Chapter 3

CHAPTER THREE

Ellery

Might what? What would he do?

He'd find a way to use me to his advantage, of that I was certain, whether it was to breed me or to turn me into one of his minions, I didn't know and couldn't think about it. If it could somehow get my mother free…

I'll do it. I'll do anything.

But there was no guarantee I could get her free by revealing such a thing, and if I did, Ryker would learn the truth about who I was. He was the only one, besides me, who knew the Hooded Robber was also a lightning bearer. My mother knew I was a lightning bearer but didn't know I was a thief.

But still, there had to be some way I could leverage my ability to get her free. I could never reveal my ability to control all five weather elements to the king.

I was the only known amsirah ever to do so, and I had no idea what he'd do with that knowledge. He'd either kill me for being such an anomaly and possessing so much power or try to get children out of me.

Our abilities were genetic. There was no guarantee a lightning bearer would produce a child, grandchild, or any other lightning bearer in their line, but there was a chance they would have a descendant who possessed the ability.

If an amsirah didn't have a lightning bearer in their genetic line, they couldn't possess the ability. My great-great-great-great-great-uncle on my mother's side was a lightning bearer. He got the ability from his great-grandfather, and we could trace it further back throughout my line.

The ability often skipped generations for centuries before materializing in a descendent. No one knew what would happen if a female possessed it and had a child; I was sure they'd all be eager to find out.

They might be especially excited to see what would happen if they learned I could control all five of the weathers… or petrified. I shuddered at the things they'd do to me.

The possibility of revealing my lightning-bearer ability was terrifying enough; I could never reveal everything I could do. It would most likely result in me being used as a pawn by the assholes who'd trapped us in Tempest, but I'd do anything to free my mother.

I'd hate to give up the only home I'd ever known and loved so much, but I would. I'd reveal everything while I tore that palace apart to free my mother. And then we'd flee... but we couldn't escape Tempest.

We were stuck here and at the mercy of the assholes who had imprisoned us—the king and aristocrats who paid the warlocks to keep us all here.

I couldn't storm the castle and get free. There was nowhere to escape to, and they'd hunt me until they had me.

The most frustrating part of my ability to be the first to control all five weather elements was my inability to do anything with them. For years, I'd kept my powers hidden and rarely used some of them out of fear of what would happen, and now, instead of helping me, they'd only get me in more trouble.

The idea of handing myself over to those men made my skin crawl and my stomach somersault as I swallowed back more bile. We were all at their mercy, and now they wanted five thousand carisle to free my mother.

As I ran my fingers through my hair, I tugged at the ends as a scream built inside me and panic swirled. My chest was again squeezing the air from my lungs and blood from my heart until I was sure both would explode.

I couldn't breathe as my gaze darted around. It was all falling apart, and I had no control over any of it, and I was the cause of at least some of it.

"Ellery…."

I didn't hear the rest of what Scarlet said as my eyes landed on one of the numerous posters lining the trees across the road from my manor. Without thinking, I started walking toward it.

Most posters told of the king's newest decree, which banned hunting in the Revenant Woods. One of them was still a poster about the Hooded Robber.

Since I'd stopped robbing months ago, some of the desire to catch me had faded. I wasn't as big of a nuisance anymore.

But one of them still proudly declared…

WANTED

HOODED ROBBER

11,000 REWARD

I stopped before the poster and ripped it off the tree to hold it in both hands. I read it again and again as my mind spun with possibilities.

Ten thousand of that reward money was from Ryker. He'd been so determined to catch me and willing to do whatever it took.

And I had what he wanted more than anything.

I no longer knew how he felt about me, but I was sure it wasn't good. I'd never told Ryker about his father coming to see me; I never revealed that part of the reason I ended things with him was because the duke threatened him and my mother.

I'd also ended things because I was already in love with him and falling more every day. It would tear us apart if he ever learned my secrets. The duke had been the bomb, but my secrets were the spark.

The duke had already proven he wasn't to be trusted, considering I'd done as he'd asked and he'd still taken my mother. Did that mean Ryker was in danger too? Or would I be putting him in danger by going to him with this?

I didn't know what else to do or have anywhere else to turn.

I battled my guilt, terror, and queasiness as I stared at the poster and tried to formulate a plan… any plan that wouldn't involve me going to Ryker, a man who most likely hated me now, but try as I might, I couldn't think of anything. There were so few options, and all of them were bad.

I might as well start with the option least likely to get me killed, locked away, or raped— at least, I hoped it was.

I didn't have any other choices or anything else to lose. I had to find Ryker.