“Have you never thought there might be a reason for those?” His teeth grit together as he grimaces with the words. Ten knew,but he wanted to find the answers anyway, unable to accept that there were hidden secrets.
“Tell me about the battle here. Tell me something that makes fucking sense.” My anger tips, and I stand and slam my hands against the bars, the sudden rush of strength infusing me, drawing from Orion and our proximity.
“You. You are the answer. For over twenty years now. Elex was so stubborn. He wouldn’t listen, wouldn’t be reasoned with.”
“Who’s Elex?” My heart grips onto the name in desperation. “Is he my father?”
“I won’t let my son follow in his footsteps. I’ve done everything to stop this—sacrificed for him. My wife…” He turns around, and for a moment, I feel a brush of pain and suffering. His. It’s a living, breathing thing, cloaked under years of work and strength, but it’s there. And it’s terrifying. It’s enough for me to doubt, for a moment, that he’s the villain in all of this.
He fits. Stars, he’s played his part perfectly, but his grief and anguish rock me, steering me off course.
“You won’t win.” And he’s back, the Orion Ciro I first met.
“I’m not looking to win. I don’t understand. Who is Elex, and how do you know Kalan?”
His eyes swing back to mine, no sign of the sorrow that overtook me, but narrowing on me, like he wants to pick apart my memories.
“You know Kalan?”
“He’s a friend, or sort of. He’s visited me my whole life. How do you know him?”
His head tilts. “You saw. The aftermath of the battle. That was you. How?”
“I don’t know. I can see futures, memories…” I shake my head, feeling like every word from my lips is a betrayal. But if he has answers, actual truths, then I’ll tell him everything.
“Curse you. And Aslendrix, for allowing your mix of magics. It’s always been the same.”
“No. Go back. Tell me about Elex or Kalan.”
“I’m surprised you’ve not just taken the knowledge you want already,” he curses.
This isn’t getting us anywhere. “Where is Ten? Where have you sent him?”
“Somewhere safe. Away from you. I can no longer trust him to do the right thing.”
“If you keep me locked up, he will come for me. It would be safer to let me leave with him. We’ll go and never come back if you let me go with him. You can forget all about me,” I say the words with hope in my heart that they are true.
Would he? He came for me before, but how would he fight the whole of The Court if he’s banished?
“Arghhhh!” Orion pushes off the bars and slams his palms against them, rattling them in their iron hinges, making them quake to the point of breaking. Then he stalks away.
I guess that’s a no.
Movement, the shuffle of boots on the stone floor, the dull rumble of a voice that I don’t recognise or can hear enough to make out the words, is now the highlight of my time in here.
There’s been no visit from Kyra like last time. No visit from anyone since Orion, and he’s not been back. Except for the changing faces of those who have delivered a tray of basic food with a cup of water and replaced the candles, I’ve been alone. They don’t speak, and they’re very careful not to get too close when they arrive with a breakfast and dinner offering only.
Three days have passed, given the number of meals delivered, and I am desperate for something to write on to help me pull the threads inside my jumbled mind into order.
“Ten?”I keep calling his name in my mind, hoping he’ll answer, but there’s been nothing so far, only quiet. Each time, the hope in my chest dulls a little more, the light dying like the embers of an old fire. But the dark isn’t going to break me. I’ll get out. And if he can’t come to me, I’ll find him.
“Ever?”
His voice in my head unleashes a smile that sets my heart racing.“Ten? Oh, thank Aslendrix, I thought you’d gone, that you’d left.”
“They’re moving me. It’s why I can hear you again. We’re close to The Court now.”
“My power’s stronger. We can cover the distance. I will.”I vow to keep this tether between us for as long as possible.
