“Thorne, who is this?” she asks, lifting a framed picture from my father's nightstand, and my eyebrows furrow in confusion.
“My father,” I snarl, frustration burning through me as I struggle to get a handle on my emotions.
Yet she shakes her head. “No, I've seenhimbefore in the picture in your room. Who ishe?” she repeats, pointing to the man beside him, and sadness creeps in once more.
“That was my father's best friend. He died in battle,” I admit, my heart aching as I recall the joy he brought my father. Therelationship they had and the laughter that would fill the halls into the early hours when they were together was unbeatable. But the moment of reminiscing is cut short as I watch Elodie’s face pale.
She gulps repeatedly before finding her words. “No, he didn’t,” she croaks, making my muscles clench as I still find myself unable to step into the room, but she eliminates the distance between us for me, standing in the doorway with the picture in hand. “Thorne, I've met this man before,” she explains, and my heart stills.
“When?” I hold my breath, desperate for an answer, when the sudden tendril consumes me, letting me know that I’m about to wake up. “Elodie, when?” I persist, and she trembles, her eyes finding mine a second before she speaks.
“In Jude's cell.”
32
ELODIE
Istartle awake, my heart racing wildly in my chest as I try to take stock of my surroundings.
Thorne will flip when he sees this many people in his personal space, but Kael felt it was an added necessity.
What I wasn’t prepared for was waking up to find three people staring at me expectantly.
“Did it work?” Kael asks, and I gulp, struggling to catch my breath.
“Yes,” I breathe, and Rion launches to his feet in excitement.
“Where is he?” he rushes out, and I pause, my face frozen in place as I shake my head, trembling in disbelief.
“He woke before me, before I could find out,” I say, panic clawing at me as my chest lurches. My reeling thoughts are interrupted by the sound of my cell phone going off on the nightstand. I consider leaving it, but Rion catches a glimpse of the screen and darts for the device.
“It's a message from Thorne,” he states, and I stare at him in disbelief.
Taking the cell phone from his hand, I unlock the screen and tap on the text message.
Thorne: Sorry about my quick departure, Echo. I was woken to be interrogated. I'm on my way. Head to my room, grab the others if you can.
I repeat the message out loud to the others and a wave of relief flutters around the space.
“What have they been doing to him?” Kael mumbles, and I shrug.
“It didn't come up,” I admit, and Ocean’s eyes widen in surprise. She shares a look with Rion, who scoffs.
“What were you two doing? Dream fucking?” he blurts, and I scoff, choking on my own breath as I shake my head.
“No, he was a little… distressed,” I offer, even though it doesn’t quite sum it up.
Kael snickers. “Only a little?” he says, tilting his head as he looks at me. I meet his stare and his lips set in a thin line. “What aren't you telling us?” he blurts, and I sit up, swinging my legs over the side of the bed as I try to calm my breathing,
Bracing my elbows on my thighs, I explain. “There was a photo of his father with a man I've met, a man he believed to be dead, yet I saw him recently.”
“Who?” Ocean asks from the doorway, and I shake my head.
“He didn't tell me his name the time I met him, and when I pointed him out to Thorne, there was no time to gather that information.” I brush my hair back off my face, distracted by the dream I was locked in.
Me, shadow fae magic? That’s insane.
“And where did you see him?” Rion asks, and I gulp, lightheaded as I speak.
