Ryder didn’t stop until we were outside, and the moist heat of the summer air snaked beneath our clothes. I struggled to drag in a breath as I adjusted to the new environment.
What did Beryl mean about our broken connection? I lifted my hand and stared down at it. The bond that had flashed with magical light under my skin was gone. Was that what Beryl had been talking about?
I’d sent a desperate plea down that connection when Alvin had taken me. I’d hoped that Ryder would be able to follow it to me, but the connection had been lost when Alvin started his ritual.
I missed that bond now. Inside, there was a hollow space where the connection had been. When I looked up to Ryder, he wasn’t paying attention to me. His gaze moved across the sky.
“Morgan?” I asked.
Ryder’s lips twisted to the side before he shook his head.
There was too much on our plate right now. I hoped I hadn’t made the wrong decision in there. Beryl might want the best for her court and the territory that it sat upon, but that didn’t mean she wanted the best for me.
Had I been too trusting? I hated how I second guessed myself now. If this hollow space inside me weren’t aching, then maybe I would be able to think clearly.
“How about lunch?” Ryder asked with a smile.
The smile was forced, of course. We were both still tense from Beryl’s ominous words. Ryder might have been a little riled up from what I’d said earlier, too. Though he knew that I’d died, hearing how Alvin had killed me might have triggered something animal in him.
“Yeah, lunch sounds good right about now.”
Ryder took my hand and threaded his fingers through mine, making my heart flutter excitedly. I tried not to look at him, but my gaze kept sliding in his direction as he led me down the street.
We could have gone back inside Beryl’s restaurant for food, but Ryder found a deli sandwich shop that smelled of fresh bread and sliced meats. My stomach grumbled in happy anticipation.
In one moment, I saw Ryder’s hand press flat against the glass door. The next moment, I saw nothing but sky. Pain flared hot across my scalp. I yelped rather pathetically and reached for my hair to see what the problem was. When I touched skin, my heart flipped.