Waves of frustration, anger, sadness, and confusion roll off of her as tears threaten to spill.
“No. It wasn’t him,” she insists as she shakes her head, searching for me to believe her. “He said Elverson hasn’t called on him since his son...” Her voice trails off as her eyes go wide and she looks away.
“Wait. What?” JP growls. “What did you just say?” He stands up and approaches Rez. With the focus taken off of me for the moment, I step back and quickly take out the pain medicine Dr. Steinbeck gave me to apply it to my chest as discreetly as I can.
Lynx shoots up and blocks JP’s approach, putting his hand on JP’s chest, firmly holding him back.
“JP, man. You need to calm down and step back,” Lynx warns as Knox joins Rez and wraps his arms around her, tucking her into his chest.
He whispers something against her hair, and she melts against him as Zeke leads JP back to their seat.
“Is there something you need to share, bestie?” Moni asks before she sips on her Sparks mug.
Rez’s shoulder falls as she lets out a sigh.
“I guess there are a few things that popped up yesterday that I haven’t had a chance to tell you,” she admits with a sniffle.
“Well, there’s no time like the present,” Ryker says, “But can we get the cliff notes. I don’t like the look of that fog rolling in.” He points to the trees about fifty feet away, where there’s a greenish fog crawling our way.
“I agree,” I say, putting my medicine away. “If we stay close, I’ll make sure our bubble stays intact while we’re on the move,” I assure everyone.
“Aww man. I miss Astaroth’s popcorn. This would make for a great storytime,” Zeke whines.
“I agree.” Moni takes a long sip of her drink.
I take one more glance at Rez as her emotions finally calm down. This wasn’t what I was expecting at all, but it seems we need to clear the air, and at least she’s resolved to talk, even though waves of sadness are rippling off of her.
I just hope the information I dropped doesn’t break her.
CHAPTER 29
The Lost Sheep
Rez
As we walk, I make peace with what I have to say. Maybe I’m too close to everything, and I’m not looking at this rationally. So, I repeat what Dad told me. I tell everyone about my run-in with King Elverson, how Dad warned me away from him, and his confession about how he was in debt to him.
“He neversaidhe wasn’t bound anymore,” JP points out.
“I—he—”Shit.“You’re right,” I admit, feeling sick to my stomach, and I stumble over a rock. Thankfully, Knox grabs me before I face plant into the ground.
“I got you,” he whispers and wraps his arm around me, being careful of my shoulder.
“Thank you,” I mumble, feeling completely out of sorts.This can’t be right.“Wait!” I tell JP. “Yeah, he might not have said he wasn’t bound, but he did say Elverson has not called on the bound since his son, which should have been his last task. And his wordsdidring true,” I insist. “Look,” I say, pulling away from Knox and moving closer to JP. “I know I’m not a perfect readerlike your dad, but I can still tell when someone is lying, and he wasn’t.”
“He could have just done it, without needing the bond used,” Chester mumbles, but I hear it, and my jaw drops.
“Chestie!” Moni chastises him, elbowing him in the ribs.
What the hell?
Zeke squeezes JP’s shoulder, and it seems to remind him of something because JP nods and slowly lets out a breath.
“You’re right, Rez, and I’m sorry. I think I might be letting my emotions get the better of me on this one.” He gives me a sad smile. “Do you remember seeing that picture in my room, that first night? That water painting of the three guys, and I told you it was a portrait?”
“Vaguely,” I admit, although it was a risqué piece if I remember correctly.
“It was the last known picture of Prince Elverson before his murder. He was a close friend of mine,” he admits, and my heart stops, breaks, and tries to piece itself back together.
