She was right. Of course she was. But I wanted this made right. “She needs to understand that taking care of my people also means protecting them from each other. I won’t allow this.” A growl quickly followed my words and I felt the tightness inside me, a coiled spring ready to let my wolf loose.
Amelia gripped my arm with both hands now. Her power weaved in and around mine, trying to settle the fury building inside me.
“Bethany is with Micah, where she needs to be. We are here, where we need to be. We are not Julia and her Hunters. We don’t attack without all the facts and a clear head. I appreciate that you love her as much as I do and want to protect her, but our decisions aren’t ours alone anymore.” As Amelia spoke, she continued to use the mixture of her and Cole’s power to bring me down to a reasonable level.
The tension uncoiled and I audibly exhaled, rubbing my free hand over my face. “I haven’t been that angry since…” I trailed off and she continued for me. “Since I left with Micah,” Amelia finished.
I nodded. “I didn’t mean to—”
She cut me off again. “I know, Aidan. It’s hard to believe that was only weeks ago, but we are different people now. We’re in this together and we have responsibilities.”
I shook my head, once again awed by what the combination of Amelia’s time at Cresthaven and the integration of Cole’s power had done. She still had her impulsive tendencies, but she saw the bigger picture.
I leaned down and stole a quick kiss. The tingle of electricity that passed between us was expected and welcome. I wanted to linger, and I could tell she did, too, but I pulled back and quickly pecked a kiss to the tip of her nose, breaking the tension.
We walked back into the main aisle toward Nell’s stall.
“Are they happy here?” Amelia asked me quietly, her voice coming over my shoulder. I turned to find her walking slowly, staring at each stall we passed. I forgot this was her first time in the barn and I could feel her conflicted emotions. I pulled her beside me and wrapped my arm around her waist so we walked together.
“They are, Ame,” I assured her. “They’re free and their children will be free. They’re protected and they have their power. We aren’t making them stay here, this is their choice.”
We stepped up to Nell’s stall and I knocked on the wood frame. The door was open, so we took it in simultaneously. Amelia’s emotions spiked and I knew she was crying, but I made no move to stop her. I was just as taken by the scene.
Elias sat on the mattress spanning the width of the stall, his back against the wall. He looked exhausted, but absolutely enthralled by the woman in his lap. She was curled on her side, asleep. Her head was on his thigh and her arm came over that same leg, snaking up toward his waist where she held his hand. Her legs were pulled into a fetal position with just enough room to see three small kittens piled on top of each other, their tiny little bodies protected by both their parents.
“How is she?” I asked my friend.
“She’s finally able to shift back and forth, and is resting now. I still don’t completely understand what happened, but they worked together to stop the bleeding. My children are alive and healthy. We don’t know yet if they have power, but it doesn’t matter. She’s healthy. And she’s come back to me.” Elias’s words were choked as he looked up at Amelia. “You brought her back to me. She showed me how you healed her in Cresthaven. How you saved her life. Amelia, I can’t ever repay this debt.”
“There is no debt, Elias,” she said, her own voice thick with emotion. “I did what was right. I did what I was supposed to do. I would do it again. These are my people.”
Amelia stopped and looked up at me. Her eyes were full of unshed, happy tears, and for once, they weren’t violet. They were the eyes I initially couldn’t stop thinking about. The ones that looked more green than brown and belonged to the quiet girl I had to know.
“No,” she corrected herself, still looking up at me, “these are our people.”
“That we are, Amelia Bradbury,” Elias confirmed as he stroked a hand over Nell’s hair. He looked back up at us. His smile was gone and his blue eyes glowed softly as he continued. “You have done more than you realize. You have given us hope, and hope is a rare and fragile thing to people who have lost more than they’ve won in their lives. Know this to the depths of your soul: we will stand beside you and follow you anywhere.”
“No, they won’t.” A small voice came from behind us. I turned to find Dillon standing in the row of stalls. He looked uncomfortable, shifting his weight from one bare foot to the other. I looked back at Elias and he waved me off, making a shut the door motion with his hand. So, we stepped back and I quietly slid the door in place.
“What do you mean, little man?” I asked. Amelia and I stepped toward him and Dillon shuffled forward, sticking out his hand.
“I know we already met, Miss Amelia, but I wanted to thank you for saving my mamma. Thank you for bringing her back to me.” Amelia smiled tentatively and shook his hand. She stooped down, as I typically did, and kept ahold of his hand lightly.
“You are very welcome, Dillon. Miss Bethany and…uh, Mr. Aidan, have told me a lot about you.” Amelia threw me a smirk over her shoulder. “Can you tell me what you were talking about just now? I know your mamma was able to know things. Do you know things, too?”
Dillon nodded quickly and pulled his hand from hers, shoving it into the pocket of his bright green hoodie. “Mr. Elias is only part right. He will follow you. Lots of these people will. But not all of them. Some of them don’t want you. They want to hurt you.”
I was beside Dillon in an instant, my hand gripping his arm. “Who, Dillon? Who wants to hurt us?”
“Aidan!” Amelia’s sharp tone brought me clarity, and I saw Dillon’s wide eyes and pale face. His freckles were like brown pebbles on a white sand beach. I immediately dropped his arm, apologizing.
Dillon backed up a few steps, but said, “It’s okay, Mr. Aidan. I’m scared, too. But my owl isn’t showing me who. I just know Miss Amelia isn’t safe here. But she knows where to go, don’t worry. Her mamma took care of her, too.”
As he typically did, Dillon took off running once his message was delivered. He flew past AniMages and Mages, muttering “‘scuse me,” as he passed between them.
Amelia was staring at nothing, her eyes unfocused before she gasped.
“He said my mother took care of me, too. That means wherever I’m supposed to go, whatever I’m supposed to be doing, is in that journal.”
20
I was so focused on getting to my mother’s journal, on being able to make a real plan, I almost missed Bethany and Cole sitting in the living room. I immediately diverted in their direction, Aidan on my heels.
Bethany had clearly showered, her hair long and straight, and her clothes no longer stained. She was huddled in the corner of one of Derreck’s massive black leather couches as she and Cole spoke quietly.
They saw us and beckoned us over. There were still shadows in her eyes, but Bethany forced a smile and tried to fake her normally bright attitude.
“Hey, Ame,” she said. Her faked attempt fell flat and we both knew it.
“They are all fine, B. Nell, the kittens, and Elias are all fine. Because of you, they got to them in time,” I said.
I watched the angst drain from Bethany in one deflating gush. Her shoulders collapsed, her eyes closed, and her head dropped back. “Oh, thank god,” she whispered.
“If you hadn’t been there, she may not have made it,” Aidan said. We didn’t actually know that for a fact, but I was okay with his white lie.
Bethany smiled and this time, it was genuine. It was relief and gratitude and I was thrilled to see it. I turned to find Cole wearing a similar grin and couldn’t stop myself from reaching out, taking both of their hands, and squeezing.
“That’s the good news, but the bad news is Dillon told us there are traitors in our midst and I’m not safe here. He alluded to the answers being in Mom’s journal, s
o we were on our way to get them and really dig in.” I tried to keep my tone light, but Cole was immediately scowling and concern flattened Bethany’s smile.
“We can help,” she said. “Let us help you go through them. It will be faster if we work together.”
I started to protest, but Cole cut me off. “She’s right, Ame. You said I should read them anyway.”
I looked up to find Aidan wearing a look that asked why I was surprised. A small laugh escaped as I shook my head. “Fine. Fine! Four brains are better than two anyway.”
“How about six, with two that understand a little more about our history?” Micah’s voice carried from behind me and I turned to find him standing in the doorway. Bethany immediately stiffened next to me.
“Oh, you don’t—”
“Oh, it’s fine, Ame. There’s no reason he can’t help. The more the merrier, right?” Bethany cut in, her response obviously forced. Under no circumstances would she let him see that he bothered her.
I turned to her, ready to argue, but her eyes pled for me not to make it a big deal. “Um, yeah, of course. Of course you and Bale can help. But where should we go? We won’t all fit in my room.”
“Let’s go down to my apartment. I have space,” Micah suggested. He hadn’t taken his eyes from the back of Bethany’s head. His eyebrows pulled together and I watched him clench his teeth on one side, and then the other.
I looked up at Aidan to find him watching them as well. When our eyes connected, neither of us had to say anything. This was a terrible idea and we both knew it.
Aidan opened the door to Micah’s apartment and allowed Charlie and Onyx to enter first. They had both been asleep on the bed when we retrieved the journal pages and wouldn’t leave our sides now.
As we stepped inside, the tension in the room was obvious. Bethany sat perfectly straight with her hands in her lap while Micah stood awkwardly, trying to look anywhere but at her. Cole looked between the two of them from his chair, shaking his head.
“Is, uh, everything okay in here?” I had to ask.
Micah gave me a sad smile and Bethany at least met my eyes for a second. She and I needed ten solid minutes of girl time to get to the bottom of all this.
“We are fine. We should start reviewing the pages,” Micah said as he held out his hand. I put a small stack of paper in it and continued around the room as everyone got settled, handing pages to Aidan, Cole, Bethany, and Bale.
I sat down on a small couch next to Aidan and felt a quick shiver as our arms brushed against each other. Warmth spread from our point of contact outward, easing some of the nervous energy I battled. The more often those moments occurred, the more I appreciated the strange balance we brought each other now that the Keeper was imprisoned. I still struggled to believe she was contained, but my connection to Aidan only grew every day she stayed bound.
Realizing I had drifted off into my own thoughts, I looked around at my friends, who sat silently, waiting for my direction.
“From what I understand so far,” I started, “my mother knew something was going on that most of the Immortals didn’t realize. She searched for answers and knew they were hiding things. She had begun testing to make her way onto the Elder council and had yet to find the entrance to the council chamber. I think that’s where we need to focus. Why were there Elders? What were they hiding? But, if you read anything that seems amiss, just speak up. We don’t have a ton of pages each, so this should go fast.”
Everyone nodded and got to work.
I was quickly engrossed in the page I held. My mother’s handwriting was more hurried here. What had been loops and swirls was now a tilted slant of letters, flowing together in what looked like a stream of consciousness from her mind to the page.
I worry for Julia. She has taken to spending too much time with Cane and I don’t trust him. I see the looks she doesn’t, I know what they are trying to hide, and I see where it will end. I hear the things he does not say, but there is no way for me to prove his true intent. That is for her to learn for herself, but her heart is already so fragile. She has fought the darkness of her father’s polluted mind for so long, and I don’t know how much longer she can hold strong. For now, she simply questions. How long will it be before her questions are demands and lives are lost? I only wish the visions were clearer.
I spent the day with Tragar and we poured over dozens of books, trying to find plans for the original castle. I have to find my own way into the chamber, but there is nothing. It’s as if this castle materialized from nowhere. I have one last card up my sleeve, but I had hoped to keep my true ability a secret. No one, not even Nathaniel, understands what I am capable of. I cannot decide if this is truly a gift or a curse, but if my visions are correct, I will need to harness this power to save the ones I love.
“I think my mom really cared about your mom, Micah. It’s strange to think about them at our age.” My words broke the silence of the room, but Micah’s gaze only flicked up to mine as he mmmhmmmd and went back to the pages.
“Got something good there?” I asked, intrigued by his lack of response.
“Not entirely certain,” he mumbled without even looking up.
“I believe you will want to hear this, Amelia.” Baleon’s voice always surprised me. The calmness emanating from a man who oozed lethal force was such a conundrum.
“Please, go ahead, Baleon,” I said.
He scanned the page again and flipped it over. “It appears your mother found her way to the council chamber, but she wasn’t able to get in. Sentinels guarded the doors and refused her entry. However, she was able to gather some information.
“She notes a bright white light coming from the room that pulsed and brightened as she drew near. She felt the pull of it, drawing her in, and only the Sentinels themselves stopped her. They attempted to explain and then wipe her memories, but that particular power doesn’t have the same effect on her. She was able to recall the memories, though not crisply. They said, ‘Only those connected to the mother may enter this place. You do not carry her light.’”
I was mulling over his statement when Aidan spoke. “Hey,” he sounded excited, but then stopped. I turned to find him scratching his jaw, his eyes unfocused as he stared at the ceiling. “I’ve heard the term Sentinel before…I just can’t remember where.”
“You have?” I was shocked, but then remembered there was a huge chunk of time we had spent apart. He had become such a part of me, it was hard to reconcile.
“Yeah, it just isn’t coming to me. I’ll remember, though. It’ll come back.” An intense look of concentration came over his face and I let him think.
Bethany spoke next. “I think you’ll want to read these, but they aren’t what we’re looking for specifically. They talk a lot about your dad and her struggle with the betrothal. She really loved him, Ame. And he loved her.”
I wanted to smile, to allow some of the joy of my parents’ romance to settle on my heart, but the thought of my father was still hard to have without tears coming with it.
“What about you, Cole?” I asked, trying to redirect.
“A lot of these were visions,” he said. “They weren’t clear, but they were pretty gruesome. From what I know of how it all went down, Mom’s visions were pretty accurate. She even called the Hunters’ allegiance to the Queen.”
“Trickery, you mean,” Bale interrupted, his voice steeled. “There was no allegiance. She convinced us her lies were truth and used Cane’s death to stir the spite and hate inside a few, which led to our enslavement.”
Micah stood perfectly still and stared at Bale. I wondered if Baleon had ever been so forthcoming about his true feelings.
“Why did you stay?” I had wondered since I’d realized the power of compulsion didn’t work on Bale.
“The one I loved was gone and Prince Mikail was only just born. It was easy to see where she would lead him and I wanted freedom for my people. For all of us. I knew of the prophecy, and took it as my duty to protect the future
King. There was no way for me to know another King would fulfill it.” The look exchanged between Baleon and Micah was one of quiet gratitude.
Micah tried to speak, but the sounds were choked. He pursed his lips and cleared his throat. “I believe I have something as well. Tragar traveled through the local regions, since no one ever strayed far from the castle in the old days, and talked to everyone. He listened to their stories, their rumors, their lore.”
Micah skimmed the page as he continued. “He often scribed the stories while he was in the villages and brought them back to the castle. According to this, he heard a story from someone who claimed to have known one of the Elders. They knew the identity of the Elder and their mate, though they would not reveal it. They said once an Elder was claimed to the council, they could never be more than a short distance from the chamber without physical harm coming to them.
“This person talked about how the mates were just as important as the chamber. Mates were necessary to mix varying types of magic, which was not only a requirement for the marriage to be approved, but kept the Elders alive. This person, they didn’t speak to share Elder secrets, they spoke out of fear. Your mother says here that her worst fears had come true. Even Tragar told her in order to become fully immersed in the council, to truly have her questions answered, she would have to give up your father.”
“Okay,” I said slowly, processing through everything. “So, we know my mother found the chamber, and was told she didn’t carry the light, whatever that is. We know her visions were accurate and she cared about Julia, even though she knew who she would become. And she couldn’t accept her position on the council without marrying the person they chose for her.”
“Rhi.” It was a quiet word that echoed off every surface and rattled inside my head.
I turned to look at Aidan. “Excuse me?” I said.
He sighed, giving Cole a look that my brother returned with an angry glare. “Your mother was supposed to marry Rhi. It’s part of why he had it out for you, and why he enjoyed torturing your father. It’s what they fought about.”
Bound by Prophecy (Bound Series Book 3) Page 10
