Scorched Treachery (Imdalind, #3)(38)

I watched them go, praying that the space to which they were heading would be free of the horrors we had just left. Joclyn’s body bounced on my back as I turned to face what little was left of the beautiful cave.

The palms of my hands came to rest on the cold stone that lined the dark hallway, the energy that the rock held inside of itself answering to my touch. The strong pulse of natural magic whirled inside of me, pulling at me for a fleeting moment before being sent back to speed through the mountain alongside my own. I closed my eyes as I focused, my magic pushing into the rock, moving it away. There was no way I could stop the destruction, but I could slow it down, stop what hadn’t already happened. I could not fail.

I felt the shifting of the rock slow, the mountain answering to my call. I continued to push against it, sweat forming underneath my long hair as I forced the mountain to do what I wanted.

Boulders moved back into place, rocks piled up against others, and I heated and fused the rocks back together in a desperate attempt to stabilize the mountain. My mind moved each hulking mass quickly, stopping the fall in one place only to have it start in another. Even with the speed that my ability gave me, I wasn’t going to be able to do enough to keep our way out free of more obstruction.

Slowly, the groaning stopped, the crashing of rocks ceased, and quiet filled the air. I kept my hands flat against the stone as my energy moved back inside of me, energizing me at its return.

I didn’t dare move, not yet. I stood still, waiting for the groaning to return. I could feel Joclyn’s jolts against my back, her frantic movements continuing to alert me to the danger she was still facing. Her movements pulled at me, asking me to move, to go help her, but I had to make sure we were all safe first.

“Ilyan?” I didn’t even move at Dramin’s voice. I stayed still, waiting, needing to know that the mountain wasn’t going to continue its attempt to bury us alive.

“Is it safe back there?” I asked through gritted teeth, still not looking toward him.

“Yes.”

I felt his body only a step away from me, his energy pulsing through the air. I focused on his energy, my nerves tingling as I felt his arms rise, presumably to lift Joclyn from my back.

“Leave her.” My voice was hard.

Dramin’s arms dropped, but he did not move. His body was still right behind me. The minutes ticked by until I was sure that the mountain had ceased its implosion, my hands dropping as I turned to face Dramin, Joclyn’s twitching body still hanging loosely over my shoulder.

Dramin looked at me, his eyes hooded with concern and fear. I ignored his expression, he needed no explanation from me, and I was not required to give one. I shifted Joclyn’s weight into my arms, her head lolling over my elbow as I walked passed Dramin, his energy following me into the bare cavern that had mostly been used for training until now. Now, it would be used as our home. At least until I could find us a way out of here.

“What happened?” Thom yelled the moment I walked into the room, his words followed by profanities that no man should be aware of. I knew he was mad. I knew he needed answers. But right then, I didn’t care. His anger didn’t matter. All that mattered was making sure Joclyn was all right.

“Joclyn je pod útokem.”

“What do you mean, Ilyan?” Thom yelled, his anger boiling out of him. “Your girlfriend just tore apart the cave and trapped us underground!”

I could feel the confusion and anger emanating off both of them as their magic peaked and their stress heightened the magical flow inside of them.

I was the only one of my kind who was strong enough to feel the subtle change in the powers of those around me. It was just another one of the curses my powerful magic brought me. But right now, I wasn’t focused on the gentle flow and pulse of Thom and Dramin. I was focused on the fact that I felt nothing from Joclyn. Her undercurrent was there, but the actual strength seemed smothered. It was more than when Edmund had been limiting her power through the necklace and worse than when her magic was dying. The thrum I felt now was weaker than when I had first felt her magical pull before her powers had even awakened.

My magic pulsed into her through the ?tít, as well as the connection of my skin against hers. It flooded her. The strong barrier that had prohibited me from so much as calming her before was now weak and breakable between us like spun candy. Now, I could save her.

I scanned her body for the thin connecting line of the T?uha, my body freezing when I found nothing. I pushed into her, letting my magic fill her to every corner, the full extent of my power enough to kill any other, but Joclyn just lay there. I searched for the bridge to her mind, for injuries, for warning signs, for spells and curses – but found nothing.

I dropped to my knees, keeping her body in my lap, keeping her close.

“She is being attacked in the T?uha,” I provided, knowing I had to give them some sort of explanation as to why their lives had been torn apart.

“Ryland?” Thom accused, his angry voice bitter.

“No.”

“Then who?” Thom’s voice faded off as he asked the question because he knew, we all knew. We had all heard her retelling of Ryland as a black-eyed man, of how Cail was controlling her dreams. But this wasn’t a dream, and I didn’t know how to wake her up. I didn’t know how to help her. Somehow, Cail’s control had moved into the T?uha.

“So, she attacked him in the T?uha and almost killed us?” Thom was angry, and I didn’t blame him. “Is she going to do it again? Can’t you just wake her up?”