Scorched Treachery (Imdalind, #3)(81)

“I believe so.”

“Is Ryland even safe to have here?” Thom’s eyes darted over to where Ovailia hovered beside Ryland.

“Safer than Ovailia is at this point.”

Thom’s gaze darted away from our siblings, his eyes narrowing at my words, almost daring me to say what he wanted to hear.

“I need you to watch her.”

“You need me to watch Ovailia and heal Dramin...”

I sighed and straightened my back. Thom had put into words exactly how terrible our situation was. I had foolishly thought that Joclyn’s awakening would solve all of our problems, but now, somehow, she had only increased them.

“Ano,” I said simply, knowing I was already asking too much of him. He only looked at me, nodding once in understanding, his own stress staring right back at me.

“Take him to his room, Thom. I’ll be there shortly.”

I stood as Thom carried Dramin’s body out the door, the knot in my heart relaxing. Dramin would be okay if the spark of his magic stayed strong. But I wasn’t sure what Joclyn had hit him with, so I wasn’t sure if what I had done was enough.

I turned to the others, unsurprised to see Ryland hovering over Joclyn. I could feel Ryland’s magic inside of her, I could feel the foreign power infusing her through the edge of the ?tít.

Ryland’s voice filled the air around us, the English words sounding out of place as he whispered to her. I could still feel Ryland’s magic right around the edges of my own, making it clear he was still there. I dutifully kept mine on the other side of the ?tít, even though keeping it there was a physical pain to me now.

“He will live.” I spoke more to myself than to the room, needing to hear the words for my own benefit.

“Honestly, I was surprised to see him remotely alive in the first place.” Ovailia’s voice was high and filled with fury.

I had known I couldn’t avoid this confrontation for long. Instead of walking into the ruins of Rioseco to find just Joclyn and I, Ovailia had found two others – both of which she had thought to be dead. Thom and Dramin, one her brother and the other the son of her former mate.

Our eyes met and I refused to pull away, the intensity of our stares grew as each second passed. Given where she had just come from, this conversation could easily be used to my advantage – something I definitely needed in this game of cat and mouse that my father had set up.

I carefully fisted the burn on my hand, keeping it out of sight. Ovailia had laid her cards in front of me. I needed to play mine right, if I was going to get us out of this then everything to do with the Black Water needed to stay hidden for my round to play out properly. Joclyn being a Drak was our greatest asset at this point, it was not information I would ever willingly hand over to Ovailia. Each of us continued to weigh our options as we danced around each other in a silent tango.

“Is she alive?” Ryland’s accusatory voice was barely louder than a whisper but it broke the tension between Ovailia and me.

“Yes, I just put her to sleep,” I answered quickly, not able to focus on Ryland’s misplaced worry.

“Why isn’t she waking up, Ilyan?” Ryland’s panicked voice cut through the silence as he shook her shoulders.

I turned toward him, my frustration flaring at his questions. Had he not noticed what had just happened? Did he not care that the man who had saved him was fighting for his life?

I brushed my irritation at his selfishness away. His hands were wrapped around hers as he whispered to her. I thought I had been prepared for this sight, but I was surprised by the uncomfortable thunk that sounded deep within my ironclad heart. I dutifully ignored it, instead moving toward them with my back straight and stoic, in my usual way.

“I am keeping her asleep, Ryland.”

“Wake her up!” he demanded, his desperation making him edgy. “I need to see her.”

Ryland ran his hand over her hair, his fingers touching the skin of her face as he looked at me, waiting for me to act.

“I am not sure that is wise.” Ryland’s eyes widened at my response, my curiosity at his odd behavior peaking. “She just tried to kill you, Ryland.”

He looked at me for only a minute before looking away, moving down to place his forehead against hers. I felt the pressure against my own head, and shook it off, surprised the bridge was still there even though I no longer had contact with her.

“She didn’t mean it.” Ryland’s voice was heavy and low, his words spoken more to Joclyn than to me.

I looked toward Ovailia, expecting to receive some support, but she only looked back with a wicked gleam in her eye that I had only seen once before. The shine in her eyes prickled at my better judgment in warning.

“She woke up only a moment before you came in...”

“I know,” Ryland interrupted me. “Thom told us she was sleeping before. She was just confused. She didn’t know she had woken up. I need to tell her she is all right, Ilyan. Please. Let me do that.”

I felt my protective instinct flare at his words, the desire to push him away from her strong and growing. “Why would she have need to attack you in a T?uha, Ryland?”

His eyes widened, they drifted from Ovailia to me uncomfortably, as if he was unsure what to say or how much he was allowed to reveal. The gesture made me wary, my fear rising quickly within me. I had always counted on Ryland standing with me. He had gone out of his way multiple times to save me, to save Joclyn. He knew what her purpose was in this life, and yet I could see the doubt in his eyes when he looked at me. He doubted that he could trust me, that I was telling the truth. The look triggered my own doubts about the situation, and I looked toward Ovailia, my eyes hardening.