Page 81 of The Discovered
When I woke again, I was alone. The room was dark and quiet. It was a relief, actually, because this time I couldn’t hold back a cascade of tears. It felt like I was trapped in a nightmare, and I just needed to scream and claw my way back into reality.
I sat up and assessed my surroundings, which were grand and luxurious. It was the largest bedroom I’d ever stayed in… by a lot. I rolled off the bed and onto the cold hardwood floor, pausing after a headrush left me with the spins. I was barefoot, still in the oversized sweater and leggings I’d been wearing back at the cabin.
I took a deep breath, hurrying to the tall, white double doors at the far side of the room. I wiped the tears from my cheeks. I couldn’t focus on the grief that threatened to pull me under. I had to focus on the anger, or I would drown.
The doorknob was cool under my touch, and I twisted it slowly as my heart pounded. The door creaked as I pulled it open, revealing another room even vaster than the first. There was an arrangement of couches in the center, a fireplace crackling to the left, tall windows with an empty bookshelf in between, candles flickering scattered around all the furniture.
Well, I’ve seen prisoners with less,I supposed.
I jumped as a head shot up from behind one of the couches faced away from me. It was a girl who appeared around my age, her near-black hair cascading messily around her shoulders. She peered at me like I was the one who was intruding uponher, narrowing her green eyes as she yawned.
I was glad to find that my power was at least somewhat recharged, though it felt farther away from myself—more disconnected, like how it felt back on Earth. I took on a defensive stance, reaching out to assess her energy. It was guarded and apprehensive, but there was nothing inherently threatening about it. It was neutral, albeit intense and wild as it spun out all around her. It was tinged with red and deep violet, and there was a hint of something I recognized deep in my gut.
Her face merely showed annoyance. “Right,” she said slowly, breaking the tense silence. “I’m Taryn. I’ve been tasked with… babysitting you, basically.” She rolled her eyes, and I could pick up on a slight accent similar to Irish in her rich, low-pitched voice. “I don’t want to be here anymore than you want me here, so we can just stay out of each other’s way, all right?”
I prickled at the wordbabysitter,my nostrils flaring.
“I won’t be staying,” I muttered.
She laughed. “Okay. Good luck with that. I’m going to let the King know you’re awake.”
And with that, she tossed a book onto the table next to her haphazardly, got up, and walked to another set of doors on the right. I got a glimpse of a dim hallway as she slipped out, light flickering and bouncing off a golden wall.
As soon as she left, I gathered up as much power as was available to me, thinking of the first place to come to mind—the place with the Aurora Borealis. I didn’t know how I would be able to outrun Lucius, but I had to try. I wouldn’t be waiting around to find out what his plans were for me, and surely someone in Aradia could help me. I couldn’t imagine Lucius was popular with the masses.
I closed my eyes and conjured up a strong vision, and the room began to spin. With a whoosh I transported, but when I opened my eyes, I let out a frustrated gasp.
I was back in the bedroom I’d awoken in.
I tried it a few more times with the same outcome, growing more and more enraged. I couldn’t stay here. Not when I’d been lied to and betrayed so deeply, not when the only person I knew here in my mothers’ realm was a completely different person than I’d fallen in love with, not when all of my instincts and intuition had been wrong. Was I even as special as I’d let myself believe if none of the forces of the Universe could have warned me of Daelon’s treachery?
Maybe Daelon and Lucius were right. Maybe I wasn’t a threat. Maybe I was just as naïve and weak as they made me feel.
“Are you quite finished?”
I spun around to see Lucius in the doorway to my bedroom, his arms crossed.
“You can’t leave,obviously.”
I glared at him, the helplessness of my predicament finally setting in. If I wanted out, it looked like I was going to have to play a long game. There was nothing I could do right now but stay alive.
He tapped his fingers along his arm, watching me silently. I blocked out his unnerving energy, unable to stand the reminder that I’d been kidnapped by a mass murderer.
He killed my mothers.
“Just be grateful I didn’t stick you in the dungeons,” he said with a small grin. “See? Despite what your little sixth sense may have led you to believe, I am a benevolent and fair ruler.”
I clenched my fist at my side. “You’re a fucking murderer. I can feel how unnatural your power is—like it never even belonged to you in the first place,” I spat, remembering how Daelon had struck a chord earlier.
Lucius stepped forward, the look in his eyes as sharp as daggers. He stopped inches from me, his hand raised in the air like he was going to hit me. I just stared up at him, refusing to back down.
“I could strike you down right now, but I won’t,” he said, lowering his hand. “Because I know that you’re probably havingemotions. I’ve heard they can be difficult.”
I drew my brows together, my breathing shallow as I held his gaze. Usually, sociopaths didn’t brag about being sociopaths.
“Talk to Taryn about it,” he said with faux concern in his eyes. “She’s a wholly unpleasant woman, but she knows all about Daelon—so you havethatin common.” He smiled. “But the next time you disrespect your king, I will not hesitate.”
He reached out a hand toward my face, and I slapped it away out of instinct. My act of insolence was met with my airway constricting, leaving me gasping for air.
