Page 95 of In The Dark

“Where do I begin?” he asks.

“Maybe the orphanage when we were children? What happened that day?”

“You remember that?” His eyes grow wider.

“No, that’s why I’m asking. Have you known about my stolen memories this whole time?” I say.

A lingering silence falls over us as he processes my question, brows knitting close together before he clenches his jaw. His eyes dart back and forth, as if he’s piecing together information I’m unaware of, tightening the tension in his face.

The only sounds around us are the soft crackles from the fire as the wood burns. Small sparks gather in the air as the smoke travels up, hiding his hardened features behind the haze.

“Answer her,” Rydian warns after a moment.

Ren sighs, shaking his head, tone even. “I know nothing of your memories. I don’t even know what that means. What I do know is that I sawhimat the orphanage when we were children. He was attempting to take you, and you were upset over it.That, Iremember. But after you came running back—with me being your instructor at the time—both of us were taken to the king to explain to him what happened. You were my responsibility. I never lied when I told you that we used to be close, Isa. I instructed you when we were younger, yes, but we were also very close friends…” He knits his brows and looks off to the side as if calculating his words. “When they took us to the king and you came back, you acted as if I hardly knew you. You stopped talking to me. You were cold, distant, and were convinced that we hated each other. Ezra was assigned as your training partner after that, and I kept my distance. After a while, I realized that whatever happened, you didn’t recall anything—not our friendship, not even when he showed up.” He gestures toward Rydian, his voice flat.

For a moment, the words hang heavily in the air before they fully register. My pacing halts as the anger simmering beneath my skin ignites into a full-blown storm. I glare, the weight of his admission hitting me like a slap to the face.

“Youknewthey did something to me?” My tone is sharp, cutting through the silence. “And you said nothing.”

His eyes widen slightly before his voice drops, disbelief in his tone. “What was I supposed to do? You acted as if it never happened. I didn’t understand, but as time passed, I realized that something was wrong. That the king was involved in something far beyond what I could understand. I was worried they would continue to do whatever they did, so I chose to stay silent for fear of them doing it again. I only did it to protect you. You never would have believed me anyway.”

Rydian glances at me, entering my mind.“Do you believe him?”

“I don’t know.”I stare at Ren, processing his words.

“What of the boy?” Rydian asks. “Can you tell us anything about why you’re bringing him back to the castle?”

“We were only given a location, workplace, and a name.Nothing of his age or why we were to bring him back, just that we were to bring him back alive and unharmed,” Ren says, and Rydian’s eyes flick to me. I nod, confirming what Ren says to be true. We know very little about our target.

“I’d like to help,” Ren offers, causing both of us to snap our gaze to him.

Rydian’s lips curl into a snarl. “We can’t trust you. Why would we even consider it? You could betray us the moment it benefits you and Elion would know everything, including Isa’s power. You’re a liability.”

Ren stiffens, but his voice remains steady. “I won’t. I’m captain now. I can help with whatever you need. Whatever they did to Isa, I don’t want to be a part of it. My loyalty has always been with her, anyway, more so now than ever.” His eyes flick toward me. “Let me help.”

His confession hangs between us as I study him, wondering when he has ever vowed loyalty to me. Then I realize that if there were a time that he did, I probably wouldn’t have known about it.

Rydian sneers. “Loyalty. How convenient for you to suddenly remember where your loyalties lie, so forgive me if I’m not easily convinced. I don’t trust you.”

“You’re forgiven.” Ren smirks, but his gaze never leaves mine as we stare at each other.

Rydian turns to me.“What do you think? Can we trust him? You know him far better than we do,”he asks, and I scoff at the question, not knowing how to answer it.

Because can I?

All this time, I believed Ren was against me, but now I’m wondering if I was wrong. If what he says is true, that we were both taken to the king, then perhaps there’s a small chance that his memories were also stolen. But he remembers Rydian, so I’m unsure. We could make this work. Using him would allowus access into parts of the castle we wouldn’t typically have without him.

“I don’t know. I know him, but not as well as you think,” I mumble. Ren’s brows furrow at my response to a question that wasn’t spoken out loud. But I’ve made my decision.

I walk around the fire to stand in front of Ren, gesturing for Ivy and Orin to lift him to his feet. The point of my dagger slowly trails from his chest to his chin when I lean forward. A knowing smirk plays on my lips as my head tilts back, my voice lowering.

“If we allow you to help us and you betray my trust, I will gut you in front of the entire city,” I mutter.

Ren’s dark hair falls over his brow as he smirks down at me, scanning my face with his eyes. “I would expect nothing less from you. Kill me however you wish. My life is yours.”

34

“No, we’re not doing that.”