Horse Stone (Book 1 of Ilyrian Series)

Chapter 51

I licked my lips and cleared my throat while I tried to get the courage to call it to me. I shifted on my feet, getting nervous, and I couldn't help but think that Inen wouldn't come.

But what if he does..? a small voice whispered in the back of my mind. What if he will come, and the reason that it didn't come was because of that spell?

I took a deep breath and let it out with a soft sigh. Please let this work, I silently prayed while I closed my eyes and cleared my throat. I took another deep breath and looked up until I stared straight ahead. "Reino," I said, making sure that my voice didn't quiver or sounded small because I didn't want to give it an excuse not to come.

A small sigh of relief escaped my lips when the area in front of me turned darker, and I could feel this magic in the air that I hadn't sensed before I had used that spell that had awakened my magic.

It came.

Inen had its head down when it morphed into a form that I could see. It didn't say a word while it waited for me to do something, anything to it.

"Inen," I said with another sigh of relief, and the wraith bowed its head further. "Did you try to come?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

Inen nodded. "Yes, Your Highness," it said, its voice sounding smokey inside my head. "I tried to come but couldn't. With each call that you sent, I grew frantic because I couldn't come and protect you."

Relief filled my body, and I was grateful that it had wanted to protect me but couldn't. I slowly nodded and furrowed my brows when I thought over everything that had happened and vaguely remembered Inen floating over us after I broke the spell. "You did when I broke the spell, correct?" I asked, even though I knew that it did.

"Yes, Your Highness," Inen said, bowing its head deeper. "I did come when I could."

I pressed my tongue to the bottom of my lip and nodded, relieved. "Thank you," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "I was very relieved that you came when you did." I furrowed my brows and rested my chin on my chest. "I felt safe when I saw you there and knew that you would watch after us until someone got to us."

Inen nodded. "I left only when Adrian told me to leave," it said, and there was a little bit of hesitance in its voice as if it had done something wrong.

I shrugged and pressed my lips into a thin line, not hurt that it left when Adrian told it to leave. I had a feeling that something like that had happened, especially since I hadn't spotted it when I woke up. "Well, not a lot of people know that I know about this stuff," I said, "so I am glad that you did leave when Adrian told you to."

Inen nodded again, and I could tell that it was relieved that I wasn't mad at it leaving. "Of course, Your Highness," it said. It bowed its head. "I promised you that I am at your beck and call, and I will come to you and protect you."

I breathed a sigh of relief and felt better that it would come as soon as it could. "Then, I thank you, Inen," I said. "I will be forever appreciative of you whenever you come and help me."

"Of course, Your Highness," Inen said. It paused and sighed. "Was there anything else you needed or was that it?"

"That was it," I replied. I licked my lips and cleared my throat. "I know that you are tied to the school, but are you able to come whenever I call from a different place?"

Inen cocked his head and stared at me, staying silent. It did not make me feel nervous with its staring, and I couldn't help but wonder what it was thinking. "I do not know, Your Highness," it said finally. "I do not want to say something, and then it not happen."

I pressed my lips into a thin line and nodded. "I understand," I said, understanding what it meant; it didn't want me to get upset if it couldn't come to my aid if I were outside of the school, and it said that it could. "Again, thank you for your service."

Inen nodded and stayed silent.

I took a deep breath and took a step back. "Alonin," I said and waved my hand like I had seen Adrian do it.

Inen bowed its head before it disappeared, and I breathed a sigh of relief, glad that I was able to find out that it wanted to protect me and would try to protect me if it could.

"Thank you," I whispered and cleared my throat before I licked my lips. I bowed my head, even though I had no idea if Inen was still in the room with me, but I had to let it know that I was appreciative of it. "Thank you for watching out for me. I really do appreciate it." And with that, I turned around and walked out of the bathroom.

***

My father was at the school by the time I was finished talking with Inen. He was in his car and looked worried, and for a moment, I thought that he knew that I had practiced magic and knew about Ilryian.

He was staring straight ahead and didn't seem to notice me standing at the door with my hand on the door handle. His whole body was tense, and he looked anxious, worried, and I couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking.

"Papa?" I asked and gripped the side of the door with a hand made of steel. My heart pounded hard in my chest, and I wondered if he even knew that I was there. "Papa?" I asked again when he didn't look at me but towards the front of the windshield.

My father stirred from his thoughts and looked at me. Relief filled his eyes when he saw that I was unscathed, and he smiled. "Hello, Hadley," he said, his voice gentle and soothing. "Are you feeling ok?"

I bit back a sigh of relief because I had a feeling that he didn't know I knew about Ilyrian and everything like that. I nodded. "Yes, Sir," I said. "Better now than I did before," I replied honestly and got into the car. I cleared my throat and licked my lips. "I'm sorry that you have to pick me up from school again. I know that you are very busy."

My father chuckled and watched me close the door to the car. "I am never too busy for my children if they need me," he soothed, and I bit back a sigh of relief because I was grateful that he didn't care that I had pulled him away from whatever he was doing. "My children are my world and my everything."

"One day, I will be able to stay the whole week and not have these freakouts I can't control," I said and looked out the car window. I saw the Headmaster staring at us with lips pressed into a thin line.

He caught me staring at him and cocked his head to the side. He tried to do something with the staring contest between us, but he wasn't able to, so he pursed his lips, annoyed before he broke the staring contest between us and left without a single glance back towards us.

He knows... a small voice whispered in the back of my mind said, and I pressed my lips into a thin line because I didn't like it that he knew. If he doesn't know, then he is suspicious...

"Well, then," my father said, and I looked at him to see that he was staring at the spot where the Headmaster had stood. His grip on the steering wheel was tight, and for a moment, I saw the king instead of the father that I knew and loved. "I wonder what that was about."

I shrugged when he pulled his gaze away from the spot where the Headmaster last stood and was facing me with a raised eyebrow. "I don't know," I replied and shrugged again with a small grimace. "He doesn't like me much. He never has, and I don't think he ever will."

"Hmph," the king said, disapproving and pressed his lips into a thin line. He started the car and started to drive away, and his whole body tense. "He might not like you, but he should respect you."

"Why?" I asked, wondering if I could get the king to admit about Ilyrian and all that my father had hidden from me.

The king sighed and shook his head, and again, he became my father while he relaxed. "I can't say," my father said and looked at me with eyes dark and filled with pain and sadness. "One day, you will know what I mean, but that day is not today."