Page 32 of The Illuminated
Thank god. Or thank Hecate, perhaps. Thank whoever—because I was no longer bound to Lucius’s bed.
Poor choice of words.
Daelon’s voice echoed in my mind as I jumped back to my room:Take care of yourself the next couple days. Just focus on recovering. What happened yesterday shouldn’t be treated lightly. That’s an order.
Chapter10
Daelon was right, so I listened. Over the next several days I kept to myself, except when Lucius dragged me to vapid social functions as his dress-up doll to flaunt before his court. I turned down offers toparties, or as I liked to call them, drug-fueled witch orgies. I spent as much time with Santana and Amaya as I could, which was easy now that they lived right next door in Taryn’s old chambers—their assigned quarters since they’d been officially appointed as my lady’s maids. They spent most of the day lounging in my living area, like Taryn once had. Taryn moved back to where most of the nobility resided, in a different wing.
“Knock, knock,” Taryn chirped from behind the closed door. I’d recognized her deep purple energy before she’d spoken.
“Yay,” Santana squealed, clapping her hands together. Her wide hips swayed as she hurried to the door.
“Hey, weirdo,” she greeted me with an exaggerated curtsy. “Feeling better?” Her tough exterior was juxtaposed harshly by the soft tones of worry in her aura, left like ghosts to wander toward me.
“I am. I’ve missed you.”
She pursed her lips, rolling her eyes at Santana, who stared at us both like she was watching a soap opera.
“I suppose I’ve missed you too, and I’m glad you’re alive. Though it’s starting to feel a little attention-seeking now that you’re almost dying or getting kidnapped like every other day.”
I laughed. “But it worked. Here you are, giving me attention.”
She fought back a smile, but I could see a hurt behind her deep green eyes. “So besides being an energy reader or clairsentient or whatever the fuck, and you and Daelon being madly in love, what else have you kept from your supposed best friend in the castle?”
Santana plopped down awkwardly next to Amaya on the green couch, both of them now watching us with vested interest. They’d put two and two together when Daelon came to them for help, and I filled them in on everything once I’d returned to my own chambers.
“You know I couldn’t risk telling you either of those things. Lucius explicitly told me to tell no one about that gift, or I’d face certain death. And obviously the truth about Daelon and I getting back to Lucius…”
“Would lead to a certain death. Yeah, yeah. I get it,” she said through her teeth. “I’m still annoyed about it, because I can be. But I understand.”
Taryn wiggled her way in between Amaya and Santana on the couch, while I took the chair across.
“He really loves you, you know,” she said, reaching for the tray of bread and fruit on the table between us. “Ever since he pleaded with me to help you—which was in and of itself quite the out-of-character surprise—I’ve noticed the way he looks at you,” she said with a small smile. She shook her head. “I mean, it’s a little creepy. But it’s also very sweet. I just hope you know how much he cares. Because I’ve known him for a very long time, and I’ve never seen him like this,ever.”
I’d missed Taryn’s ramblings in general, but this one hit differently. Warmth flooded my cheeks as they all stared at me with raised eyebrows, then burst out in unison into nervous laughter.
“Listen, now that I know he’s a double agent, I feel a lot more comfortable saying this,” Amaya started, fanning her face. “But that man ishot.In a way that is actually kind of ridiculous. And a bit unfair.”
“I don’t even like men, and I can’t say the thought hasn’t crossed my mind once or twice,” Santana giggled.
I’d never been able to talk to anyone about Daelon like this before. It was strange to hear our relationship acknowledged out loud. It made it all the more real, and I couldn’t shake the pang of dread that the secret was out in any capacity. I had no idea what Lucius would do to either of us if he found out.
“Sorry—are we being too…” Amaya trailed off, tucking a black curl behind her ears.
“No, no. I’m just not used to anyone knowing. I trust you all with my life. But it’s strange.” I searched for the bright white light of my own energy in each of theirs, and it soothed my anxiety. “He is ridiculously sexy, isn’t he?”
“He’s more likemybrother than Lucius’s, so I will plead the fifth on this one,” Taryn said with a shrug.
I wrinkled my nose. “Um, Taryn. A brother you’ve slept with?”
She snorted, spitting out her grape. “Oh, shit. I forgot about that. That barely counts.”
Santana, Amaya, and I burst into laughter, watching the grape roll across the wooden table and drop down to my feet.
Despite the horrible circumstance that had led each of us here, the energy of the room was the warmest I’d felt since Earth. We all deserved laughter. We all deserved freedom. We all deserved moments with nowhere to be, with no way to act or behave that was different from our authentic selves, and we deserved to share them with people who loved us.
Lucius had already stolen so many of these moments—moments we would never get back.
