Chapter 37
thirty-seven
. . .
ryker
Gods, it took everything in me to pull myself out of Raea’s grasp this morning.
I had fallen asleep beside her and woke before Aolyn or Raea and snuck out.
Last night, she scared the shit out of me.
Aolyn showed up at my door, looking terrified and begging me to help.
I found Raea thrashing in her bed, but I couldn’t get her to wake up.
She was screaming, crying, and fighting.
The energy surrounding her body had burned hot like the day she was on Sgya.
It took several minutes before I was able to wake her, and then, just like before, she crashed into my arms. I don’t know what to do about it, but we need to get her powers under control before she hurts someone or damages something.
Hell, it’s time we all talk. She’d been thrashing, screaming words I couldn’t decipher, but the air around her room had thrummed, the crystals in the sconces vibrating with latent power.
It wasn’t just a nightmare—it was a manifestation.
I sit down beside Trysten in the dining hall at breakfast. He’s tearing pieces of his honey roll off and tossing them into his mouth while he concentrates on something in the distance.
“Trysten.” He doesn’t look at me. He just continues the same mindless routine. “Trysten.” I shake him this time, and he snaps out of it. His eyes move to mine.
“What?” he answers.
“What’s up with you? Wanna talk about it?” I stab a piece of meat and toss it in my mouth.
“What’s up with you two?” he asks, taking a long pull of his coffee. “You’re not being careful.” He looks around the table at the other leaders, all of whom are chatting.
I take a sip of coffee before saying, “Not here. But,” I pause and look around, “after Sgya, everything’s different.”
He nods, then his face falls. “I’m sorry I couldn’t protect her.” He sighs. “I keep hearing her screaming, and each night, I can’t get to her.”
His hand unconsciously rubs where the bandage was on his head, his eyes distant as if reliving the memory.
“The voices were telling her that she would watch her kingdom burn, and then every other kingdom after it. Then there were other voices.” He looks around.
“Ryker, I have a bad feeling something big is coming.”
I take another sip of my coffee despite the urgency I feel thrumming through me. He’s right. I can feel the shift in the air. I just don’t understand why every daily report about the veil shows no change. Nothing makes sense.
“C’mon, we have to get to the briefing.” I nod and take a few more bites of food before discarding the tray with the rest of the crowd.
Before lunch, Raea messages a group of us, asking us to meet her in the first-floor study room. Trysten and I get there last, finding the room full. Kellan sits near her, Tate and Ciara arguing about something, and Aolyn and Kamden are even here.
“Hi,” she says with a blush, though a faint shadow still lingers beneath her eyes. Her shoulders are squared, but I feel the subtle tremble as I hug her. “I think it’s time we all talk.”
“Thank the gods,” Trysten says, dragging a seat back before dropping into it. I pull her to the front, keeping an arm around her because I can’t not touch her.
“You okay?” I ask quietly.
She nods, stepping back out of my arms.
“Okay, well, I called all of you here because you’re my closest friends, and well, a lot has happened, and I don’t think I can do this alone anymore,” she says.
Raea looks up at me, a silent apology written on her features. My hand slips to her lower back unconsciously, but she doesn’t pull away. I don’t miss the look of death on Kellan’s features or the questioning gazes of her friends.
“Mind if I start?” I ask. She shakes her head.
“There’s a lot that has happened, but the main point is the veil is going to fall.
It’s not a matter of how or why, but when.
Second, Raea and I have…abilities,” I pause, glancing at her.
She’s chewing the hell out of her bottom lip.
“And I think it’s because there’s a prophecy about us being fated to Bond that has a lot to do with the veil.
It’s the only thing that makes sense, as we haven’t Bonded yet. ”
Kellan mutters something unintelligible, his brows knitted in confusion that mirrors his rage. He knows of the Bond, and us being fated, but this is clearly something else.
“Ryker and I went to Ista,” Raea cuts in. She tells them about the books, her starlight heat sans the light, and the voices on Sgya, but when she mentions Aolyn claiming her life might be in danger, I nearly come undone.
“I spoke with my father,” Aolyn says, looking ashamed, like she’s torn between her father and Raea.
“I told him I had a bad feeling about the veil, just trying to gauge his response.” She shakes her head.
“His response was that I was safe for now, but not to worry. All would make sense soon.” She looks at Raea.
“Please, go home or call Kuron.” Tears fill Aolyn’s eyes.
Ciara sits up. “Rae, you have to tell your parents.”
Raea looks up at me, questioning what I think. Pleading for help.
“We call our guards, keep them stationed in the halls and the yard. You don’t go anywhere unaccompanied by anyone not in this room.
In the meantime, we need to up your training.
Trysten, what’s your assessment of her progress?
” I look to my best friend, who looks more lost than I’ve ever seen, but something settles over him.
“She’s doing great. I’d like to test her skills, though. Maybe you and I can tag team a surprise attack?”
“Absolutely not,” Kellan barks. “Are you out of your damn minds? She’s not doing that.”
I chuckle, feeling the urge to put Kellan in his place. Raea isn’t his, and as far as I’m concerned, she makes her own damn decisions.
Kamden surprises the hell out of me, though, when he speaks up. Honestly, I don’t even know why he’s here. “You’d rather she get attacked again by strangers?” I watch the blood drain from Raea’s face, and memories of seeing their bloodied bodies still aren’t enough to quell the rage inside.
“What?” Everyone seems to glance at her as she whispers, “How did you find out?”
Kamden admits he was on the roof that day and only reached her when Cole arrived. He thought it was best to stay out of it. Raea shudders. I wrap my arm around her, tucking her into my side.
“Since we’re on the topic of secrets,” I say, “My father is alive, I think, and living on Evello. Why? Not a clue, but he’s not missing.” Raea wraps her arms around my waist, resting her head on my chest.
“So where do we go from here?” she asks softly, her heart rate slowing to match mine. I don’t even know if she knows it.
“Let’s start at the beginning,” Tate says, letting the front feet of his chair drop back to the floor.