"Go to hell," Ariana retorted.
Kellen threw her head back with laughter before giving her another lash and relished the challenge like a sadistic schoolteacher with a defiant pupil. "That's not far from what your mother said to me before I killed her."
"Don't say anything, Ariana." Alec turned his attention back to Kellen and began pleading with her. "Take me instead. You need her, and you know you can't kill me."
"I believe I know a thing or two about how far the average body can be pushed before reaching the brink of death, Alec," Kellen said condescendingly. "Let this be a lesson to you. From now on, whenever you cross me, she will pay the price. Not you." She knelt back down in front of Ariana, brushing the dark hair from her face. "Your mother was strong too. She was a fighter. Do you want to know what I did to her to weaken her so much?"
Ariana flinched as Kellen placed a hand on her head. At first, she felt nothing, but then her whole body started to vibrate. She could feel every molecule in the air bounce off her skin. She could feel the moisture and the heat around her, hanging in the atmosphere as if awaiting her command. The dirt beneath her knees seemed to quiver. Then, it was as if the elements all exploded into her. She wasn't sure if her vision had turned white, or if she had become engulfed in the bright light she saw, but the glow was there along with the searing pain in her skull.
"Ariana," Alec cried out from where Sheridan had him pinned against the wall. "Ariana, look at me. Look at me! Good. Good." He smiled encouragingly. "Just keep looking at me, okay?" he said when she turned to Kellen, whimpering in pain. "No, don't look at her. She isn't here, Ariana. It's just you and me, okay? Just Alec and Ariana, no one else."
Ariana nodded, letting out a painful sob as the heat intensified and spread up her body. She ground her teeth together while the invisible flames crawled up her arms. Focusing on Alec as it spread, she shook with the effort needed to keep her eyes open and focused on him. She willed the whole world around her fade, so the only thing she could see was his face and the strength he tried to pass to her through their connected gaze. His light eyes were full of such depth and compassion as he stared at her, and she realized for the first time that his eyes were really beautiful. She felt like she could stare at them all day. She let herself believe that as long as he was there, their eyes locked together from across the room, everything would be okay.
She clenched her jaw as the heat licked its way over her chest and to her neck. She tried to concentrate on Alec, but as the heat found her cheeks she let loose an agonizing scream. She threw her head back with her cry, fighting to get free of the pain. Her whole body writhed with agony, and she tried desperately to drag herself away from Kellen, using her elbows to pull her body toward Alec and reaching out a desperate hand to him for help.
***
Isauria’s heart twisted, breaking into a million pieces as she watched Ariana reach for Alec and beg him to help her. He was just as powerless as she was. Bianca had pulled her to the wall next to Alec once the light had begun to erupt from Ariana’s body. She wrapped her arms around Isauria as she thrashed, trying just as desperately to get to her sister as Alec was. The paion hugged her tight as she sobbed.
“Please stop,” they heard a soft voice whisper.
Isauria looked up, her sobs quieted as she stared up at Kellen’s daughter. “Please make it stop,” she responded, though she knew Sheridan couldn’t hear her.
“I can’t…” Sheridan shook her head, seeming to argue with herself. “I can’t. Please.” She turned her head, watching as her mother grabbed the girl by the hair and dragged her to a set of chains hanging from the middle of the ceiling. She cupped her hand over her mouth as if she was stifling her own protests as her own tears began to flow without control.
“Oh god…she’s done this before,” Isauria voiced her own realization. “She’s done this to her own daughter.”
The same thought occurred to Alec. “She’s done this to you, hasn’t she?”
Sheridan nodded as her shoulders quivered with emotion and hunched over, trying to close herself off from the terrible scene before her. “I never know if she’ll stop…”
“Please, help Ariana,” Alec begged. “Only you can, Sher. Help me save her. Don’t let Kellen do this to someone else.”
“Please,” Isauria echoed Alec. “Please save her. I can’t watch her die, too. Please.”
Ariana let out an agonizing cry and Sheridan whimpered. Slowly, she lowered her hand to release him, and Alec immediately launched himself onto Kellen. He yanked her away from Ariana and threw Kellen across the room, her head hitting the concrete with a sickening crack. Sheridan let out a horrified cry, running to her mother’s aid, but Alec only had eyes for Ariana. He lifted her into his arms, cradling her head against his shoulder, and carried her from the hell they were in, still unaware of the presence of Isauria and Bianca as they trailed behind.
***
Zelene felt like a zombie. She hadn’t slept much. Ellowyn had stayed up all night talking to her, still worried Zelene would run off after Kyle. But Zelene wouldn’t. She hated it, but she knew Ellowyn was probably right. Kyle had been taken to lure her away from her defenses.
Zelene was walking aimlessly through the corridors near the leigheas, wishing she had spent more time here with Kyle, when she heard screams coming from Isauria's room. She rushed in to find her sister thrashing around on the bed, Bianca next to her, gripping her hand. Liam towered over them, his strong arms pinning his ward to the bed as her legs kicked around with each cry. Zelene ran to their side to help. She turned to say something to Liam, but then Varrick was suddenly between them.
"What's happening?" Varrick demanded.
"We don't know," Liam said helplessly as Isauria struggled against his hold. "Bianca was trying to make a connection with her, and she started to scream. I think something went wrong. We can't break the connection."
"It's not the connection," Varrick said as Isauria's thrashing ceased. "It's Ariana."
"What do you mean?" Zelene asked.
Isauria quieted, letting out small whimpers. Glancing between the pained expressions both Isauria and Varrick wore, Zelene worried for her twin. Logically, she knew none of this was her fault, but she felt responsible all the same.
Varrick's face scrunched up as though he were in agony. "They're hurting her. Badly. I can feel her…." His hand gripped his chest as if he could claw his heart out, his face pulled into a grimace from the turmoil he clearly felt.
Zelene’s heart broke for Varrick. She had never seen him this upset before, and his vulnerability shook her to her core. He had always been a rock in her life, and now he looked so helpless. She threw her arms around his waist, burying her face in his chest. She could feel his heart racing against her cheek and squeezed him tighter. "We'll find her, Varrick."
Varrick hugged her back and gave the top of her head a light kiss. "You shouldn't be here, kiddo."
"You can't protect me from this, Varrick." Zelene pulled away and looked at her Cyneward with determination. She knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she had to do something to help Ariana. For all his flaws, Kyle had been right about one thing. She might not be able to do any magic, but magic was not necessarily her strength. She could see that now. For the first time since her arrival, Zelene felt like she might have a purpose. "None of you can. If we're meant to save the worlds and end this war, then we need to be out there doing something. And we should start with rescuing my sister."
Liam eased himself onto the edge of the bed, exchanging a weary look with Varrick that spoke volumes. "If you were to go after her, then all you would be doing is giving Kellen another opportunity to strike. The Duillaine are doing everything they can, I’m sure."
"They aren't doing enough," Zelene shot back. "If they’re too busy planning festivals to do the heavy lifting, then they should move out of the way and let us do it," she argued and then pointing at her older sister, she continued. "We can use what she sees to help Ariana. She can g
uide us to where they are, and then we can bring her back."
Before the argument could continue, Bianca shot up in the bed, releasing her hand from Isauria's like the seer’s hand was on fire. The paion’s forehead was beaded with sweat as she looked around at the people surrounding her. She flew out of the bed, rushed to the basin on the other side of the room, and vomited.
"They tried to escape," she said between ragged breaths as she clung to the basin. "And were caught. Kellen’s punishing them."
"Them?" Zelene asked.
"Ariana and the boy she is with," Bianca explained, then splashed her face with water from a nearby pale. She lowered herself into the seat next to the basin and looked to Varrick as if she were answering a question. "His name is Alec. He's been a prisoner for some time now. He seems to care for Ariana. He knows who she truly is and is trying to help her."
"What happened to Ariana?" Varrick demanded.
Bianca wiped her face off with a towel and stood up. "Kellen was torturing her. She was punishing them for trying to escape, but more than that. She was trying to use Ariana's pain to hurt the boy. He managed to get free and attack Kellen, but I don't know any more. I managed to calm Isauria down and take her to another memory that seemed to bring her comfort."
"Is Ariana okay?" Zelene asked in a small voice. She knew what it was like to have a psycho 'punishing' you for supposed transgressions, and she wouldn't wish that kind of pain on anyone.
Bianca gave a stiff nod. "I think so. Kellen doesn't want her dead, so we might still have some time yet." She looked down to her patient with worry. "Though I'm not sure I can say the same for Isauria."
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
There was hardly a sound coming from their room, the silence so intense their very breath seemed to echo off the stone walls surrounding them. They hadn't moved nor said a word since Alec had carried her back into the room they shared. He sat in the middle of the bed, Ariana still in his arms and her broken body draped across his lap. Her head rested in the crook of his elbow, slow tears leaking down her face and across his arm. He stared forward despondently, and Ariana knew he must be thinking the same thing as her: They had crossed a line with Kellen there would be no coming back from. When she came at them again, her vengeance would be like nothing they had ever experienced before.
"I wanted her to kill me," Ariana said, her voice soft and somewhat flat. She felt as though she wasn't here, wasn't speaking these words. "I've never wanted to die before," she continued, "but I did today." Her pained gaze flicked up to his. "Part of me still does."
He lifted her with the arm she rested against so her head slipped onto his shoulder and wrapped his free hand around her, careful to avoid her blistered arms. "Don't say that. I promised you I would get you out of here, and I will. Just give me the chance."
"What if you were right before?" she whispered into his chest. She could see everything so clearly now. She had felt the power within her awaken as Kellen had tried to weaken her. The elements had washed over her and through her like nothing before. She had known in that moment with a certainty she would never be able to explain that she held the power within her to destroy everything. She was more afraid that everyone would be much safer if she were dead than of what Kellen might do to her. "You told them I was better off dead than being used by Kellen,” she reminded his as she lifted her face to meet his eyes. “What if you were right?"
Alec shook his head, his dark curls clinging to his cheek from where his own tears had stained them and turned his skin sticky. "I wasn't. You're the only hope we have, Ariana. Without you, our worlds are doomed to be at war with each other, destroying everything until there's nothing left to fight over. You must stay strong. We will get through this. Together."
Ariana wasn’t convinced. Kellen had pushed her to the very edge of herself, to a dark side she had been hiding within. She couldn't help but feel this darkness had swallowed her whole, taking everything she was and leaving nothing in return. She could tell Alec was trying to pull her from the shadows of herself, but she wasn't sure it would be worth the fight. She turned to the side and stared at the door as a knock sounded against the wood.
Sheridan came in, carrying fresh water and what Ariana assumed to be an ointment. She felt genuine relief at seeing the young girl she had been so keen to take under her wing. She wanted to resent her, but she had seen that Alec had been right in his assessment of Sheridan: she was just as much a victim as they were, maybe more.
"I brought this to...I thought you might need to clean up. See to your wounds before they get infected," Sheridan said as she slammed the basin onto the table.
Ariana wondered if that would really be such a bad thing. Would she rather die peacefully from a sickness, or in terror from being tortured? She choked back a laugh, thinking about how just weeks ago the biggest decision she had to make was which college to go to. "Is Kellen dead?"
"No," Sheridan answered, her jaw tight. "My mother will recover." She turned to Alec, looking at him as though he had betrayed her. "What were you thinking, attacking her like that? You could have killed her, Alec!"
He breathed in deep, his nostrils flaring. "That was the point, Sheridan. With Kellen dead, the three of us would finally be free."
She waved her hands frantically. "No! Do not even think that. Without my mother, our hope is lost. She has united our people. She has done more for the worlds than the Duillaine have in almost a century. She is the one who tends to the sick and the poor who are shunned from Estridia. She is the one who seeks equality for the downtrodden races like yours."
"She is also the one who tortures and kills those who don't bend to her will," he fired back.
"This is war, Alec. And it isn't going to be won by hugging your enemies," Sheridan argued fervently. "There is suffering and pain with any war, and my mother inflicts no more than any other great leader would. She will lead us to victory. And together, she and my father will make our worlds better than you can imagine."
"When should we be expecting her?" he asked as he shifted Ariana off him and laid her gently across the bed. He padded over to retrieve the salve and the water from the table.
Ariana tried to fight the tears of sympathy forming as she watched them. Alec stood before the person he had described as his childhood friend, the one he told Ariana he used to chase around as they played war with their wooden swords. Now, the war seemed to be a thick wall standing firmly between the two of them. Ariana understood the subtext of his question and knew Sheridan did as well. He wanted to know how much time he had to escape with Ariana before Kellen came back for them.
"She'll need some time before she is back to her old self again. Maybe a few days." Sheridan shifted uncomfortably. "I should go. Do you have everything you need to tend to Ariana?"
"No," Ariana heard herself saying to both their surprises. Even as she lay there feeling closer to death than she ever had before, a plan started to formulate through the fog of her mind, and Ariana realized with an invigorating jolt she wanted to live.
Sheridan stepped around Alec. "What do you need?"
Ariana reached a weak hand out. "I need you. Please."
Sheridan’s thin lips parted, and she let out a quavering breath. She walked forward and took Ariana’s blistered hand gingerly in her own as if she were afraid of causing her further damage. "What can I do?"
Ariana’s lavender eyes turned vulnerably up to her companion. "We were friends before, right?" she paused as Sheridan nodded. "Then will you help me?"
Sheridan started to step away, but Ariana squeezed her hand. "I can't, Ariana. You don't understand...I know you don't understand her ways, but you have to look at the big picture—"
Ariana used her grip on her friend to pull herself into seating position stiffly. "No, I don't mean I want you to help me escape. I just...." she flushed, slightly embarrassed. "Kellen did the thing where the heat crawls up your body, you know what I'm talking about?" She tried to hide her pity and disgust as Kellen's daughter no
dded, paling. "Well, I think my chest got the brunt of the damage. I need a girl friend to help me get the salve on."
Sheridan covered Ariana's hand with her own. "I understand. And that I can help with." She turned to Alec. "Could you give us some privacy?"
He nodded and turned his back. Sheridan scoffed and walked around him, taking the mortar from him before walking over to the door and opening it.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"Something I probably shouldn't," she answered sardonically. "I'm trusting you to stand out here and behave." She addressed the guards now. "Alec is to remain out here with you while I tend to the Ainnir Ariana in private. Do not let him leave, and if he tries, alert me immediately."
"So much for trust," he muttered as he walked past her and greeted the guards with a bow. "Gentlemen."
Sheridan stuck her tongue out at Alec's back. “Sometimes I think he manages to annoy me more than my own brother,” she said before turning back to Ariana. "There. Just us girls now."
Ariana tried to muster up a weak smile in return. "Thank you," she said, her voice croaking. She hadn't noticed how sore her throat was from screaming and crying for hours on end. She felt like she had swallowed gravel and every inch of her body ached with pain and exhaustion, but she knew this would be her best opportunity to lay the groundwork for the plan forming in her mind.
Sheridan shrugged as if to say it was nothing. "I'm happy to help. And...I feel like I owe you."
Ariana lifted her brows, sarcasm painted across her face as she responded. "Because you got me kidnapped and dragged me to the seventh circle of hell?"
"No," Sheridan answered, drawing out the word before turning serious. She blended the concoction in the mortar, twirling the mixture around with her fingers. Her eyes grew reflective as she stirred, not actually focusing on what she was doing. "Because of Emma. If I had better control of my men, she would still be alive. I really didn't mean for any of this to happen," she said with the heavy weight of guilt in her words.
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