It’s obvious that they can’t see me, because I’m literally standing right beside Dravin.
“I’m doing the best I can here,” Dr. Arden says. “Extracting magic without harming the individual is a complicated process. I know I said I was prepared to do it before, but I won’t risk harming her. It’s not perfect yet. It has to be perfect.”
“You will do it when I find her whether you are ready or not. I won’t risk her getting away again.”
“I will not risk killing my daughter because of you. I’ve seen what you’ve done to her already. I will not stand for any more. You need me Dravin, but if you harm another hair on her, I’ll quit. If I knew that Maureen was pregnant, I never would have walked away and you know that.”
“Maureen is dead, so get over that. We have a blood promise, Jedrek. I keep you alive. You help me. You can’t quit. You’re stuck here. Do you really want the Fates to come after you? The fact that the girl from the prophecy happens to be your daughter is just a random turn of events. It’s a coincidence. It doesn’t change anything. I saved your life. You owe me. If you have to repay that debt with your daughter’s life, then so be it. You WILL find a way to give me her magic. It’d be a shame to waste such a pretty thing, but if I have to kill her to get her powers, I will. There’s NOTHING you can do about it. Is that clear?”
Jedrek Arden stands up and glares at Dravin. I take a step back even though I know neither of them can see me, but Jedrek looks very menacing. With wide large brown eyes and flared nostrils, he says, “I will not let you kill Ryanne. End of story.”
“Not the end, my friend.” Dravin says as he turns to leave the room. “We’re just now getting to the rising action. The climax is coming. Ryanne’s a threat. If you can’t extract her magic, I’ll just kill her, and that’s certainly not the ending you want. It’s your choice,” Dravin’s threat lingers heavy in the air after he has left the room.
Jedrek stares at the empty doorway for a few moments before he jumps up, pushes all the paper off his desk, and starts pacing the room as the sheets rain down around him. Stopping in front of the brick wall, he brings his arm back and punches the wall. I wince and move toward him. He clenches his fist and then slowly opens his hand, revealing a long jagged scar running along his palm. He turns around and leans back against the wall. I take a small step toward him.
There’s so much emotion in his expression. His dark eyes are widened and glistening with memories while his nostrils are flared, and his mouth is set in a straight line. He seems very conflicted. With a sigh, he turns and looks directly at me. “I’m so sorry, Ryanne,” he whispers.
“You can see me?”I ask.
“I don’t know if you can hear me, but I’ll find a way out of this. I won’t let him hurt you again,” he says quietly. He can’t see me, but he knows I’m listening. “I promise, I’ll do something. I’m so sorry about all of this.”
I open my eyes and look around the room. Groaning, I sit up. My head is throbbing. I actually landed on the hard floor this time. Colton is sitting right beside me. “What? You couldn’t catch me?” I tease him.
“I’m sorry,” he says as he helps me stand up. I sway a little and lean back against Colton’s chest. Whoa, the room is spinning. I feel hands wrap around my forearm as the dizziness fades. I blink the room back into focus and meet a pair of worried blue eyes. “Thank you,” I tell Logan.
“What did you see?” he asks me.
I step away from Colton and sit back down in the chair. “I saw Dravin and…Dr. Arden talking. I think the conversation already happened through.”
“What were they talking about?” Tom asks.
“Me,” I whisper. I explain the vision to everyone in full detail. I don’t leave out any information. I’m not sure of the significance of it all, so I need those with mage information to help me.
“The Fates are after Jedrek?” Tom asks.
“What does that mean exactly?”
Colin turns toward me and explains, “It means that Jedrek is supposed to be dead. Dravin knew that he’d need Jedrek at some point, so he made him promise his life to him. A blood promise is permanent. You can’t break them without dying.”
“When Dravin left the room, he said ‘I’m so sorry, Ryanne.’ At first, I thought Dr. Arden could see me, but I know he couldn’t. He promised that he’d find a way out of this, and he wouldn’t let Dravin hurt me again.”
“You can’t start to feel something for him, Ry. There’s a chance that something could happen to him in the upcoming days,” Colton says.