The moments where we seemed happy with each other were starting to be few and far between. Somedays, I couldn’t stop my mind from wandering and drifting toward the notion that there was a chance we weren’t as perfect for each other as we thought.
By the time we reached the stables, I was in no mood to talk to anyone and kept my mouth shut as I helped the two wounded shifters inside to see the physician.
“From the way your brow is furrowed,” Kate said, and I glanced up to see her at the stairs, “I’d say tonight did not go as planned. What happened?”
I shrugged. “Let’s just say Tristan is not a happy wolf.”
“That bad?”
“I went out to save him and what happens? Oh, that’s right, he winds up saving me. Again.”
I told her exactly what occurred as she followed me up to my room so I could change out of my spider-blood drenched clothes and scrub the rest of the crap off my skin.
“You can’t blame him too much,” Kate said a few minutes later.
I scowled at her.
“What?”
“You sound like the rest of the shifters in this damned castle.”
She tilted her head back and forth with a cringe. “Your power has been a bit shaky.” She waved her hand back and forth. “If it was still like when you defeated the statue, I don’t think he’d worry as much. And then there are the visions.”
I ground my teeth, vigorously scrubbing at a spot of spider blood on my arm. “There’s nothing wrong with my visions.”
“Really? Cut the bullshit, Sabella.”
My head shot up as my jaw dropped.
“Don’t look at me like that. Tristan talks to Craig, and he talks to me. I know you’ve been having visions at least two times a day if not more.” She crossed her arms as her green eyes flared at me. “Tristan’s worried about you. Says it’s breaking you down and that your sanity is questionable afterward.”
I avoided her intense, worried gaze as I went back to scrubbing my arm. “I’m fine.”
“No, you’re not. Is it really getting that bad?”
I set the cloth back in the basin and glanced up at my reflection; specks of blood dotted my face, and my hair was a right mess after running through the woods with giant spiders chasing me.
With Tristan around, everything was sharper, clearer, but that didn’t account for the moments right before or after a vision hit me. I’d forget where I was, that I was even a seer. A few times, I hated to admit, I forgot who Tristan was and would freak out until everything came back to me. So far, we managed to keep those moments private, so no one else knew how bad it got, but I refused to give voice to my fear of not coming back from the craziness after a vision. I felt terrible for it, too, making Tristan have to deal with me on top of fighting a war. Not to mention, we were still clueless when it came to that damned riddle and trying to come up with a plan to free the trapped gods, including my mother.
My shoulders hunched, and I fought back the first round of tears, hating that I felt like breaking down.
Kate sighed and hurried over to me. “It’ll all work out. You just have to have a little faith.”
“How am I supposed to do that when I might fall apart before we find a way to win this war?”
“You won’t.”
I laughed bitterly. “You didn’t know me before all of this. You didn’t see me at my worst when nothing made sense. When I would spend days lost in my own head,” I whispered. “If that happens again with Baladon around? And these powers inside me?” I couldn’t stop my imagination from running away. “The last thing I want to do is hurt someone.”
“Then don’t.”
I wished I could have that much optimism, but after tonight, knowing Tristan would be upset with me again, and that Hank seemed to think I was the one messing up, my happy thoughts went out the window.
I told Kate I was going to finish washing up, and then wait for the return of his majesty.
She hugged me and promised again that everything would work out.
As I splashed water on my face and scrubbed at it until it was red, I willed myself to have a vision, one that would give me all the answers.
But nothing happened, and after ten minutes, I grunted in annoyance, giving up.
So much for being a useful seer.
2
Tristan
I stormed into the castle, shifting back the second my paws hit stone.
“Get the villagers set for the night,” I ordered Boris who shifted next to me. “See to the wounded.”
“Of course, sire, and where may I ask will you be?” he asked, a hint of a smile on his face.
“Where do you think?” I snapped and ran up the stairs toward my chambers.
My clothes stank as did the rest of me. I was covered in blood, saliva, and other shit. I didn’t want to know what it was. After the fight at the village, I expected to have a quick run back to the castle and turn in for the night, but then we’d heard the panicked yells, and the second I saw that bright flash of white light, my heart had been in my throat as I took off, heading straight for it.
Sabella. Why didn’t she ever just listen to me?
Those creatures had her backed to the edge of the cliff.
A few seconds later, if I’d been just a few seconds too late, they would’ve killed her. It didn’t matter to me if she was part god or not, we had no real idea what her healing was like, or if she was immortal. I for one was not willing to risk it. My hands curled into fists so tight, my fingers protested, but I didn’t let up. If she was going to be part of this pack, she had to learn there was no disobeying orders, not mine. Not ever. I did it to keep her safe, keep the rest of my pack safe. Why couldn’t she understand that? She swore to me she was stable, but she was only lying to us both, and one of these times, I wouldn’t get there in time to save her life.
I washed up hurriedly in my chambers, growling the entire time, pulled on fresh clothes, and stormed through the side door and into the short hall that connected my rooms to hers. I threw the door open so hard it banged into the wall and waited to hear her yell at me, but her chambers were silent.
“Sabella?”
I cautiously stepped inside. She’d been known to throw things at me after a fight like the one we had out on that cliff. Nothing flew at my head, and I took another few steps, starting to worry.
“Sabella?” I sniffed the air. Lilac. She was here… and then I spotted her red hair blowing in the night wind as she stood out on her balcony. Taking a deep breath and reminding myself to keep a tight leash on my anger, I went to her, but stopped a few feet short, remaining in the doorway.
I hadn’t tried to be quiet, so she had to know I was there, but she didn’t turn.
“We’re going to play it like this then?” I muttered, but she didn’t even glance back at me. “Fine, if you’re not going to talk then I will. You deliberately disobeyed me, again. You can’t keep running off like that and straight into danger. None of us know what these creatures are or how strong and yet you insist on taking off with only your guard to protect you and are you even thinking about their safety?”
She bristled at my words and whipped around. About damned time. “Of course, I do. Just like I was thinking about yours which is why I was out there in the first place.”
“I would have been fine,” I argued.
She crossed her arms, rolling her eyes.
“Really?”
“What? What am I supposed to do when I get a vision and see you being ripped to pieces in it? Sit here, bat my eyelashes and think to myself, ‘Oh, he’s a big bad wolf, he’ll be alright. Nothing can hurt him. I’ll just stand on my balcony, holding my handkerchief, and pray he’ll come home to me.’ Is that really what you want me to do? Really.”
I ground my teeth as I growled. “I am stronger than you seem to realize.”
“So am I.”
“You are not a shifter. You are a seer—”
“And part god. You always seem to forget t
hat part.”
“That means nothing,” I shot back. “We don’t know what your limits are because you’re half god, only half.”
We glared each other down, both of our chests heaving in anger before I grunted in annoyance.
“You will start listening to my commands, Sabella. You agreed to be part of this pack, and that means do as I say. I am the alpha, not you,” I yelled, losing grip on my anger very quickly, all out of fear of losing her.
A flicker of doubt flashed across her face, and I wished I could take my words back. Too late.
“You’re right, just like I’m not a shifter and… and… oh hell,” she mumbled.
She collapsed as her eyes turned foggy.
I caught her and sank to the floor, waiting impatiently for whatever rambling words were about to spill out of her mouth this time.
“Leave it to you to have a vision to get out of an argument,” I whispered, more to myself since she couldn’t hear me.
Her hands twitched, and her head jerked to the right and left. She sucked in a sharp breath and my gut clenched. This was not like any other time.
“Sabella?”
The fog in her eyes darkened, and an evil cackle that was not hers slipped from her parted lips. “How sweet you are, looking after my niece.”
I froze as those dark eyes focused on me. “Baladon?” This wasn’t happening, it couldn’t be.
The cackling grew louder. “I see you continue to kill my pets, King Tristan, that’s not a very nice way to treat one of your gods now is it? No, no, it’s not. What am I to do with you and your pack of mangy mutts, hmm? What indeed?”
“We will stop you,” I warned him. “And I will personally find a way to end your existence.”
“Is that so? I look forward to your attempts before I destroy you and all the others who defy me.”
A cold shiver shot down my back, hearing this horrible voice coming from Sabella’s mouth.
“Perhaps the next test will prove what type of leader you truly are, King Tristan. Tick tock, soon, very soon, I will have the power I need to make the darkness permanent and turn this world into a never-ending nightmare…”
His words cut off and Sabella went rigid in my arms, then she coughed harshly and sat up, eyes wild as she blinked, and the fog disappeared. I held her loosely, and then her eyes shot to my arms then up to my face, and she screamed, scrambling to get away.
“Who are you?” she demanded, pressing her back against the railing as I stayed right where I was.
“My name is Tristan, and you are Sabella,” I said calmly, while inside, I wanted to yell in frustration and worry about having to go through this again with her. “You are safe here. You just have to remember.”
“Tristan?” she repeated, her eyes focusing only on my face. “I—I know you…”
“Yes, you do. Take your time, it’ll all come back to you.”
She nodded fervently, breathing in and out through her nose hard. Slowly, the recognition came back, and I sighed when she threw herself back into my arms, tucking her head against my shoulder as I embraced her.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s not your fault, like I tell you every time,” I grunted and cupped her face in my hands. “But you have to stop scaring me like this, can we agree on that at least?”
She nibbled her lip. “I won’t sit by and do nothing, I can’t.”
I sighed but kissed her before we both got to our feet. I waited for her to tell me what she saw, or about having Baladon inside her head, but all she asked was what she told me this time around. I kept her hand tucked in mine as I shrugged.
“Nothing important, at least not that I could tell. Just more talk about monsters and what not,” I lied.
I waited for her to call me out on it, but she was too distracted by forgetting her spell again.
“It’s getting worse,” she whispered, sounding as lost as she’d been the first time we met. “What happens if I can’t come back?”
“Don’t say that,” I said sternly, “don’t even think it. You will always come back.”
“Tristan—”
“No, we’re not having this conversation, again.”
“Yes, we are, because we need to. What happens if I freak out worse? What if I hurt you, or someone else? We need to talk to Greyson and the other sorcerers. Maybe…” She trailed off, but I saw the idea in her eyes and tore my hand free.
“No. You belong here, and you are going to remain here.”
“You’re just angry because if I’m not here, you can’t order me not to try and prevent the horrible outcomes I see in my visions.”
I refused to answer, screwing my mouth to the side as I fought back the urge to order her right now not to talk to the sorcerers or anyone else who might take her from me. If she was with them, they would listen to her visions, and they would gladly go off with her, without a care for what might happen.
“I get these visions for a reason,” she went on. “And they’re not going to stop.”
“How do you know?” I muttered, and she reached for my hand, but stopped short and let hers fall back to her side.
“Because there’s too much darkness in the world right now.”
“Darkness that is clearly sapping your light, which is why I ask you time and again to stay here.”
“You don’t ask. You command me like I’m one of your damned guards.” She shoved past me, aiming for the door.
“Where are you going? We’re not finished.”
“Yes, we are!”
“Red, get back here.”
But she yanked open the door, stepped out into the corridor, and slammed it shut behind her.
“Red,” I yelled, but she didn’t come back in.
I spent a few moments snarling at the empty room before I went back to my rooms in an attempt to cool off.
Boris waited for me there, and his worried frown told me he heard everything. Hard not to when this entire castle was filled with shifters, and we’d been yelling. I was sure everyone just heard our argument, just like every other yelling match.
“Well, that sounded fun,” Craig said from by the door. “Problems?”
“Always.” The wolf in me wanted to howl in aggravation while the human part said to go after her until we could figure out how to make this work. I did neither. “She’s getting worse.” The words slipped out before I could stop them, and I ran a hand over my tired face. “And she doesn’t listen to me, at all. Why? Why does she have to turn everything into a fight?”
Craig failed to hide his smile. “Welcome to my world,” he muttered. “Kate’s just as bad.”
“Yes, but to be fair, Kate’s not slowly losing her mind.” I hadn’t told Sabella about whose voice had come through while she’d been out of it, but there wasn’t a chance I would keep it from them.
“Has it gotten that bad?” Craig asked.
“Yes. Every time now, she doesn’t remember who she is, who I am. What happens if she never comes back to herself? What then?” I said, my voice growing louder in my anger and aggravation and now knowing what to do. “And, if I wasn’t afraid of enough already, I spoke with Baladon tonight.”
Boris choked on his mug of ale as he stared at me in shock. “What? When?”
I pinched the bridge of my nose, feeling a headache coming on. “Sabella, I thought she was falling into a vision, but she opened her mouth and… and his voice came out instead.” I plopped into the nearest chair.
Craig let out a string of curses. “Did she say if she saw anything helpful? Like where he is, so we can just kill him and be done with it?”
“He’s a god. You can’t just kill a god,” I snapped.
“Never know until you try.”
I shot him a glare. “Sabella didn’t remember hearing his voice. Or if she saw anything.”
Craig straightened and shook his head. “Seriously? You didn’t even tell her, did you.”
“Would you have if it was
Kate?” I challenged.
“She needs to know. What if it happens again, or who’s to say he’s not using her to spy on us just like he used that statue?”
“What are you saying?” I jumped to my feet and stalked toward him until we were barely a foot apart. “You want me to what, lock her away in a cell? Put up a magical cage around her to keep her trapped? What, Craig, please tell me what you want me to do to make her life more miserable than it already is because of those damned visions.”
My words bounced off the stone walls, and I wanted to smack myself for yelling. Aside from Kate and Sabella, those here would’ve heard everything.
I growled furiously, but then instantly, Boris was there, gently pushing us apart.
“Take a breather, both of you,” he said sternly.
I backed off as Craig did the same. I let him get away for ordering me around for once.
Sabella’s concerns of being a danger to herself or others came back to me, but I refused to think she would ever accidentally harm me or the pack that had accepted her, finally, with open arms. Or at least most of them. A few, Danielle included, seemed to be a bit more hesitant, though they did not let it interfere with their duties of keeping her safe. For the most part, though, she was their queen. If Baladon tried to use her to harm us, she would know, and she would stop him.
“Perhaps this is a discussion best saved for the morning after a good night’s sleep and a hot breakfast,” Boris suggested. “And then we can speak with Kate and the others who should know. Including Sabella.”
“No.”
“Tristan,” Craig started.
I raised my hand.
“Fine, if you want to be an idiot and keep things from her then that’s on you. I’ll see you in the morning.” He stomped out of the room.
Visions (Dragon Reign Book 7) Page 2
