Page 44 of The Sacred and the Tormented

Fire sparked through Rion’s soul. “Bullshit.”

“She knew who you’d become, but—”

“Do not bring my mother into this.”

“She’s part of it whether you want to believe it or not. She helped keep us safe as much as she could. Your mother is a seer. Any hold Pádraigín tried to have over her was fleeting at best. Her visions would show her the truth. That’s how she found us.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“I’m wearing iron.”

“And you have people here with Pádraigín’s magic.”

Conall blanched. “I swear, we’re not—”

“There’s no way my mother would have willingly let me suffer the way I did.”

“Of course not,” Conall said. “That’s why she disappeared in the first place. She was trying to find a way to prevent those things from happening to you. She was exploring different paths and possibilities. She—”

“Enough!” Rion’s magic blasted through the table before them, shattering it and scattering the contents across the ground. Conall’s bracelet was off a second later, water springing to life to wrap around the female at his side. Cara had summoned small trees with interlacing branches to protect herself.

Conall and the female finally stared at him like the monster he was.

Rion’s heart beat wildly in his chest, stealing the air from his lungs one breath at a time.

His mother had been taken because of him? She’d suffered at Niall’s hands because—because—

“Rion.” Arianna’s voice was too far away. Muted as though she were underwater. He stumbled back, then stepped forward again, determined to stay close to her. He had to protect Arianna. He—His mother.

Something like cold water blasted through his fire from behind. He whirled, baring his fangs at whoever had dared to touch him. But—he wasn’t wet. It wasn’t water that’d struck him. It was—the feeling hit him again, breaking through the wall of flames consuming his every thought.

“Be calm,” another voice said. He saw the owner of it before him, a black silhouette against a blurry landscape. Colors shifted together, blending until they were too murky to distinguish the sky from the ground.

Rion shifted into a stance, his magic rising, moving faster and faster around his body.

“Rion.” Arianna’s voice again, only this time it was frantic. Afraid. He turned, trying to find it, needing to protect her at any cost.

That icy magic blasted into him again, sending Rion to one knee. He growled at the way it broke through his mental defenses.

“Don’t hurt him.” A beautiful voice cried out. But why? Why not hurt him? Why not end him? Why not—

The magic blasted into him again and everything froze. Sounds, colors, the buzzing in his mind.

It hit again. He’d lost track of how many times this was. But now it cascaded through his chest like warm water dousing a raging fire.

Rion blinked the world back into focus. A woman stood before him, her hands moving through the air. It took him a moment to realize she was the source of it all. Sive.

Rion turned to find the table broken, the chairs along with it. Arianna stood closer to the cabin now, Cara helping to hold her up.

His mate tugged on their bond, desperate and terrified.

Terrified.

Rion examined the ground at their feet and the way it’d been overturned, leaving the grass bare in several places. Cold sweat trickled down the back of his neck.

“You’re all right,” Sive whispered. She made no move to approach. “Everyone is safe and you’re all right.”

He didn’t feel all right. He felt too thin, worn out like an old piece of fabric that’d nearly turned translucent.

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