Change of Darkness (The Change Series Book 3) by Jacinta Jade (best new books to read txt) 📕

continued studying the movements of the broken one who looked just like her. ‘You understand, don’t you?’ she asked the unkept female. ‘What this means?’ She indicated with a wave of one hand the memory that was still frozen all around them.

The Lost One tilted her head as she continued to gaze at Pyron, but her eyes shifted a moment later to Siraay, wild emotion flashing through them. ‘Yes …’ the other hissed, resuming her inspection of Pyron’s mask.

Siraay pressed on. ‘And you’ll agree to let me take control?’

‘What?’ The former Siray gasped out the word, but Siraay ignored her. She was going to win.

The broken one paused for a long time, her body tensing and untensing as her instincts warred within her. Then, finally, the female relaxed and turned completely towards Siraay. ‘Yessss,’ she hissed. ‘But you must let us have some control … for a moment.’

Siraay hesitated. ‘What do you mean?’

Broken Siray didn’t answer but instead pivoted and began walking purposely towards old Siray, who stiffened at the wild female’s approach.

‘What do you mean?’ Siraay asked again, raising her voice.

But the Lost One ignored her totally as she stopped close to the old Siray and leaned forwards to whisper in the Resistance female’s ear.

Siraay began to pace a little, well aware that the pair was conversing about something they didn’t want her to know about.

The old Siray remained tense, her hands halfway up her sides in a reflex position in case she needed to defend herself while the broken version of them was close. She only relaxed once the Lost One had wheeled around again and walked away once more.

Siraay paused in her pacing.

Each one of them—the Lady of Xarcon, the Resistance member, and the Lost One—now stood an equal distance from the others, all of them a separate part of the same person.

Old Siray pivoted to look at Siraay. ‘It’s okay—she just wants control for a moment first. Wants to see something. Then she promises to relinquish control to you.’

Siraay eyed the broken version of herself, who gave her a not-quite-right smile.

Siraay angled her eyes back to her former self. ‘And you?’

Old Siray shrugged, part resigned, and part … something else. ‘Even if I fight you for control and win, as soon as I woke, you would regain control anyway. At least while we wear that necklace.’ She shrugged again. ‘And if I support her,’ she said, nodding at the broken one, whose head titled in response, ‘and she wins control, then the guards you showed us will kill us. And I still lose. We all would lose.’ Old Siray raised her chin as she looked at both of her counterparts. ‘I will win another way, on another day.’

Siraay merely snorted in response, but she did not want to break the accord they had all reached. Not that the others had much choice, really.

She turned to look at the broken version of herself. Breathed in, held it, then released it in a slow breath before speaking rapidly to the barefoot female. ‘Control is yours,’ she acceded. ‘I’ll give you until the count of one hundred. Then you must relinquish control to me.’

Siraay held the Lost One’s eyes, meaning to convey her authority, but the other merely grinned more widely at her, her own stare unblinking.

So Siraay relaxed her own mental hold and began counting—through gritted teeth. ‘One, two, three …’

Broken Siray grinned again and promptly sat down on the floor and closed her eyes.

***

The Lost One was up on her feet again before Siraay had reached the count of eighty.

‘It is done,’ the female announced.

Siraay stopped her count and frowned. ‘What is done?’

Broken Siray just grinned. ‘The world watches. And waits. And when the moment is at hand, it will act.’

Siraay’s eyebrows furrowed further, but the Lost One’s grin only increased in width with delight at Siraay’s consternation.

Siraay shook her head. ‘By the Mother, I’ll be glad when you’re gone.’ She stepped forwards, addressing both of her other selves. ‘This ends now. Relinquish control to me.’

The Lost One simply shrugged and sang out, ‘Already have. Bye-bye to me.’

Siraay looked to her former self, who returned her gaze with a cold glare. ‘Done.’

Siraay focused … and felt the tendril of power floating there in the dark, waiting for her to grab it.

The smile that now came to her lips was both cruel and victorious as she glanced one last time, triumphant, at the others. Then she closed her eyes.

CHAPTER FORTY

SIRAAY’S EYES OPENED. And she let out a little gasp as all she could see was darkness.

Her heart began to beat wildly. Had something gone wrong? Had the other two sabotaged her somehow?

Then a small light flared off to her right, and she twisted away from the painful brightness.

‘My lady is awake!’ Someone with light steps ran to the bed and squatted down before her, grabbing hold of Siraay’s hand.

Trelar.

Then she could hear the sound of two pairs of booted feet striding in quickly for her location.

‘Hold!’

Even brighter light flared from the chandelier above, making Siraay shrink and squint reflexively, and then someone else was by her bed, leaning over her, his face rotated away towards the two female guards who were halfway across the room.

One of them had drawn a knife.

Although her head felt thick and fuzzy, Siraay heard Pyron snap at Trelar, ‘Watch them.’ Then he turned to her.

As his ice-blue eyes met hers, Siraay felt the usual contempt she held for him rising to the surface, and she tried to throw an insult his way about how he’d let get himself captured by Resistance soldiers.

But all that came out was a dry, unintelligible, garble.

Two pairs of boots began moving again, and Trelar gasped out a warning to Pyron, who spun.

‘I said hold!’ He growled out the last word, and a deeper sound came rumbling up his throat to back the implied threat.

The guards froze, the faces of both females now showing flickers of fear.

‘Get her some water,’ Pyron commanded Trelar, his eyes not