Shadows Whisper | | Azriel

5

Azriel woke with a gasp. He felt like he was breathing for the first time in his entire life.

His throat wasn't constricted like it had been for the last few days, and the shadows weren't screaming at him anymore. He still felt shaky, but the nausea and fever were gone. The frenzy the shadows had been in was finally over, and they whispered to him softly now.

"She's here," they said eagerly, "go to her. She's here. Take us to her."

Azriel was already getting out of bed, met with a curious look from Amren.

"You're looking better," she commented, observing him closely, "they've quieted?"

"Yes," Azriel answered with a nod, "they're calm now. They said she's here. I have to—I have to go to her."

"I don't think that's wise," Amren advised him against it, "not until Rhysand gets answers from her."

"I have to," he repeated, "I..."

He squeezed his eyes shut as he suddenly wavered on his feet. Amren was at his side in a blink, steadying him so he didn't fall over.

"You haven't eaten in days," she reminded him, "sit. You need food."

"I have to go to her," he insisted, pulling his arm from her grasp.

She watched as his shadows led him through the house, pulling him towards the girl. She followed, knowing this could end terribly.

Rhys and Madja were at the girl's bedside. Mor and Cassian lingered outside of the room. Rhys hadn't allowed them in. They both went wide eyed at the sight of Azriel up and walking and mostly clear headed.

He strode right into the room, finally pulling Rhys's attention away from his half sister.

"You should be in bed," Rhys told him, a much less harsh way of telling him to get out than he had given Cassian and Mor. "Go rest."

Azriel ignored him entirely, his eyes on the girl. She tensed under Madja's hands at the sight of him. She recognized him, and she didn't seem happy to see him.

"You left me there," her words were strangled, heavy with fear and pain and sadness, "you left me there. With them."

"I couldn't—the shadows wouldn't show me where you were," he explained, "they wouldn't let me find you."

He took a step closer, his eyes briefly drifting to Rhys when he let out a warning growl. He stilled, but he didn't leave.

"They wouldn't tell me where you were," he emphasized, "I'm sorry."

The girl didn't say a word, but she and Azriel both watched with wide eyes as half of his shadows detached from him and went to her. They curled around her lovingly, a gentle caress.

"They didn't know," she muttered, relaxing as the shadows clung to her, "they couldn't...there was magic. They couldn't figure it out. They were...they were going crazy and then they just snapped one day."

He took in a deep, shaking breath as he looked at her. She was so thin, her bones outlined so clearly against her pale skin. Azriel wondered if she had seen sunlight a single time in her life. She wasn't completely covered in dirt anymore. She hadn't had a bath yet, but Madja had wiped away what she could to get a better look at her. Her hair was still tangled and matted, falling down passed her waist. Most of it would probably have to be cut off. Her fingertips were scarred from how much she had gnawed on her nails.

"How long?" Azriel asked—it was a question Rhys had asked about a dozen times already.

"I don't know," the girl confessed, eyes welling up with tears. She hadn't spoken when Rhys was the one asking the question. "I was so young when they took me. I had...it was different at first. But then they threw me in that cell. I don't know how long it has been."

"How old were you when they took you?" Rhys spoke up, voice heavy with guilt and pain.

Her eyes went from Azriel to Rhys and then right back to Azriel before she spoke, "I don't remember. I was young."

"You're still young," Rhys muttered, violet eyes shining with sadness as he looked at her. "My...our father died twenty years ago, so depending on the timing of your mother's pregnancy you're either twenty or nearly twenty."

Her face twisted in distaste at his words—our father.

Rhys asked her something else, but she didn't hear it. Whatever clarity Azriel and the shadows had brought was gone.

She fell back to where she had been before—scared and disoriented. The shadows pulled away from her, returning to Azriel. Azriel took half a step closer before Rhys growled at him.

"Out," Rhys demanded, positioning himself between his sister and Azriel. "Now."

Azriel felt frozen in place. He couldn't leave. He couldn't leave her again. He didn't even know her name. She was scared.

Madja was trying to comfort her as she worked, but nothing seemed to help her relax. Azriel doubted Rhys's overprotectiveness was much of a comfort.

"Azriel," Rhys warned, "now is not the time. Go rest."

Azriel held his ground for a moment before he finally turned and left. Mor and Cassian followed him down the hallway, though Amren stayed behind to watch what happened in the room.

"You should sit down," Cassian advised his brother, eyebrows furrowed in worry, "Azriel—"

"What's her name?" Azriel asked, coming to a sudden halt.

"We don't know yet," Mor told him, "the most she has spoken was to you. She's...she's understandably a bit of a wreck right now. She must've been in that cell for years."

"Do you think Rhys's...or, their father knew about her?" Cassian inquired, not sure if he even expected an answer of any sort.

"There's no way she was born before he died," Mor said after a moment, "he wouldn't have allowed her to be born. He may have known about the pregnancy but I have no doubt that he wouldn't have let her mother live long enough to carry to term."

"Do you think there's any chance that her mother is still alive and could shed some light on any of this?" Cassian suggested, though he knew the chances were slim to none.

"I doubt whoever took her would have left her mother alive. No one who could manage to hide away a High Lord's bastard for twenty years would be stupid enough to leave any loose ends," Azriel spoke up, disgust clear in his tone. "Unless her mother was involved in it in any way, she's dead."

"We could use the same spell we used to find her to try to find her mother. If she's alive, we'll be able to get some answers."