Ria stared up at him, her eyes full of wonder and confusion. Her features looked harder than he remembered—her cheekbones more pronounced, skin paler—but then dreams played tricks on the mind. Because it had to be a dream. He'd given up hope of seeing her again. Asher would never allow that. And despite reaching out to her while she slept, she still didn't know him. So the beautiful girl in front of him had to be a figment of his imagination.

His arms and shoulders felt numb, but pain still bloomed across his back and ribs. Imaginary Ria was a welcome distraction, keeping his mind focused anywhere but on the fact his wounds were taking longer to heal, away from his raging thirst and the knowledge that he may very well not survive this ordeal. If he concentrated, he could feel her soft hand against his cheek. He could hear her asking why he'd come. He could sense her confusion.

Yes, imaginary Ria would do quite well.

"Why do I mean so much to you?" she asked.

It was an easy question to answer. "We are two halves of a whole," he replied. "We are bound, you and I."

She nodded, which confused him.

"You showed me a memory last time I was here."

Ryver's confusion continued to grow. This wasn't Ria's usual line of questioning. "Yes. Yes I did," he replied.

"When was that?"

Ryver's brow furrowed.

"When was that?" she asked again.

Ryver still didn't quite understand the question. "When did I show you? Or when did it happen?"

"When did it happen?"

A small kernel of hope flickered deep within him. Perhaps she wasn't a figment of his imagination after all. Did she believe him then? He did his best to quell his hopefulness; he didn't think he'd survive another denial. His spirit hung by a thread as it was. "How long have I been here?" he asked.

"Seven days."

That long? He'd managed to count the hours of the first day or so. He'd felt the sun set and rise—knew it in his bones—but those rises and falls had faded into each other. He could no longer tell what day it was, never mind whether it was day or night.

"Ryver?"

Her gentle voice brought him back to the matter at hand. "Ten days ago," he replied, watching her closely.

Ryver heard her surprise in the small intake of breath. He sensed something like excitement in the slight flutter of her heart, and that glimmer of hope inside him flickered back to life. He held his breath, not daring to move as he waited. He kept his mind behind his shields, allowing her the time she needed. Desperate as he was to hear her thoughts, he wasn't sure he could bear to hear them.

Minutes passed. Or it could have been hours. Even days. Then she disappeared from view. So he had imagined her then.

The sound of chains moving filled his ears and his body swayed. The movement became more violent, his body jerking and listing to one side. White hot pain erupted in his shoulder as his left side dropped quickly while his right arm remained suspended above him at an excruciating angle. He heard Ria curse but couldn't see her. The pain distracted him so much that he couldn't catch even a single hint of her thoughts. He feared the worst though. Asher's grip on her was too strong. Had she fallen under his spell so completely that she wanted only to cause him more pain? The agony that thought caused was far worse than anything physical he was experiencing and it took his breath away. Could he really have been so wrong?

More noise and grunting of effort reached his ears and his right arm finally moved. The pull on it released as his whole body traveled downward. For the first time in what felt like forever, he thought he could feel solid ground beneath his feet. The sensation was only fleeting though as his legs refused to hold him up. Ria cursed again and the movement of chain became deafening. He plummeted to the floor, his knee and hip feeling the full force of the impact with the cold, hard stone. The rest of him was in hot pursuit, crumpling to the floor in a mess of dirt, pain, and blood.

Time seemed to pass impossibly slowly as he attempted to move. The effort required seemed gargantuan and ultimately proved far out of his reach. He resolved to stay where he was.

Footsteps approached and soft hands gently moved him and untangled his limbs. His tortured muscles cried out in pain and relief in equal measure as he came to rest on his back. The coolness of the stone was a welcome antidote to his burning bruises and cuts.

He finally summoned enough energy to open his eyes, and there she was, looking down at him with those strange, dark eyes. Kneeling at his side, she leant into him, her face so close, her delicate breath tickling the fine dusting of hair of his pectorals. Slowly, she shifted on her haunches and that sweet breath glided over his collarbone and across the side of his neck. She leant over him, one hand coming down next to his head.

For a moment she stared at him, those dark eyes searching his face, and his body started to shake as his mind tempted him with the idea that he might not have imagined her after all. Cat-like, Ria rubbed her cheek against his and he let go of that breath he'd been holding. He let go of everything and gave into that burning hope.

Ria turned her head so that her lips grazed his cheek before kissing his mouth. It was slow and soft, and it felt like home.

Lazy fingertips of warmth spread through him, easing his aching muscles, dispelling the pain burning across his ribs and in the small of his back.

She rocked back on her haunches and raised a shaky hand to her lips. Eyes wide, she looked back at him. "I know you," she said in a whisper.

Ryver inhaled sharply. "You're real!"

* * *

The walls of the small cell seemed to close in as emotion so raw, so potent, threatened to overwhelm her. It was just one kiss, but it touched her very soul. It seemed to unlock something hidden, something she didn't know she carried until that very moment. As soon as the key turned and the door opened, feelings she didn't understand rushed to the fore.

Her hand still shaking, she reached over and cupped Ryver's blood-streaked cheek. "Why wouldn't I be real?"

A small smile tugged at his handsome lips. "The mind plays cruel tricks," he replied.

"I still don't understand why you're here, Ryver. How can I possibly be worth it? How can I mean so much to you?"

He tried to talk, but his exhaustion and injuries had taken their toll and what came out was barely a whisper. "We belong."

And just like that, she believed him. She could feel the absolute truth shining through both his words and his aura. She still didn't understand it, didn't understand how, but she knew it was true. Memories she'd dismissed as some trick of the mind suddenly felt very real. Ryver was a Vampire Warrior, full of strength and power, so any woman would be bound to find him attractive. With her mind cleared, she realised it was much more than lust she felt when she looked at him. Even then, battered and bruised, wrists still shackled in cold, hard iron, his body called to her. His soul sang to her.

She inhaled and froze.

"What is it?" he asked.

The rich aroma of raspberries and dark chocolate still infused the air. His blood. Everywhere. It screamed her name.

"Ria?" The chains jangled as he moved, trying to draw her attention.

She snapped her attention back to him. "I still don't understand how any of this happened. How can I know you and not know you? My mind is split in two between what I believed a few days ago and the truth I know in my heart. How is it possible?"

The dark memories floated into her mind slowly at first, like a mist arriving without notice that all at once consumes everything. The vision came from Ryver, but it wasn't his memory. The scene felt oddly familiar, but she couldn't quite place it. She saw herself in woods she felt she'd known all her life. It took her a little while to understand the perspective. The eyes looked at her with a feeling of possession, but not one of love. She gasped as she realised what bothered her. She was prey. And that gaze belonged to her father.

She watched herself refusing to acknowledge him, refusing outright to listen to anything he said. Absolute in her resolve, she wouldn't accept his point of view and instead attacked him. Forcing her mind into his, she crushed the darkness in his mind until she found a spark of light. The vision he presented her with was of her beloved mother. The one thing he knew would guarantee her compliance. Tears welled in her eyes as she felt his triumph. His plan had worked. He'd manipulated her and she'd fallen for it.

"Stop!" she shouted.

Hurried footsteps sounded in the corridor. "Is everything alright, Mistress Ria?" an unfamiliar voice called out as it approached.

She swallowed hard. "Everything is fine. Return to your station," she snapped. Just to be sure, she sent out her power and burrowed into the guard's mind, making doubly sure he did as she suggested. A shocked hiss and retreating footsteps confirmed her success.

She returned her attention to Ryver. "What are we going to do?"

"You need to leave, Ria. You have to get out of this place. My brothers will help you."

"Leave you here? Are you mad?" She took out the set of keys she'd persuaded her father to give her and scrambled to unlock the bonds at his wrists.

Ryver hissed as the cuffs released and exposed the raw flesh underneath, but he didn't move. Ria swallowed hard. In her haste, she'd caused him more pain.

"Bloody hell," she whispered. "I'm sorry."

He did move then. Slowly, and clearly painfully, he clamped his bloody hand around hers. "Please, Ria. If you are well, then everything will be as it should be."

She snatched her hand back as she riled against the suggestion that she would go anywhere without him. "That's ju—"

The conversation died as another mind called for her attention. She sat stock-still as she sent her mind out in search of him. Now the veil had been lifted, what she found disgusted her. Swathed in darkness and bitterness she heard his thoughts loud and clear, and they made her shudder.

"You have to tell him something, Ria. What does he want?"

She didn't answer. Too many thoughts tornadoed through her mind. Her father's betrayal burned white-hot, fueling her anger and confusion. She thought she knew him. She knew what he was. She knew the things he did, and although she didn't always agree with his methods, she thought she understood. He was a rebel, fighting a centuries old war for freedom and the rights of his people. All at once, she realised just how much he'd manipulated her, how everything he said was a complete and utter lie. He wasn't fighting for anything but power and his own selfish greed. It didn't matter who fell for the cause as long as he survived. As long as the power was his.

"Ria." Ryver's croaking voice forced her attention back to him.

He was right. She needed to give Asher something, and it needed to be enough to buy her time. She needed to find a way to get them both outta there. "He wants information on the handfasting," she told him.

Ryver inhaled sharply and Ria caught the image of a woman with flowing raven hair. It was gone almost immediately, but it made Ria uneasy. Asher's approach forced her to push it from her mind.

"What can you tell me that he'll believe?" she asked. "I just need enough for him to leave you in my care for a little longer."

He smiled at that. "Tell him the truth: the handfasting will be held on the Winter Solstice, and it'll be held at House Blackwood."

Ria's brows knitted. "You want me to tell him the truth?"

"Only lie when you absolutely have to. Asher has many resources, and not all of them have yet Fallen. He'll know the truth soon enough."

"Aren't you worried?"

"Of course. Any threat from the Fallen must be treated seriously, but House Blackwood is prepared. We are not without defense, and the House and the Order will protect us."

Ria stared at him for the longest time. She reached out for him with her mind and he let her in. He believed what he said. He believed in his brothers' ability to protect his people. Even broken on the floor, he still held strong to the belief that he would protect them, even if it meant his own death.

She retreated from him, gave his shoulder a squeeze and rose to her feet. "I'll be back," she told him.

"I know," he replied. "Ria?"

She pulled the iron gate shut and looked back at him through the bars. "Yes?"

"Don't drink the wine."