“What Strength?” I shout, ignoring that everyone is watching our spectacle. “Because it seems to me my magic has gone back into hiding.”
“That’s because you’re scared of it,” he snaps, his frustration barely contained.
“Or maybe it’s scared of you!” I fling the last word at him like a dagger, my voice shaking as I struggle to keep my emotions in check. I stare at him, trying to find answers in his eyes. “Why didn’t you tell me all this on the way to Narathia? And wait a whole week just to tell me now?” He doesn’t say anything, and all I can do is shake my head. “It’s just one secret after another with you, isn’t it? It’s been that way from the beginning.”
“I’m telling you what you need to know now.”
“Oh? So then tell me, what’s the big deal with Caelum offering to train with me? I would’ve thought you’d have jumped at the thought of me improving. And with you not having to do it yourself!”
He blinks, and then his eyes narrow to slits that almost completely cover his dark pupils. “You are not training with him again,” he warns.
“Why?!”
“Because you are my disciple, and I said so.”
I shake my head with a snort. “That’s not an answer.”
“It’s the answer you’re getting.”
I reach up, the frustration boiling over as I shove him in the chest. “You are so insufferable!”
He blocks my hand and twists it until his fingers are wrapped around my wrist. “I’m your mentor, and you will do what I tell you. And that includes only training with whom I approve of. And right now, that’s me. And Chasina. Don’t even think about testing me.”
I try to break free, but his grip is too strong. “Let me go,” I hiss.
“No.”
“Let me go, right now. You’re hurting me,” I demand, my voice trembling with fury.
He doesn’t release my wrist; instead, he yanks me closer, his voice dropping to a whisper as he says, “I’m the only person here you can trust won’t ever hurt you.”
My heart pounds in my chest, and for a second, I want to believe him. I stare up at those eyes that in ways, I feel like I already know better than my own, but are also the most mysterious I’ve ever seen, and desperately search for the truth. Where is he? That man who was slowly opening up to me by the fire? The one who had hurt himself to help me? Where has he gone? Rylan meets my gaze, and for a moment, I think I see him, but then he blinks, and there’s nothing but ice. I should’ve known better; if my life has taught me anything, it’s to never let my guard down.
“If that’s meant to be a promise,Your Highness, then you’ve already broken it.”
He winces, and his grip loosens as if involuntarily, and I take the opportunity to pull my arm free, taking a step back.The distance between us feels instantly insurmountable, yet I can still feel the heat of his hands on me. If he is going to reply, I won’t ever know. Just then, Master Kaelen and Chasina enter the combat room. The conflict in the atmosphere is palpable as they take in the scene, their eyes flicking between us.
“Now, if you will excuse me,” I say coldly. “I mustn’t be late for my combat lesson. They actually teach me something here.”
TWELVE
Rylan
I storminto the dining hall, my steps heavy and angry, each one echoing off the cold stone floor as people scramble to get out of my way.
Good.
Everyone can just Fuck. Off.
It seems like all I’ve been doing for the last week, stomping around the castle in an even worse temper than usual.
My mind is still reeling from the standoff I just had in the council room with my father, who always knows how to press every one of my buttons. In the same breath, he’d ordered me on another asinine trip and then berated me for not doing my duty by training Eirabella to his expectations. Forget that we’ve only had five training sessions. And that I hardly need him to remind me that she’s shown no evidence of this magic that I’ve sworn is supposed to protect the entire kingdom.
I know. Gods, do I know.
She knows,everyoneknows. But something about the words spilling from my father’s lips and the sneer that perpetually accompanies it has the anger coiling tightly in my chest, ready to snap at the slightest provocation. Yet it’s nothing compared to the frustration churning in my stomach from the conversation with Eira.
That woman… gods! It’s like she was put on this godsforsaken continent to fuck with my head.
