Page 76 of The Discovered
“Then explain it to me, damn it.”
I kept the distance between us as I weighed my options. Daelon stood next to the door, which meant I would need to find a way to subdue him, so I could find Lucius and break whatever hold he had over him.
He ran a hand through his hair. “I know you think the way out of this is to fight him. But you can’t win, Áine. Not right now, at least. You aren’t meant to yet.”
“What are you even saying? You want me to just let him kill us?”
I eyed the door, and Daelon stiffened, his features darkening.
“He’s not going to kill you. He wants you to go with him.”
I scoffed. “Go with himwhere? You’re not making any sense. He’s literally evil, Daelon. He probably killed my mothers and my people, and your parents too.” I remembered seeing Daelon as a little boy, stricken with fear after watching someone kill his father.
He seethed, his jaw clenching. He moved away from the bed slowly, blocking the door from view. He shook his head, straining as if fighting an invisible force.
He was fighting Lucius.
“You said you were going to trust me. He’s not making me do anything right now. I know that it doesn’t make sense to you at the moment, but you know I would never let anyone hurt you.”
“Get away from the door,” I said. This didn’t feel right. Daelon would never tell me not to fight. What else had we been training for all this time?
“Áine,” Daelon said, slowly and deliberately. “I won’t let you fight him. This is your best chance of finding out who you are and fulfilling your purpose.”
I felt my power rise up all around me, ready to be used for its most important task to date.
“I’ve done all I could to prepare you in what little time we’ve had,” Daelon said quietly. “Hold on to it all. I’ve never lied to you.”
“I think it’s my turn to protectyounow,” I whispered, preparing myself for what I had to do next.
I wasn’t sure what lies he’d been fed or spell he’d fallen under, but Daelon wasn’t on my side right now, and I knew in my body and soul that Lucius wasn’t someone to be trusted. He was the evil my people rose up against.
I started to channel.
“Don’t do this. Just stay with me,” Daelon pleaded one last time. “I love you.”
I stopped, momentarily stunned. These were not words we’d said aloud. Tears welled in my eyes as I studied him, watching his chest rise and fall rapidly as he begged with his eyes for me not to fight.
My heart physically ached as I shook my head in confusion. I took a determined step forward as I wiped the stray tear from my cheek. “I—I’m sorry,” I choked out.
Daelon took in a deep breath, his body stiffening. His forehead creased, his gaze traveling off into the distance like he wasn’t in this room with me any longer.
I recalled the time I’d heard voices in Daelon’s room, the lump in my throat growing. “You’re talking to him right now,” I realized aloud. Had they been communicating this whole time?
I stepped forward again and felt the atmosphere between us grow thick and heavy like an invisible wall. I gasped.
“You let him in,” I said in an accusatory whisper, sending my power out to dissolve the defenses Daelon was constructing.
He didn’t answer me, his face contorting in exertion. His magick shattered like glass into millions of shimmering pieces. He was no match for me.
I bit my lip. I didn’t want to do this, but I had no other choice. He wasn’t going to move unless I made him.
I reached out through space and pulled him from the door, crying out as he fought against me with his own power. He’d never used magick against me like this before.
Had he told me he loved me as a way to manipulate me? Just thinking it broke my heart.
In a sudden burst of anger, I sent him flying into the wall to my right, next to the bathroom’s double doors. He crashed hard with a thud then fell to the floor in a motionless heap, and it took every ounce of my emotional strength to leave him there as I rushed through the door.
I quickly slid into some sneakers I’d left in the living room and pushed through the glass paneled door to the back deck. A couple inches of snow had gathered on the ground now, coating the patio in a delicate blanket of white. I started down the stairs before realizing I had a more efficient form of transportation.
