Flashback ( PDFDrive )

“Light is not the answer,” Lady Zillah interrupted. “It rarely is.”
Elwin huffed a laugh. “Getting a little tired of your slams against
my ability.”
“I’m sure you are. Now you know how I feel every day of my life.”
Elwin had the wisdom not to argue.
Magnate Leto cleared his throat. “What about a trick of shadows,
then? Darkness can be soothing and restful—and you said these
echoes reflect emotion. So perhaps a new wave of shadows could calm
the anger somehow.”
“I suppose it’s possible,” Lady Zillah admitted. “But that would be
up to my prodigy to try. The echoes do not respond to me.”
All eyes turned to Tam.
“I have no idea how to do anything you guys are talking about,” he
warned.
“That’s where instincts come in,” Lady Zillah reminded him.
Tam glanced at Sophie. “Do you seriously want me to try this?”
She shrugged her good shoulder. “I don’t know. It sounds weird and
convoluted—which is how most of the stuff I’ve done tends to sound
too, and it usually works.”
His eyes narrowed, studying her for a long second before he
reached up and swept his bangs off his forehead. “I don’t even know
where I’d begin.”
“How about by relaxing?” Linh suggested, guiding him over to the
empty cot next to Sophie and forcing him to sit. “You didn’t know how
to lift veils of shadowvapor until you tried it.”
“Yeah, and that caused a whole lot of screaming,” Tam argued.
“This may as well,” Lady Zillah warned. “You’re managing a
trauma. And traumas can be ugly things. But it’s no different than