“Experiments?” Rasha’s eyes blossom red as she focuses thicker on him. Searching for his answer, and for Draewulf’s weakness if she’s smart.
“We are all aware there are darker things in this world, yes?” he asks. “Varying shades of good and evil? Sometimes people play with things that aren’t theirs to alter. In one of Draewulf’s experiments, he discovered a way to absorb things. Powers and spirits, life energy from others, for lack of a better explanation. The ability to do so granted him incredible abilities, but it also came with a price. His attempt to cheat that price has been to live shifted in wolf form. Sometimes the consequences of altering things are mild, but sometimes they’re disastrous.”
I swallow and shift uncomfortably at the sudden itching beneath my skin. It feels like the spider’s crawling through my veins. I am not Draewulf.
“Now if you both are quite done . . .”
Rasha gives me a side glance. “What was the price?”
Why is she looking at me? What I did was my only option and it’s going to bring us victory.
“Tell us and we’ll leave you be,” Rasha coaxes Sir Gowon.
He stares at her as if he’d desperately like to believe that. “My apologies, but we are done here. The guards will see you—”
I flick him my glare. “What does the Elegy say?” When he ignores me, I reach a hand for his waist-shirt and twist.
He grips a hand over mine. “You’ll kindly unhand me.”
I step closer. Squeeze harder. The hissing from outside the room grows louder in my head. “What does it say?” I demand. “What does Eogan think has begun?” Suddenly my arms are crawling and my veins, my chest . . .
“Nym, stop!” Rasha says.
“Read his intentions. What do you see?”
Her hand tugs at me. “You’re going to kill him!”
“He has the information we need.”
“We’ll find it another way. We’ll ask Isobel! You can’t do—”
Can’t I? I stare at her as the heat from my fury floods the ice in my blood. I am beyond finished with this man’s uncaring for the world going to the pit of hulls all around him while he stays in his comfortable fool ignorance. Then the dark from my chest is climbing up until I’m pressing against him, draining the words, the knowledge we need as the wraiths’ hissing in the hall becomes thunderous.
He whimpers.
I pull, yanking the energy from his chest bones. Like marrow I can taste.
Sir Gowon wheezes and stumbles forward. He opens his mouth and I sense it—the words on the tip of his confused, tormented mind.
“Nym!”
I barely feel Rasha’s hands because I swear I will make him speak or else—
“When shadows are sown to sinew and bone, and darkness rules the land,” he gasps.
“Let storms collide and Elisedd’s hope arise,
Before the beast forces fate’s hand.
Just as from one it came and to five was entrusted, to only one it can go, to rule or to seek justice.
If his demise is to be Elemental,
Interrupt the blood of kings in each land.”
I stare.
“Elegy 96 is a prophecy,” he slurs. “Handed down for generations of Bron kings. It’s a fortelling of what is to come.”
Twenty seconds go by as every vein in my body is curling up like roots around my chest. Interrupt the blood of kings.
He’s taking the blood in order. He needed Eogan first.
“Nym, let him go,” Rasha whispers next to my ear.
One heartpulse. I can feel his thudding beneath my hand.
Two heartpulses.
Three . . . I shake my head. “Not until he tells us more. What does it mean interrupt the blood of kings? What exactly will Eogan’s block protect him from? And who exactly is he taking in order?” Did the witch know of this? Is it supposed to be a caution? A teaching? I press against him harder, but his head wrenches backward at a bizarre angle.
My gaze darkens. I peer down at my hand, which was deformed but is now near straight and perfect, and for the first time notice how fascinating it is.
How powerful.
He’s choking on deep guttural breaths as his lungs shiver beneath my hand. His heartpulse flailing, flailing, flailing as his life seeps away, dissolving into thin black wisps that tickle my skin.
Rasha’s hands are around my waist and she’s yanking me back. Next thing I know the power is gone along with the connection.
And I’m shuddering so hard.
I look up at both of them. Her expression is horrified. His just looks odd. Gray. As if he’s dying. I blink and feel the cold and hunger fade.
Suddenly I’m seeing him standing there so feeble and weak and oh litches what have I done? I jerk back and stare in dread at them, at my fingers, my palms. He begins to slump forward and I go to steady him but he pushes me away.
“Guards!” he gasps. “Take them! Lock them in their rooms!” He peers at me. “Your power is like . . . like . . .” He shakes his head and stumbles again.
I did this to him.
I hurt him.
I look at Rasha and everything in me turns ill. I glance back at him, but he’s already walking away while the guards grab my arms and shove us from the room and into the hall toward our quarters.
CHAPTER 30
TING.
Thump.