Keeper of Storms (The Fallen Fae #3) - Jenna Wolfhart Page 0,116

the commander. What’s his name? Segonax?”

Fear spiked her heart as the guards rushed to Segonax’s cage. Reyna pressed up against the bars, wincing at the sudden sting of iron against her skin. The guards ripped open the cage and dragged Seg out. Her eyes swam with tears as they tossed him before the king, his knees knocking loudly against the hard floor.

“Leave him out of this,” Lorcan said in a voice as cold as the north, but Reyna knew that he would be breaking inside. Lorcan loved the commander more than he loved almost anyone in the world. “He has nothing to do with your quest for power. I do.”

Reyna fisted her hands. Nollaig started banging against the bars, mindless of the iron burn of them.

“Yes, but you see, this whole thing,” Molt said, waving his hand at the window that overlooked the battle-ravaged city, “has deeply annoyed me. You and your army from Caraid have interrupted my plans. And I need more blood.”

“Then, take mine,” Lorcan said, his voice insistent. “You want that throne? I’m the one you need to kill. Not Commander Segonax.”

A snake squeezed Reyna’s heart. She wanted to shout at Lorcan to stop trying to sacrifice himself for the commander, but she knew he wouldn’t listen. No more than she would have if she’d been in his place.

The wood king laughed. “All this begging only makes me desire his blood even more.” The king’s smile glinted. He hauled back his leg and slammed his boot into Seg’s face. The old commander sputtered, blood spraying onto the stone floor. Reyna’s heart twisted. She reached out instinctively, desperate to help him. She’d never gotten to know the commander well, but she knew he was a good male. He’d didn’t deserve this. None of them did.

Trembling with anger, Reyna measured the space between the cage and the king. He was still too far away from her. Could she manage to force the Ruin in that direction? Or would it be trapped inside this cage just like her and Wingallock?

She glanced at Lorcan. His face had gone pale. With a shuddering sigh, she shook her head. She might try it, if not for him. But she could not risk the Ruin killing the one she loved. It was too close; too tight. And the Ruin was angry. It wanted blood.

Fisting her hands, she opened herself up to the storm once again.

Where are you? she asked.

No answer.

If I let you go, will you attack the wood king?

Silence.

She let out an irritated huff. All this time, it had barked its twisted words at her fragile mind. Now that she actually wanted to hear from it, it spoke nothing. But even if it did, could she believe it? Would it not just say whatever it thought Reyna wanted to hear so that she might finally let it out of her body?

But the Ruin had also never lied…it only spoke the truth, as far as it could tell. It had been wrong about a lot of things, but only because that was what it believed.

Can’t you at least say something?

The Ruin sighed. You shouldn’t let me out while you’re inside this cage.

Her heart thumped. Why not?

The iron will trap me in here. I won’t be able to get out unless someone opens the door. And I doubt any of the wood fae will do that once they see what I am.

Reyna nodded. So, you do have a weakness.

The same weakness as you. I am built of fae magic, after all.

If only she’d known that before, she could have prevented all of this from happening. She would have used iron against the storm ages ago. Why are you telling me this? Isn’t that what you want? Being trapped in here with me?

The Ruin was silent for a good long while, and the only sound in the hall was the echo of the wood king’s fist against Segonax’s face. Bones crunched. Lorcan roared.

Your words have confused me, it admitted. You were right. I’ve lived inside your body for weeks. I’ve heard what’s in your mind. You have dark thoughts, but you are not the twisted monster of the Dagda’s visions.

Hope pulsed in Reyna’s veins. She sucked in a sharp breath, terrified to speak a word for fear of changing the Ruin’s mind. But she needed to hear more. So, you’ve realized I’m not the Namhaid, after all.

The Ruin’s attention seemed to shift. Instinctively, Reyna lifted her head toward Ulaid Molt. He towered over a broken Segonax,