The sound of wood imploding caused Claire's eyes to pop open in surprise. Before she had a chance to register what was happening, she felt a wave of heat before Alek's weight was suddenly gone and hands were grabbing at her, hauling her to her feet.

     "Are you okay? Did he hurt you? I'm going to kill him."

     It was Draz, his hands gripping her shoulders as his eyes swept her for any sign of injury.

     "I'm fine," she insisted, trying to pull free. "Where is he? Is he okay?"

     "Are you seriously asking about that right now? He was about to plunge a knife into you, Claire!"

     Spotting the unmoving form crumpled in the corner of the room, she felt her heart stop and her struggle to free herself from Draz began anew.

     "Don't you get it yet, that isn't Alek anymore."

     Without thinking, Claire reached up and slapped clean across the face. He was so startled that he released her immediately. She staggered back a step or two before turning and going to Alek who lay unmoving on the floor.

     "Alek?" she choked out as she dragged him into her lap. The acrid aroma of burnt fabric assaulted her senses causing her nose to burn and her eyes to water. "Alek, say something," she begged as she pulled him closer.

     "I'm so sorry..." the words were barely audible, a hoarse, breathy whisper that she might have missed if her face hadn't been pressed so close to his own.

     "What?" she said, drawing back to look down at him. His eyes were closed, his expression blank, and she felt like her pounding heart was going to explode. Had those words been uttered on his last breath?

     No, Claire refused to believe it.

     "Don't you dare," she gasped, tears streaming down her face, "don't you dare die."

     She felt a hand fall to rest on her shoulder. "Claire-"

     "Don't touch me," she growled, slapping Draz's hand away. The immense sorrow weighing down on her was quickly shifting to a burning anger that knew no bounds. "Get out."

     "I don't think–"

     "Get out!"

     She didn't wait to see if he complied but instead turned her full focus on Alek, rubbing at the streaks of blood on his face as her tears splashed down, decorating his pallid skin. "I promised I would save you... you were gone for so long... don't leave me alone again."

     Letting her forehead fall to rest against his own she began to sob, her bodying shaking uncontrollably as she held him tightly in her arms. With each agonizing beat her of heart she willed for all of this to be some horrible dream, begged herself to wake up, prayed for just one more chance.

     So caught up in her sorrow, Claire couldn't have told you when his skin began to feel warm again, or if the twitch of his lashes against her cheek was really the first movement he made. What she could confirm with certainty, however, was the immense rush of joy she felt when his arms suddenly wrapped around her and pulled her in so tightly it was as tho they had become one for the briefest of moments. 

     Drawing back after several moments, Claire found herself staring down into the tired, worn, but very much alive face of her beloved. The color was slowly returning to his skin and the shards of glass were all gone, leaving behind thin cuts that were already in the process of fading.

      "Am I dreaming?" she asked, her voice a hoarse whisper. "How are you... what happened?"

      "If  this is a dream, I'd like to stay in it forever," he replied, hugging her tightly again. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "It's a lot to explain... but once again I owe you my life."

     "There's plenty of time for explanations..." Claire said, simply grateful at that moment to have him back. "Just... promise me that you won't go off on your own again."

    "Claire..."

    "Promise," she demanded.

    "I promise," he replied, a tired smile pulling at the corners of his mouth.

    "I don't trust him," Valerick growled before banging his fist against the worn wooden table for emphasis. They were all gathered there, everyone sat except Alek that is. Claire had reluctantly left him sleeping in her room above while she went to confront her disgruntled companions.

     While she had expected resistance, she hadn't expected it to this degree – and certainly not from Draz and Rollan.

     "It wasn't his fault," Claire protested for what felt like the hundredth time over the course of the conversation. "He was under some sort of spell. Alek never would have done or said those things if it weren't for that."

     "I think you're blinded by your affection," Valerick insisted, staring pointedly at her. "Your judgment is skewed, you are seeing only what you want to see. I understand that you've been hurting but this is no time to let your emotions get the better of you. That man is a danger to all of us, but especially to you."

     Claire shook her head before looking towards Draz and Rollan for some sort of support. "He's your best friend, Draz... he risked everything to save your life, Rollan... are you just going to sit there in silence? Tell him he's wrong!"

     "What if he's not?" Draz said, his gaze locked on the floor. "We don't even know why he left to begin with. What if this is some sort of ruse to get– what the hell Claire!"

     Claire wasn't sure what had compelled her to throw the remainder of her drink at Draz, but it had happened so fast she'd been unable to stop herself. She slammed her empty mug down on the table and rose to her feet.

     "A ruse? Blinded by emotion?" She looked between them. "Am I so weak minded and emotionally unstable in your eyes that you all believe me unable to think rationally? You weren't there... you didn't see the pain he was in ... but I did. He was fighting back, trapped and with no will of his own."

    Everyone had grown silent, but Claire noticed they weren't looking at her, but instead past her. Before she could turn to see why, she felt a warm hand fall to rest on her shoulder.

     "I appreciate you championing for me, Claire," Alek said softly, "but they have every right to be cautious. In fact, I'll be forever grateful for it."

    "But Alek..."

     "Thank you for protecting what matters most to me in this life," he said, addressing those gathered around the table. "Thank you for continuing to protect her, even though she is too stubborn to see it that way."

     Claire scowled up at him prompting him to grin.

     "I know you all have many questions," Alek continued. "Unfortunately, like waking up from a dream, much of what has occurred over the past few months exists only in bits and pieces."

     Valerick scoffed and folded his arms. "Convenient."

     "It's good to see you alive and well after all these years," Alek replied, turning his attention towards Claire's father.

     "Unfortunately, I can't say the same about you or your ilk," he replied, his voice flat, "however, if you hurt my daughter again I can say, with utmost confidence, that 'alive' and 'well' will not be words used to describe you."

     "Daughter?" Alek looked at Claire who wasn't quite sure what to say. "It looks like I have a lot of catching up to do."

     Valerick scoffed again and rose to his feet. "I need some air," he said and without another word he left the common room.

     "I'll be right back..." Claire said before following after her father.

     Once outside, Claire found herself assaulted by a cold, brisk wind that easily penetrated the thin layers of her clothing. She shivered, crossing her arms over her chest. She didn't let it slow her down and hurried in the direction her father had gone. She could see him in the distance and had to jog to catch up to his long strides.

     "Wait up," she called out breathlessly prompting the older man to stop and look back.

     "What are you doing out here, Claire, you're going to freeze to death dressed like that," he said, shrugging out of his coat. She didn't realize just how cold she was until he draped the garment over her shoulders and she found herself encased in a bubble of warmth.

     "I wanted to talk to you," she said. "About Alek."

     "Go back to the inn," he insisted gruffly, before starting to walk off again.

      Claire didn't listen, instead she followed after him. "I understand why you're so concerned."

     "I don't think you do," he replied, burying his hands in his pockets.

     "Okay, then explain it to me, why do you hate him so much? You don't even know him."

     Valerick stopped short causing Claire to stumble slightly. He turned to face her, his expression hard. "I don't need to know him to know that he's no good for you," he replied. "Ephraim Drosselmeyer comes from a long line of treasonous villains masquerading behind the guise of loyal imperialists. They're loyalty is to money and power and whomever can give them more of it."

     "Alek isn't like his father," Claire protested. "I've met that man, he's a monster."

     "Are you so sure that Alek is no different?"

     "Yes," Claire insisted with as much conviction as she could muster.

     She could feel him watching her, studying her, as if looking for some lie that might be lurking beneath the surface of her words. She tilted her chin up in a show of defiance and to her surprise he laughed.

     "What's so funny?" she asked, trying not to feel annoyed.

     "You looked so much like your mother just then..." he said with a sigh. "Fine, I will concede to your judgment and give him a chance to prove himself."

     Claire couldn't help but smile. "Really?"

     Valerick sighed and nodded. "That doesn't mean I will like–"

     Whatever else he was going to say was cut off when Claire threw her arms around him in a tight hug. "Thank you," she said.

     She felt him hesitate just a moment before his arms wrapped around her and he returned the hug. After a moment he released her and readjusted the coat on her shoulders. "Let's get you back before you freeze to death."

     As they turned to go back, the ground beneath their feet began to rumble. In the distance a gray cloud of dust and debris could be seen against the horizon. It seemed to be growing larger and larger as whatever was causing the disturbance grew closer.

     "What is that?" Claire asked.

     "I'm not sure, but whatever it is can't be good," her father replied. "Come on, we need to get back to the others."

     With that he grabbed hold of her hand and together they ran as quickly as they could back in the direction of the inn.

     They were greeted at the door by a very anxious Alek.

     "Where are the others?" Claire asked when she noticed he was alone in the common room.

     "They went to prepare supplies," Alek said, looking past her at the dust filled horizon. "What's going on?"

     "I don't know," she replied, "but I don't like it."

     "Go upstairs and get your things," Valerick instructed, "I will meet you at the stables behind the inn. Be quick, Claire."

     Claire nodded and rushed up stairs with Alek in toe. It didn't take long to gather the few meager belongings that were scattered throughout the small room. As they were leaving, Alek paused, his gaze locked for a moment on the mirror.

    "Alek?" Claire asked, reaching out to touch his arm.

    He jumped as though startled from a dream and looked down at her.

    "Come on," she said, lacing her fingers through his and pulling him out into the hallway. By the time they reached the common room, the rumbling had risen to a thunderous roar and Claire could see shadows racing past the windows of the common room. Her first thought was Shades but they were better known for their stealth approach.

     She started towards the window to take a peek but Alek pulled her back.

    "Don't," he said, his voice low, his gaze distant.

    "What is it?"

    "We have to find the others and get out of here now," he said, ignoring her question as he moved towards the back entrance of the common area and pulled her along with him.

    "Alek, tell me what's going on."

    "She sent them," he said.

    "Sent who?"

    "The Ijirait," he said in a near whisper.

     Though Claire had no idea who or what they were, the way Alek said the name sent shivers dancing up and down her spine.

                                                                                         ** A Note **

So I've been struggling moving forward for one primary reason. Since I've released Winter Embers I have done almost two full edits of Winter Fire to make it a more cohesive, fleshed out story that I eventually plan to self publish soon via Amazon. In that process some plot points have changed or disappeared entirely, replaced by different motivations or plots that will better carry the story I want to tell across three books.

One of those was the reason Claire left Oria to begin with. Originally it was because of the infection in her leg, I had ideas of where I was going to take this but the story ultimately ended up going into another direction when I brought in certain characters to Winter Embers. This was also the original catalyst for Alek's disappearance but I've since reworked that reason and I don't want to keep writing WE with old plot points, I also don't want people to think I've simply 'forgotten' it. I didn't forget about Claire's leg, It is intentionally omitted, in the rework of WF it is successfully healed and there is an alternate reason she gets taken from Oria ... and yes, I did say taken.

Hopefully knowing this will intrigue you enough to check out the polished version once I have it ready for Amazon. This isn't the only change and there will be lots of new content as well! Anyway, enough rambling. I hope you enjoy the chapter! As always, thanks for your support and I'm sorry for missing August!

                                                                                          ** End **