“That’s going to change.”
I shifted uneasily. “Why?”
“Because I can control four weathers, andmypowers are stronger than others,” he said. “If you take the time to practice and use yours more, they’ll become that way too; I’m sure of it. And we’ll need those powers to make a stand against Ivan and the aristocrats. We’ll spend a lot of time practicing and training with them.”
I gulped before nodding. The idea of using my powers more and in front of someone else unsettled me. However, I’d do everything possible to protect my loved ones.
He glanced at the money on the table and then at the curtained windows where light now crept around the edges of the drapes.
“I can’t go to the palace with you,” he said. “We can’t be seen together.”
“I know.”
“You’ll take a carriage to the palace, and I’ll stay in the woods, watching to make sure you come out again.”
“And if I don’t?”
“Then I’ll get you out.”
“You’ll risk your rebellion for me?”
“Yes, because I have no doubt you’re the key to winning it.”
CHAPTERTHIRTY-FIVE
Ryker
When we finished talking,Ellery opened a portal for me to leave her home so no one would see me. I joined Tucker at his encampment, and from there, I opened a portal for us to go to the palace.
Standing at the edge of the woods, we were hidden by the trees as we gazed at the palace on the hill before us. My fingers clenched and unclenched when I spotted Ellery’s carriage approaching us.
The sun created waves of heat on the sandy road, and the trees and plants drooped. Ellery’s vehicle dipped into a hill and vanished before emerging again as it continued toward the open gates.
Everything in me screamed to go with her, to ensure she remained safe and left that place again. If I did, not only would Ivan keep her mother, but my father would ensure Ellery was locked in a cell or killed.
The only thing that could save her from a lifetime behind bars was the revelation of her lightning-bearer ability, which would ensure she became a breeder for men who would use her up and throw her away. If they somehow learned she could control all five of the weather elements….
I had no idea what would happen. They might keep her alive to force children on her, but I suspected they’d be too scared of what she could do and what her possible offspring might do to risk such a thing. There was a good possibility they’d kill her rather than keep her alive.
My father had mistakenly believed he could control me. He wouldn’t make the same mistake with someone more powerful than him and who had an ability that never existed before.
That anomaly and the reminder he was weaker than other amsirah… weaker than awoman… wasn’t something he would handle well. He’d view her as a threat, and I was certain he’d convince Ivan of the same thing.
“What happened between you two?” Tucker asked.
“We talked.”
“Just talked? Because you went from a volatile tyrant to an anxious mess.”
I glowered at him before returning my attention to Ellery’s carriage as it vanished through the palace gates. I stepped forward as if to go after her before catching myself and stopping.
There was nothing more I could do. She was alone in there, but if this went wrong, I’d find a way to get her out, even if I had to burn the place down.
And I would do so, not because I had any feelings left for her, but because she was necessary in my plan to bring down the assholes running this realm. She was the key; I was certain of it.
I had to figure out how to use that key. I ignored the guilt pulling at my conscience as I considered using Ellery; it was necessary, and things were simply business between us now.
“Have you forgiven her?” Tucker asked.
