Chapter 8

• “Paisley?”
• I turned to Emil.
• “I realize this is a lot to take in. I recently had to sort through it myself, am still sorting through it, but if you could explain how you got on that island…” He gave me a strained look. “My daughter, I’d like to figure out how to get her off.”
• I put my hands over my face for a moment. Then dropped them. “I don’t know. I woke up on it, with that red cuff around my wrist.”
• Victor looked to Troy. “If they knew she had an ability…”
• Troy nodded, “they’ve been observing her.”
• “What do you mean you woke up on it?” Arius asked, his voice low.
• I waved my hand around. “I feel like a complete idiot. For not seeing the signs that he was some sort of—” I sighed, “I don’t even know.” I sighed. “I thought,” I shook my head, still mad at myself over it. “A guy—I thought was into me and loved music as much as I do,” I motioned in the air, “I thought I was going to a private, invite-only performance.” Frowning, I stared at the floor, “he was totally sweet and didn’t appear insane,” I shook my head and looked up to Daxx, “until I woke up and he had done a complete three sixty, and was nothing like the guy I’d met at the coffee shop.”
• “He drugged you?” Arius asked.
• I shrugged, “I guess. I don’t know when or how. One minute I’m walking to the pier, the next I’m waking up on that island.” I scowled. “I’ve had no music since. I don’t know where my phone or tablet are, but I’ve been losing my mind with no music.”
• Arius made a sound in the back of his throat that sounded like a growl, then turned to look at Michael. “Are all the photos processed and on file now?”
• Michael nodded.
• Arius pulled out his phone and tapped out a text message.
• “You think we may already have him?” Daxx asked.
• Putting his phone down, Arius took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “We can only hope.”
• I looked from one to the other. “Wait, you-you have some of these people?”
• Daxx nodded. “Yeah in our prison.”
• Relief flooded me when I saw they really were trying to stop them. “I just have one more—,” I snorted, “okay I have hundreds of questions, but I there’s just one I need to know,” I looked at Emil, “and then I’ll draw a map of the island if it will help. I was all over the inside of the building we were in, except on the top floor.”
• “What’s the question?” Troy asked.
• “Your crazy brother, what is his thing with my name?” I shrugged, “he was quite…”
• Troy nodded. “Yes, he was.” He glanced at Victor slowly, then back to me. “One of our elder’s surname is Roan.”
• My eyebrows went up. “So you think we’re related?”
• He shrugged. “It could be coincidental.” Glancing to the others, his gaze came back to me. “But recently, we’ve discovered nothing has been placed in our paths that is a coincidence.”
• I opened my mouth, then closed it and gave him a stupefied look. “I might—I could have relatives?” I blew out a breath, “I don’t even have friends. It’s just been me for ten years.”
• “Warden, here is…”
• I jolted and spun around and threw my hand up. A large man carrying a tablet stood frozen on the spot. I lowered my hand and he took a step then paused and frowned. “And that is why I don’t have friends.” I said quietly.
• Arius appeared beside me and held out his hand to the man. “Thank you.” He took the tablet.
• The man was still frowning but turned and left.
• “Sorry.” I said quietly. “I’m a little bit jumpy.”
• “With good reason.” He motioned to the chair. “Please, sit. I’d like you to scroll through some photos, maybe identify the man responsible for you being on the island.”
• I sat down and watched as he set the tablet in front of me. I leaned forward and then stopped and looked up at him. “Do you think, at some point I can go see if I still have a place to live? I just rent a room, but I’d like…”
• He leaned one hand on the table, hovering over me. “We’ll go check on that once you’ve eaten and aren’t so shaky.”
• I lifted an eyebrow at him. “The shaky is more from the information overload than diving off the cliff.”
• Amusement briefly flashed through his eyes.
• “Oh, good you’re still here.” The sweet redheaded lady came into the room. She held up a small jar. “It’s ointment, love, for your scrapes.” She set it on the table beside me. “Just to help them along.” She gave me an understanding smile. “Until you’re able to grasp and accept blood healing.” With a quick nod, she turned and walked out just as quietly as she’d entered.
• “Thank you.” I wasn’t sure how she knew, but had noticed when I sat down that the scabs on my hips pinched with the movement.
• “You’re injured?” Arius asked frowning down at me.
• I shrugged. “It’s nothing, just slid across the ground a few feet when I was running.”
• He continued to look down at me for a moment, his jaw clenching. Giving me an abrupt nod, he motioned to the tablet. “Please.” He turned and walked to the other end of the table and leaned down to speak to Troy.
• I looked down at the tablet and tapped the screen to start scrolling through the photos. I don’t know what I expected to see, but the first few photos were very angry, scary men. I looked up to see most eyes were on me.
• There were so many faces, I focused on each one seeing if there was anything familiar about them, drowning out the conversation around me. More questions were forming as I looked, like how had people with glowing eyes not been noticed in all of time? They walked among us and no one knew it. I looked up around those in this room, they seemed normal. Maybe a bit larger than average, but still. Glancing back down, I tapped to go back to the previous photo. His eyes were yellow, but his face looked familiar. I looked up to Daxx.
• “You see him?” She stood up.
• All conversation in the room stopped. All eyes turned to me.
• I looked at it again. “I’m not totally sure. His eyes were not yellow…”
• “Shit.” Arius said venomously.
• “That would explain it.” Quinton nodded, looking around.
• I looked to him. “Explain what?”
• “If he feeds off emotions, how he was able to know what you were feeling and adjust his behavior accordingly.” Victor said while watching Arius.
• I opened my mouth to deny, then realized they were right. “He always said—did the right things.” I sat back feeling completely defeated. “I’m such an idiot.”
• “It’s not your fault.” Arius came down the table in a few long strides and picked up the tablet. He studied it, a nerve in his jaw clenching as he did. “Come down to the cells.” He turned and walked out of the room.
• I watched him leave and then turned slowly to look at Daxx. “The what?”
• Everyone stood up.
• She motioned to the door. “I guess he wants you to be sure that’s him.” She gave Troy an odd look as she came towards me.
• “Oh.” I stood up. “Okay.”