Chapter 16
Cayden
I woke to an Adler Michelson staring me down.
Quinn’s small body was still limp in my arms, the two of us tangled on her bed.
I’d burned through every rune I knew, carving them into her skin, her thighs, her ribs, desperate to hold her here.
One toe was broken, but the rest of her hurt so much she hadn’t noticed.
I’d exhausted myself. Truth be told, my London rival could have slit my throat in the middle of the night, and I would’ve slept through it. It was an isolating thought.
“She’s healed?” Erick asked, his voice drifting across the room.
“She’s healed,” I confirmed, holding her tighter.
She didn’t stir.
I couldn’t see anything other than Erick’s eyes in the early morning light, nor did I want to. “What are your intentions here, Lawson? Will she vanish into your compound if I let you leave this room?”
Anger flushed my skin. If I weren’t still exhausted from healing her, I might have acted, but I only pulled her closer.
“My family will never get near her.” The vehemence in my voice surprised me, and I controlled myself.
Erick was not my ally, but rival was maybe too strong a word.
I’d never met an Adler Michelson; I only knew of their reputation and lack of faith because of my Prophet.
I knew a lot of things only because of my Prophet, and how many of those were true was now a daily struggle to figure out.
Nothing about the world was what I thought.
“So, you plan to start a new family with her?” Erick pressed.
“No. She’s an idiot.” I swallowed hard. “And so am I.”
Erick scoffed. “So, you don’t have intentions. You’ve got a fertile powerhouse in your arms, and you’re going to let her go?”
I narrowed my eyes. “How do you know she’s fertile?”
“What do you think I did the moment I discovered she was a woman? Sit and twiddle my thumbs, waiting for you to show up?” Erick sighed. “It took me less than a heartbeat to bounce my magic off hers and feel her vitality. A better question is, why didn’t you do it already?”
A wave of devastation hit me, choking my breath.
I couldn’t answer him. I turned my head to the skylight so Erick couldn’t see my eyes.
My infant daughter’s purple, misshapen head filled my memory.
Until that moment, I’d been so sure of myself, my life, my place, my family.
And since that moment, I’d doubted and reached beyond what I knew.
My search brought me to this castle with Quinn, Brit, and Everly.
Three women, nothing alike, living lives I didn’t know women were capable of.
I didn’t check any of their fertility because it wasn’t my business. They were my friends, and, most importantly, they were more than their ability to procreate, something I’d never considered while at my Prophet’s side.
Until my daughter, I’d been blind to everything but the world my Prophet presented.
I had to look up the word ‘cult’ after reading it, and once I did, I couldn’t stop reading.
People, not a few but thousands, dating back to long before the tremors, lied to control and create a reality where they were virtually gods.
They manipulated people for sex, money, and power.
Each story villainized the man who’d taught me everything I knew.
Every person who recounted their experience spoke with my voice.
My Prophet was my world. He controlled every aspect of my existence; and I loved him for it. Or I had.
I had.
My view of existence expanded. I didn’t know women could be like Everly and Brit. I didn’t know men could have a second chance.
My Prophet's teachings weren’t for the good of his people; they were only for himself.
My daughter’s final breath seared into my mind, and a tear escaped, slipping down my cheek.
Now that I knew, I couldn’t go back. I couldn’t forget. But I also didn’t know how to move forward. Who was I without my Prophet's guidance?
“The Prophet’s hold is weakening.” I clamped my mouth shut, not used to sharing something so personal, but needing to say it, needing to hear my voice admit how wrong I’d been.
I’d never felt a pull as strong as the one toward Quinn.
But I couldn’t act on it. Our futures would never tangle.
My family would never blight her beauty.
Erick let out a surprised hum and shut up, thankfully.
I kissed the back of Quinn’s sleeping head, drawing on her strength.
If Quinn could do this, I could do this.
Despite being alone and painfully na?ve, she still managed to be playful.
Her dull eyes were dazzled by bits of magic I’d taken for granted.
I’d never observed someone so infectiously spontaneous.
She had a zest for life that gave me hope for something better.
My tears dried.
The beginning of sunrise filled the room with shadows.
Erick cleared his throat. “There’s much to be gained by joining the Architect.”
I frowned. I’d already said too much. “Indeed.”
Erick hummed before climbing out of his bed.
Like me, he didn’t need to be here. Where my family was the most powerful in the North, or so my Prophet had taught us, his was the most powerful in the South, which was an actual fact.
If I chose to go home, I would have a wealth of information to share with my family about the Architect’s budding goals.
Maybe that’s why my Prophet agreed to let me come here.
Erick was likely in the same boat: with the support of his family, to gather information and look for weaknesses.
And there were so many holes in the Architect’s castle. His dream of inclusion was a joke, and his open-arms policy meant anyone and everyone could infiltrate his family. I could sneak an army past his poor defenses and lax rules. How he kept this castle for the last seven years was beyond me.
“A kid named Brody’s been showing up here a lot, looking for her,” Erick said on his way down the stairs. “I suggest we do something about that.”
“We?” I asked. Erick paused on a step right before his head disappeared and looked back at me. “We seem to have a similar perspective on our education. Might as well make friends.”
Erick wasn’t a mentalist who could read my mind, but his thoughts and mine apparently ran parallel. I didn’t answer. He could take my silence however he wanted.
The door to Quinn’s dorm clicked shut, and I snuggled back into her warmth, sleep overtaking me once more.
When I woke again, the sun streamed through her skylight. This time, Quinn stirred when I did. She blushed to find my arms wrapped around her, but didn’t pull away. My magic sang, and hope pushed away the remaining darkness clinging to my thoughts.
“Thanks for, well…” She trailed off, leaving a nice, quiet moment for her stomach to growl.
I didn’t want to let go of her, but I did, jumping off her bed and heading for her little kitchenette. “How did you fall far enough to get hurt like that?”
“I’m that special,” she responded.
I bit my lips together and spun, waiting to have my words from our first meeting thrown in my face, but Quinn wasn’t paying attention to me.
She ran her hands along her body as if amazed she was still in one piece.
I frowned and took a breath to call her out on her lack of faith in my healing abilities, just as she lifted her shirt.
The smooth underside of each of her breasts peeked out as she fingered her too-thin stomach.
My words caught in my throat while my brain descended to my dick.
Old me wouldn’t have hesitated. I imagined running my fingers along her sides and pulling her oversized shirt above her head to trap her arms so I could feast on her nipples.
I turned away from her and clenched my fist. After what I learned, I should probably have my dick cut off. Wrong. I was wrong. My daughter hadn’t stood a chance.
“I shouldn’t have called you special,” I said, once again looking for food or anything in the barren wasteland that was her pantry.
“It’s fine,” Quinn said. “You’re still an asshole and just as special as me in your own way.” She winked before her face fell. “And I was being stupid. I climbed where I shouldn’t and got hurt because of it.”
Climbed. Erick said she insisted she fell, but I didn’t believe it for a second.
She curled her legs to her chest and rested her chin on them. “Thank you again.”
The first time we met, my magic dazzled her. This morning, her simple thank you made my world brighter. A moment later, her insult sank in. I narrowed my eyes but inclined my head.
“You have no food.” I pushed away from her kitchenette. “Let’s go to the Happy Rooster. You lack focus. It’s keeping you from your magic.”
Her face fell. “Not the Happy Rooster.” She bit her bottom lip.
“I think it’s more than lacking focus… I blacked out instead of saving myself and ended up unconscious in my dorm.
Maybe I’m not compatible with the magic here.
All I seem to be able to do is destroy stuff. I can’t even make the cauldrons glow.”
I narrowed my eyes. “The magic here? There’s no difference between the magic here and the rest of the world. Magic is energy. It’s an endless cycle.”
Quinn wrinkled her nose. “Right. Sorry.”
I narrowed my eyes but didn’t press for an explanation. “Any idea how you got back here, to your dorm?”
She shook her head. “Maybe I can teleport, like Ezra?”
I shook my head. Teleporting was complicated; it required runes and massive amounts of power, often from multiple people. Commander Ezra could shadow walk, move from shadow to shadow. Like me, like all of us, his skills were driven by will. I needed to help Quinn find her will.
“What was the last thing on your mind before you blacked out?” I asked.
Quinn bit her bottom lip and shook her head.
I pushed off her kitchen counter. “Quinn, you need to open up. I can’t help you if you don’t talk to me.”