Scorched Treachery (Imdalind, #3)(19)

Despite the effect Cail’s name had on me, I still didn’t understand where we were exactly. I arched my eyebrows at Sain and cocked my head in confusion, hoping to prompt him to continue, but his face fell, his head shaking dejectedly.

“Nothing good happens now. What your father has done to you in the dungeon, that’s just the opening act.”

“I thought you said we were safe here,” I said, looking around and still not understanding.

“Not here,” he said. “Where he takes us afterwards. Just remember, it is only a dream.”

I swallowed hard, the inflection in Sain’s voice heavy with fact and warning.

"It's gone." Ryland’s voice was loud as it broke our conversation apart, leaving my hundreds of unasked questions trapped inside me.

"What was it?" Ryland asked Sain, ignoring that I was there.

"You control this place, Ryland, you tell me. It's just my blood that makes the connection."

Ryland snorted and shook his head, his curls bouncing as he finally turned and acknowledged I was there. He stared at me intently, a million emotions set into his eyes.

“Is she all right?” he said succinctly.

I leaned into Sain, not knowing what to say or how Ryland would react to the little I did know. While I would like to say he was safer here, more stable, I could still see the anxiety, the exploding anger, behind his eyes.

“I don’t know,” I whispered. “She has been in hiding with Ilyan. I haven’t seen her in months.”

I watched as Ryland’s jaw clenched, his eyes turning to the chilling color of ice. I could feel the anger radiating off him as he walked away from us, his fist colliding with a tree, and then punching through it as the sturdy trunk turned to smoke.

“Calm down, Ryland,” Sain said, his voice deep and fatherly.

“How can I calm down?” he yelled, his voice loud. I flinched into Sain, feeling weird for trying to find comfort in him. “It’s been months, she says. Months! We have been tortured, used against her, beaten – for months. All while she has been on an extended date with her new boyfriend.” I flinched at his words, taking a step closer to Sain. I really wished I hadn’t said anything.

“That’s not true, Ryland,” Sain said, his voice a calming beacon that Ryland didn’t seem to respond to.

“He has his hands all over her!”

“No, Ryland, don’t give in to Cail’s games. You know he is lying,” Sain pleaded as he moved us toward him. Ryland stepped forward, squaring his shoulders, but Sain didn’t back down.

“How do I know?” Ryland spat, his anger fuming as he moved and paced.

“Remember what I told you?” Sain’s voice was calm as he placed his hand on Ryland’s shoulder, the touch once again triggering a calm in him.

“Only Joclyn can stop my father.” Ryland’s voice was tight as he spoke, his eyes unfocused on something far beyond us.

“Yes, and who is the only one that can help her with that?”

The temporary calm that Ryland had found faded away as fast as a slap. His breathing picked up, and his chest heaved, his eyes darkening into a deep icy blue.

“I can do it.”

“Ryland, I…” Sain tried to interrupt him, but Ryland exploded, and I jumped away from him.

“I am strong too, stronger than him. The sight was wrong, Sain! It is me that can help her! I need Jos’s power to stop him.”

“No, Ryland!” Sain roared, causing Ryland to stop in his tracks. “You must not take her power. That was your first mistake – when you foolishly sealed yourself to her. At that moment you were more in love with Joclyn’s power than with her.”

“Don’t judge what you don’t know! I love her!”

I was not one to hide by any means, but the volatility of Ryland’s emotions was terrifying. I looked around for somewhere out of the way, but all I could see was forest.

“You did, Ryland, you loved her. But when you found out who she was, your love changed…”

“No…” Ryland interrupted, his voice airy and desperate.

I took a step back instinctively, not liking the fiery sheen that was taking over Ryland’s eyes.

“You loved her magic more than her,” Sain said, his voice calm and level. “You loved what her magic could do for you.”

“No, I need her magic.” Ryland sighed and shook his head as if clearing the thought from his mind. “I love her.”

“That may be,” Sain said, his voice still low and comforting, “but this bond has only caused her pain. We have talked about this; you are not helping her now. You must trust in the sight if you wish her to end this.”

“You just want Jos to be with a King, not a worthless Prince.” Ryland spun to face Sain as he spoke, the anger deep in his voice as he hissed at the old man, his face only inches from Sain’s.

“I want her to live up to her true potential.”

“And that is not with me?” Ryland asked, the deep root of his voice struggling to keep steady. Sain only shook his head.

“How do you know, Sain?” Ryland spat, “Have you seen something new?”

“You know I have no control over my sights anymore, Ryland. I see only what he would have me see,” Sain said, his voice a whisper against Ryland’s outburst.