I heard the low yips and barks from my wolf as he celebrated us finally being one. I could no longer separate myself from him and I felt…everything.
My hyper-senses were on overload. Smelling the sweat coating our bodies, feeling the fear we all held, and knowing the trash needed to be emptied from the kitchen. Then, the memories took hold once again, and I saw the first clear memory I could remember of my parents. They were holding a small wolf pup, laughing as they congratulated me on my first successful shift. I saw the loving looks they exchanged and confirmed I truly was the spitting image of my father.
Then I saw Rhi. I saw him fling my mother across the room, her body flying through a window and the glass puncturing her skin. I saw the pleasure he took in holding my father locked in place while he drained my mother’s life. He stood there, smiling, his hand outstretched and orange flames connecting him to her. I had been upstairs, watching through the crack of a door, where I had hidden when I heard my mother’s screams. Another Hunter found me, cowering in the back of my closet, where I had shifted in response to my fear. The large hood from his jacket fell over his face, like the reaper, as he held me by the scruff of my coat and then pulled me to his chest, whispering, “You must live. You are the one. I will do what I can to protect you. This will only hurt for a moment. Quiet now.”
Finally, darkness pulled at the edges of my mind and I welcomed the reprieve. I couldn’t fight anymore, so I let it take me under.
I had been awake for a while, but was afraid to move. Nothing hurt, which was more worrisome than I expected. After what I had been through, I was afraid if I did more than breathe, the pain would return. There was just no way I was going to be able to get up and walk around after that ordeal.
“Yes, you can. Well, theoretically you should be fine.” Elias’s voice came from somewhere else in the room and I sighed.
“I thought you were staying out of my head?” I asked, moving only my mouth and nothing else.
“We had to make sure you were healing properly so I didn’t have a choice. You shouldn’t even be awake yet, but from what we’ve been able to tell, you’re fine.” His voice had moved closer and I turned my head slightly to see him standing at the edge of the bed.
“You’re sure?” I was unconvinced.
“As sure as we can be. Try to sit up,” he suggested.
I moved slower than I needed to. With every inch I pushed myself up, I expected a reaction I didn’t get. Finally, I was sitting fully upright and decided to stand. I swiveled my body on the bed and took Elias’s outstretched hand, allowing him to slowly pull me to my feet.
There was nothing but a tinge of dizziness. And then my stomach growled. Elias laughed. “Well, outside of hungry, how do you feel?”
I stretched my arms out to the side, allowing my body to expand while I tried to get a read on each group of muscles. “I feel…amazing. Like I could run a marathon. Or go five rounds.” I couldn’t help but return Elias’s smile as I pulled my fists up into a fighter’s stance and bounced on the balls of my feet.
“Where’s Will?” I asked, looking around.
Elias’s smile faltered. “He needs to rest, so he’s in the other room. He…well, he was a little shocked at what we found inside you. We both were. Let’s get some breakfast and I’ll explain.”
Elias led me into a small kitchen and gestured for me to sit at the table. I took one of the chairs and he set a glass of water and orange juice down in front of me before pulling out eggs, pre-cooked bacon, and bread. I downed both glasses and he refilled them as he started cooking. I waited for him to speak, aware on some level he was nervous about what he was about to say. The senses that had gone ballistic during the unbinding were still at level ten and I was barraged with smells, sounds, and emotions.
Elias set the plates on the table, sat down, and finally spoke. “It’s only been four hours, Aidan. You should have been out for days, maybe a week. In four hours, your body has completely healed and your mind seems to have recovered every moment you lost. We didn’t intend to spy on your memories, but you can do things our people shouldn’t be able to do. And this bind wasn’t placed on you by Rhi. It wasn’t done to hurt you. A Hunter did this to protect you.”
Elias paused, running a hand through his red hair before saying, “He didn’t just bind you, Aidan. The Hunter gave you a part of him. He shared his power with you. You are part AniMage and part Hunter. Right now, we don’t know what that means, who he was, or why one of them would ever help one of us. All we know is you are something we’ve never seen before, and if there was any question before, there is none now. You are our King.”
I was their King. Being an AniMage felt right. Being their King felt ludicrous. And knowing I had the most evil power out there running through me was deflating at best, depressing at worst. But now was the time to deal in facts, rather than dwelling over more unknowns. And the fact was, I was whole, I was free, and I had everything I needed to get to Amelia.
Chapter 18
I opened my eyes to find myself in the woods, lying on bed of leaves and staring up through empty branches. I exhaled a shaking breath, wondering whether these dreams were a matter of protection. Did my head bring me here because it knew I couldn’t handle the real world anymore? But Cole was fine. He had to be. When I got up from his body, he was breathing and his power was unbound. I was certain of it.
Micah had to have put the cuff back on my arm. It was the only explanation for the reaction from my Keeper. I silently thanked whoever was up there for the Keeper, but also for Micah doing what he had. I would have gone after Rhi. I would have broken down every door and killed whomever was in my way to get to him. There was no question. And I wasn’t a killer. That was what scared me most about her. She turned me into someone I wasn’t and made me want to be that person. She made me crave the destruction she loved.
I lay back against the leaves, hearing them crunch beneath me as I waited for Aidan to come. So far, every time I’d woken up here, he had been there as well. I needed the relief my mind had been giving me and smiled at the thought of him—even in wolf form. I wanted to curl into his chest and splay my fingers in his fur while I told him what had happened today. I needed his reassurance that I had made the right choice and it was going to be okay—that whatever I woke up to, I could face.
But he wasn’t here, and the longer I sat there, the more frustrated I became. This was my dream, damn it. I sat up, saying as much. “Come on! These are supposed to be the dreams I want to have, so give him to me!” I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to communicate with my own subconscious, but my heart was still racing and I was so agitated. The after-effects of the Keeper were a mad rush in my system and all I wanted was the proximity to Aidan I knew would bring me balance.
I shoved myself up from the ground and decided to go searching. He had to be here somewhere. As I worked my way through the bare trees, I could hear something. The sound went from an echo on the wind to drumming in my ears and my heartbeat raced. Cries wrought with pain filled my mind and stole my breath. I worried the Keeper had taken some of Cole’s memories of Rhi’s torture, but those weren’t Cole’s cries. They were Aidan’s. Every fiber of my being reacted to his bellowing howls as adrenaline shot through me. He was here somewhere and I had to get to him.
I ran, yelling Aidan’s name as I tore through the forest in search of him. His agony was torture. My lungs ached and my muscles burned as I ran harder, but it didn’t matter how far I ran or loud I hollered his name, the sounds coming from Aidan never changed in volume. I couldn’t determine whether I was getting closer or farther away. I stopped, using a thick trunk to hold myself up as I heaved breaths in and out.
Trying to decide which path to take, I turned first right and then left, but the screams stopped. I stood still, a statue in the clearing. I took shallow breaths as I strained to find the sounds again, but there was nothing. I sat down in the exact spot I stood, my legs crossed and my hands in my lap. I tried not to make a sound as I
scanned from one edge of my vision to the other. I waited, jumping at every rustle of leaves or snap of a twig. I waited for Aidan to appear, or the sounds to begin again, but neither happened. As the sun slowly started to go down, I lay down, pulling myself into a fetal position as tears slid from my eyes.
I couldn’t feel him. My power sought his, expanding out of me and searching everywhere it could reach. I had no idea where Aidan was or what had happened, but I was suddenly certain these were not dreams. I had felt the echoes of his pain ricocheting through my own body and it was very real. I pulled myself into the smallest ball possible, silent sobs wracking my frame. I had told myself I could protect him by making this choice. Now I had no idea if he was even alive.
Pounding on my door woke me and I was confused to be in my bed. My eyes were swollen from crying and I was still tucked into a ball on my side. I heard Micah on the other side, yelling, “I’m coming in!”
I sat up, pulled the covers around me, and rubbed my eyes, unsure of what was real and what was in my head. Had I finally lost it?
Micah looked concerned and my head finally caught up to reality. “Cole?” My voice was a croak in my throat and my stomach clenched as I spoke.
“He’s sleeping in my room. It was the only safe place for him.” Micah stood back and looked at me with a puzzled expression.
“What?” I threw the covers off and stalked to the bathroom. It was satisfying not to wait for his answer, and even more so to let the bathroom door slam behind me. I wasn’t mad at Micah, but I was a mess.
My heart ached with worry and guilt for Aidan and my brother. They were both in danger because of me and there was nothing I could do about it. Aidan could actually…no, I couldn’t go there. He had to be okay. He just had to be. I stared into the mirror and wondered who this girl was. This girl who was challenging Hunters and Queens and fighting with power she didn’t understand. I wished I could have taken my mother’s journals from the library. There had to be information in them I could use. I sighed and tried to focus on the issue at hand. Micah was in my bedroom, looking stressed, which only meant something bad was about to happen.
It took a few minutes to brush my teeth, wash my face, and pull my hair into a knot on top of my head. When I came back out, Micah was sitting at the small table in the corner. I came up behind him and saw his leg bouncing up and down as he tapped his hand on the table.
I tucked myself into the chair opposite him, pulling one leg under me. “He saw me. He saw everything. They know about the cuff and what I can do, don’t they?”
He nodded, his expression solemn. When his eyes finally connected with mine, for the first time, I saw fear. Micah had been preparing me ever since I arrived but he had never let on that he was afraid for me. It was part of what gave me strength. He was concerned about how I would handle things, but he had never been afraid for me.
A lump formed in my throat. My mouth went dry and my tongue felt huge. My stomach rolled and I thought I was going to throw up right there. I swallowed down the acidic taste and took a deep breath.
“What do I do?” I asked quietly.
Micah didn’t speak for a moment. “She’s asked for you. Just you, in her chambers. I’m not allowed to join you. I don’t know what’s about to happen, Amelia. But she knows. Rhi saw everything. He felt the bonds breaking, which has only happened to him one other time, and he’s spent his life searching for the man who broke his spell. I’ve…I’ve just never seen anything like it. Did you know you had those abilities?”
I shook my head, jerky motions that didn’t stop as my mind spun in circles, trying to guess what was about to happen. I was staring over Micah’s shoulder, my head still bobbing back and forth when he reached out and grabbed my hand.
“It’s going to be okay, Amelia.” It was a lie and we both knew it. He couldn’t know whether it would be okay. “I can keep Cole safe for now. Bale is with him. You don’t have to worry. He’s already so much better. I think he’ll be awake in the next few hours and I think I can get him out of here. But you have to get ready and you have to have your wits about you.”
“Can you find Aidan?” The question slipped between my lips like a secret I wasn’t supposed to tell. I smashed my lips together as soon as it was out, but I couldn’t take it back. I needed to know if what I’d gone through last night meant anything. I had to know whether he was alive.
Micah’s nostrils flared as his eyes turned cold. “Aidan? Why? Do you really think he’s the person you need to be worried about right now?”
I shook my head. Aidan couldn’t matter right now and Micah probably wouldn’t believe me if I tried to explain. Besides, there was a chance Micah could be my mate. I needed to stay focused. “No. Just…never mind. It doesn’t matter. How long do I have?”
“One hour. That’s the best I could do.” Micah stood, staring down at me as his eyes softened. “Good luck, Amelia.”
I stood as well. We were just a few feet apart and there were so many words we could have said, but we said none of them. Finally, Micah nodded and moved to step around me toward the door. Before I could stop myself, I stepped directly in his path, my eyes filled with unshed tears as fear overtook my system and my mind ran rampant with the possibilities of what might happen. I looked up at him, my mind and heart a fractured, broken heap. Facts, emotions, and suppositions piled on top of each other so quickly, I couldn’t distinguish one from the next. I hadn’t even recovered from the day and night, let alone pulled myself together enough to handle the Queen.
Micah didn’t speak as he looked down at me, eyes filled with compassion and regret. He simply wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into his chest. The tears slowly slid down my cheeks and disappeared into his jacket as he held the back of my head against him. My own arms stayed down at my sides as I absorbed the heat from his body and the moment of safety he gave me. I couldn’t bear to pull myself from him and the sanctuary he provided, allowing me to be as broken as I’d felt for weeks.
Finally, he whispered, “You have faced everything head on, Amelia. You have persevered against all of the odds. You have controlled the uncontrollable. You have broken the unbreakable. You have given yourself—all of you—to this cause. You are stronger than you believe. You are more than we ever expected. You will survive this, too.”
I expected Baleon to walk me all the way to Julia’s chambers. He was sworn to protect me and I could have used the reassurance of at least one friendly face, even it was expressionless and silent. Instead, an unknown Hunter intercepted me and took me the rest of the way. I didn’t try to speak to him, but a part of me wanted to rage at him. To scream he was the one who was wrong. I was the good guy in all of this. But, it didn’t matter. So, I just followed him as he led me down hallway after hallway until we reached her door.
He knocked twice and her muffled invitation to enter came back in response. He swung the door inward and gestured me inside. Some part of me had hoped he would come in as well. Even if he wasn’t on my side, I would have felt better knowing I wasn’t facing her alone. But he stood, holding the door, finally glaring down at me until I moved.
I took cautious steps into a large sitting room. The drapes were drawn closed, blocking out the daylight, and a fire burned in the fireplace as Julia stood at the mantle, staring down into the flames. She was wearing another gown, this time a deep scarlet, a stark contrast to her blond hair.
As I looked around, I couldn’t help but wonder when the Immortals planned to fully join the twenty-first century. Her clothes were medieval, as were the decorations all over Cresthaven. Even this room was filled with high-backed furniture in drab patterns, dark woodwork, and heavy tapestries.
She finally spoke, interrupting my musings. “You think I am a crazed woman. A tyrant who’s lost her mind. But you haven’t seen what I have, child.” Sadness permeated the space as she turned to face me.
“You hear their stories of the terrors I’ve ordered, but they don’t tell you of the losses before I took con
trol. You hear of the terrible atrocities my Hunters have committed, but not of the races turning on each other. You idolize the Elders you come from, but you don’t understand what they withheld from us simply to maintain their hold on our people. I am not the monster everyone believes—even Mikail.” I couldn’t stop my eyes from widening and I cursed myself for confirming her statement.
She simply laughed. “I know what he sees when he looks at me. I know my son, Amelia.” Julia gestured to a couch near me as she sat in a high-backed chair.
I glanced from side to side, trying to get my bearings in the room before turning my back to half of it. My mind raced, trying to determine her angle. There had to be one. Micah had told me she was all about head games. I had to find a way to play her game.
I sat slowly, forcing myself to relax into the couch cushions. It was hard and uncomfortable, as I imagined she had intended. I swallowed. “I’ve heard many sides, your highness, but not yours. Is that why you’ve called for me?”
She closed her eyes for a moment, and for a split second, I both saw and felt her exhaustion and concern. It flooded the room, the emotion becoming thick in the air. She had to be opening herself up to me. I felt that she truly loved her people. She had been fighting for so long and couldn’t find the answers she needed, but she kept going. She refused to give up on them. She wanted my help and she was making it plainly clear.
Bound by Spells (Bound Series Book 2) Page 16
