“Cleiona was destroyed in her final battle with Valoria,” she countered.
“The word destroyed can mean so many things,” he said. “Perhaps only her magic was destroyed. Perhaps she was then free to live the life of a mortal at the side of the man she’d fallen in love with. Isn’t that possible?”
Kyan could be lying. In fact, Cleo was quite sure of it.
Breathe, she told herself. Don’t let him try to distract you.
“Is that why the water Kindred chose me?” she whispered. “Because I have . . . some sort of magic already inside me?”
Magic that I can use to fight this, she thought.
He shook his head. “No. You have no magic naturally within you, but don’t feel badly about that. Most mortals don’t, even those descended from immortals.”
Disappointment seeped through her.
That same muscle twitched in Kyan’s cheek again. “Taran, Olivia, I want to speak with Cleo alone. Do you mind giving us some privacy for a few moments?”
“What do you have to say to her that you can’t say in our presence?” Taran asked.
“I’ll ask again,” Kyan replied tightly. “Allow us a moment of privacy. Perhaps I can convince Cleo to stop fighting against the water Kindred and make this easier for all of us.”
Olivia sighed with annoyance. “Very well. Taran, come, we will take a walk around the temple.”
“Very well.” With a nod, Taran joined Olivia as they left the temple.
Kyan stood silently in front of Cleo.
“Well?” Cleo said. “Speak your mind, although I assure you it will take more than words for me to give up this fight.”
“That’s what I’ve always loved most about you, Cleo,” he said quietly. “You never stop fighting.”
Her breath caught. And she looked up into Kyan’s eyes.
Kyan never called her Cleo. Just “little queen.”
“Nic . . . ?” she ventured, her throat tight.
“Yes,” he said, his expression strained. “It’s me. It’s really me.”
She covered her mouth with the back of her hand as shock swept through her. Then she searched his face, fearful of letting herself feel any joy. “How is this possible? Are you back?”
“No,” he said. “He’ll regain control soon—that’s why we need to be quick.”
“What happened?” she asked. “How is this possible?”
“In the woods, not far from Amara’s compound”—Nic touched his arm—“Magnus was there, and he grabbed me—or, rather, he grabbed Kyan—and I don’t know why, but it was like a slap to the face, waking me up. Ashur was there too. I—I thought he might have done some kind of magic, some spell that caused me to regain a tiny bit of presence . . . I don’t know. It might have been my imagination that he was even there.”
“Ashur is still with us,” Cleo said. “He won’t leave, not for any reason. He’s determined to help save you, Nic.”
Hope filled his brown eyes. “I’ve been such an annoyance to him from the moment we first met.”
“Funny . . .” A small smile pulled at her lips. “I think he believes the opposite.”
“Ever since then, I have moments of control, like this, when the fire god isn’t conscious. Kyan blames the interrupted ritual, but I know it’s more than that. It doesn’t happen to Olivia that I’m aware of.”
Cleo reached toward him, touching his freckled cheek. He clasped his hand on top of hers and squeezed it. Hot tears spilled down her cheeks.
“Can we stop them?” she asked, her throat raw.
Nic took a breath before he replied. “Kyan wants the orbs. All four of them. And then he needs Princess Lucia to do the ritual again. He truly believes that she will do it without argument and it will go perfectly, giving the four of them ultimate power. They don’t have it yet. Their magic has its limits.”
“When does he want the ritual to happen?” she asked.
“I don’t know exactly. Soon. Very soon. He met with Lucia at the palace, presented his plan to her. Left it in her hands to decide, but he has no doubt that she will join them.” His voice dropped to a whisper. “Cleo, I think Lucia’s still evil.”
Cleo shook her head. “No, I don’t believe that. Kyan has her baby. He stole Lyssa from her cradle. Don’t you remember that? Where is she right now?”
“Lyssa? I—I don’t know.” Nic’s eyes full of shock at this news, he shook his head. “I’m not always conscious. I see very little, but what little I do see and hear, I remember. Like . . . I very clearly remember when Kyan marked Kurtis—made him into his slave. I remember the way he screamed.”
“I don’t care about Kurtis.”
His expression grew pained. “I’m trying to think, but I don’t remember ever seeing Lyssa here. I remember Kyan went to visit Lucia at the palace, but . . . I don’t remember him taking the baby. She could be anywhere.”
Cleo tried to think it through, tried to piece together this puzzle. “What happens if Kyan doesn’t possess the crystals?”
“Then he will burn the world,” the water Kindred told her. “And everyone in it.”
A shiver went down Cleo’s spine.
“Nothing good,” Nic said, then he swore under his breath. “I can’t hold on to this control for much longer. But you have to. You can’t let what happened to Taran happen to you. You can’t let the water Kindred take you over.”
Cleo pulled off one of her silk gloves and touched the blue lines on her hand. “I don’t know how much longer I can resist. Every time I feel like I’m drowning, I’m certain I will die.”
“Stay strong,” Nic urged. “Because you need to gather the orbs together and destroy all four of them.”
She gasped. “What?”
“Ridiculous. He doesn’t know what he’s saying,” the water Kindred sneered, yet there was something now in its voice, something pained. “Ignore him. Listen only to Kyan. He will help you.”
“Kyan helps no one but himself,” Cleo muttered, and then louder: “Nic, what do you mean destroy them? The orbs are the Kindred’s prisons.”
He shook his head. “Not prisons . . . not exactly. The orbs are anchors, princess. Anchors keeping them on this level of existence. If you destroy all four, then there will be no remaining ties to this world for them.”
“You know this? You know this for certain?”
Nic nodded. “Yes.”
“Foolish boy,” the water Kindred snarled. “He speaks his last words, full of falsehood and desperation. So mortal, so pathetic.”
The more fiercely the water Kindred protested, the more Cleo was certain that Nic was right.
“I . . . I can’t hold on,” Nic managed, then he cried out in pain. “You need to go . . . go now and do as I say. Don’t let them catch you!”
A wall of fire blazed up around him, forming a circle of flames and blocking him from Cleo’s view.
She wanted to help Nic, wanted him to escape with her, but knew that couldn’t happen. Not now.
Cleo turned and ran out of the temple, as far and as fast as she could.
CHAPTER 24
NIC
AURANOS
All he could see were flames, as tall as he was, surrounding him on every side.