Eyes of Ember (Imdalind Series #2)(44)

“Let me go!” I screamed. My thrashing pulled me away as Cail released me, the extra force sending me hurling across the clearing toward Ryland’s body. I grabbed him as I fell, knowing there was nothing else I could do.

I gasped his name, my heart breaking all over again as I held his lifeless body in my arms.

We were all shadows in a dream world. None of this was real. I repeated the fact to myself, trying to stop the heavy waves of emotions from overwhelming me. I felt my lungs reaching for breath and my heart’s irregular beat speed up. I couldn’t look away from him, his bright blue eyes still burned into my mind.

“Oh and one more thing,” Cail said from behind me, “if you don’t come in one month, you can give up hope of ever seeing Wyn again too. I will finish what I didn’t before.” He sliced his finger across his neck, his lips curled in a wicked sneer.

“You’ll never find her.” I tried to sound strong, but I knew the panic had seeped into my voice.

“Like I never found you? Ryland’s bond with you was so weak we could barely track you across one little city. And if we were already in the city, what does that say about how safe you are? With or without Ryland, we can find you anywhere, Joclyn. It’s all about who you know.”

“Who do you know?” My voice echoed around the otherwise empty clearing. Cail only laughed.

“Really? You think I am going to give away information just because you ask? Tsk, tsk, that’s not how it works, missy.”

My magic surged uncomfortably under my skin thanks to the raw anger that coursed through me. I didn’t second guess myself, I pulled the power together and shot it at him in a stream of fire, powerful enough to do some real damage. Shock crossed Cail’s face for a second before the attack hit him square in the chest.

Cail looked at the spot on his chest before he began to laugh, long and deep. “Oh, Edmund’s going to be sad he missed this.”

I clenched my teeth and raised my hands, ready to fire something at him again.

“Now you are going to fight me?” Cail said, “Sure why not! After all, magic doesn’t work here the way you are thinking, you can’t hurt a shadow.”

I felt the blood leave my face and I looked at my hands.

“No,” I said, dropping my hands to my sides.

“Yes.” He pulled up his face into a half smile and I shied away from the wicked look.

“No!” I moved my hands behind me, making it obvious I wasn’t going to fight him anymore.

“You’re no fun,” Cail pouted. “Kill her. I will tell my master it is done.”

I didn’t have time to register what he had said before I felt the blade plunge into my back. I could feel the cold metal separate my flesh and grind against bones as it moved deeper and deeper into me, the pain only a moment behind. I screamed in agony as my body fell on top of Ryland’s lifeless corpse.

The pain lasted until I woke up in a panic, my terrified screams bouncing around our tiny space.

Ilyan’s arms were already wrapping around me, his hand moving to cover my mouth. I didn’t hear his comforting sounds, his song. I screamed into his hand, his warm skin muffling the sound.

I couldn’t calm down. I couldn’t shake the feeling of the dream. My mind kept replaying what Edmund had done, what Cail had said, and the feeling of Ryland’s lifeless body.

Eventually, my screams died down, but my cries remained. Howls of despair broke from my chest as my breathing caught and shuddered. Ilyan held on until my sobs had stopped, his song finally seeping into my mind as he sang it over and over.

“It’s okay, Joclyn. I’m here. The dream is gone.” Ilyan’s hand ran over my back, the touch triggering something in me. I pulled away from him in fear, wiping away the last of my tears. I looked beyond him to the large scorch mark in the wall and my insides turned to ice.

“They’re not dreams,” I gasped through the remnants of my sobs. “They are something far worse.”





Fourteen


Ilyan pried the memory of the dream out of my head and replayed it twice before I made him stop. I couldn’t stand to see it anymore. I felt like my heart had been ripped open and filleted in front of me. Reliving every emotion, with Ilyan to see, we felt every pain, saw all of my reactions. In the end I had pulled his hand away and begged him to stop before collapsing on the bed, my head aching from the extended digging.

The exertion from the dream mixed with Ilyan’s brain foraging had left me exhausted. I stared as Ilyan fidgeted in the small space, mumbling in Czech, his face twisted in anger and fear. I couldn’t even find it in me to ask what was going on. I wasn’t sure I wanted to know anyway. His reaction had made one thing very clear, Ryland remembered me, and I had one month to save him.

“Ilyan,” I spoke quietly hoping he would hear me, but he kept speaking to himself.

“Ilyan!” He stopped in his tracks and looked toward me, his long hair swirling to lay against his face. He fixed me with a stare that scared me. Not because I was scared of him, but because he was scared.

“How is...” I stopped, I didn’t want to know. “How do I keep them out of my dreams?”

“I’m not sure you can. I am not even sure how they are doing it. The only thing I can think of is that they are using Ryland somehow, but how...” he faded off, and I looked down to my feet. Great, my connection with Ryland was causing more misery. Everything felt numb inside of me, frozen in place, as my mind processed what was being said. I loved Ryland. I loved the person Ryland used to be. The way he held me, sheltered me, protected me. But now when I thought of him, there was fear. I had yet to see the positive side to our bonding.