“I will not let us use her as bait to feed his twisted fantasies. She is—” He stopped, knowing he was becoming too visibly flustered.Control yourself. He had forgotten what it was like to fear losing someone.
“She’s what, brother?” Aidan asked, a grin on his face.
“She isinnocent.” Rynn glared at him. “Are you all willing to risk an innocent human’s life so we can gain a slight advantage?”
“I want to help,” Isla said as her leg brushed against Rynn’s under the table, out of view from the others. He turned his head to her, disbelief crowding his thoughts. She must not understand what this would mean.
“I don’t want to put you through anything more. You do not have to do this,” he said quietly.
“I know. But it’smydecision, Rynn,” she whispered back, searching his eyes. He could clearly see her heavy determination and a hint of that burning resolve that always came forward when she felt caged.
They held each other’s gaze for a moment. She was so brave. So selfless. Rynn would be remiss if he did not admit a part of him feared this foe and what he could do to the elementals and to Isla. Rynn was built to protect those weaker than him, and everything inside of him wanted to fight for her safety. But perhaps she could fight for herself, for now.
Rynn gave a slight nod; it was the most his body would concede. His hand found her knee under the table and squeezed, his fingers grazing up her leg and stopping, resting there. She swallowed and went still. He had to hide the curve of his lips, his frustration slowly floating away.
Aidan loudly cleared his throat.
Isla jumped in her seat and a blush crept up her neck and cheeks. Still, his hand stayed on her thigh. His mind quieted when he could feel her, for it meant she was safe.
“Well, now that you two have got that settled,” Aidan said, crossing his legs and leaning back in his chair. “Let’s figure out this whole second prophecy nonsense.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Isla
Theirsmallgroupspentthe next couple of hours at the Snapdragon planning their search for the prophecy. The Aataran Mountains were huge, and the idea of scouring every inch to find something so inconspicuous seemed impossible.
Earlier in the afternoon, Rynn had disappeared for half an hour and returned with a few large pieces of parchment and some writing utensils. He had spread the paper out atop the table and quietly mapped out what Isla quickly recognized as the mountain range. She had watched his fingers sweep across the page with charcoal, tendrils of dark hair resting loosely on his forehead as he became engrossed in his work. His touch was delicate and sure, as if he knew the mountains so well that he could picture each detail in his mind. She’d resisted the urge to smooth away the small creases of concentration that had formed in the space between his eyes. When he’d finished, they used his map to plot out a search path.
Isla found it hard to focus as the elementals analyzed the map. Rynn’s blasted fingers had found their way back to her leg, tracing gentle circles on her leggings, sending warmth shooting through her.
The sky outside the tavern had darkened considerably. Rain began pouring soon after they arrived, creating a cozy atmosphere as the five of them sat by the fireplace, the soft tapping of raindrops hitting the roof a backdrop to their planning.
After an hour, Isla caught Kai with her head resting in her hands, staring out the window and slowly moving her finger around. When Isla looked out the glass pane, she saw the water droplets forming various animal shapes and dancing in the rain, presumably at Kai’s command. Little water horses cantering about with dragons flying above them, breathing droplets of fog onto the glass. When she saw Isla watching, Kai had flashed her a grin.
Their talks of preparation slowly morphed to ones of leisure as the afternoon drifted on. Isla and the others relaxed, growing more comfortable and confident. Or perhaps it was simply the rain soothing them. She loved listening to her companions reminisce on their many centuries together, and imagined this was what it should always be like: the four elements at peace with one another and working together toward a common goal. Jade and Rynn had even ceased their arguments—Isla only counted a few snide remarks passed between the two. She made a mental note to ask Rynn later why there was often such hostility between him and Jade.
As they ate lunch and waited for the rain to lighten, the door to the tavern burst open with a bang. The pitter-patter of raindrops on the brick and cobblestone increased as the five of them turned to see what caused the disturbance. A broad-shouldered man with a bearded face and shoulder-length hair took up much of the doorway, dripping water all over the wooden floor.
Isla’s jaw dropped. “Hamil?”
The mountain of a man caught her eyes and strode toward their table, droplets flying off of his soaking wet hair and clothes. Isla quickly blinked away her shock and slipped from under Rynn’s hand to stand up.
“What are you doing here? What’s wrong?” Dread bolted through her. “Is Papa okay?”
Hamil grabbed her by the waist and lifted her into a fierce hug, her front immediately dampening from his wet cloak as she gripped him tightly. The scent of pine trees and campfires—the scent ofhome—hit her, and her eyes misted. Her chest ached from how much she missed it.
“Nothing’s wrong, not anymore,” Hamil said. “Everyone’s fine. Your father isn’t awake yet, but he’s started moving his toes and fingers—the healer says that’s a good sign. But Isla, we were so worried about you. When Arden showed up and said they’d lost you in Talvoy, I thought I’d lose my mind.”
“Ham, I’m okay. Didn’t Arden get my message? I told him I was safe and not to come looking for me,” she said as he set her down. She sensed four powerful sets of eyes staring holes into her back and a harsh, warning breeze brushed against her skin.
That couldn’t be a good sign.
“You mean that voice? Arden heard it, but we didn’t know what to believe. And that wasthree daysafter your family and Bri got back. Three days. Do you know what can happen in that amount of time?” His calloused fingers brushed through her ruffled hair. “Arden left Bri to watch over Luca while he and I went back to Talvoy. We looked for you in those woods all day. I’ve never seen him so scared.”
A spike of guilt pierced Isla’s chest. She’d waited too long to get a message to Arden. She could only imagine how he had felt, not knowing where she was or if she was even alive.
“Isla, yourface. What happened?” Hamil asked with wide eyes, voice strained as he carefully examined the stitching on her cheek.
