She smoothed her dress as she eyed each of us with a look that wasn’t quite… fear. Instead, she had the glint in her eyes of someone who knew something thatwedidn’t.
“She’s going to take us to our princess, isn’t she?”
The old woman nodded. “Y-Yes. I will take you to the tunnels now.”
“Kaiden.” Eris stepped up to him, offering a hand to the woman. “You can’t throw people around like that. She hasn’t done anything to warrant?—”
“I’ll give her my apologies when Morrigan is standing before me. But, until then,” he wrapped a hand around her arm, tugging the seer to his side, “she followsmyorders.”
Anger. That’s all I saw in Kaiden’s eyes. So much anger.
I turned to Dez and saw the same look in his. The ocean that once swayed so gently now brewed with a deadly storm. He couldn’t go. If Dez went down there… If he saw anything that may have happened to her… I didn’t think he had the restraint to hold himself back. He would need to stay behind. And I was going to have to be the one to say it.
“I’ll stay here with Dez while you all go,” I insisted.
Dez’s glare shot to me, and his eyes flickered with threatening light. “I will not?—”
“I’ll go with Kaiden,” Eris offered, interrupting Dez.
Naaz stepped beside Eris. “As will I.”
“No!” Dez yelled. “No! I amgoing!”
Completely ignoring Dez’s pleas, D moved into our space and placed a hand on Dez’s shoulder. “I’ll stay behind with Cass to help with?—”
In an almost blur, Dez swiped the dagger that clung to D’s waist and moved to yank it free. But before it could even be removed from its sheath, D’s eyes began to glow, and Dez’s arm froze. Bright blue light radiated around us—even the birds above had slowed to a stop with time halting at D’s will.
“You guys need to leavenow,” D instructed the three of them. “Once you’ve shadowed away, Cass and I will escort him to his room.”
“I’ll have Lyra give him a sleeping draught. It should last just long enough for them to return,” I said, placing a hand on Dez’s other side.
I knew he could hear everything we were saying. D’s power only worked to an extent. It may slow down time, but everyone trapped within that void was still aware of their surroundings. And it only worked within a certain radius.
Eris and Naaz both grasped Kaiden’s shoulders.
“We’ll be as fast as we can. Make sure he stays put,” Kaiden demanded, just before his shadows consumed them, and they disappeared into darkness.
DORMIUS
When the shadows dispersed, Cass and I were able to drag Dez back to the room before my power depleted itself.
Cass ran to grab Lyra and returned just in time with a small vial. I quickly tipped it against Dez’s lips and could feel his resistance, but he wasn’t strong enough to fight it right now. The moment I felt his resolve slip away, I released my grip and felt as time sped back up. Dez’s body fell limp against the mattress, and I slid the sheets over him before sinking into a chair nearby.
“Gods, I forgot how crazy that is,” Cass laughed, though he looked exhausted. “I haven’t seen you do that since?—”
“The war,” I quickly inserted. “Yeah… I don’t like using it. It takes a lot out of me.”
I could see Cass lean back in the settee near the fireplace. “I’m sure you’re grateful that you didn’t bond with Morrigan, then.” This time his laughter had a sour twist to it. He turned his head away and faced the flames.
I couldn’t wrap my brain around the fact that each of them had made the decision to go against what we all had agreed upon. But, the guilt they felt was visible to anyone with eyes. And yet… not a single one of them would admit to it if asked.
“What exactly is it that you think will happen when she returns?” I asked him, standing to join him on the opposite side.
“What do you mean?”
“She’s bonded to what… four of us? I can’t even begin to imagine what that must be like in her shoes. A bond like the kind the gods created for us... It runs deep. I saw how she was with you. With Dez. I can imagine that, if Cain hadn’t taken her, the same would eventually happen with Eris and Naaz as well.”
“What are you trying to say?” Cass faced me, narrowing his eyes.
