Page 15

I didn’t actually intend on falling asleep, but I laid down early to ensure that if I did, I’d still wake up with enough time to meet Ryker.

I should have known it wouldn’t be that easy. Pike is wrapped around me like an octopus, and slipping out of his grasp is almost impossible. I’m not sure how long it took, but it felt like hours; that boy’s got a grip.

Somehow I make it, but just barely. The only reason I don’t have any problems is because Blair is gone, and as much as I wanted to track him down, I know better.

Blair’s the only one I’ve never been able to sneak up on, ever .

There’s no way I could track him through the castle and he wouldn’t realize I was there.

Which means it came down to satisfying my curiosity or getting away. One or the other, not both.

Given the choices, I had to go with meeting Ryker. He’s my only hope to save Lyle, and I can’t deny I want to see him even if I know I shouldn’t.

“Two nights in a row without your watchdogs?” His voice is in the air around me, and though I can’t sense or see him, I know he’s here.

“Let’s not pretend like I haven’t given them the slip a few times now.” I don’t need to tell him what I’m talking about. He knows damn well, considering both times I was with him.

His deep chuckle vibrates around me and makes my breath catch.

“You’re right, maybe you’re the bad influence.” I hear the smile on his lips, and I spin, searching for some hint of him, desperate to see that smile. To see a hint of the playful man I knew those first nights after he found me in the woods.

“I’m not the one hiding in the shadows, watching the poor defenseless girl in the woods.” I bat my eyes and pout my lip in an attempt to look like the defenseless girl I just claimed to be.

Ryker materializes right in front of me, so close that I have to crane my neck back to meet his gaze as he peers down at me.

His lips are still turned up, but not in a full smile.

It’s more of a sarcastic smirk, but damn it if it’s not sexy as hell.

I lick my lips and watch his eyes track the movement before I sink my teeth into my bottom lip in an attempt to stop myself from smiling.

Ryker shakes his head, taking a step back, and I have to fight the urge to follow him.

Why am I so drawn to him despite everyone else fearing him?

“We only have about six hours until sunrise, so we should get to it.” He turns, disappearing into the dense trees. I damn near trip over my feet trying to catch up with him. “Still the same lost, clumsy girl I found in the woods, huh?”

I roll my eyes even if he can’t see me because, of course, he didn’t miss me tripping and had to use that stupid name.

“I’m not lost this time, though. I chose to be here.” I’m not sure why I say it, because it’s kind of obvious considering I flew here and met him, but it felt right.

It’s Ryker’s turn to trip this time, and I bark a laugh before I can even think to try and keep it to myself.

“Who’s the clumsy one now?” I sass, unable to stop myself.

Fuck, this is Ryker, not the guys. I need to get it together and remember I’m here to learn how to save Lyle, not to have fun, even if it is at Ryker’s expense.

Ryker starts walking again, but not before he looks over his shoulder at me, his brows drawn in a look of confusion. Before I can ask what his problem is, we leave the dense trees and step into a clearing, the most beautiful clearing I’ve ever seen.

“Holy shit…”

I’d grown used to the trees and plants, the way they are here versus the human realm, with their eerie colors and phosphorescent glow.

It took a second, but really, this is what I grew up with, so seeing it again wasn’t as shocking as it was for the guys.

Some things still catch the guys off guard about being here, and I can’t say I blame them.

I thought I was pretty well versed in this realm, but clearly I was wrong.

The trees that line the clearing are tall, just like every other tree in the forest, but instead of the dark, almost dead look that most of the forest has this far out, these are alive and glowing a beautiful purple color that lights up the clearing.

“Oh, wow.” Anolas is beautiful, but this…this is otherworldly, as if pulled from the pages of a story or the imagination of a child.

My steps are slow as I make it to Ryker’s side, where he stands in the center of the clearing. I feel the weight of his gaze, but I can’t bring myself to pull my eyes from the trees.

“Wisteria?” I ask, though I know it’s not. While they are similar, they’re not exactly the same; for one, these are much taller, not to mention glowing.

“Is that a tree from your realm?” Ryker sounds almost giddy, and I turn to find him much closer.

His eyes alight in the same way they were when I’d told him about the other realm before.

Then we talked about Ferris wheels and cars, things he could only ever imagine.

I understood his excitement then, but now it’s only a tree.

A tree that’s much less cool than the ones in front of us, I might add.

“Yeah,” I turn back to the trees, looking for differences to best explain.

“The wisteria in the other realm are shorter, smaller in general, really. They also have regular leaves, not flowers, and they don’t glow.

” I tell him and watch as he nods, as if learning about the wisteria is fascinating.

It’s not. They’re still very pretty and smell really good, but these trees are almost too beautiful. They take my breath away.

“That’s because these are the god trees.”

Now it’s my turn to be in awe, and when I whip back around to see if he’s joking with me, I find him with his gaze on the trees, a soft smile on his lips.

“It’s said that not too long ago, the gods blessed the realm with much more than gifts of magic. But Draven saw an end to that, and ever since, the realm has suffered—the people, plants, animals, everything.”

His voice is low, but it’s so quiet that I could easily hear a twig snap a mile away with my hearing.

I want to go to him. He’s only a few steps away, but I’m not sure how he would react, if he would even want me to comfort him. He’s already done so much for me, and now he’s doing more; I don’t want to push my luck.

“The Forgotten Forest wasn’t always what it is today.

When I was a boy, the forest was beautiful and full of life.

Whatever my father did destroyed the balance; he threw the forest into chaos, the whole realm, and darkness crept in.

It’s not just the dark now; the trees aren’t just dying—the whole forest is slowly twisting, becoming something…

other. Shifters disappear, and animals become bloodthirsty.

The moans and groans and things that go bump in the night are out to kill and destroy, a lot like the chimeras but without the push from my father.

” His voice is hoarse with emotions I can’t see with his back to me.

I can’t take it anymore. Closing the distance between us, I reach out, gently placing my hand on his arm. I half expect him to pull away, but he doesn’t, and I swear I see the tiniest bit of tension bleed out of him.

Still, he doesn’t turn around, but that’s okay.

“He twisted the magic. I don’t know for sure, and I can’t prove it, but I know it’s his fault.

He’s destroying this realm one tree at a time, and by the time he gets the power he wants, there won’t be anything left to rule over but the mindless monsters who would just as likely kill him as fall to his command,” he scoffs, running a hand down his face with a groan, and I can understand his frustration.

Draven is a disease.

“Help me.”

My voice comes out stronger than I feel, and I thank the gods. The last thing I need right now is to sound weak, especially when I’m about to ask him to help me do what everyone else believes to be impossible.

Ryker turns slowly, and I let my hand fall to my side. I miss the feeling of him instantly, and I ball my hands into fists to stop myself from reaching for him again.

“I said I’d help you already. No need to ask again. Though I make no promises, your bear will still be the same man if you can bring him back.”

His words make me pause as they sink in, and panic grips me, stealing the air from my lungs.

No!

That’s not an option. Lyle will be fine. He’s strong and the most stubborn person I know. I’ll save him, and he’ll be okay.

He has to be.

I shake the thought away, unable to continue to entertain it if I want to keep moving forward or even remain standing.

The thought of Lyle being gone even after we save him is far too much for me to comprehend.

“No, help me kill Draven. Help me save the realm from him.”

Ryker’s eyes go wide, and he takes a step back as if I’d just slapped him.

Oh shit, maybe asking him to help me kill his father wasn’t the best idea.

Ryker looks at me as if he’s seeing me for the first time, and it takes everything in me not to shift under the weight of his gaze. Those purple eyes are not only beautiful, but so intelligent. How his father could ever choose to harm him, I’ll never understand.

“Whatever you need, Darling.” His voice is quiet, but I can hear the sincerity in his tone. Without another word he reaches out, grabbing my hand only to turn away, pulling me back to the edge of the clearing to stand beneath the god trees.

“Once, the kingdoms were home to much more than just shifters. Many gods and deities roamed the land: dryads, nymphs, gnomes, undines, sylphs, salamanders, you name it, and the kingdoms had them. It’s said that they taught the shifters how to use their elemental powers, which were a gift from the gods. ”

Ryker releases me, leaving me to stand at the edge of the clearing as he walks backwards toward the center, his eyes holding me hostage.