Page 59 of The Discovered
Daelon closed his eyes for a moment, his forehead creasing. Was he shielding us from Lucius’s magick now? The thought of that terrified me.
“Well, I guess I’ll find out when he’s on our doorstep,” I snapped.
Daelon’s eyes flew open, so fiery and sharp that I gulped, the hairs on the back of my neck pricking up.
“You can’t stop, can you?” he said, his tone cutting. “You can’t just enjoy the time we have. You have to go and ask questions that I’ve told you so many times I can’t answer.”
“Can’t? Orwon’t?”
I recoiled from him, and I could tell the act wounded him as a flash of hurt passed through his eyes. I shrugged off his attempts to stop me as I pushed myself up and out of the bed. I faced him, and I felt raw power calling to me from all directions.
“We’re close enough for you to have just been inside me as you made me say I was yours, but not close enough for you to be completely honest with me. You ask for the impossible, Daelon.”
He jerked back as if I’d just slapped him, his face falling and his anger melting completely away.
I turned away from him, but I was unable to erase the image of his wounded features from my mind as I left, the door slamming shut on its own behind me. The afternoon light illuminated the hallway, and I walked to my room in silence, wearing nothing but one of his shirts.
I was quick to tear it off me as I entered my room, putting on some warm sweatpants and a thick turtleneck and scarf. I grabbed a jacket from my closet and slipped on the snow boots that Daelon had removed from my feet so carefully last night. Each day felt like a week here.
I sighed, biting back frustrated tears. I needed to go somewhere I could think. That shift from safety to danger had come too quickly, reminding me just how tumultuous our arrangement truly was. And this latest reminder of just how much effort he put into keeping me in the dark was maddening.
When I opened the door, I found Daelon on the other side. He was quick to look me up and down. A flash of panic moved through his features.
“What are you doing?” He stiffened, blocking my path.
“I just need some space,” I said, exasperated. “I’m only going to the circle. Just to meditate and think. Nothing to worry about.”
As annoying as it was to have to spell it out to him, I knew in the logical side of my brain that it was sort of in his DNA to protect me. However, my power was frantic as my emotions spun out of control, so I wasn’t keen on logic currently.
“Please—let me come with you.”
“I don’t think you understand the concept ofspace,” I said, crossing my arms.
“And I don’t think you understand the concept of safety,” he said. “You’re a danger magnet, Áine. You get into trouble while you sleep, let alone your astral adventures while you meditate. Need I remind you how much more vulnerable you are in this kind of emotional state?”
“I am not in anemotional state,” I hissed, and the sound of a fireplace roaring to life from one—or maybe both—of the living rooms erupted. A kettle wailed in the kitchen.
Not cool,I spoke to the forces around me.
Daelon lifted his eyebrows.
“I said no,” I said. I wasn’t going to budge on this. “I’ll cast a protective circle. I’ll use every single defensive tool you’ve taught me. I just need to be alone for one single moment, and I don’t think that’s too much to ask.”
I watched as Daelon visibly cycled through emotions, from hurt to angry to desperate and back again. It was the hurt look that gave me pause.
“I just need to think,” I repeated. “I’m not going to think my way out of feeling the way I do for you,” I added, quieter this time. “But I need some time alone.”
I noticed his shoulders relax slightly, and with a sigh he moved out of my way. I exited out the glass door, grabbing a blanket from the couch on my way, and descended down the winding wooden staircase. The snow had melted down to a couple inches now, and it crunched beneath my feet as I headed off on the beaten path. Being out in nature instantly soothed me, and my connection to myself and my power strengthened. As I homed in, I could sense the energetic imprint of the circle call out to me from the east.
At the sound of the glass door shutting again I turned back toward the house, where Daelon stood on the balcony.
I hesitated, my free hand balling into a fist and then opening out again at my side, but after a few seconds, I turned back toward the path.
I slowed my breathing, concentrating only on energy. It was hard to squash the thoughts that rose up, taunting me, calling me foolish for how far I’d fallen for Daelon—but I knew that in order to cast a decent circle of protection I needed to have a clear mind. As if on cue I felt him reach out to the corners of my psyche, his energetic imprint unmistakably guarded, strong, and assertive.
What?I asked him telepathically, tuning in to him. I turned off the path at the familiar formation of trees, pushing into the clearing.
Remember to reach out like this if you need help. And also that you need a clear head when you cast the circle. Holding on to negative emotions will make it ineffective, and possibly even more d—
