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“You’re right, it’s not, and you better keep your mouth shut. This information in the wrong hands would… fuck.” Rhys runs a hand through his hair, the stress as clear on him as it is on us. “Luckily, Monarch Perkins, who your parents were in contact with, isn’t aware of the information I have, nor will they be in the future since I’ve sent them on a field mission this morning. Return date set to indefinitely.”
I blink at him, his words slowly processing through my mind. Is that… relief I feel? Trust? But I still don’t know him well enough for any of that. Turning to Zane, he nods, his lips in a thin line in comparison to the usual smirk that sits there, and I take the trust I feel from him and channel it myself too.
Clearing my throat, I place my hand on top of Brax’s at my thigh. “What does this mean for us now?” He takes a moment to glance over each of us, like he’s assessing us as individuals and as a whole, his son included.
“Who did you save, Raven? To activate the magic?” he asks, not answering my question, and I gulp, but the knot in my throat doesn’t budge.
“It was me, Monarch Denver,” Brax states, and I grip his hand even tighter as I tilt my head to look at him. His face is as void of emotion as it usually is, but there was a hint of something in his voice that I haven’t heard before and likely never will be able to figure out where to place it.
When Rhys doesn’t respond straight away, I turn back to him to see his eyes wide as his throat bobs with a large gulp of his own. I guess asking the question and actually getting an answer to it are two entirely different things.
“I’m glad you’re okay, Brax,” he states with a sniff.
“Me too, Sir,” he grumbles in response. This man will speak the same way to anyone and everyone, Monarchy included, and it makes me love his natural ruthlessness.
Rhys clears his throat and turns back to me again. “Have you pieced together your other magic along with it yet?”
“No,” I admit, but then a sudden thought comes to mind. “Although someone mentioned I might have something.”
“What?” Eldon blurts, staring at me expectantly.
Tucking a loose piece of hair behind my ear, I shrug nervously. “Wait, first, I have some questions,” I insist, and Rhys nods for me to proceed. “Did you help me get back here? Are my parents likely to try that again? And why did so much time pass between me leaving and returning?” I don’t even pause to breathe as each question quickly flows into the next.
“Yes, I helped you. When you admitted your fears in the chamber, I knew I had to protect you. There’s clearly something bigger at play, which is why your mother had someone else intercept you instead of protecting you herself, and as much as I don’t understand why, it also means I can’t guarantee there won’t be another attempt like this,” he admits, making my heart clench. “Thirdly, more time passed than you likely expected because I kept you in a comatose state in my private gateway.” My eyes widen in surprise and he quickly lifts his hands in surrender as Brax rushes to his feet. “If I had sent you straight back there, your father would have been right behind you. I needed it to look realistic.”
“What does realistic look like,Pops,” Zane snarls, speaking my exact thought.
“I made it look like there was an issue with the chamber when I tried to place you in it. You weren’t in the gateway alone, though. My wife was with you the entire time. Just in case.”
“Just in case what?” I breathe, my brain overwhelmed with the facts I’m not sure I was prepared for.
“Just in case anyone came after you. I might not have known then what secrets you were keeping, but I knew the fear in your eyes was real. If I ever saw that in the eyes of one of my own children, I would tear this world to pieces. Added to the fact that I’veseenthe way my son looks at you, I knew protecting you at all costs was the right thing to do. Am I correct?” His gaze shifts to Zane beside me, but it’s Eldon who speaks first.
“You’re the coolest fucking man in The Monarchy, you know that, right?” Zane rolls his eyes at his friend’s declaration while his father smirks, pleased with himself.
“As true as that may be, what’s the magic you mentioned?” Rhys asks, not steering completely off track as he turns back to me.
Despite being a lone ranger, I lean into my Bishops and take the single nod from Zane to proceed. “When I got back here, I was speaking with someone and instantly knew they were doing something to me against my will.”
“Explain,” Creed grunts, his onyx eyes silently pleading with me after spending last night together.
“Lyra was practicing her magic, or… her second magic, I think, which is a sort of truth serum, and I called her out on it. She insisted no one had done that before and that even those who are usually tight-lipped don’t realize when they’re oversharing, but I did.”
“That sounds like you could be able to taste magic, as they call it, but if you’re a necromancer as well, hell, you could sense it to manipulate it. Mirror it. It’s been known that a necromancer can sense magic, feel energy in the air, and contort it to their own desires.” I have no words to say back to that and he must sense it, too, because he pats his thighs and smiles. “Either way, they’ll come through when they’re ready, right?”
“Yeah,” I whisper, still bewildered.
He rises from his seat and I expect the hologram to stutter, but it doesn’t. His arm comes out swinging and I flinch as a slap hits Zane on the head.
What the fuck?
“Don’t fuck with me again, son. You little shit,” he says with a chuckle, and Zane jumps to his feet, wrapping his arms around his father in a loving embrace as I stay frozen in place, fear licking at my nerve endings. A moment later, Rhys’s attention turns my way once more. “With your abilities, Raven, the world is going to be in the palm of your hand, and it’s going to be our job to make sure you don’t become anyone’s weapon.”
TWENTY-SIX
RAVEN
Ilet the front door click shut behind me as I exhale. Fresh day, fresh start. That’s the vibe I’m working with this morning after the talk we had with Rhys yesterday evening. I’m sure if I got the chance to actually process everything that’s happened that positivity might be possible. But instead, I’m drenched in impending doom vibes because there’s always more bullshit heading my way.
