20. Aniah
Aniah
I paced the cave, nervously waiting for Ryker to return. My body shook from the amount of power I’d used. Even with the ring. The Sapphire had dimmed after pushing it to its limit. I only hoped it was worth it.
I hated how reckless Ryker had become these past three years.
It wasn’t the Ryker I knew from years before.
He’s always been an extremely calm, calculated warrior.
His skill in battle was legendary. Although my job as one of the Sisters was to maintain peace and fairness, there've always been great battles that couldn’t be stopped, and when Ryker was on those fields, he was fearless, cutting through enemies with hardly any effort. Unstoppable.
But not here. Not now. Not when it comes to her. He was impulsive. Reckless. Unpredictable.
I followed him earlier this morning when he had mentioned he was going for a walk.
I knew he would seek her out. Fortunately for him, they’d left her unattended at the spring.
Before he could do anything else that was brash, I had cast a cloaking spell over the area to mimic the sound of water moving around—as if a person were in it.
Then a silencing shield. Last, the sleep incantation.
I’d scolded him the entire ride back, though it tugged at my heart the way he covered her and handled her as something delicate. Precious.
The sound of a horse startled me from my thoughts.
Ryker appeared, a dark expression on his face.
“Did something happen?” I asked, worried. Always worried or concerned. Crippling feelings to allow, at times like these.
“She had a memory. She blacked out, and when she came to… she started asking if she was a Gargoyle.”
“What? Already? That’s good news, Ryker,” I said, excitement building in my chest.
“It doesn’t change the fact I had to return her to that piece of shit,” he growled, throwing his jacket on the ground, the impact sounding like a rock had struck stone.
“To have a memory that fast is incredible—”
“And if all her memories don’t return? What then?” His angry gaze sliced into me.
“Her memories will come back,” I said firmly. “She’s a fighter.” He glanced away, jaw working. “She had to go back. You know she did.”
He nodded, brows creased and eyes distant.
“It’s safer that way. Once some of her memories return and she at least knows who we are, who she is, we can get her.
It’s too risky to have her with us while things are so confusing.
If she panics and runs—even with Thaddeus’s help—we can’t fight the Fae.
Not while she’s with us. Until the rest of the ink is gone, they can track her.
And you know they’ll never stop looking for her.
Not with what’s beneath her skin. If I had my magic—we wouldn’t be in this mess. ”
I covered my face with my hands. But Ryker grasped my shoulder.
“None of this is your fault. It’s a challenge, but we’ll get through it.” He dragged a hand through his hair, breath unsteady. “If it helps, I feel as if I’m adrift at sea, with no fucking land in sight. I can’t stand this—the waiting. Doing nothing.”
He walked over to the slab of stone and sat down, placing his elbows on his knees, his long hair sliding over his shoulder.
“What’s bothering you? Besides the obvious,” I asked, lightly.
He sighed, his head falling forward. When he looked back at me, darkness churned behind the brightness in his eyes. Pain. Regret.
“I never told her who I really was, Aniah. She knew my name and that I was a warrior, but that’s all.
” His brows furrowed when he faced me. “I should’ve told her the truth, back then.
I don’t think it would've made a difference. But at least she'd have known. Maybe she wouldn’t have left that night in such a panic when she—”
“Don’t go to the ‘what ifs’. It just leads to a vortex of darkness in your mind and soul. Everything happened for a reason. We can only focus on the now.” I sat next to him. “I understand this is hard.”
“It is for you too. We’ll get him back,” he said, those blue eyes cutting toward me.
I gave him a tight smile in response. I knew he meant Malachai. But I couldn’t think about him right now.
“Freesia?” he asked, quietly.
“Freesia left for the cabin to get things ready. From there, she’ll try to make contact with Thaddeus’s inside man.”
“And do we know who that is?” he bit out. "Or who the hell's been leaving tips for us?"
“Ryker, you know I don’t know. Thaddeus protects his allies with anonymity.”
We sat in silence for a moment before Ryker said, “I need a favor.”
I looked at him, my brows hitting my hairline. In the many years I’d known him, he never asked for anything.
“Of course.”
“Will you cut my hair?”
I bit the inside of my cheek, placing my hand over my mouth as I stifled a laugh. Once I composed myself, I turned toward him.
“She said something, didn’t she?”
He scowled, and I couldn’t keep it in.
I laughed, the sound echoing throughout the cave, making it feel lighter despite the shadows that crept in.
My abdomen cramped, and my cheeks ached at the foreign feeling. It had been so long since I could laugh or feel joy, but today was a good day. And Ryker was finally going to let me cut his ridiculously long hair.