Free Savor by Alyssa Rose Ivy Page A

want.”
    “This is way too introspective for tonight. It’s been an insane day already.”
    “Gotcha.” The night was silent except for the rustle of leaves and some sort of bird chirping. I found comfort in having birds near. It was a reminder of where I came from.
    “You think you’ll get some sleep tonight?” Her eyebrows drew together in worry.
    “Yeah, I don’t need much. I’m looking forward to having a little down time to myself though.” I needed to think things through, and that was hard to do when I was with Vera and her parents all the time.
    “Is that your way of telling me you need space?”
    I laughed. “No. And honestly, I wouldn’t mind if you were with me as long as you stopped asking questions.”
    “I’ll hold you to that when I sneak into your room later.”
    “You just want an excuse to break the rules.”
    “I don’t know if it is actually the rules.”
    “Still, you want to buck the system.”
    “And is there something wrong with that?”
    “Not at all. We’re far too alike.” I still hadn’t decided how I felt about that.
    “That might not be a bad thing.” She read my mind, once again proving my point.
    “It won’t be if we don’t set each other off. I’m trying to rein it in for your sake.”
    “I’ll try too.” She smiled.
    We reached the empty courtyard and started up the steep stone steps that were dimly lit by torches lining both sides.
    “Ready for this?” Vera hesitated with her fisted hand a few inches from the door to Gareth’s house.
    “Go for it.”
    She knocked, and the door was pulled open by another guard. “Miss Astrella.” He bowed slightly.
    “Uh, it’s Vera.” She skirted past him, and I started to follow.
    The guard held out an arm to stop me. “I don’t believe you are allowed inside.”
    “Gareth insisted on it.” I wasn’t letting Vera go inside without me. My protective side had kicked in whether I wanted it to or not.
    “I’ll have to check.”
    Vera rolled her eyes. “He’s coming in.”
    The startled guard watched as Vera tugged on my hand and pulled me inside.
    I shrugged. “You heard her.”
    The main sitting area was empty. “Think they went to bed?”
    She shook her head. “I doubt it. Mom always waited up for me.”
    I smiled. “Sounds like a good mom.” I walked all the way into the room.
    She ran her hand over the top of one of the couches while we stood. “She was. She just annoyed me a lot.”
    “Sounds like most parents.”
    Light laughter had us both turning around to find Taliana and Gareth walking into the room. My senses must have been dulled, because I hadn’t anticipated their arrival.
    “How was the glade?” Gareth asked.
    “Interesting.” Vera tried to bite back a smile.
    Gareth turned to Vera. “I heard you got quite a shot in on Eon.”
    “Word travels fast here.”
    “Well, when my daughter gets herself in a fight, the guards think it’s important to tell me.”
    “There are more young people than I expected.” I shared my observation.
    “Did you think we were small in numbers?”
    “No, but not this large.”
    “Our clan is one of the largest.”
    “Your numbers are more equal than most.”
    Gareth smiled. “Yes, which is why it’s easy for us to mate within our own.”
    “What can you tell me about your healing arts?” Gemma had piqued my curiosity. If I was going to help Gareth I needed to make sure no one here was involved in magic.
    “Taliana would be better at explaining it. She was born with the gift.”
    “The gift?” Vera asked.
    “I assume you have it too.” Taliana took a seat on one of the couches and gestured for Vera to join her. “You haven’t been instructed on how to use it yet.”
    “And Gemma has the gift too?” Finding information was all about asking the right questions. At least usually. Other times it involved brute force, but that wasn’t what I was going with this time.
    “She’s slated to be our next Healia, the head of our