Chapter 33
River
“Dude,” I called out, but Avery ignored me, stalking up to the temple door and kicking it open.
Fuck.
After running from the Health clinic, I thought for sure Avery was summoning me home so he could punish me for the fight with Red.
Because it was a fight. He did not get the jump on me. I just…hadn’t been ready.
I’d been fuming mad while I paced around the woods outside the compound, wasting time so it didn’t seem weird I’d gotten back so quickly from the academy.
But, I’d been wrong.
Avery wasn’t trying to kill me.
He’d spoken to Vince Shafer while I was at the academy, and evidently, he hadn’t liked whatever the old man told him.
As soon as I’d arrived, Avery barely greeted me before storming outside.
I was afraid for the Seer. Avery hadn’t even told me what Shafer had said, but it couldn’t be good if this was his mood.
“Crusader,” the Seer said, her voice shaking slightly. “What brings you–“
“Give me something,” Avery ordered. “Now.”
The Seer cringed. “It doesn’t work that way. I can’t just come up with something out of thin air–”
“That’s not what I heard,” Avery growled. “Now, tell me.”
“You won’t like what I have to say. Crusader, listen to me. When you force the affinity to cooperate, it–”
“NOW!” he bellowed.
The Seer bent forward at an unnatural angle as if an invisible force was pressing her face down onto the floor. My hands vibrated, my affinities really not liking that we couldn’t intervene.
“Ice,” she wheezed. “The ghosts of our past are not lost, only out of reach.”
“What the hell does that mean?!” Avery demanded.
The Seer coughed, and I stiffened as a drop of blood began to run from her nose.
“Dude,” I breathed. Avery threw out his arm in a signal for silence. I bit the inside of my cheek until I tasted blood.
“They are out of reach,” she repeated. “Cold and unfeeling, frozen in time. A young affinity evolves, one capable of…” She coughed again, and I turned away at the sight of blood splattering across the floor. “Capable of…reaching the veil.”
“Reaching the veil?” Avery’s breathing quickened. He dropped to his knees, taking one of her frail hands in his. “Perle,” he whispered. “Please. Please tell me. Does that mean I can still speak to her?”
The Seer didn’t respond for a moment, but Avery was suddenly very patient.
Finally, she slowly pulled her hand from his, sitting back with a blank expression.
“A young affinity evolves, one capable of reaching the veil,” he repeated. “Ice. Frozen in time. I need an ice affinate?”
My gaze jumped from the Seer to Avery, my brow furrowing.
That’s…not what she said.
God, he was always mixing up her prophecies.
“I thought you were looking for an affinate who could teleport,” I said quietly.
“None of that matters now,” Avery said, standing abruptly as he muttered to himself. “Someone young.”
I dove toward the Seer, catching her just before she fell face-first onto the hardwood. She rattled out a scary sounding cough, and I grimaced as I moved the stringy hair from her face, even though she couldn’t see anything anyway.
Avery began to pace. “Someone in the academy, probably. Of course. It all makes sense. You know any ice affinates?”
“Are you okay?” I whispered to the Seer.
Do as he says, she said. Do not fight for me.
I shook my head, then Avery grabbed my shoulder, yanking me away from her.
“You were speaking to her,” he growled, his gaze wild. “Since when? When did you get more telepathy? From me? You dare steal from me again?!”
“No, what?!” I pushed at his chest.
Get out of here, River.
I ripped open the temple door, storming down the steps.
“River!” Avery hissed, quickly following behind me.
I made my way into the compound as fast as possible without drawing too much attention. Avery had never hurt me in front of the sheep before. I just had to stay where others could see me.
River, he bellowed into my mind, making me stumble, but I kept moving. Did you steal that from me?!
Why? I snarked as I pounded up the lodge steps. I ignored the stabbing pain behind my eyes, the dripping from my nose that had to be blood. Feeling inadequate lately?
The hit was harder than I was expecting.
I would argue that my snark was worth it this time.
The tiny bit of telekinesis Avery still had was enough to strengthen his punch.
I felt like my brain had been rattled. When I regained my bearings, I was on my hands and knees, blinking at the wooden floors under me.
I spit out some blood, coughing and then holding in a groan as another blow slammed into my ribs.
I was knocked onto my side. I wheezed against the old rug, fighting the urge to dry heave while my mouth filled with saliva.
I spat more blood, some making it onto the rug, but I couldn’t find the energy to care.
My back ached as I resisted the urge to curl in on myself. That would only spurn him on.
And then, the most annoying sound I’d ever heard in my life signaled my salvation.
“River!” Gina shrieked, making my ears ring. Or maybe that was the punch to the cheek. I couldn’t think straight. My hand didn’t move to touch my face the way I wanted, either. Fuck, was I having a stroke?
Finally.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t having a stroke.
I could barely make out the screaming and shouting above me as I finally moved myself into a sitting position. I caught my reflection in one of the windows, and I cringed, lunging away.
I didn’t recognize myself.
I looked like…
I shook my head.
“No,” I said. “No, no, no.”
“River!” Gina moved closer to me, stopping short of touching me. “Oh, God. Look what you’ve done to him!”
“He did it to himself,” Avery snarled.
“I told you we should’ve killed that loon!” Gina wailed before whispering my name over and over as she knelt down next to me. Her hands shook while she fought to keep them off of me.
I looked up at the window again, cringing and whining as I moved away, closing my eyes so I didn’t have to see my reflection.
Gina gasped, and then everything grew dark. Clouds covered the sun outside, dimming the glare from the window.
“Thank you,” I whimpered, moving into her lap.
Everyone froze. Something told me this was wrong. Something else told me it was safe.
I was confused.
He’d hit me too hard.
Red had just hit me too hard.
Red. Aiden. Aiden Brandt. Skye’s Link. My Link-mate?
I spiraled further, falling into a pit of darkness.
I didn’t know which way was up.
Which way was down.
There was nothing here, but it was safe here.
I think.
I woke up at the dining table.
Shit.
I’d lost time.
My hands trembled as I reached for my fork. Gina was pressed against me, snarking at someone.
I glanced up, seeing Lucille Brandt first. She wore a purple-pink lipstick, not noticing it’d spread past her lip line while she ate and drank. She was gesturing with a grin, the grin widening when she noticed I was looking at her.
I glanced away in disgust.
How could Skye be attracted to Lucille’s son? She was evil. There was no way her son couldn’t be awful at best.
I glanced up again, focusing on Avery. His silver eyes were glued to me, watching my every move, every reaction.
I didn’t remember everything that’d happened. I wasn’t sure what day it was, or how long I’d been gone. I must’ve dissociated after-
After he hit me in the fucking head.
Right after Red had also hit me in the fucking head.
I felt a little nauseous. A dull throb was pulsing behind my eyes. A migraine. Or…had Avery hurt me?
I rubbed my eyes vigorously.
“River?” Gina murmured from beside me. “Are you alright?”
“Fine,” I rasped, then tried to clear my throat.
Avery gestured toward my glass of water, and I gulped it down greedily.
“More water,” Gina barked at someone.
The table went silent.
“Feeling better?” Avery asked after my third glass of water.
I shrugged.
Avery looked like he didn’t quite believe me, but he didn’t question me further.
It was then that I realized there was someone else at this table besides Lucille Brandt and her Links.
I froze, feeling like a small animal in the sights of a predator.
Richard Craig was also at this table, watching me carefully while prodding the inside of his cheek with his tongue.
“When did he get here?” I breathed.
Richard smiled, and the scared little boy inside me really didn’t like it. My legs trembled. I hated that my first instinct was to run. The teleportation affinity spiked in my palms.
“He’s been here,” Gina whispered back.
“He’s grown so much,” Richard said, his voice just as deep and frightening as always. “Handsome man, now.”
Gina made a barely audible sound of disgust from beside me, her glare so fierce on Richard, it should’ve started a fight.
Avery ignored the comment.
He always ignored the comments.
Richard cut into his steak, and my eyes bulged before I glanced around the table.
Richard and Avery were eating steak. How was Gina okay with this?
“Have you done his Link-testing, Avery?” Richard asked.
My heart rate spiked.
Gina scoffed, loud enough to be heard.
She hated Richard.
Every encounter between the two of them ended in a fight.
Why she was holding back now, I didn’t understand.
“Of course not,” Avery said dryly. “River is a momma’s boy. Gina would never allow that.”
Richard chuckled, though it was a little dark. “My Key’s family was the same, but I had her blood tested at her first obstetrical appointment.”
I frowned at that, and Avery raised his brows politely. “Oh? I didn’t realize that was possible.”
“Well, she shouldn’t have been pregnant so quickly,” Richard replied.
“Although I was quite taken with her, anyway. She’d have been mine even if the test said otherwise.
Doctors are easily persuaded when you’re able to see what they’re afraid of…
for this one, it was an insurance fraud scheme he didn’t want getting out. ”