Chapter 41 Ivy
Ivy
To my horror, I watched as darkness entered the mind mage’s veins, running the length of his arm up to his exposed throat before swallowing his face in creeping lines of black.
One moment, he was fine.
The next…
I caught Hawk’s eye in the reflection of the mirror. It looked like the glass in a police interrogation room, which meant there was a chance someone was on the other side watching all of this unfold. If there was, they didn’t try to help.
Marion, though, stared at Hawk in horror. “Wraith,” she sneered, backing away from him. Before she could escape, another ice spear rose from the ground, trapping her in place.
Wraith. A type of demon I’d never encountered and didn’t know anything about. I thought they were tied to death, but as I watched Hawk’s reflection…
His eyes were completely black. Similar dark veins ran from his eyes down his cheeks without going further. And his lips…
They were just as black as his eyes.
A cold chill rolled down my spine, but I was locked in place, forced to watch as Hawk drained the mage.
When the male finally fell to the ground, Hawk groaned, the black veins disappearing. But his eyes and lips remained stained, dark and ominous. “I hear everything,” he whispered, voice hoarse. “I feel everything.”
My skin prickled as I stepped towards the chair he was strapped to.
He was shirtless, sweat gleaming on his skin, which had taken on a pink, feverish tint.
Sweat dripped down his nose onto his upper lip.
There were cuffs holding his arms down, another set around his ankles.
The strap of metal that crossed his forehead made me shudder.
It looked like a torture device. Something they would use to pry information out of a prisoner.
Well, it was, I supposed. And they’d stolen enough from Hawk.
He stared at me in the reflection, the black disappearing from his eyes like bloody tears. They dripped down his cheeks, lines of red staining his skin. But I couldn’t tear my eyes from his. They were eyes filled with confusion.
A lump formed in my throat as I turned to Marion, taking in the older woman. I couldn’t stop the waves of hatred that rushed through me at the sight of her.
“What did he do?” I asked, fingers tightening around the gun. I felt Xerxes at my side, one of his giant hands touching the small of my back, but I stepped out of his grasp. “What did the mage do to Hawk?”
She stared at me with wide eyes, eyes that once used to be filled with kindness. That was gone now, replaced with anger—and fear. Good, I thought. She didn’t deserve to feel safe or comfort or anything. She should be scared.
She trapped me in a situation that could mean the destruction of everything. She ensured I’d get pregnant as a gift for my enemy. Pregnant with a baby that could be used to stop my mates from fighting for our realms.
She single-handedly took away my choice. And she helped ensure I couldn’t make any further decisions about my own life.
Marion lifted her chin defiantly, despite the slight quiver of her lips. “Our king needed to ensure certain memories were locked away,” she spat, eyeing me with a venom that seemed so unlike her. But then again, I never really knew her. “Ivor was supposed to take them.”
I had a feeling I already knew what memories she was referring to, but it still surprised me when Hawk laughed. “It was a bullshit effort,” he said, voice slurred. “He could never take it all. Not from me. Not when it was about her.”
Hawk’s eyes found mine, a bloody smile pulling at his lips. “He can’t take the only thing I love away from me. He could never break that bond.”
My breath caught in my throat, and my heart thundered harshly in my ears as I stared at him in shock. If Marion said anything in response to that, I didn’t hear it over the ringing in my ears.
Hawk’s gaze never strayed from mine. The longer he stared, the more those words sank in. The only thing I love. He had no memories of me, but he was absolutely certain about that declaration. There wasn’t a hint of doubt in his eyes. Even though he didn’t remember me, somehow, he knew that.
I swallowed hard past the lump forming in my throat. Ignoring Marion and whatever tirade she was on, I walked around the unconscious body of the mind mage and finally took Hawk in.
“How do I undo these?” I asked, looking up at Cato.
The Winter Fae moved to Hawk’s other side. Without a word, he hit something on the side of the chair, which unlocked the straps around Hawk’s ankles, wrists, and head.
I released a shaky breath and wrapped my arms around Hawk’s neck. The male grunted, but he wound his arms around my middle, all but pulling me onto his lap.
“Are you okay?” I asked quickly, squeezing my eyes shut against the burn of tears that threatened to escape.
Hawk chuckled, fingers digging into my side as he held me tighter. “I’m not sure. I don’t know your name.”
I stiffened, pulling back. “Do you recognise me?”
He cocked his head, eyes searching mine. Silently, he pulled one hand back and gently pushed my hair out of my face before cupping my cheeks. “I remember your eyes,” he said. “And I think I remember your laugh. But nothing else.”
I shivered and pulled away completely. “Is there a way we can…we can fix that?” I asked, tearing my eyes from Hawk to look between Cato and Xerxes. “His memories can’t just be…gone, can they?”
Cato stepped back, uncertainty playing in his icy eyes. “I don’t know,” he replied honestly. “I’m sorry, my Queen.”
I blinked hard against the tears that wanted to fall. Giving him a single nod, I glanced back at Hawk, but his eyes were locked on the collar around my neck.
Clearing my throat, I grabbed him by the hands. “Do you think you can stand?” I asked.
He tore his eyes from the collar and nodded. “Yes.”
I was glad he didn’t ask about it, but my heart still twisted with the reminder.
I helped Hawk stand, one of his arms going around my shoulders. He didn’t use me as a leaning pole so much as tried to hold me to him. It was strange. Maybe a little disconcerting.
The Hawk with memories probably wouldn’t act like this. He’d have stripped the mage of his weapons by now, probably stolen his shoes, and assumed some kind of leadership position.
As if hearing those thoughts, the Hawk without memories did exactly that.
I stepped away as he pushed the mage onto his back, the male on the ground making a sound as it happened.
I watched, eyes wide, as Hawk stripped him of his weapons, taking the forgotten gun as well as a large hunting knife that’d been on his belt, and stole the boots right off his feet.
Creepy, I thought. My gaze flickered to Xerxes, who stood in the centre of the room, keeping an eye on Thor still in the doorway.
“What do you want done with the healer?” Cato asked. My gaze snapped to his. “I can create an ice prison, but it’ll melt eventually. Or…”
Or she could die.
From the corner of my eye, I watched Hawk stand. He still had no shirt, but the gun was holstered, as well as the knife. The boots looked a little too small for him, but he didn’t seem bothered by them as he took a step towards Marion.
Her gaze turned on Hawk, widening. “Do not let him near me,” she said, voice shaking. “Please.”
Hawk looked over his shoulder at me, expressionless. “Let me take her power.”
My skin prickled as a shiver rolled down my spine. Even Cato backed away from Hawk, like he was equally afraid. “What do you mean?” I asked Hawk.
He blinked hard, eyes turning black. “I consume her power. It weakens her without killing her, and it means I can help you. I would be able to heal, like I can hear your thoughts.”
This time my entire body shuddered. That made a lot of sense now. He could hear my thoughts.
I should be way more creeped out than I was, but it might be helpful.
And if he could take Marion’s healing magic…
Someone like her didn’t deserve those powers.
“Do it,” I said, stepping back. Marion’s face blanched as Hawk strode towards her, but I kept my eyes on hers. “Take it all.”
“No!” she shouted, but it was too late. The darkness took her quickly, her veins shifting to black almost immediately as he drained her.
I made myself watch it all; the black discolouring her eyes, the way her lips parted as she gasped for breath, her body dropping to the ground as Hawk took without remorse.
It was only then I tore my eyes from her still body. I looked to Xerxes, who watched me with confusion.
“She’s the reason I’m carrying two babies I shouldn’t be able to have,” I explained, voice low. “And I think…I think she killed my mother.”
Xerxes dropped his head as he moved towards me. I couldn’t hold back the familiar sting of tears anymore. They ran down my cheeks, and I didn’t bother wiping them away.
But Xerxes did. He wiped his thumb beneath my eye, stealing a tear before it could fall. “I understand, my fated.”
My throat tightened with emotion, making it hard to speak, but I released a shuddering sigh of relief.
“We need to go,” Cato said, holding up a comms device. “Dante has soldiers coming our way.”
I swallowed thickly and wiped the rest of the tears away. Hawk appeared in the corner of my eye, more bloody tears streaming down his face, but there was a hardness in his stare that had me sucking in a breath.
“Stay between me and him,” Hawk said, sounding more like his old self again. “Don’t put yourself in danger.”
I nodded once. “Wouldn’t think of it.”
He pressed his lips together before looking up at Xerxes, then over at Cato. “We’ll need to keep that. It’ll give us an advantage.”
“Any chance you remember the layout of the compound?” Cato asked, striding towards us, handing me the device—which meant handing him back the gun.
Hawk nodded, shifting to stand behind me. “Yes. They didn’t take all my memories.”
“I’ll lead, Xerxes behind me, Thor taking the rear,” Cato said, starting for the door. “There isn’t a clear route to escape, and the only exits are going to be heavily fortified now. We’ve been here way too long.”
Now that we had Hawk, I wasn’t sure how we were supposed to get out of here. I hadn’t even thought that far ahead.
But Xerxes knelt, hand splaying across the ground. “The tunnels beneath the Pit have opened. If we can get down there, we can use them to leave.”
“There are no tunnels beneath the Pit,” Cato replied, shaking his head.
Xerxes rose, rolling his shoulders back. “There are many things hidden beneath the compound I am certain you do not know about.”
That had me shivering again.
From the doorway, Thor let out a growl. I glanced down at the device and noticed the screen showed the corridor where we’d gotten off the elevator. About a dozen or so soldiers were starting for our position, all of them equipped with weapons.
“We need to get out now. They’re at the elevator. Is there another one we can use? Or stairs?” I asked, looking up from the screen.
Cato nodded, but Hawk was the first to respond. “Next hallway, past the end of the isolation rooms.”
I followed Cato and Xerxes to the door. Thor moved out of the way, facing the end of the corridor where the soldiers approached, but when I stepped out, I found a wall of ice already blocking their way.
Not for the first time, I yearned for my magic. I wished I had access to my lightning, to my protective shields. I wanted to be more than a weakness to the group, especially as they surrounded me.
A hand touched mine from behind, and I felt a tickle in the back of my mind. You are not a weakness, Hawk said, his voice startling. You are so much more than your powers.
I replied silently, hoping he would hear me. How can you be so sure? You don’t even remember what I was capable of.
His fingers wrapped around mine in such a comforting way, it was strange to think that this male was the Hawk I knew. The Hawk who only ever touched me in training, or who held me when my mother died, who kissed and told me he couldn’t be with me anymore.
It made me wonder who the real Hawk was.
But that was shoved out of my mind when we rounded the corner. The stairwell Hawk mentioned stood open, flooded with guards.
“Dante,” I said, staring at the male standing between two soldiers.
His lips twisted into a cruel smile. “You really thought it would be that easy?”
“No,” I replied, “but I did wonder whether you would be hiding or not.”
The smile dropped as he stepped forward, his army following. “You should have stayed in your cage.”
Before I could respond, the floor between us split open with a rumble. I stumbled backwards into Hawk’s chest as a chasm appeared, flooring breaking off and falling into the chamber below.
Cracks branched off in all directions, following the growing hole, and crawling up the walls towards the ceiling.
“Move back,” Xerxes growled. “Soon, the hallway will cave in.”
Soldiers appeared behind us, having finally broken through the ice wall. Shit.
We were cornered with no way out except down.