Page 36 of In Between Darkness

“Not Sun Sovereign, just Alex,” I mutter, surrendering to his soft grip.

“I hope you gave him a run for his money.” His eyes sparkle in the dim light.

“Yeah, something like that.” I look down at my bandaged hand again and then back up to his face. “You said I should trust you, right?” I read his features for a moment, wondering if I should continue.

“What is it?”

I pause again, contemplating whether to tell him. His stare doesn’t drop from my eyes.

“Don’t leave me waiting, Calloway.”

I let out a sigh.

“It’s nothing…” I look down. I don’t know whether I can trust him. He pulls my chin up, so I’m looking at him again.

“It’s not nothing; what is it?” he asks, his face softening again.

Oh, what the hell. I have to tell someone what’s going on with me. He already knows more than anyone else. And he’s a Moon, what’s the worst he can do?

It’s not like he can tell anyone he’s been talking to a Sun.

“Something happened earlier with Alex.” I pause again, trying to choose my words. “He used his Gifts on me. I guess he was mad about when I hurt him in combat.”

I gesture to my hand. “My hand started glowing, and then I was pushed back by something. A force… Then he went up in flames.”

Ryder looks confused, like he can’t process what I’m saying.

“I think I did it to him. I think I set him on fire.”

I look up at him and can clearly see him fighting back the urge to laugh. I send him a serious glare, and he regains composure. “It’s not funny; I’m serious,” I add, trying to get him to grasp the intensity of the situation.

He acknowledges my worry and rests his hand on my shoulder.

“But you haven’t got your Gifts yet,” he replies matter-of-factly, but there’s intrigue in his eyes.

“I know. I can’t explain it. But the way he looked at me… he was terrified.” I can tell he knows I am telling the truth now because he has that faraway look in his eyes.

“So, you can dream walkandset people on fire. Anything else I should know about?” His mouth turns into a smirk. He’s always trying to make jokes at the worst times.

“I’m serious. What do I do?” I ask, frustrated at his response.

“Do nothing.” He pauses, then catches eyes with mine. “How long until you get your Gifts?”

“Three days,” I state.

He expects me to do nothing? I don’t think I can take this much longer.

“I can’t just sit around and do nothing. What if someone else gets hurt? Someone I care about?” My mind immediately thinks about Nala. I can’t have her mixed up in this.

“Don’t worry about that. Alex was hurting you, right?” he snaps me out of my thoughts. I nod my head in agreement.

“Yes, but-”

“It seems to me that it was a fight-or-flight response,” he says, cutting me off. “As long as you keep your head down and don’t piss anyone off, no one should get hurt.”

That may be harder than it sounds.

“But how do you know for sure?”