by Rachel Jonas
“What is it? What’s wrong?” he asked, his panicked tone making it hard to tell whether I was still dreaming or awake.
He sat up beside me, the weight of his arms encircling my shoulders as he brought me close. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t speak. The only action my body seemed to comprehend was crying. The tears came hard and fast, choking me up as the details of the nightmare haunted me even now, as I was wrapped in the arms of the one I’d just watched fight to save my life.
It was too much. All of it.
“Something’s not right,” I finally choked out, feeling the softness of his t-shirt against my cheek as it soaked up my tears. “I can feel it,” I explained.
Through the darkness, my eyes searched every corner of the room, carrying the sinking feeling something was coming for me.
“You’re safe,” he breathed into my ear, kissing the top of my hair the next second. “I have you.”
My hands gathered material from his shirt when I squeezed his back, desperately trying to convince myself it had only been a dream, but … it felt like more than that.
“I was there,” I finally whispered, deciding to tell Liam about the visions I’d begun to have.
“You were … where?” he asked, his tone soothing me as I clung to him.
“In the past,” I admitted. “Our past. The first time, it was the story you told me. The one about how we finally owned our feelings.”
Liam was quiet and still as he listened, but I felt his heart beating inside his chest. It picked up speed just a bit, but it was enough to notice.
“We were … we were in my bedroom,” I stammered. “You came to me to apologize, just like you said, but it turned into an argument. Then, before you walked away I asked you that question.”
I didn’t say anything more, maybe because I was suddenly aware of how insane this sounded, the idea that I had actually gone back to that night and witnessed this. That was impossible. This had to have just been my own interpretation of Liam’s rendition of the story. Realizing I’d been irrational, I didn’t go on. Instead, I just rested against his chest, reveling in the feel of being held.
“What was the question?”
My ears perked up when Liam asked, fixing my mouth to tell him how silly I’d been to put any kind of stock into these dreams. However, the sincerity in his voice made me think twice. So, I shared.
“I asked you why you cared. Why my actions mattered to you so much.”
He was quiet after that. Quiet enough that I felt uncomfortable.
“And what happened next?”
My cheeks warmed with the memory of our conversation moving to the bed and there not being a ton of talking after that. But there was one thing I did recall saying.
“I asked if we should stop because my father might find out,” I admitted with a smile, feeling the darkness from tonight’s nightmare being burned away.
“And when I offered to stop,” Liam cut in, “you were suddenly okay taking the risk.”
I didn’t say anything, because he was right. Still, I didn’t read too much into it because that was vague, a scenario that wasn’t so farfetched that fiction couldn’t have easily aligned with reality. When I didn’t confirm or deny that his response synced with my dream, he asked something else.
“What’d you see tonight?”
That feeling was back, the one that made me awaken in a panic.
“It was … I saw … him,” I said vaguely, not really wanting to relive it—what I saw, what I felt. Any of it.
“The Liberator?” Liam asked.
I nodded. “It was the night he came for me.”
That stillness in Liam’s posture returned and I knew where his thoughts had drifted.
“It was terrible,” I shared, pressing my palms against his back. “It was like … he wasn’t even thinking, just acting on pure instinct. And I just had this overwhelming feeling the whole time he carried me that … it was the end. That he was unstoppable.”
That word hung in the air long after I uttered it.
Unstoppable.
It brought back to my memory how Nick had turned on me in the blink of an eye. How he’d seemingly forgotten the bond we shared, a bond that had been the cause of him saving my life once, a bond that had made him come after me when I’d gone to save my parents. We were friends, shared a love for one another that wasn’t common. And yet … it hadn’t been enough to stop him from wanting to complete the task.
Killing me.
I didn’t realize I was shaking until Liam rubbed my back.
“You’re not there,” he said reassuringly. “You’re here with me. You’re safe.”
I heard him, but seeing how impossible that thing was to stop, I wasn’t sure I believed it.
“Who was Zahara?” The question left my mouth before I could stop myself, but I suppose I just needed to know.
Were the things I was seeing real?
Liam’s hand had been moving across my skin in slow circles, but at the mention of her, he stopped.
“I … I haven’t heard that name in years,” he said, confirming what I already felt. She was real, which meant … I wasn’t losing my mind.
“She was a good friend of yours,” he went on to explain. “We had actually made plans to travel to visit her right before you—”
When his sentence ended abruptly, I knew exactly what he was going to say because I had somehow just relived all this in my dreams.
“She and her mate had recently welcomed their first child into the world,” Liam explained. “They sent an invitation for us to visit their estate for two weeks, to catch up, to bond with the baby.” He paused again before saying more. “She loved you. Deeply. The bond between you two was similar to what you and Beth share. After you passed she … she never quite recovered from the loss. Last I heard, she and her mate left Bahir Dar and never looked back.”
I breathed deep, feeling things I hadn’t before. My death had a ripple effect, touching lives beyond those of my family members. I hadn’t considered the toll it may have taken on friends, the kingdom as a whole, but now I did. I felt it.
“How can this … why is this happening?” I asked, feeling the heat of a tear as it streaked down my cheek.
Liam hugged me tighter. “I’m not sure,” he breathed. “I didn’t even think it was possible.”
He’d taken the words right out of my mouth. I, too, thought I’d always feel like my old self and the new were two entirely different beings. However, if these memories continued to puncture the veil, I couldn’t help but wonder if my old life was somehow colliding with the present.
“I just wish I knew what it all meant,” I admitted aloud.
I had so many questions, so many thoughts to run past Liam, but a frantic knock at the bedroom door made them all scatter.
Liam was on his feet within seconds, snatching the door open to find a wide-eyed Elise standing across the threshold. With so few words, she made the thin sense of security I managed to cling to tonight evaporate into thin air.
“It’s Nick,” she panted, her gaze shifting to me when adding, “he’s escaped.”
Chapter Ten
Liam
Five massive wolves darted through the gate, fanning out in all directions as soon as they crossed the barrier. A wall of guards quickly organized just beyond the property line. I should have been out there, scouring the woods with them.
I regretted, now more than ever, having let others steer me from my first thoughts toward Nick … I should have killed him. So many chances had slipped through my fingers and, for one reason or another, I didn’t act. I should have cared less who’s feelings would have been hurt, who would have been angry, and just … did it.
Those whose feelings actually mattered would have gotten over it.
A warm hand touched the back of my arm and I couldn’t even look down at her, couldn’t look the love of my life in her eyes knowing that beast was out there. Knowing I could have done something about it a long time ago
. It felt like I failed … failed her, failed our child, failed myself.
“Hopefully they’ll find him,” Evangeline breathed, resting her head against my bicep right after.
“It should have never come down to a hope,” I seethed, feeling the tension mounting in my limbs, my brow. “I should have done what I knew needed to be done.”
Evangeline was silent, but a stern voice from behind filled the void.
“We cannot afford to fall apart right now,” Hilda interjected. “Evangeline herself requested that Nick’s life be spared on several occasions, so who were any of us to override that decision? It was never our lives in danger, only hers. And yet, she saw fit to pardon him.”
Hilda’s reason only angered me more. None of us could expect Evangeline to choose death for Nick. She was the only one who hadn’t seen what his kind was capable of. To her, he was more innocent than not because she’d been spared the burden of seeing the Liberator in action. However, after tonight’s nightmare, I wasn’t sure that was still true, wasn’t sure she’d have chosen life for him after experiencing the beast’s dark side firsthand.
“If he’s out there,” Elise chimed in, “my boys will find him.”
“And I’ll do my part as well,” Dallas interjected, jogging down the stairs toward the front door. “Whatever they can’t find on the ground, I’ll likely find from the air.”
Before heading out, he placed a kiss on Elise’s cheek and she closed the door behind him.
I wasn’t so sure his statement was true, about being able to see more from above than the guys could see from the ground. In my rage, I spoke my thoughts aloud.
“That might have been true if Nick wasn’t out there with Maisy,” I pointed out.
Having one of the most wicked, most powerful witches in the world on your side would definitely make things more difficult for anyone trying to come for you.
This scenario was the perfect storm. Nick had motive, means, and now a secret weapon who owed us one for capturing her and forcing her to do a spell against her will. I couldn’t have put together a more perfect worse-case scenario if I tried.
“We can’t lose heart,” Elise sighed, reiterating Hilda’s thought, but I couldn’t listen anymore. “Based on what the Elders have told me, it appeared to have been Maisy who broke out of her cell—bars pried apart, mangled. Nick’s lock had been broken and there was blood on the floor, as if there’d been a struggle. For all we know, this is all on Maisy and he was taken against his will. The Elders’ witches had a large task to perform tonight and it could have weakened many spells they cast, including that which sealed the cells. Maybe they—”
“And yet, no one thought of that when it actually mattered, when something could have been done to prevent it,” I cut in, shortening Elise’s explanation because I didn’t want to hear it.
Too little too late.
The bottom line was, Nick was out. The logistics were of little consequence at this point.
“We’ll be in the basement until we get the all clear,” I grumbled. “My best defense is to hide her behind the false wall. I’ll stand guard outside it and pray I’m able to take him down before he finds a way beyond it.”
That was it. The best I could do was hope that putting my own life on the line was enough to save hers.
I managed to take two steps toward my destination before Hilda’s voice rang out again.
“Liam, wait.”
My name being called halted me.
“I’ve got something to say and it cannot be put off,” she declared.
When I turned to face her, her expression was grim—the first sign things were about to get even darker. We couldn’t take any more bad news and, judging by what I saw, that’s exactly what this was.
More bad news.
More of the same.
“I know the timing of what I need to share is, perhaps, the worst it could possibly be, but this is all out of my control,” she began. “Liam, after our conversation yesterday, after seeing the materials Sebastian has been stockpiling, I conducted a bit of research. That research included reaching out to several close friends whom I trust—in terms of loyalty and knowledge,” she assured us, keeping her gaze trained on me. “I explained to you that one possibility for Sebastian’s intentions with such a large quantity of biremede stone might be to commune with the Oracles. However, you’ll also remember I stated that he may have other uses for the stones. Uses that were not quite as apparent.”
My fists clenched at my sides and I didn’t bother breathing, knowing whatever she’d say next would only steal it away.
“What sorts of other uses?” Elise asked, concern clearly marking her expression.
Hilda sighed and moved into the center of the foyer where we had all convened.
“To fully explain, you need to understand a few things that aren’t common knowledge,” she began. “As you all know, I’m able to commune with the Oracles, which is not typically heard of for a witch. They interact with Elders and members of the High Council, but … never other supernatural beings. After I boldly petitioned them for help years ago, fully expecting to be rejected, I was granted special permissions for reasons I am not entirely certain of,” she shared, passing a glance my way.
I assumed these special permissions she spoke of being granted had something to do with another theory she revealed the day before. She hinted toward a belief that one of the Oracles might possibly be the ascended soul of Noah.
Her brother.
“Being able to commune with the Oracles is all part of a bigger process. There are rules,” she explained. “Rights. Responsibilities. One such responsibility is carried out every twenty-ninth or thirtieth day, at the top of the synodic month when the moon is full. It is an event of sorts known as The Syphoning.”
We were all silent as she opened our eyes to aspects of the supernatural world that had never been spoken of in our presence. Mostly, because these events generally only occurred with Elders, who were notoriously secretive when it came to the ways of the lycans.
“These events consist of the Oracles drawing information from Elders and the knowledge is relinquished involuntarily during a deep, trancelike sleep. It is the same all over the world. At the stroke of midnight on that day, every Elder of every clan participates. It has always been this way. Think of it as a similar process to downloading information. Only the transfer is between the Oracles and the clan leaders.”
This was all so foreign to us, difficult to grasp. So, seeing our collective confused expressions, she explained further.
“Because of my connection, I undergo this syphoning event as well. Meaning, whatever information I have, the Oracles are privy to it as well. It is my belief that Sebastian has been using the stones as a conduit of sorts since he arrived in this state, a means of intercepting information from the Elders within a certain radius as they commune with the Oracles, essentially granting himself access to the same information the Oracles have. Like a virus, infecting the entire system.”
“So, if this only happens once a month, that means he knows nothing that’s been discussed and planned since the last full moon, right?” Elise asked. There was no missing the hint of panic thinly hidden beneath the words.
Hilda’s grim expression answered the question long before she even spoke.
“I believe Sebastian—impatient as he’s known to be—is no longer content to wait for monthly updates. Based on the sheer quantity of biremede, some of the other materials you reported finding … I have reason to believe he’s discovered a way to mimic and recreate these events, a way to read those of us marked for syphoning within a given radius … including myself.”
My heart sank. The pieces all began to fit together at once. It now made sense why Sebastian was always two steps ahead, why we assumed there was a traitor among us. No one had leaked information.
It had been stolen.
It was now clear how he knew the clan’s plan to fake a weakness in the dam, beating us to the p
unch by creating a real emergency. It was now clear how he knew exactly what Nick was and that the presence of death seemed to fuel his dark side. With this knowledge, we could assume that anything we were aware of … he would be, too.
There was a hush in the room as I believe we all tried to take in the breadth of what had just been revealed. If Hilda was right about this, when Sebastian succeeded, we would have absolutely no secrets.
A brief flicker of emotion behind Hilda’s eyes was snatched away when she lifted her head again.
“It is because of this, that I must leave.”
The statement drew the air from the room.
“My presence here has become a liability and I cannot justify putting all of you in further danger,” she expressed. “If Sebastian has not already weaseled his way inside my head, it will not be long until he does. And if that happens, all our plans, every action we strategize to take against him in the future … he’ll see it coming.”
I was right to believe this news was terrible. Having a powerful witch on our side was perhaps our strongest line of defense. But now, it seemed that having Hilda here had suddenly become our greatest weakness.
“I’ll be gone within the hour,” she announced, shocking us all with this abrupt timeline. “Prolonging my exit will only jeopardize your position even more,” she added.
Her eyes glistened and I was aware of what a difficult thing this was for her. She’d sacrificed so much to be here, to make sure we were all safe, at times putting her own safety on the line. We wouldn’t have gotten this far without her. Her love wasn’t shown through soft words or affection, but rather by her loyalty.
I could relate to that completely.
This decision was noble and I respected that she didn’t keep this information to herself. No matter how difficult it would be to leave us.
“Where will you go?” Elise asked, doing her best not to sound frantic. “Will Sebastian be looking for you?” she added.
Hilda shook her head. “He’ll have no reason to. I’m not the one he’s after.”