Chapter 19

E mber stomped along the path back toward the waterfall, too cross to bother calling Lily to escort her back. Part of her wanted to stay and watch Cole regardless of the others, but there was another part of her that just wanted to be on her own, away from barbed comments and veiled looks. She should just spend the rest of her time in her room, she thought resentfully. A few days confined with everything at her beck and call wouldn't be so bad, would it? But then she thought of Cole and how he had told her he needed her, and her heart melted. She couldn't just leave him when he was about to go into the tournament. He needed her there, watching and supporting from the sidelines.

As she approached the bend in the path by the waterfall, mists rose to greet her, cool and calming against her skin. And when she turned the corner and beheld the vista of water plunging down the falls into the valley below, the cool blue pools churning with white froth, and the gentle rise and fall of the surrounding hills, she could hardly believe that it was all real. It looked too perfect, like a movie set. Apart from one thing, way off in the distance, a stain of brown amongst the green rolling hills. She squinted, trying to make it out. It looked like a broken city skyline, just the jagged tops showing above the trees, but it was so far away, she couldn't be sure. Perhaps it was just scrub-free hills, but she wasn't sure about that either.

There came the sound of light footsteps and she turned, letting out a sigh of irritation when she saw Lissa was the source, golden hair gleaming in the sun, her pink skirts billowing around her like candy floss.

"What?" she said disagreeably, as Lissa drew to a halt in front of her.

"Don't be like that," Lissa said tartly. "It wasn't my idea to be here. His Highness told me to escort you back to the Palace. Believe me, I've got better things to do."

"Perhaps you should go and do them then," said Ember, fully aware that she sounded like a petulant child, but unable to stop herself.

Lissa rolled her eyes. "And disobey the prince? Not likely."

Ember took another look at the brown stain on the horizon and pointed. "What's that way over there?"

"What's left of the Kingdom of Shields," Lissa said, shortly.

Ember's eyes widened. When she'd heard that the kingdom had been destroyed, she'd had a vague idea that perhaps their castle had fallen, and everyone had moved on. She hadn't realised it had been so final and destructive.

Lissa pointed over to the left, toward some jagged peaks on the horizon. "The Kingdom of Stones. That's the only kingdom you can see from here. You'll meet the rulers, Sten and Ruby, soon."

For once, Lissa was speaking to her as though she was an equal, and Ember appreciated it, although she was fairly sure it was only because Lissa didn't want to antagonise the princes. But her appreciation was short-lived as Lissa continued, "Be careful of them. Sten likes to collect pretty things."

Ember refused to rise to Lissa's mocking tone. "I don't think Cole will let him." There was more than a hint of smug possessiveness in her tone, and as predicted, Lissa's hackles rose.

"You can't possibly think Cole is serious about you. Your life is just an insignificant blip compared to ours. You are to us what a mosquito is to you. You will age, wither, and die, and Cole and I will still be young. For you, it might as well be that we live forever."

"Well," said Ember, her voice trembling. "That might be true, but Cole wants me here. And I want to support him. And perhaps, when the tournament is done, he might …"

Lissa let out a peal of laughter. "Keep you on? I doubt it. And if you were thinking of anything other than the sticky marshmallow between your legs, you'd leave him alone to focus on the tournament. Your world is tied to ours, and both our fates are in the games."

"How do you mean?"

"Haven't you noticed how your world is heating as it comes close to ours? The polar ice is melting, ocean temperatures are killing all the darling water creatures, uncontrollable fires are swallowing up swathes of forest; your world is nearing the point of no return. And it's all because the kingdom hasn't yet crowned the Sword. When Cole wins the tournament and becomes ruler, the veil between our worlds will grow thicker, temperatures will fall, and Earth may yet have a chance to redeem herself. But not if you continue getting in his way. He must win. For your sake as well as ours." It was clear Lissa was telling the truth. Sincerity oozed from every word she spoke. She came closer to Ember and finished with a short and vicious, "So stay away."

Ember looked out over Lissa's shoulder at the beautiful, alien vista in front of her, spread like a rumpled coverlet in shades of emerald green. The scented breeze swirled her skirts pleasantly around her ankles and her skin was deliciously moist and cool from the drifts of spray rising from the waterfall. She thought of Cole, and she knew she had never felt more beautiful, nor more desired in her life. What did the real world hold for her, anyway? Endless struggle for meagre wages to pay for poky housing, a run-down car, and chain store clothes made from sweatshop labour and pollutants. Even after art school, she wouldn't be able to live the life she deserved, not a life like this. And there was no one who was like Cole. No one.

She let her gaze rest on Lissa's beautiful face. She felt sorry for her, and she wanted the other woman to know how she felt. "I can't." There was a gentle sincerity in her voice. "I'm so sorry, but I can't."

Lissa's brows drew together in a savage scowl. Her nostrils flared, lips peeled back from her teeth and the gills in her neck opened wide to reveal the inner red of her throat. For an instant, she looked monstrous, terrifying. Without a word, she seized Ember's shoulders in a powerful grip and propelled her backward. For a moment, Ember teetered on the edge of the riverbank. Beyond, the water thundered and frothed. And then she fell.