Free Rhuul's Flame by Nulli Para Ora Page A

right there!” She took a deep breath and walked toward the door, pausing at the threshold before she stepped into the hall. “You’re not a taint.”
    She closed the door behind her. She attempted to imagine what life must have been like for him, living in a world of scorn. Is that why he kills without thought?
    “There you are. Hurry up and take a bath. The elders have sent for you.” Her mother pulled her by her arm out of the back of the main house, and to her own home.
    “I’m going!”
    When they got to her front door, Renna paused and held her tight. “Are you all right? Did they … What did they do to you?”
    “I’m okay, Mother. My parents raised me to be strong, so I was.” She didn’t want her mother to worry, and even though part of her wanted to recount the experience, in her heart, she wanted to push it down as deep as she could.
    She felt the hopelessness creep in, and she pulled out of her mother’s embrace. She opened her front door and walked straight into the bathroom. Shedding her filthy clothes did wonders to lighten her mood, and she tossed them in a corner while her mother filled the tub.
    “So, your father tells me Rhuul is your kan’na. What do you know about him?”
    She heated the water with flames from her hands before she stepped inside. A long sigh escaped her lips as she sank down until the water touched her chin. The temperature was perfect, chasing away the remnants of her aches and pains. “He’s got a temper, a one-track mind, isn’t good with expressing his thoughts, and he’s a murderer.”
    “A murderer? Is the magister after him?” Renna placed her hand over her heart and stared with wide eyes.
    “Not that I know of. You should have seen how many bodies I passed on the way out of the Corri compound. A calciphex came for me on the way here. He tried to kill her!”
    She heard her mother’s gasp before an unexpected sound filled the air. “Hmm.”
    “What? What’s there to think about? He’s a killer.” She looked at Renna, watching as she shook her head.
    “I understand your reaction, but he didn’t kill indiscriminately. He eliminated any threats to you.”
    “But he … Oh.” As much as it pained her to think about the loss of life, her mother was right. “That doesn’t change the fact that he’s a jerk.”
    “He makes you angry.” Renna’s smile was warm, even though her eyes were wary.
    “Yes.” She cast her gaze to her fingers and lifted them from the water. “I threatened to set his wings on fire.” She spoke in a whisper before she covered her face with both hands.
    “It’s all right, Avalea. You didn’t act on it.” Her mother’s voice was soothing as she rubbed her upper back in circles.
    “I was going to do it. He’s so … He has no regard for life at all. Why is he my kan’na ? Our life mates are supposed to balance us, not turn us into—”
    “Into what?” He mother pulled her hand back. Her features hardened while she folded her arms in front of her chest.
    “Mother…”
    “You’re part elemental. There’s no escaping that. You spend so much energy trying to fight part of your nature. That’s why it’s so hard for you.”
    “I know what I am, but you know what happens when I lose control. Everyone knows what happens.” She wanted to sink under the water and wish the memory away, but there was no escaping it.
    “It was an accident, Avalea.”
    “People are dead, Mother. They’re dead because I couldn’t stop myself.” A lone tear slipped down her cheek. She fought the urge to break down, not wanting her emotions to overwhelm her. “No Omala has ever killed another.”
    “You can’t push down your anger forever. You’ll have to face it and learn to deal with it.” Renna stood up and walked toward the door.
    “So you think that’s why my kan’na is here? To push me into madness?”
    “I don’t know, but you’re going to have to come to terms with this part of yourself and that accident. You can do