I cleared my throat, focusing my magic, trying to find control again and walked to the seat. I stared at it for a moment, preparing myself for the close vicinity of Kiran's magic and then plopped down on the too soft couch.
I sat for a moment, facing the bedroom. I could see the outline of the bed through the sheer curtain. The silken curtain moved gently, swaying in the night air that the open entrance could not keep out. The breeze distracted me and enhanced the beauty of the thin divider. I forced my magic to shut the tent entrance violently, blocking out the breeze and any other beautiful part of the Moroccan night.
I looked up at Kiran, satisfied with my action, but then I looked back at the bedroom and realized what that must have looked like. I stood up suddenly, not sure how to explain.
“Trade places with me,” I demanded, walking to the other side of him so that I could face the dining room instead of the bedroom. I cleared my throat for a second time, and attempted to focus completely on Kiran. I tried to cover my sporadic behavior, but there was nothing left for me. This was another epic failure.
“Is everything all right?” Kiran asked, both concerned and amused.
“Yes, everything's fine. What is this about, Kiran?” I sat up straight and talked evenly, desperately searching for my composure.
“I think you should reconsider my offer,” he began, offering me a cup of hot tea that I refused. “I am not trying to tell you what to do by any means, but you said so yourself that you are a terrible leader. If you traded places with your brother, he could go back to leading the Rebellion and you could rest in the knowledge that you saved him.”
His words hung heavily in the air. I knew what Kiran really wanted, that his grand scheme was much more devious than philanthropic, but still they rung true and I searched for reasons why I shouldn't agree.
“Ok, let's talk this out,” I allowed, deciding I should have all of my facts. “If I were to say yes, if I were to go with you tonight, how would I know that Avalon would be let go, that you wouldn't just kill him immediately?”
“You have my word,” Kiran promised passionately, but then he saw the mistrust in my eyes and continued, “I brought you Lilly tonight and I saved your brother's life in India. I have good intentions, you can trust me.”
“No, I can't.” I rolled my eyes, “Besides, you had to save Avalon's life in India; he is your only leverage. And, I still haven't left with Lilly, so we'll see how this plays out.” My magic was growing increasingly more difficult to handle; it had turned into an electrical storm in my veins, like furious lightning assaulting my blood. “Anyway, let's move passed whether or not I can actually believe you would let Avalon go, what happens after that? Like to me? Are you going to sacrifice me? Take my magic? What happens next?”
“No, I'm not going to kill you!” Kiran defended himself, appalled by the idea. “If you gave yourself over to me willingly, there would be a wedding of course, but in the future. It would be necessary to marry me; that would be a concrete part of the deal, my father would demand it. However, if it seemed to be your idea, then you would have some control over when that date was. It obviously couldn't be decades in the future, but you could buy yourself at least a year, I'm sure.”
“Ok, let me see if I completely understand this. I turn myself in, you may or may not let my brother go free. Then we get married.... in, at the very most a year and then let me guess, in a few more months, probably nine to be exact, I produce a healthy, little heir to the throne and everyone lives happily ever after?” I narrowed my eyes, completely disgusted by the idea.
“Eden, I am trying to offer you an alternative to your brother's ultimate death and the imprisonment of your friends!” Kiran implored, frustrated with me.
“Marrying you is not an alternative! It's just a different form of the death penalty!” I whined, desperate for him to understand.
“I didn't say that it wasn't,” he snapped, a flash of dark blue changing the color of his eyes, “but saving your brother is what you want. That's all I'm saying. India was a dismal failure for you. You will not break into the Romanian citadel and even if you do, your magic is useless in those prisons. I am asking you to consider a different alternative for your brother.”
“You promised to keep him safe,” I accused venomously. I never believed his words before, but with the dispiriting picture he painted, I was grasping at straws.
“And I am doing my best, but my father is a desperate man and he will not be satisfied forever.”
My hands began to tremble and I wiped a small trickle of sweat that had formed on my forehead. I dropped my head into my hands, trying to find the reasons to say no to him, to believe in another way.
“Please,” Kiran whispered, leaning in closer to me, his magic suffocating and raw, “please, go with me. Choose the easy way, save your brother.”
I shook my head, the consequences of my answer breaking my heart. By choosing to defy Kiran's offer I was risking my brother's life more than I ever had and I was forced to come to terms with that. I couldn't say if I would ever be able to break into the Romanian dungeons and save Avalon, but I would spend every day trying. I would put faith in the Resistance, in Jericho and in myself and not let the sweet manipulations of the son of a tyrant persuade me.
“No, there is no way in hell I will go with you, are you kidding me?” I sat up straight, finding my courage and almost laughing at him. “We're done here, I can't even believe you.”
“That is the wrong decision, Eden. Please do not make me take you by force.” Kiran stood up, menacingly.
“Don't push me, Kiran,” I stood up too, trying to make myself equally as threatening.
“Look at you, you are clearly not well, now is not the time to say no to me,” he reasoned, his voice full of frustration.
“Give it up!” I exhaled, sending a magical wave against him, mostly by accident. He stumbled backwards, before catching himself. He glared at me for a moment, deciding I started something. I turned to leave, alternatively determining I was in no shape to fight him.
Kiran sent his magic firmly against the tent folds, blocking my way with a magical force field I didn't even know anyone was capable of producing. I spun around, ready to fight, despite the pulsating electricity that was rang in my ears from the spike in magical temperature of the room. I threw my magic at him, finally giving the built-up energy some release.
He blocked my blow with his own magic and our electricity stayed locked together for a few minutes before escaping to opposite sides and burning holes through the tent flaps. I sent another burst of magic with the other hand, picking up the tea table and smashing it against Kirans side.
It hardly phased him, sending me stumbling backwards with a blast of his magic. I was off balance, my feet were tangled in the silk floor and soft sand, and before I could recover Kiran sent another beam of magic, lifting me off the ground and pushing me backwards another few feet.
“Do you really think that by forcing me to go with you, against my will that I will somehow madly fall back in love with you?” I shouted, through dangerous bursts of magic and flying furniture.
“Of course not!” He answered, his voice thick with disgust and for a moment the fighting stopped and something changed in his eyes. It wasn't desire he fought with but hatred. “This isn't about winning you back, Love. This is the nature of the war you declared.”
I tried to return his blows, but my magic was slow and frantic, hardly cooperating and barely reacting to my commands. Kiran hit me with another firm blast of electricity that threw me in the air, crashing through the sheer curtain and landing me heavily on the bed.
I was dizzy and disoriented, frustrated with my magic and refused to believe that I had lost. Kiran walked over to me, standing next to the bed, towering above me, his wicked grin curving his lips and all I wanted to do was slap him.
I was certain I only had a few moments before I would lose consciousness to the fitful magic ruining my life and so I needed to act quickly. I refused to be taken prisoner; I refused to believe that the only way to save my brother was to become Kiran's bride and hand over my magic to a kingdom I was fighting to destroy.
Kiran stared down at me, his face satisfied with victory but his eyes hungry for mine again. The tension between us was pulsating violently and our magics had collided ferociously into each other, a consequence of the struggle between us.
I cursed under my breath and then did the only thing I knew how to do that would sufficiently distract him. I reached up to him, clutching at the collar of his shirt, and pulled him down to me on the bed.
My mouth crashed into his, my lips moving against his mouth in desperate distraction. He gave in to me immediately, sighing sweetly with our connection. His hands wrapped around my waist, holding my body to him as if he would never let another inch come between us again. The magic around us became a palpable color field of energy and the entire tent buzzed with fevered electricity.
I stayed in his arms, convincing myself this was part of the plan. His mouth had never tasted so sweet and his lips had never kissed me this way before. My heart pounded wildly against my chest, threatening to rip a hole and break free, forever binding itself to Kiran's.
His hands slipped underneath my shirt, pressing me every closer to him. His skin was hot against mine, leaving burn marks on my lower back. I had a plan and I was desperate to remember it, to escape not only his hold, but this also fearful desert and find safety at home.
Our magics intertwined in obstinate union, but I was determined to be stronger than a masochistic electrical field with a hard to break habit. This was not my life anymore. I would save my brother on my own terms and owe nothing to Kiran, and one day soon, I would feel nothing more for him.
With my hands holding his face to mine, I let the magic build inside of me, unnoticed by the frenetic aura of our passionate kiss. I pressed my palms tightly against his face and then I released the vastness of my magic against him.
The bed crashed to the ground, splintering into hundreds of pieces from the force of my magic. Kiran lay in the center of it all, unconscious and covered in debris. I struggled to climb out of the mess, resenting the smirk that still marked his sleeping face.
I ran through the tent, not even bothering with the entrance, I just forced myself through the side folds. I sprinted across the desert expanse between the now ragged tent and the plane. I could feel that my swollen lips, my hair was a wild tangled mess, and my clothing disheveled, but thankfully, I wouldn't have to explain any of that to Talbott.
“Get off my plane!” I shouted at him as soon as I was up the steps.
He and Lilly were sitting across the aisle from each other in the leather passenger’s seats, but they were leaning in and talking quietly and I couldn't help but feel like I was interrupting an intimate moment.
“Get off!” I yelled again, pointing with a straight arm towards the exit. “Kiran needs you and I need you to get out!”
I found the right words, with one last glance at Lilly, Talbott disappeared from the plane and into the dark, desert void.
“We have to go, Lilly! Like, right now!” I was still frantic, using magic to close the door behind Talbott and then I joined her in the cockpit where she was already working the equipment to start the plane.
