“My name is Claire,” I told him flatly, hands on my hips.
“I’m aware,” he replied, glancing up at the stars littering the sky. “I need you to close your eyes and focus on your bond with Titus. Tell me what he’s doing.”
“He’s helping Vox and Sol find their room, as you commanded, Your Highness.”
His mouth flattened into lines of disapproval. “I’m trying to help you, Claire. Shut your fucking eyes, search for Titus, and tell me exactly what he’s doing.”
Gah, I wanted to smack him again. Kick him. Hurt him. “You’re such an asshole.”
“And you’re a weakling, but here we are. I need you to find my brother, and the sooner you do that, the sooner I’m gone. So shut your damn eyes and focus on Titus.”
A scream built in my throat, one underlined in profanities and insults all designed for this Royal Fae jackass. I was not weak. Fucking prick. I slammed my eyes closed and found Titus, his emotions a tangle of concern and annoyance. He wanted to peek out the windows to check on me but was instead helping Vox and Sol find a room near mine. A part of him was thankful that Exos had sent a cleaning crew through the dorm, readying several beds in preparation for others to move in.
He’d wanted to grow my mentorship team and find guards, something I knew, and Titus seemed to respect the decision.
“He’s two doors away from my room, showing Vox the bathroom that connects to another room, which he’s recommending for Sol.” I opened my eyes. “And he’s considering whether or not he needs to come out here and flame your ass.”
Cyrus chuckled. “I wish he would. It’s been a while since a worthy fae challenged me. I’m honestly bored.”
Flames flickered over my fingers, the urge to send a fireball into his chest consuming. But a wave of his hand cooled my fiery energy, water perspiring over my skin in the shadow of his power. “Save your rebellion for someone in your league, little queen,” he said, his gaze holding a touch of ice that sent a shiver down my spine.
While Exos’s gaze resembled the darkest depths of the ocean, Cyrus’s irises were coated in a glimmering silver blue that painted him in an almost otherworldly glow.
Gorgeous, my brain supplied. But only on the outside.
“I want you to repeat what you just did, but locate Exos,” he said, tucking his hands into the pockets of his suit pants. “Tell me where he is.”
“Did you mishear the part where I told you the connection is broken?” I asked, irritated beyond belief by this male’s arrogance and lack of regard. Okay, yes, crying all evening had been a poor use of time, but I felt Exos’s spirit disappear. It had destroyed me. What the fuck
did he expect me to do? Run around looking for an enigma?
God, I hate this, I thought, suddenly exhausted. Where are you, Exos?
“Try” was all Cyrus said.
Try, I repeated sarcastically. Yeah, fine. I’ll try.
I shut my eyes for show, then focused on the part of me tied to Titus. His warmth flowed back, caressing me with his energy and love and basking me in the familiarity of his fire. My lips almost curled, the relief he provided palpable.
But I needed to prod a little deeper, search for the distorted link that left an anchor of pain in my heart.
Exos, I whispered, my relief dissipating into agony. The jagged edges of our connection cut deep, the pain spiking inside me and shredding my spirit into two halves.
Tears gathered in my eyes, threatening to fall as I tugged on the snapped tether binding our spirits. Only, the rope didn’t slacken the way I expected it to, didn’t reveal the frayed end I’d anticipated.
No, it held.
My lips curled down, confused.
What was it holding on to?
I followed the thin line with my mind, creeping across the dark chasm of my soul, to the obsidian that lay beyond, unmoving.
Unconscious, my mind supplied. Exos is unconscious.
What was it Cyrus had said? His brother was taking a nap?
Well, not exactly.