Ignoring the dig at Pendragon’s, Briana kept a fierce hold on the excitement building in her stomach and pressed for more information. “So you’re saying that the magic that was used can’t make someone want you who didn’t already.”
“Exactly.”
Either the enchantress was lying to her, or Lucan had.
But why?
He’d been so quick to point out that he hadn’t wanted her enough all those years ago either. But he hadn’t been free then, not while being pledged to Gwen. And since then he’d repeatedly mentioned being bound to serve Rhiannon.
Was that why he’d lied? Because he wasn’t free to be with her? She turned away from the others, scared to consider the possibility. How many times could she let herself believe that things were different only to have reality slap her in the face?
“Briana?” Nessa called out.
“I’ll be back in a while.” She hurried back inside, climbing the steps two at a time only to freeze outside her bedroom door. What if she was wrong? What if the enchantress was just trying to rile them up?
The cat prowled beneath her skin, forcing her to face the possibility that she’d stayed in the competition to free the wrong person. If Lucan really wanted to be with her, and if he won…he could be free of Rhiannon.
Don’t go there.
Every protective instinct cried out for her to go back downstairs, but she didn’t move. What if she’d been so determined to stay to save herself from the madness of the Forgotten she’d let Lucan convince her of a lie?
Lucan was still asleep when she closed the door behind her. Halfway to the bed, she hesitated. If she was wrong and he told her all over again how much he didn’t want to be with her…
Believe.
Torn between her mind and her heart, she paused next to the bed already knowing which part of her would win.
“Lucan.” Her voice refused to rise beyond a whisper. She brushed the hair away from his forehead.
He grabbed her by the throat, his fingers clamping down until she couldn’t breathe.
She clawed at the hand holding her, kicking out as he opened his eyes. Lucan’s forest green eyes stared back at her.
No.
Twisting hard, she fought to break the hold. He rose from the bed, and she felt her feet leave the ground as he held her away from him. She shook her head. Lucan wouldn’t hurt her, couldn’t hurt her.
Her lips moved soundlessly, and she thrashed, needing to get free, to breathe.
Black pooled into Lucan’s eyes and his hand fell away from her, and she hit the ground.
Her teeth snapped together from the impact, air rushing into her lungs so hard she coughed uncontrollably, her claws scraping the floor.
Movement from the corner of her eye sent her scrambling backward. She slammed into the wardrobe, her eyes never leaving the wraith as he crouched in front of her. He reached a hand out, and she turned her head, flinching at the gentle touch.
“Neither of us was in control.”
It took a moment for the words to sink in, the roar of both the cat and her heart thundering in her ears. Her eyes slid shut. Nothing made any sense. Lucan wouldn’t hurt her, she knew that, but he’d been the one to grab her, not the wraith. Yet it was the wraith watching her now, insisting someone or something else had been responsible?
What the hell was going on?
“I want to talk to Lucan.” A raspy sound that she knew had to be her voice made it past her lips.
“Impossible.”
Clinging to the edge of the wardrobe, she forced her shaking legs to hold her. “You won’t let him have control.”
The wraith shook his head, something that might have passed for sympathy crossing his granite expression before he turned away.
“Why not?”
The lower half of his body was already slipping into its phantom form. “Right now, he would kill everyone in here if I did.”
More confused than ever, she took a step after him, needing to understand what just happened. “Why would you care?”
“I wouldn’t.” He offered a grim smile. “But you would.” Without another word he vanished through the door.
Chapter Twelve
“Pan’s shadow is still stalking you, I see?”
Briana didn’t look over her shoulder to check that the wraith was there. He was always there. For two days he’d shadowed every move she made in the house, refusing to give Lucan control.
The phantom presence had everyone on edge, Briana included. She wasn’t any closer to figuring out what had triggered the attack, and if the wraith had figured anything out, he wasn’t sharing.
Kel had been the only one to see the bruises on her neck before they’d healed, but he hadn’t commented. He was careful, though, to give the wraith a wide berth.
Nessa had been the first to assume Lucan’s thirst for blood had triggered the loss of control, and Briana hadn’t bothered to correct her. Either someone in the house had found something that could manipulate Lucan into hurting her, or the gods had orchestrated the whole thing.
There was also the slim possibility that Rhiannon had been trying to reestablish her control over Lucan.
Until she knew one way or another, Briana planned on watching her back in case it had been an indirect attempt to remove her from the competition. She was hardly the biggest threat in the games, but there seemed to be layers to the Gauntlet that had yet to be revealed.
“How do you stand it?” Nessa continued, dropping next to her. They sat outside in the shade of one of trees without getting too close to the temperamental vines that twisted around the limbs, a constant reminder of what happened in the catacombs.
Briana shrugged. “He’s not that bad.” She resisted the urge to check how close he was or if his eyes had returned to normal. She wasn’t sure if the wraith preferred his phantom form to intimidate everyone or to prevent her from seeing too much.
Elena floated on her back in the pool. “I know I’ll be keeping my distance next round.”
“B’s not into letting others do her fighting for her,” Nessa put in.
The icy kiss of the phantom’s presence licked over her skin, and she knew as well as he did that Nessa wasn’t assuming as much as she was asking. The wraith’s presence was getting to the huntress, too, then.
The only one who seemed unconcerned with the wraith was Vaughn. He dozed in one of the lounge chairs by the pool, his body twitching now and then.
“Think he’s dreaming about chasing a rabbit?” Elena quipped.
“Or you,” Nessa laughed.
Elena rolled her eyes. “I’d sooner be duct-taped to a lawn chair and forced to watch a Duck Dynasty marathon.” She shuddered as though both scenarios were equally disturbing.
Aware of the wraith trailing in her wake, Briana walked over to Vaughn. Remembering all too clearly what happened with Lucan, she kept out of arms reach, nudging his leg with her knee. “Vaughn.”
He bolted upright in the chair. “No! Don’t kill her!” He gripped the arms of the chair, a sheen of sweat covering his face.
“Hey.”
His head snapped around, and he blinked a few times before running a hand down his face. “B?”
Elena snickered. “Somebody’s been eating too many Scooby Snacks before bed.”
Briana ignored the sorceress. “Bad dream?”
“I guess.” As if he sensed that she’d listen if he wanted to talk about it, he shook his head. “Whatever I was dreaming, it’s gone now.” He didn’t quite meet her eyes.
In the pool, Elena cocked her head but made no further cracks. She came out of the pool, tossing Vaughn a towel before using the one on her chair to dry off.
Vaughn’s jaw tightened, but Briana couldn’t tell if the response was related to the sorceress or the nightmare. Throwing the towel back, he walked toward the far courtyard.