The longer I stared into Cole’s eyes, the more my fury built. My breathing picked up and the roaring began in my head. The Keeper magic stayed where it was supposed to, but I could feel them crying out their willingness to help, if only I understood how.
“Don’t, Ame. It’s what she wants. I’m okay.” Cole’s words were raw, his voice hoarse. I closed my eyes, knowing he was right and hating that I couldn’t defend him as he had always done for me.
I turned back to my right, toward the Queen, only to find her studying us. She was leaned back in her chair, her elbows on the armrests and fingertips steepled together. She looked amused. Amused.
Calm. Stay calm, I told myself.
I refused to take my eyes from Julia’s. “Thank you, your highness. How kind of you to invite my brother to stay with me. I can only imagine what an imposition it’s been for you to get him all the way to Washington. I expect he’ll be staying near me so we can catch up?” I gritted out the words and we both knew the game was being played.
Her eyes couldn’t hide her delight and mine likely gave away the anger I couldn’t completely tamp down. “Of course, dear. I’m sure the two of you have lots to say to each other. Just remember, your brother is here as a courtesy. And I expect that courtesy to be returned. Soon.”
What she didn’t say was, “or else,” but we all heard it. His wounds were visible on purpose. The stories he would tell me would purposefully make my blood boil. His pain was intentional. But what exactly did she want from me? My agreement to consummate a marriage I didn’t want? I couldn’t give her access to power I couldn’t control. What was her end game?
“Shall we eat?” Micah interrupted the silent war between his mother and me.
“Of course,” she replied, snapping her fingers, causing Hunters to file in with various dishes. I nodded and they piled my plate high with fish, vegetables, and breads. My glass was filled with water and for once, I wished it were wine. As I tried to take in what was happening around me, I realized the only Hunter in the room I could feel was Baleon. The rest were blank. It piqued my curiosity, but I didn’t have long to ponder over it since Micah’s worry radiated from his side of the table and my brother felt like a volcano ready to burst. I reached out toward the Queen, trying to pinpoint her aura to see if it would tell me anything useful. Unfortunately, she was like a radio tuned between two stations—a ball of static sending so many emotions my way, I couldn’t begin to sort through them. I pulled away and picked up my silverware.
I ate mechanically, easing my left hand down between Cole and me. In seconds, his finger gripped mine and I almost choked as his true feelings assaulted me. My brother—the one who healed me, who calmed my storm—was battered but raging. His body had bruises I couldn’t see and his power was bound somehow, indeed. I could feel parts of him reaching for me, as they always did, but something was blocking them. I squeezed his hand, hoping to convey I would help, and his tightened around mine again.
“Amelia, I am going to be blunt. I want to see what you can do. I want to confirm for myself you have what I expect you have—what I need you to have. I saw a taste at Esmerelda’s, but if you are what they say, then there is so much more. How cooperative do you plan to be?”
I tried to keep my voice level. “Would you like me to put on some kind of display? It doesn’t work like that. I don’t know what you want from me, but I can’t just snap my fingers and make things happen. I don’t know what I am, or what I’m not, but I’m not hiding anything from you. You know very well what my childhood was like. You were watching. You know I wasn’t properly trained. You know what I know and there is nothing more.”
She laughed, a low, throaty chuckle. “Nothing more? What do you call the display at Esmerelda’s? It’s quite more than any Mage can do and you bear all the markings of an Elder. I just need to know whether you have the power. Did Liana find a way to give it to you?” She leaned in, her excitement unnerving.
“Don’t you say our mother’s name. You don’t deserve to even know her name!” Cole’s raspy voice boomed through the room and he swayed back and forth on his feet.
“Oh, sit down.” Julia waved at him as if she were swatting away a fly and shook her head at the Hunters, who had moved toward my brother. “No need to get so worked up, Mr. Bradbury. I’ve known your mother for years. There was a time when we were even friends. But times change and priorities shift. She was a traitor. She made my sister a traitor. And your sister is the proof of her ultimate betrayal. The question simply is, will the two of you continue your mother’s foolish ways or will you join the right side of this war?”
“I am no one’s pawn, your highness. And you have given me no reason to choose your side outside of threatening the people I love. Why don’t you try telling me exactly what it is you’re fighting for?” Micah looked surprised at my response, as did his mother.
“You are no one’s pawn? Is that what you truly think, child?” Her tone was sharp, her eyebrows arched. “A pawn is all you have ever been. Your father tried to control and hide you to keep you from me. My son dated your little human friend simply to get close to you. Your mother used you as a vessel to hold the only magic that could supposedly stop me from trying to save us. My Hunter betrothed you to Mikail to ensure no matter what, you landed right where you are. You are nothing, if not a pawn.
“But I will humor you. Your family is a mix of Elder and Mage. Elders always mixed their magic with the other races and claimed it would benefit us all. What really happened is they diluted the Mage bloodlines and diminished our power. They allowed animals to pollute us and servants to believe they could rise above their ranks—that their power was theirs to have and not ours to manage. Whether the Mage inherits green or red power is as irrelevant as their eye color. What matters is that Mages rule the Immortals and ensure our survival. I have spent my life trying to cleanse our people of these mixed races and put the classes back where they belong. Don’t you see?”
I gripped Cole’s hand, trying to control my temper and the power building in my body. I had been draining myself for days, but the feeling of it growing, unfolding and stretching through my system, like the warmth of a latte on a cool morning, made me feel strong and confident.
My words were even and tempered. “Can you tell me, your highness, how Elders who ruled our people for hundreds of years in peace and harmony had it so wrong? How your methods have made us better and not worse? I realize I came from a simple place and was not well educated, so it isn’t clear to me.”
Her eyes narrowed slightly and her lips flattened into a thin line, but she didn’t scold me as I had anticipated. “My methods, as you call them, are making us better because they are ensuring Mages will dominate the Immortal race. They will be the ones to procreate again and they will have the most pure and powerful magic our people have ever known.”
“And where are the children, your highness?” I asked quietly. “Where are the Mage children who will be our saving grace?”
She smiled an evil smile, her lips so thin they seemed to disappear but for the tiny red lipstick rim around her teeth. “They will come. You see, dear, I don’t want your power simply for myself. Somewhere in you is the key to unlock the ability for our people to reproduce again. I will find it and I will use it for the Mages to rebuild our numbers. I am no longer bound by the rules of the old ones and I do not have to hand over my crown just yet. I will spend every minute I have exploring every part of what you hold inside you. I will take you apart piece by piece if I have to.”
I stared into her eyes as she spoke. As her passion intensified, I watched red overtake her blue irises and all I saw was blood spreading across ice. This time, though, I wondered whether it would be mine.
Cole wanted me to run. We had been arguing for over an hour, our voices hushed as we sat across from each other and I tried to explain for the tenth time why it made no sense.
“There are Hunters everywhere. And Rynna is coming, Cole. She told me herself. I’ve alread
y explained all of this. Yes, she’s the queen’s sister, but she’s been looking out for us all along. She’s bringing people together and they are going to get me out of here—get us out of here. We just have to give them time.”
His face only got redder and the bruise around his eye blended with the dark brown of his irises. “How can you be sure they’ll get here, Ame? How do you know they can get in, get to you, and get you out? Exactly how are they going to be any match for all of these Hunters? Look what they did to me. Not only did they spend a few days beating me to a pulp, they bound me in some way. I can’t heal myself, I can’t help you…I can’t do anything.”
“I hear you, Cole, but what other choice do we have? Now you’re here, too. Who’s next? Dad?” As soon as I mentioned our father, Cole shrunk, his anger deflating as guilt took over. I could feel it.
“Cole? What aren’t you telling me? What happened to Dad?” Fear snaked its way up my spine and I had to stop myself from shaking my brother and demanding an answer.
It seemed like an eternity passed before he’d look me in the eyes. “I talked to him. After we left Esmerelda’s and got Bethany out of there, I confronted him.”
I had never known exactly what happened between my father and my brother to cause the rift neither of them would breach. Clearly, Cole hadn’t gone looking for reconciliation.
“And?” It was all I could muster. One word held so much meaning in that moment.
“Things happened right after you were born I never wanted you to know. Things Dad did to me—things I thought he did to me—that made me hate him. It turns out I was wrong. God, Ame, I was so wrong.” I watched tears fill my brother’s eyes. I moved next to him and pulled him into a hug. Cole wrapped both his arms around me and wave after wave of emotion rolled from him—the ache of being wrong, the agony of lost time, and the pain of what he had done to our father.
I pulled back, holding his hands in mine, wanting to maintain contact. “Talk to me. Tell me what happened.”
“While Mom was pregnant with you, things were different. She wasn’t as happy. She and Dad had all these arguments and Rynna would find excuses to get me out of the house. But there was a day I remember with complete clarity.” Cole paused, his eyes shining with more unshed tears. “At least, I thought I did. Mom wouldn’t look at me. She wouldn’t touch me. She avoided me all day. And that night, Dad told me we were going camping. Of course, I was excited, so I packed my gear and off we went. While I slept, Dad took me out of the tent. The memory always got fuzzy here, but I remembered pain. Searing, white hot, stabbing knives of pain throughout my entire body. Someone was holding my head and all I could see was Dad holding me down, telling me to be strong, and it would be over soon. He held me down while someone tortured me, that’s all I ever knew. And when it was over, while I was curled in the corner of the tent, all he said was he was sorry and we would never speak of it again. He made me swear I wouldn’t ask a single question.
“I blamed him. My power went through the roof and I felt everything from everyone. All their pain and their sadness—every emotion anyone had. It took years for me to gain control and separate myself from it, and he refused to help me. By then, Mom had died. You were there and all he did was lock himself away. I couldn’t leave you with him, I thought he was a monster, and with my crazy power, I could feel yours. I knew when you were going to have a meltdown, and somehow, I was always able to divert it—to calm you. After we left you at Esmerelda’s, he told me it was Mom. Mom was holding my head. She was the one who put the power in me, just like they put the Keeper in you. She gave me the singular purpose of being able to temper your power and keep you alive. She made him help. He didn’t want to. He didn’t want to take away both of our choices. But he didn’t want to ruin my memory of her either, so he allowed me to blame him. All these years, he let me hate him.”
I was stunned. Questions flew through my mind but the words were captive in my throat. Our father was nothing we had believed him to be. He had given up everything for us and we believed the exact opposite our whole lives. He allowed us to think terrible things so we would think well of Mom and so I wouldn’t be found. Yet, here we were, invalidating it all.
Cole took my silence as a signal to continue. “We have to get out of here, Ame. Everything he went through was to keep this very thing from happening, yet, here you sit, giving the Queen exactly what she wants. You’re a sitting duck and you have no idea what she’s going to put you through. You heard her. She’s not going to stop. She’s demented. Right now, let’s go. We’ll run for it.”
I opened my mouth to respond. To tell him he was right, that I was insane for thinking I should just wait around for Rynna when my parents clearly gave up everything to keep me from this place.
“That would be a very poor idea, Cole. Very poor, indeed.” We both turned to find Micah leaning against the doorframe of my room. “You’d be dead before you reached the front door.”
It was hard to keep Cole quiet as Micah ushered us through the halls with Baleon leading the way. We made it to the library in record time and Bale stood watch as Micah led us into the maze. I tried to get a better look at which book on which shelf he pulled to open the door, but Micah moved too quickly and used his body to block my view.
Once outside, Cole finally let loose. He grabbed Micah by the front of his shirt and pinned him to the hedge wall. “You had better start talking, Prince.”
Micah looked down at him and placed his own hands over Cole’s. “I think you need to release me, Cole. You are not at full strength and this is not productive.” Micah’s eyes glowed red and I saw the flash of power in his palms as he made his point. Cole dropped him and shook out his hands, scowling.
Micah smoothed down his shirt and took a step back. “After tonight’s dinner, it’s clear my mother is moving faster than even I had expected. I had no idea you were even here, Cole. Or that she would stoop to these levels already.” He turned to me. “We do not have time to work together anymore. Where you are is where you are. And I cannot overtly help you. You simply aren’t ready.” His last statement was more to himself and Micah started pacing. Cole and I exchanged looks and then it occurred to me. There was one x-factor in all of this.
I hesitated for a second and then decided I might as well go for it. I pulled my sleeve up to reveal the silver cuff tightened around my forearm. “But, I have this and it helps. I just can’t take it off.”
Micah’s swift intake of air and his saucer-sized pupils had me worried. I yanked my sleeve back down, clutching my arm to my chest. Cole looked at me, clearly confused. Micah leaned across the space between us, his eyes still on my arm. “Can you show me again?” he asked. I pulled away a little, bothered by the look on his face. “I won’t touch you. I promise,” he said. His words were barely above a whisper and his behavior was alarming, but I had come this far, so I slowly eased my arm out and slid the fabric up again.
The silver cuff was tight on my forearm, close to my elbow. As I looked between Micah and the cuff, with all of its intricate designs and emblems, I couldn’t help but ask, “Do you know what this is?”
“A miracle,” he whispered. Shooting straight up, he was suddenly very anxious. “Cover it. Cover it now. Don’t ever show it again. Not to me, not to anyone. Especially not my mother. I don’t know how she could even use it, but she would try.” Then, he started muttering as he locked his palms behind his head and stared skyward. “Is this how you’ve kept control? Why we had to start over? It’s helping you temper the Keeper, isn’t it?”
Cole piped in. “What are you guys talking about? What does mom’s cuff have to do with any of this?” He moved to stand closer, motioning for me to pull up my sleeve again. Micah reached out, stopping just before he touched my arm. “No. Don’t. Even though I believe this is a safe place, there is no place safe enough to have that anywhere others can see.”
“Hold on, Cole. Micah, how did you know?” I asked.
“It’s been obvious something c
hanged. Your power was dramatically less and I felt less…emotional upheaval in you. I just couldn’t determine what had changed. I thought maybe getting you away from…” He trailed off and wouldn’t meet my eyes, pressing his lips closed as he stopped himself.
I stepped toward him, realizing exactly what he didn’t say. “Aidan? You thought Aidan was the reason I was so emotional? You didn’t stop to think maybe having the magic from the most powerful Elders stuck in a little room inside me might have contributed to all this? Or maybe having my entire life shot to hell over the course of just a few weeks had a little something to do with it?”
Having to say his name sent an ache through me. Longing for Aidan I had kept shoved down and out of my mind surfaced in a tidal wave of emotion. My eyes filled and I blinked back the tears as I allowed anger to replace my heartache. It was easier that way.
Cole stepped between us. My brother, ever the mediator. “Stop it. Both of you. This isn’t getting us anywhere. Can we back up just a minute for the guy who hasn’t been around to know what you’re talking about?”
Micah spoke, his sentences punctuated with frustration and fact. “If my mother realizes Amelia is maintaining control through the cuff, then she will find some way to remove it to see what Amelia is truly capable of. There were only a handful of Mages able to create a piece like that and the amount of power held in those runes…I only hope you are the only one who can access it. But, she believes exactly what she said, no matter what you do or don’t have. She wants to see exactly how much power you hold, then she can determine how much of it she wants. She thinks you have the power to give our people children again, and she is certain you are meant to end her. She will do whatever she has to do in order to break you, and then use you however she sees fit. It is why she’s forcing the marriage issue…” he stumbled as he realized it was my brother he was talking to, “and, uh, everything that comes with that, or she could have something much worse in mind.”
Bound by Spells (Bound Series Book 2) Page 14
