All Chapters of Shadowbound Flame: Chapter 21 - Chapter 28

Sierra’s POVThe sky was red again—but not the soft, blushing kind. No, this was bruised light. Torn open. Bleeding over the horizon like a wound.Sierra stood barefoot in a field of black feathers. They moved when she tried to step, sliding under her like liquid, writhing in anticipation. Above her, the sun was a cold, watching eye, stripped of warmth.And ahead—Her mother waited.Long, pale hair whipped around her face in some phantom wind. Sharp features carved from memory now sharpened further, haunted, terrified.“You’re not ready,” her mother whispered.Sierra tried to move toward her, but the feathers tugged at her ankles, rooting her in place.“You mustn’t let it in,” her mother said. “It will wear you like a crown. Twist you until you forget who you are.”The wind shifted.The sun darkened.The feathers parted.A pit of shadow yawned beneath her—not a hole, but a presence. An abyss.And it knew her.A vo

Sierra’s POVSierra didn’t remember exactly when her legs had carried her to the training hall. All she knew was that she needed the space—the cold stone, the echoes, the way the shadows seemed less oppressive here. The walls held a different kind of silence: not empty, but expectant. Like they were waiting to see what she would do next.She pressed her palms to the smooth, cool stone, trying to steady her racing heart. Her pulse thudded in her ears, each beat echoing the memory of the purr from the summoning circle. She hadn’t meant for the shadows to answer so vividly—not like that—but a part of her had wanted them to. A part she hadn’t admitted even to herself.By the time she returned to her dorm, sleep refused to come. Her body felt restless, charged, like her blood was humming with leftover magic. She rolled onto her side, tugged the blanket tight, and squeezed her eyes shut. Don’t think about him. Don’t think about how he smelled. Don’t think about his hands. D

Sierra’s POVMalick was waiting. She felt him before she saw him — that tether between them pulling taut as she turned the corner into the east wing corridor.He didn’t greet her. Didn’t even move from where he was leaning against the stone wall, arms crossed, gaze locked on her like a hunter who had already chosen his mark.“Who is Vorath Kane?”The name hit like a thrown blade. Sharp. Cold.Sierra’s steps faltered, but she forced herself forward, keeping her face neutral. “You’ve been digging in places you shouldn’t.”“Answer me.” His tone was calm, but there was something in it — a thread of urgency he couldn’t hide.She looked him dead in the eye. “He’s my father.” Malick didn’t blink. “Ruler of dragons. Master of shadows. That’s what I found.”“Then you know enough.” Her voice was sharper than she intended. “Enough to leave it alone.”“That’s not enough for me.”“Too bad,” she said, brushing past him. “Combat class starts

Sierra’s POVThe world was fragile again. The hush after the kiss still lingered, but now it felt fractured, hollow. Every time Sierra closed her eyes, she saw the shimmer of the luminous familiar she and Malick had conjured together — a creation born of love and desperation.It had been beautiful. Too beautiful. And that terrified her.If she could summon something like that by accident, what else might answer her if she slipped again? What if next time she didn’t conjure light, but ruin?Her hands wouldn’t stop trembling. She rubbed them against her thighs as she walked, the chill night air clinging to her skin like damp silk. Her throat ached with words she couldn’t force out.Behind her, Malick trailed close. His presence was steady, his silence louder than words. She didn’t dare look back, didn’t dare meet his eyes, because she knew he could already feel it — the storm pressing against her edges. The storm she was barely containing.And still — the