, grinning. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you wearing trousers before.”
“I stole them from one of the taller handmaids. She’ll get a nice pouch of coins at the end of the week.” She tugged at the waist of her pale peach trousers nervously, then touched the dagger she had strapped to her side. The feel of its elaborately carved hilt calmed her. “You don’t look as menacing in the daylight,” she said.
Kai Sen laughed. “I didn’t think it would be wise to be dressed entirely in black while skulking around town in bright sunshine.” His hand grazed the hilt of his saber too, as if for reassurance.
“Am I to assume from your good humor that you’ve found Skybright?” she asked.
His dark eyes became serious. “Yes. Her presence had seemed faded all these months. But today I felt it like a kick in the chest.” He touched a hand to his solar plexus. “She’s in Qing Chun. But we have to hurry. Stone has the ability to travel through portals too, and I have no inkling how long Skybright will stay put.”
Zhen Ni nodded, feeling solemn. They were going to do this. Try and save Skybright. But how could Kai Sen ever best an immortal who could draw snow from thin air and call lightning to strike down on them? “Do you have a plan?”
“The plan is to bring Skybright home safe,” Kai Sen said with more confidence than she felt. “Stone has broken his agreement in closing the breach to hell. He no longer has a hold over her.”
“You hope to reason with an immortal?”
He gripped his saber’s hilt once more—a weapon that would be of no use to him were he to face Stone in a fight. “I can summon hellfire against him. It can kill any creature from the underworld.”
“You think Stone is from the underworld?” She didn’t know much about the immortal, but she knew he was powerful, cold, and inhumanly handsome. One glance at Kai
“I will wait for you,” she replied. “I’ll be ready.” And on impulse, she offered her hand; Kai Sen clasped it as if they were sealing an oath.
Kai Sen returned two days later in the early afternoon, scaring Zhen Ni half to death when he tapped softly on her lattice window. All her handmaids were in the adjacent reception hall, preparing the multiple trunks she would take with her to the Bei manor as a new bride. Zhen Ni lifted a hand, indicating that he should wait for her, and he disappeared from view like a ghost.
She sent all her handmaids away, asking them to leave her alone for the rest of the day and used the stresses of the impending wedding as an excuse. It was the perfect ruse to gain some precious privacy—almost impossible to have when she had servants tending to her every need from sunrise until bedtime.
She made herself even more sharp-tongued than usual, so that they left her alone gladly. Zhen Ni smiled at herself in the bronzed mirror, looking like the neighbor’s dog that had made off with a stolen sausage. She’d been a good daughter ever since she’d returned home, following all the rules of decorum, even agreeing to marry some wealthy man she had never laid eyes on. She could allow herself this—one last escapade to see Skybright again.
And if Kai Sen did manage to save Skybright from that horrible man called Stone, would Zhen Ni be able to continue to have a relationship with Skybright? Would she come with Zhen Ni to serve her in her new husband’s manor—despite her mother’s objections? Zhen Ni gave a sharp shake of her head to dispel such notions. How could they ever return to how things used to be?
A soft tap at the reception hall door leading into the courtyard broke Zhen Ni from her reverie.
“Enter,” she said softly.
Kai Sen slid the panel open and peered inside, before coming in and closing the door behind him. “I saw everyone clear out like a fire had been lit under their feet.”
She chortled. “I can make myself very disagreeable.”
“I believe you,” Kai Sen said, grinning. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you wearing trousers before.”
“I stole them from one of the taller handmaids. She’ll get a nice pouch of coins at the end of the week.” She tugged at the waist of her pale peach trousers nervously, then touched the dagger she had strapped to her side. The feel of its elaborately carved hilt calmed her. “You don’t look as menacing in the daylight,” she said.
Kai Sen laughed. “I didn’t think it would be wise to be dressed entirely in black while skulking around town in bright sunshine.” His hand grazed the hilt of his saber too, as if for reassurance.
“Am I to assume from your good humor that you’ve found Skybright?” she asked.
His dark eyes became serious. “Yes. Her presence had seemed faded all these months. But today I felt it like a kick in the chest.” He touched a hand to his solar plexus. “She’s in Qing Chun. But we have to hurry. Stone has the ability to travel through portals too, and I have no inkling how long Skybright will stay put.”
Zhen Ni nodded, feeling solemn. They were going to do this. Try and save Skybright. But how could Kai Sen ever best an immortal who could draw snow from thin air and call lightning to strike down on them? “Do you have a plan?”
“The plan is to bring Skybright home safe,” Kai Sen said with more confidence than she felt. “Stone has broken his agreement in closing the breach to hell. He no longer has a hold over her.”
“You hope to reason with an immortal?”
He gripped his saber’s hilt once more—a weapon that would be of no use to him were he to face Stone in a fight. “I can summon hellfire against him. It can kill any creature from the underworld.”
“You think Stone is from the underworld?” She didn’t know much about the immortal, but she knew he was powerful, cold, and inhumanly handsome. One glance at Kai
Similar Books
