Page 25 of Shadows of Ruin

Finally, a familiar face. I scrambled to the bars.

“Corbin,” I said, unable to keep the relief from my voice despite the guards. Knowing he survived instilled hope that the others were okay too.

One of the guards stiffened at his side. Corbin clicked his tongue. “Don’t bother speaking, Captain. Our friendship ended the minute you chose those filthy traitors over your kingdom.”

“What?”

“You heard me,” he snarled. He shoved the tray through the small opening in the metal bars, designed for feeding prisoners.

“What are you talking about?” I demanded.

His cold eyes met mine. I frowned. It was impossible. Corbin would never follow Andras. Even without knowing the details of what the monster did to Lana, to me, he’d never betray his friends.

“You would do well to obey, Ian,” he said, his voice sharpand condescending. “The sooner you accept you will never succeed, the sooner we can all get on with the inevitable.”

The guards at his sides snickered.

“Oh, how the mighty fall, eh, Corbin?” The man to Corbin's right nudged him in the ribs, like they were sharing a joke between old friends.

I stared dumbfounded at the man I thought I knew. My stomach twisted in defeat, hope shriveling in my chest at his words. His demeanor. “How could you, Corbin? I trusted you.”

What happened to my friend?

Corbin’s eyes darted to the tray before meeting my gaze. “Enjoy your meal. Who knows when you will be allowed food again, traitor.”

The guards laughed, and before I could respond, the three of them marched down the hall to leave. Andrasmustbeusing his mind magic to influence Corbin. There was no other explanation. None I would accept at least. He would never say such things otherwise.

If he’d gotten to Corbin, had he gotten to Leif as well? Kalliah? I swallowed the bile rising in my throat.

Escaping this prison had been a necessity before, but it was even more critical now. There was more than one person who needed saving. Andras's brand of insanity would poison the entire castle otherwise. I’d already witnessed him poison Ellevail with such lies, turning the Fae against Lana. That shit would spread, quickly too, given how powerful Andras’s magic seemed to be getting.

I didn’t remember it seeming so insurmountable before.

Frustration overtook me, and I shouted into the darkness, screaming until my throat went raw. Stumbling back from the bars, I let myself fall to the cold floor beneath me.

How had things gotten so fucked?

I let go of the bottled-up reactions once the door shut, growling out my frustration and the pain.

I lay on my side, facing the space where Lucien had appeared the previous night. Blinking slowly, fighting passing out from the unrelenting pain, I watched the corner.

A feminine gasp echoed in my mind.

I frowned.

“Hello?” I asked. At least, I thought I did, but my mouth didn’t move. I tried to sit up and groaned.

A foreign presence lingered inside my head, somehow here with me. I wasn't alone.

Had Andras’s magic finally infiltrated my mind?

“Who’s there?” I tried again, knowing I was most likely talking to myself, presence or not.

I refused to believe I’d gone mad.Think.

“I know someone is in here. What are you doing?”

No response. A figure lurked in my mind, not at all hateful like the talons. No, this feeling was the opposite in every way. Something familiar, though, seemed impossible. I squinted, as if somehow I could see whoever, or whatever, was here.

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