“Worst mistake of my life.” Thom said, “I should have left him there. Having to spend the next three hundred years in hiding, trying to get your best friend back from the mess your Father had created of him, only to see him end up captured with no memory, is not something I would like to repeat.”
“Tell me about it,” I groaned unhappily. I wound my hands together in my lap, wishing that everyone would be okay. Wyn, Talon, Ryland, and now Ilyan were on top of that list. I sighed and slammed my back into the chair. Dramin reached over and patted my leg like a comforting grandfather, the action awakening something in me as I forced back a smile.
“So you were in hiding?” I asked. After all, I could relate.
“I’m still in hiding,” Thom grumbled, “My existence, and Sain’s, had to be kept as much of a secret as possible. If Ovailia found out about us, there is no telling what she would do. And while Ilyan has his suspicions, none of us want to find out what Edmund would do with us.”
“How did they find you?” I asked, not wanting to dwell on all the negative that had happened in the past few hours.
“We were in college, pretending to be Seniors. And we were bored out of our minds. And then, one day, we saw him – Cail.” I visibly froze and Thom stopped briefly. He turned toward me, his eyes narrowing a bit. “I hid Sain with a human family and erased his memory in case he was found. I pulled Cail off his trail. I was only able to return when I knew it was safe, about ten years later, but without a true memory of his past, he had married. I stayed nearby, but I couldn’t see any signs of magic from you, so I left. Content to give him a normal life and return when the time was right.”
I was not sure what to say. I ran through the story, the fact that my life had been a giant sham becoming more of an irritating reality. I shook my head and tried to bring forward any amount of strength or confidence I could find. It wasn’t much.
“How did you know Edmund had found you simply because you saw Cail?” I asked.
“When you see Cail, Edmund and Timothy are not far behind. Even if you don’t see them, they are always there.”
“Why?” I shook my head trying to clear the image and the memory of Cail and Ilyan fighting out of my mind. “How do you know that?”
Thom sat up all the way and leaned forward. His blue eyes shimmered in the firelight as he looked toward me. “When Cail was born, it was decided that Edmund needed a new bodyguard. So Edmund and Timothy both infused the infant with a ?tít of their magic. However, Edmund also placed his there to give Cail power. You see, Edmund placed his ?tít right inside Cail’s heart. From birth, Edmund’s wicked power has influenced him. And from birth, Cail has been taught how to use Edmund’s power as his own. All with the knowledge that if he steps one toe out of line, Edmund can kill him no matter where he is.”
I gasped, my hand subconsciously moving to my shoulder where Ilyan’s weak tendrils still swirled within me.
“Yes,” Thom nodded, “I know that Ilyan has done something similar to you.” I saw Dramin’s head spin toward me at Thom’s words, but I ignored it.
“I will admit I was shocked when I was healing him and suddenly my energy moved across the room. But Ilyan’s ?tít in you is different than what resides in Cail’s body. Ilyan has placed his there to protect you. Besides, I doubt you could use his magic to your benefit. Even trying to hold Ilyan’s magic inside of you would kill you.”
Thom laughed as if he had told a great joke and lay back against the couch again. I let my eyes flow away from Thom to Ilyan’s still body.
But I had held Ilyan’s magic. He had accidently pushed too much within me when setting up the ?tít, and I had survived. And I was sure he had done it again when using the Stutter to get us here. I shook my head and looked away.
“So Cail can use Edmund’s magic?” I asked before drinking the last of the liquid from my mug.
“Yes,” Dramin answered, “although I don’t think he does very often. I am not sure he can without Edmund’s express permission.”
I nodded and looked away from him, into my empty cup. I knew exactly when Cail was using Edmund’s magic with his permission – every night, when he haunted my dreams. I didn’t dare look over to Ilyan. I wished I could talk to him, tell him I had figured it out. Even though I am sure he already knew, I needed tell him... needed someone to understand. I shook my head and looked up, cringing a bit to see Dramin staring at me.
“What is it?” I wasn’t sure if he didn’t know or was just being polite in asking, but either way, I still didn’t want to answer. After all they would both find out tonight when I woke up screaming with no one there to calm me.
“Ummm...” I asked the first thing that came to my mind, lifting the empty mug to make my intent clear. “Can I have some more?”
“I’ll get it,” Thom grunted from the other side of the fire, as he lifted himself up to a sitting position.
“Don’t bother,” Dramin said as he waved his hand, the mug filling with the dark brown fluid.