Page 60 of A World of Ruins

‘No?’ Darius cocks his head to the side. Crossing his arms over his chest, he starts to pace. ‘All right then, where were you when I first shifted?’

I sigh. The wound is too fresh. Throughout most of his life, Darius has navigated it alone; his pride won’t allow him to forgive Gus, at least not now, notyet.

‘Where were you when I was on the streets having to fend for myself?’ Darius pauses, his voice gradually rising. ‘Where the fuck were you when my mother died?’

Gus drops his head, crestfallen.

‘I don’t care if you loved my mother or if half the things you want to say are true,’ Darius confesses in such a calm tone despite his deep hatred for Gus. ‘You are not my father.’

My heart shatters upon seeing the devastation colouring Gus’s features. He stumbles backwards as if waves of sorrow are crashing into him, and he can’t push through them.

We knew this would be the outcome of Darius finding out, and though I thought I was prepared for it, begging for Gus to tell him, I now understand why he hesitated for so many years.

As I watch him open his mouth to speak, there is no longer any time. The Elves pry the door open once more and barge in, capturing Gus by his arms.

I jerk forward, but Gus shakes his head for me not to.

‘Remember everything I have taught you about harnessing your powers?’ he says low enough for only me to hear as he darts his gaze to the cracked stones marring the entire cell. I frown and slowly nod despite it never having worked all the times we trained. ‘You have it within you to use them . . . You just haveto accept yourself for who you are.’ Though he doesn’t say the name, I know he means Solaris.

He is dragged out at that moment, with me trying to follow after him as the door closes, and I slam my hands against the iron gate.

A tight breath lingers within my chest, and I release it with a sigh as I lower my forehead against the gate. Gus doesn’t know what happened with Sarilyn, and neither does Darius.

Nooneexcept Sarilyn and I know.

Turning around, Darius and I stare at each other from across the dungeon. For a heartbreaking second, that resilience he had against Gus cracks, and he looks just as vulnerable as any of us before he averts his gaze.

I silently walk up to him. He doesn’t ask me what Gus said just then, and I don’t ask him about Gus in return. Instead, I head to one of the four walls surrounding us.

Closing my eyes, I picture the glow in the palm of my hands, the hunger for power buzzing through my veins.

Even if he finally remembers you, he will never be the same.

I swallow the burn of those words down my throat as I look at my hands, but nothing manifests except for the unsettling tremors wracking my bones.

Darius appears beside me as I gaze up at him. There is a profound way in which he looks at me this time – a gaze infused with a power that fortifies my strength and deepens my understanding.

The shaking of my hands stops. And not having noticed before, I glance down to see that the chains he must have picked up from the ground are now in his hand. He moves closer towards the wall, and without looking back, he starts to swing the chains against it with unrestrained force.

CHAPTERTWENTY-SEVEN

It has been hours since they took Gus out of our cell. Darius and I have relentlessly tried to find a way out by breaking through the walls – to find a weakness that perhaps could help us. But the more we kept at it, the more Darius grew weak from his link to Aurum and would collapse onto the ground.

I urged him to take a break, and while my determination was undeterred, the increasing difficulty of getting us out was becoming more exasperating.

Now as I claw at the stones, I push and slam my palm against it.

The dungeons have become darker, and the slit in the ceiling tells me it is night. I take a step back, heaving a breath as I glance to my left, where more large, heavy chains lie. The same ones that once held the Ardenti dragon Sarilyn made me kill.

I find myself clenching my fists, frustration fuelling my inner rebellion to fight. Turning to the wall again, I start to think of my brothers and unleash cries that strain my throat as I strike with full force.

My bones tremble with vibrant pain pulsing through my knuckles. Hoping to have sourced some power into me again – like Gus believed I could – I withdraw my hand, but the wall remains steadfast and my frustration manifests into blinding anger as I raise my other first.

I miss the wall just as Darius wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me back in a protective embrace. I pant, mybreaths ragged as he spins me around, redirecting my focus towards him. Concern darkens his golden eyes, and gently, he takes my still-clenched fist in his hand.

I wince and he steadies his touch, quickly looking me in the eye before focusing on the bloodied, macabre mess that is my broken knuckles.

‘It was worth a shot,’ I mumble, wanting to get my point out before being berated.

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