Dyson continues to chuckle, the noise mirthless, and holds his hands up innocently. “Okay, okay. I’m leaving. Don’t get your panties in a twist. Unless…that’s what you two like to do in the bedroom.”
Before Soraya can snap at him, he hurries to the door and slams it shut behind him.
The Maiden instantly turns towards me, concern emanating from her eyes. She reaches for me instantly, but I stagger to my feet without her help, Dyson’s words still echoing in my mind.
Obviously I know there’s nothing going on between me and Soraya, but does Izzy? The last thing I need is a rumor spreading through the covenstead.
Her face falls before she forces a smile back on her face, the edges frayed with tension. “About what Dyson said…”
“Look, I know you said before you don’t have feelings for me,” I begin, feeling incredibly awkward. “But I just want to make it clear that I’m in love with Izzy. I don’t want to hurt you, but…”
I allow the words to taper off. I’ve seen the way Soraya watched me this past week. I could feel her eyes on my skin like a physical brand when she thought I wasn’t looking.
There’s a beat of silence, then she exhales and folds her arms over her chest.
“I don’t have a crush on you, if that’s what you think. I told you that before. For one, I don’t even like men. And for two, that would be fucking awkward, considering the fact that I think you’re my brother.”
I blink, certain I heard her wrong, my mind reeling. Oxygen wheezes out of my lungs, and my heart wedges itself in my throat.
“Wait…what?”
Her eyes go wide. “I didn’t mean— Gods.”
She runs a hand through her immaculate braid, disrupting the red strands. I’ve never seen the poised Maiden so flustered before.
“I didn’t mean to just blurt it out like that. I meant to…talk to you first. Get to know you. Build up to it.”
My stomach knots, and a high-pitched ringing sound explodes in my ears, making it hard to focus. “Soraya, what are you talking about?”
Her lips press together, and she drops her gaze to the floor. “I know your story.Everyoneknows your story. But not everyone knowsmystory—or, at least, my family’s. My parents don’t mention Bram at all. They want to pretend that he never existed.” Her gaze turns distant—trapped in a memory I can’t see. “I think it was their way of dealing with the loss.”
“Wait. Hold on. Back up.” I raise my hands in the air as if I can somehow fend off her words and their implications. “Who the fuck is Bram?”
Her expression turns grave. “It’s the name of my baby brother, who was kidnapped seventeen years ago.”
I open my mouth to respond—though I’m not sure what I intend to say—when the stone beneath our feet gives a low, groaning sound and begins to quiver.
“What the fuck?” I rasp, struggling to remain upright.
Then the world erupts.
A deafening crack splits the ceiling above us, and a blast of air knocks dust from every crevice. The walls tremble. Crystals lining the corridor sputter and die.
“No, no, no!” Soraya grabs my wrists, her fingernails burrowing into my flesh. “We have to move! We’re under attack!”
Stone crashes behind us, huge and final. I allow her to drag me forward as if in a trance, my heart slamming against my rib cage and my mind spinning.
All I can repeat is one word over and over in my head.
Brother.
The word echoes louder than the destruction around us.
Forty-One
IZZY
We park the car on the edge of the road then trek through the woods, where we’re supposed to meet up with the others.
