Page 47 of Claimed By Shadow and Blood
“Yeah, well, that might be sooner rather than later. And I’m not imagining it. Your shadows are getting a lot more aggressive and decisive. Are you even fully in control of them?” His wings twitched as he scanned me up and down.
I shook my head, scoffing. It was hard to explain how they had transformed in the past hour. The magic that had poured into me from the vesting was still chaotic. It was like I embodied the ocean, and though I was aware of the shadows, they also seemed to have their own will. Part of me suspected that, even if I hadn’t willed it, they would have gone to Briar’s defense anyway.
Something about her called to me in a way no one else had. Maybe it was the unusual nature of how the Shadow magic had been vested in me, but it felt as if Briar had awakened something far deeper than just love. “I am in control.”
“Color me cautious.” He folded his arms as we reached the intersection where the hall branched toward the family quarters. He stopped short when I turned toward Elara’s rooms. “She won’t be up for hours. Go rest, and you can talk with her when you wake. I’ll find Silus and wait with him in case she rises early.”
I shook my head and continued toward her door. “No. I don’t want anyone else to tell her. It’s a difficult and confusing situation. She deserves to hear it from me, including why I’m doing some of the things I’m doing.” I loved my sister and wouldn’t risk hurting her in this manner. The explanation about the orb would have been hard enough without it coming on top of the tragedy of our father's passing.
The golden veins in the obsidian walls caught the low light of the torches, creating a peaceful atmosphere at odds with the turmoil inside me. Despite Father's murder and the chaos that had erupted, this hall remained unchanged—serene, dignified, eternal.
"You can wait with me if you wish," I conceded, too exhausted to argue. "But when Elara wakes, I need to speak with her alone. This news... it should come from me without an audience."
Thalen nodded, his silver curls catching the light. "I'll behave, Your Royal Moodiness. I promise not to make any jokes or quips that will make your life worse. I will offer only the ones that make your life better."
“So you’ll be silent then? Somehow, I find that unlikely.” I shot him a doubting glance.
As we neared Elara’s chambers, a sound caught my ear. I held up a hand to stop Thalen from responding as I stopped in front of her door.
Dread pooled in my gut. Someone was crying.
Elara.
No.
I clenched my hands. Had someone told her, or was she having a premonition? Maybe she’d had another nightmare or woken in pain? Not that I wished her more suffering, but…
My throat thickened as I held my hand over the ornate handle. I’d hoped to have more time to prepare what I wanted to say. But…there was no time.
I pressed the door open and stepped inside.
Elara sat on her embossed indigo settee, her shoulders hunched, her slender frame looking more fragile than I'd ever seen it. Her long black hair hung loose around her face, and her glamour flickered like a dying candle before it stabilized. For a moment, under the wavering illusion, I glimpsed the gauntness of her cheeks and the heaviness of the shadows under her eyes. Her ivory skin looked patchy.
Beside her stood Silus, one hand resting protectively on her shoulder, his usually stoic expression etched with sadness and concern. He looked up as I entered, his dark eyes meeting mine with a solemn hardness.
The bastard must have told her. I took a step toward her. "Elara…"
Tears glinted on her cheeks in the golden torchlight as she turned away from me. Her shoulders trembled as she tried to choke back sobs.
"You need to go. She doesn't want to see you." Silus moved in front of Elara, blocking her from my view. He wrinkled his nose in disgust.
Had he really just told me to leave?
Chapter Fourteen
Vad
My wings flexed and then snapped against my back, but for Elara’s sake, I bit back what I wanted to say and do to Silus. I didn’t want to upset my sister more than he already had.
Inhaling, I smelled jasmine and night roses with a hint of a sharp medicinal tang from the twilight bonsais that adorned numerous shelves and small tables in my sister’s room. Not even those scents could calm my guilt for her learning of our father’s death from someone other than me, nor my anger at Silus's betrayal.
I stepped forward onto the thick indigo rug. “Elara, we need to talk.” I would make it abundantly clear that I didn’t needhispermission to speak to my sister.
Silus’s jaw tightened, and he edged closer to her. He looked to her as if silently asking if she wanted him to remain.
But Elara had her head bowed and was weeping into her hands. Teardrops stained her blue velvet dressing gown, and her left foot had slipped out of its matching blue slipper.
Thalen cleared his throat and jerked his head toward the door. “Silus, care to walk with me to pick out some wine? I think we could all use a drink right now. Feck, probably for the next several days.”
