I bit my tongue hard enough for the coppery taste of blood to fill my mouth lest I begin to do something embarrassing—like cry.
The meeting started, but I only caught bits and pieces as my focus ebbed and flowed. Something about Torin’s new powers, Ellowyn incapacitated, and securing ships, but giving up Iluul. There was more nuance to it, judging by the worried and drawn expressions of everyone else in the room, but it slipped between my fingers like smoke.
Until Lex spoke and I caught Itanya’s name.
My heart thundered in my chest, joining with the buzzing in my ears to drown his voice completely, even though this was information I desperately wanted to know.
I watched as expressions turned stricken, color draining from each person’s face as Lex continued to speak.
It took minutes and a herculean effort that I was certain would have me exhausted by the end of the meeting, but I squinted my eyes at Lex, desperately focusing on his voice.
It warbled through my consciousness, like I was listening underwater, but I fought to hear fully.
The noises were instantly overwhelming, threatening to force me back under once more, but I fought the rising panic, letting the sounds of clothes rustling, throats clearing, and fingers tapping against wood wash over me.
I closed my eyes, zeroing in on Lex’s voice.
“She’s there, with them. They’re . . . using her.”
“For what?” Torin barked, his distress making me wince, though I was certain no one noticed.
“For things that are better left unsaid in front of fragile minds.” The Bondsmith’s voice cut through the bickering males, tension thickening with her input.
“She hasn’t responded to any of us in weeks,Bondsmith. Unless you’ve forgotten what you did to her?” Torin’s ire was palpable, and I could feel the heat of his magic as it blazed to life in his palm.
I winced slightly at the pain where his hand rested against my leg, both of us jumping in surprise at my acknowledgement.
“Fo?” Torin turned to me, his voice and expression softening instantly. I couldn’t look at him, though. My eyes were drawn to the Bondsmith.
Our gazes connected, both wrought with pain and understanding.
“Tell me,” I rasped. The Bondsmith’s mouth flattened into a grim line, her hands coming to rest together on the table.
“Are you sure?”
“You cannot be serious?” Peytor jumped in. “This is the first she’s been aware since Itanya was taken. Are we actually going to tell her what’s in that?—”
“It’s her child. Her right,” the Bondsmith interjected calmly, never peeling her icy gaze from my own.
“Tell me,” I reiterated, much to the displeasure of three of the four men in the room.
“They are harvesting her blood to use as a conduit,” the Bondsmith said bluntly. As much as I hated her for not protecting my child, I appreciated her directness. I didn’t need soft hands and words, I need honesty, even if it was brutal.
“Conduit?” I asked.
“Like Faylinn,” Lex intoned, glaring daggers at the Bondsmith. The goddess didn’t so much as flinch, just nodded her head in agreement.
“Yes. When Razia and his wife offered to raise her, I acquiesced immediately, not knowing their more nefarious intentions. They acted like they would raise her in love, but they hid their true motivations.”
“Razia has a wife?” Talamh asked, clinging to the wrong information, though even I couldn’t deny that piece was interesting.
“Had,” the goddess said with a malicious smile that sent shivers down my spine. “I ripped her bones from her body for what she did to my child.”
Her eyes flashed with something dangerous and otherworldly before looking at me once more.
“I only regret that Razia escaped my wrath,” she hissed. “But it is how it was supposed to be.”
“What does this have to do with my daughter?” I asked, trying to route the conversation back to the important pieces.
