Chapter 5

Anya spent the next hour doing chores and cursing Tuoni. She didn"t want to deal with gates and magic and men that turned into mythical birds, no matter how handsome they were.

He seems to know things about Eikki and Ilya. Maybe he can help you,her conscious pricked her.

Anya dismissed the thought immediately. Yvan didn"t want her help, and she didn"t want his. It wasn"t her problem he had a murderous brother after him. What the hell had her family been doing with a firebird"s egg, and how did Yvan know Ilya? He could leave, but she needed answers first.

Anya left the barn full of determination, charged through the back door, and slammed directly into Yvan. He cursed as he half turned into the firebird, feathers and fire pushing through his skin before sucking back again in seconds and leaving him smudged with black ash.

"I"m sorry!" she said, reaching to steady him but then pulling her hand back.

He hadn"t liked it when she touched him last time, and she wasn"t about to make the same mistake twice. He was taller than she expected, the pants of Eikki"s he had found barely brushing his ankles.

"It"s okay. The bird is quiet again," Yvan replied. He pushed a plate of fresh bread at her. "Are you hungry? I baked because there was no food anywhere, and also, I wanted to apologize. I was…not polite to you before. I was in shock. I still am, and I"m sorry."

"I"m not hungry, but thanks." Anya didn"t know what to make of that. She fixed herself another coffee and sat down at the table. Yvan sat opposite her, the light in his strange eyes glowing as he watched her.

"How did you know Ilya?" she asked, unable to take the silence.

"I met him once. How do you know Tuoni, but have no magical training? And how did you have the firebird"s egg?" Yvan replied.

Anya had a few seconds of internal debate before she told him about Eikki"s death, her unexpected breakfast guest, and the "gifts" he had given her.

Yvan rubbed at his stubbled chin. "Then that settles it. I"m going to try to cross into Skazki tonight. Maybe the firebird will be strong enough to cross through without the help of a gatekeeper. The longer I stay here, the more danger you are in."

"Right, because your brother wants to murder you and me for fun?"

Yvan frowned at her tone. "Exactly. Your lack of training will get us both killed because you can"t use it to defend yourself, and I"ll probably die trying to protect you. If I"m gone, Vasilli might leave you alone so you can continue to drink the rest of your life away. Then when the gates break open, and the end of the world arrives, you won"t notice or care."

Anya pulled back as if he had slapped her. "What is your problem? You know nothing about my life."

"I know enough. The only stores in the cellar are vodka, which tells me that if you don"t die soon from alcohol poisoning, you will kill yourself, so there is no point in stocking food for the future," Yvan went on relentlessly. "What you don"t understand is that as much as you want to deny it, you have magic in your blood, and if it rises when you"re drunk, you could hurt yourself and anybody around you. Right now, that includes me."

Anya"s hand clenched around her mug, the ash and blood taste rising in her mouth again the angrier she became. "Look, asshole, I haven"t been storing anything because I"ve been trying to decide whether to sell this place and get out of here. Something that"s appealing to me more and more. I"ve been drunk every night for months, and you know what? My "magic" hasn"t risen once, so why don"t you fuck off back to Skazki? That way, you won"t have to worry," she snapped, storming outside before she threw her coffee at him. His brother could come and gut him for all she cared.

Yvan Tsarevich wasn"t naturallya mean-spirited person, but finding out he had spent over a century trapped in a firebird"s egg had left him pissed off and confused. Having an untrained shamanitsa being the person who had accidentally woken him had made everything worse.

Yvan picked up Anya"s mug and tipped it over. The coffee that had been steaming minutes before spilled onto the plate beside him in frozen, slushy lumps. He smiled grimly.

Yvan felt guilty for upsetting her, but it proved his suspicions. Anya"s magic was waking up whether or not she wanted it, even if she had to be angry for it to be released. Yvan didn"t want to be a prick to her, but seeing her big green eyes full of confusion every time she looked at him made him panic inside.

Anya had saved him from the egg"s prison, and now he owed her a life debt. He could honor it by getting out of her life as quickly as possible, and Yvan always tried to be honorable.

The firebird shifted irritably under his skin, making him want to scratch all over. Yvan didn"t know what monstrous mistake had happened for them to be stuck sharing the same body, or how he could control it.

I could just burn my way out through your skin, prince, and be done with you, the firebird whispered in his mind.

What would that achieve? If you kill me, it could very well kill you too. We are stuck with each other.

This girl could help separate us. She has power. I can feel it radiating through her, even if she cannot.

She is too untrained and afraid. Vasilli and the Powers would destroy her in a heartbeat and steal her magic. If we try to take her with us, she could get us both killed.

Or you could stop upsetting her and make her an ally. You know this family has the power to stand up against Vasilli.

She doesn"t know how to use it, and I can"t protect her.

We owe her a life debt. We have no choice.

Yvan wasn"t sure he could even defend himself. What were the Fates thinking, putting the two of them together?

Yvan pinched the bridge of his nose. If they could get to Skazki, then he could find out if any of his friends were still living. Ilya had been dead for generations, which meant most of his friends would be dead too, except Trajan. Maybe he could help us.

A sharp prickle of magic danced through the house, and Yvan froze. He knew that clawing power was like knives against his. He rushed to the window just in time to see Anya greet a man he knew far too well. Fear seized him again, and the panicking firebird tore itself free.