“That’s what you get when you let your temper take charge. You’re always calm and collected with Marco and the others, but never with me. You need to work on that.”
“Says the woman who nearly singed my head with a ball of flame.”
She pointed a finger at him. “You deserved that, and more. If you’d taken two seconds to ask, I could’ve told you that this is the first time I’ve used my elemental fire since I’ve met you.”
Jaxton was good at telling lies from truth, and his gut said that Kiarra was telling the truth.
His anger receded and reason began to return to his brain. He was
n’t used to asking for what he wanted, but if it was going to work with Kiarra, on any level, he needed to swallow his pride. The return of her abilities changed everything. “I can’t guarantee that I’ll never slip up, but I’ll try to ask first, act later. Now, will you tell me why you can gather fire all of a sudden?”
Kiarra crossed her arms over her chest, signaling this wasn’t going to be as easy as he’d hoped. “Not until you admit it wasn’t my fault that Millie was captured.”
Millie. He could still hear her screams of pain.
His inability to protect Millie had infuriated Jaxton, and now that he was no longer seeing red, he couldn’t remember exactly what he’d said to Kiarra. Judging by her reaction, it’d been hurtful.
But he didn’t have time to waste and find out what he’d said so that he could apologize—they needed to leave soon or they’d be captured too. “Don’t worry about Millie. If she doesn’t escape on her own, we’ll find a way to get her out.”
Kiarra threw her arms out, palms up. “What if that doesn’t happen? Until they catch me, your family and friends, everyone you hold dear, will be in danger.” Kiarra took a step closer and wagged a finger in the air. “If you truly want to protect them, you should walk away while you still can.”
He growled, strode forward, and grabbed her shoulders. “I’m not fucking leaving, so stop trying to shut me out.”
She remained silent. Jaxton knew they needed to leave the flat, but if he didn’t crush her doubts now, he never would. “What else do I need to do? Swear on my brother’s life again to make you believe I won’t feed you to the wolves?” He leaned in close. “I know you’ve been betrayed in the past, but you need to trust someone, and I’m the best you have. It’ll make it easier to trust the others later on.”
Kiarra frowned. “What others? You mean Neena and your team?”
Best to get it out in the open. “You’re a Fire Talent, Kiarra. And once word gets out, an army will start gathering to protect you.”
Kiarra blinked. “Fire Talent? Like in the legends?” Some of her mother’s stories had been about the Four Talents. While she didn’t remember much, she did recall that each Talent’s elemental magic was stronger than other first-borns and full of tricky secrets.
Jaxton nodded and she looked away. True, her powers worked differently now than before the experiments, but that didn’t automatically make her a Talent. Jaxton must know something she didn’t. She looked back up at him. “Why do you think I’m a Talent?”
“You can play with your abilities later, compare them with what you find in the legends, and find all the proof you need. For now, you’ll just have to take my word.”
She studied Jaxton’s face, knowing he waited to see what she’d do.
It had been so long since she’d trusted anyone that Kiarra barely understood the concept anymore. But as she eyed the tall Brit in front of her, she remembered how Jaxton had chosen to stay with her despite the out she’d offered. No one had ever really stood by her like that, offering support when the path ahead was difficult.
Even back when she’d been faced with Cam’s sudden appearance, she’d chosen to go to Jaxton, wanting the comfort of his presence. She’d been fighting it tooth and nail, but deep down, she’d started trusting him since that moment.
Still, the feeling was new and she didn’t quite know how to handle it, especially as everyone else she’d trusted in the past had let her down. She would trust him, but on her own terms. “I think you believe your words.” She put up a hand to stop him from interrupting. “But I want to find out more about the legends and my own abilities before I start thinking of myself as different from other first-borns. I’m sure you’ll agree that’s reasonable.”
“Fair enough.” He released her shoulders and put out a hand to shake. “If we’re going to work together, then from here on out, we share everything. Agreed?”
Kiarra hesitated before taking his hand. Something had just shifted in their relationship and it terrified her.
Jaxton tightened his grip and she yelped as he pulled her forward. He whispered into her ear, “Look forward to later, pet, because there’s another front I’m not giving up on either.”
“And what would that be?”
He moved closer, his breath hot against her ear. “The next chance I get, I plan to do much more than kiss you.”
Kiarra’s breath hitched. Her body was on fire as Jaxton led her out of the room, but not because of her magic.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Kiarra frowned at the map on the table. “So North Berwick Law is the name of a hill?”