Page 50 of Shattered Heir
Chapter Twenty-Two
Iwas sitting on the tan, leather couch at Shad’s house. Shad sat there, too, staring out the window, as we all spoke together. I wondered what he was thinking. Mary sat on the couch beside me; Ryker was standing, and Keil was at the table with Glasson. Ash would have been there, too, but she had a curfew. Why she had to live with foster parents was another mystery, which I had yet to solve. Why couldn't Glasson pose as her guardian, like Keil had done for Shad? I would need to ask Ash. School dragged on that afternoon, but I was grateful that I had not encountered Cade again. I wanted to stay away from him as much as possible. I was still a little confused, however, about my Shad encounter after math class. Did he feel our connection? He was soulless. I didn't need to get my hopes up.
“There has to be something we can do,” Ryker said, pacing, and I realized that because of my musings, I had missed the first part of our meeting.
“What are we supposed to do? He wants Emma. He took Shad's melody, and he probably has an army of soulless at his disposal,” Keil said, looking up from his computer. Ryker, Keil,and Glasson had set up a meeting that night in order to discuss the ‘Cade’ situation. We all wanted to know what he was doing there, and how we could get rid of him. I knew the simplest way to get rid of him: kill him.
“We need to get an army of our own, attack him and kill him,” Glasson suggested.
I still didn't know much about Glasson. To be honest, his large size, and the deepness of his voice, not to mention the scowl he almost permanently wore on his face, along with the scar that made me think he had won countless battles or something—it all terrified me. I did appreciate that he kept Ash safe. No matter how many times she complained about him, he did do his job. Another thing I liked about him was his current suggestion:yes, let's kill him.It was still odd to think that Glasson was a prince. Shad was also a prince, and I was a princess. All this royalty in one room—this is crazy.
“I think we all need to calm down and think this through,” Mary spoke, leaning forward, resting her hands on her knees. “We cannot resort to murder.”
“Our heirs are top priority,” Glasson returned, turning to Ryker. “Ryker, you know the risks if they are lost. Shad is already a soulless, and with no rightful heir to the throne in the Kingdom of Embra—” He was cut off by Ryker.
“He still has a sister. She will inherit the throne.”
“That is good, but who knows if Embra has already been overtaken by another kingdom?”
“There is no way to know,” Ryker added.
“Exactly.” Glasson moved over to where the coffee table was, in the middle of the room. Seriously, he was so huge that it made me want to hop over the couch and go into the kitchen to escape him. His eyes traveled the room. “You all know the prophecy. You all know who she is.” He pointed to me, and I gulped for breath. “The heirs were sent here to go into hiding. We were senthere to keep the heirs safe. Cade is a threat to our safety. We need to go back, eventually, and we need to be alive in order to do that.”
“He has a melody now. Perhaps, it is affecting him and making him not so corrupt? He is an heir, too. If we kill Cade, the Ancients will not be happy,” Keil suggested. I looked at Ryker and Mary to see what they thought.
I was wondering what the prophecy thing was all about. It was the second time I had heard it mentioned, or maybe the third—
“What is this prophecy?” I asked, looking to Shad, then at everyone else.
“There was a prophecy given long ago by a seeker. It told of dark times and how we would be saved. It spoke of a bright soul's melody. Glasson thinks that melody is yours, Emma,” Keil answered to my surprise.
I looked at Ryker.
“He is right, Emma, but that is not what we are here to discuss.”
“Not here to discuss? I thought you said that you would tell me everything! If I am in some prophecy, I have the right to know about it!”
“Emma—” Ryker started, but Mary cut him off, changing the conversation. I was mad at her, too. The monster inside shook its cage. I wanted to release her and scream at them all, demand that they tell me, and that they not lie to me again, but I kept her cage locked up.
“So, could Cade, possibly,notbe corrupt now that he has a soul?” Mary asked, looking at Glasson and Ryker.
It was silent. I would talk to Mary and Ryker later about that prophecy thing.
“Is that possible?” I asked with surprise.
“It is possible. Melodies are very powerful, and Shad’s is so pure and strong—I am not sure that we can even say what itis capable of. It is a possibility that it is slowly changing him, causing him to act more like Shad,” Keil finally responded.
“Why can't we just kill him?” I said, leaning against the couch.
“Yes, it would make things so much easier,” Glasson agreed, sitting on the opposite couch, glaring at Ryker.
“And who would do it, exactly, Glasson?”
“You, you have no soul left to corrupt, anyways,” he motioned at Ryker, and I then wondered, too, where Ryker’s melody was—why he never let it out.
“Ha-ha, very funny, but my melody is just fine.”
Glasson rolled his eyes.
