Chapter 84
CHAPTER EIGHTY-FOUR
Ellery
“I do not know, but be grateful you do,” Indon replied.
All around us, the other gargoyles murmured their agreement, but I wasn’t so sure “grateful” was the right word I’d use for this.
Yes, I could do a lot of good with my abilities, but I was the most hunted amsirah in the land, children had been ripped from their families, and they were cutting Ryker to pieces.
No, I most certainly was not grateful for all of this.
“Do you know what happened here?” I asked.
“We felt the sorrow of the woods as they burned,” Indon said.
This revelation both fascinated and unnerved me. “You can feel the woods?”
“We have a special bond with the forest and the land. We are a part of Tempest, and it is a part of us. We are its guardians… or we were for thousands of years. The forest has been mostly quiet for years, but it has woken again.”
“Did it sleep with you?”
“The forest never sleeps, and neither does Tempest, but it was… quiet.”
“It was sad without you,” I guessed.
“I think so.”
“And where do the amsirah fit into all of this? If you’re the guardians of Tempest, then what are we? Its destroyers?”
“You could be, or you could be its saviors. The amsirah are also a part of Tempest. Many have forgotten that, but this land nourishes you, keeps you alive, and gives you everything it has, even if you often forget to give back. You are as much a part of this realm as we are, and together, we are meant to guard it from outside forces who seek to take its power. Some of your ancestors forgot that, and the land suffers now… as do the amsirah.”
“That’s so true,” I murmured.
I shivered deeper into my cloak when a gust of wind blew down the back of it, chilling my nape before slipping down my back. I’d give anything for some warmth, but I didn’t ask them to take me down; this was where the gargoyles were comfortable, and I needed more answers from them.
“What’s in your pocket, child?” Indon asked.
I rested my hand against my pocket. Beneath my palm, Ryker’s finger shifted.
“How did you know something was there?” I asked.
“I can smell it rotting.”
I shuddered at those words as nausea churned in my stomach. His sense of smell must be a lot better than mine, as I didn’t smell anything… yet.
“They cut off Ryker’s finger,” I said. “It was the one with his wedding band on it. I couldn’t bear to leave it behind.”
“It’s not him.”
A bit back the retort of “no shit.” So far, we were getting along, and no one had tried to kill me. I preferred not to rock that boat, especially while perched on top of a tree.
“I know it’s not him, but it’s the only piece of him that I still have.” I hated admitting that and knew how ridiculous it sounded, but I couldn’t help the way I felt. “They mutilated him because of me, and I know they’re still hurting him.”
“Why would they hurt him because of you?”
“Because his father wants my power for himself, much like my ancestors wanted the stone for themselves. He thinks that if he tortures Ryker, I’ll go to him.”
“Will you?”
“No… I… oh… no, I can’t. If I went to the duke, I’d be condemning the realm to the tyranny of all those running it. And in the end, it wouldn’t save Ryker; it would only destroy us both. I’d do anything to save him, but that won’t do it.”
“And the duke rules the realm?”
“Yes.”
“What happened to the kings and queens?”
“Leo was our king, but the ophidians killed him. When that happened, his brother Ivan became king. Ryker killed him.”
“Why?”
“To save me.”
I told him about everything that had come to pass recently in Tempest, from the Ghoul War to Leo’s death. I revealed the curse that had trapped us all here, except the nobles, and how Ivan had captured all the women in the realm to find the lightning bearer, and why Ryker killed him.
“After Ivan died, Ryker’s father assumed control of the realm. He’s the only duke in the land and the most ruthless of all the aristocrats; Tempest will have to be pried from his cold, dead hands before he gives up an ounce of control.”
“And if that happens, who will rule?”
“I don’t know.”
“Who do you think should rule?”
I sighed as I studied the land while pondering this. “I think the amsirah should decide that. They should all have an equal say in what happens in this land. The time for kings and queens is over. We’re fighting for our freedom; if we get it, then we should use it to decide our future together.”
“That sounds like a lofty goal.”
“It sounds like something we’re going to have to bleed to achieve, but I hope we can.”
“Nothing worth having ever comes easy, and freedom is the greatest gift of all.”
When he turned his face to the sky, my heart ached for all of them. I pried my fingers off the branch, and though I hated the way it trembled beneath me, I still stretched my hand toward him and grasped his arm.
He was as hard as stone beneath my palm but surprisingly warm. I’d expected him to be cool like a stone, but his temperature was hotter than mine.
“It is the greatest gift,” I said as I squeezed his arm. It didn’t move like normal flesh beneath my hand, but I knew he could feel it as he looked at my hand and then at me. “And you will keep it.”
“I hope so, child.”