by Lexi C. Foss
I tensed at the command in his voice, but my father didn’t notice. He merely patted me again and showed himself out, all the while expecting me to comply.
No, I thought, tucking a strand of hair behind Aflora’s ear. “I’d much rather keep you, sweet star.” I bent to kiss her forehead. “Sweet dreams.”
MY CHEST BURNED, stirring me to awareness beside Kols. He remained studiously asleep, his features void of discomfort. Another pang had me pressing my palm to my pec to massage the throbbing muscle, but it did little to dispel the agony rippling through my veins.
Something’s wrong, I realized. “Aflora.”
“She’s fine,” a groggy voice said as Shade materialized in Kols’s room wearing nothing but a pair of boxers. He scratched the back of his neck and blew out a breath, wincing as a fresh wave of heat splintered through me.
“Doesn’t feel fine,” I gritted out through my teeth. And considering his reaction rivaled mine, he obviously felt it, too.
“Hmm?” Kols murmured, blinking awake, then frowned upon finding the Death Blood only a few feet away. “Where the fuck are your pants? And why the hell are you in my room?”
Shade rolled his eyes. “You’re lucky I’m wearing boxers,” he muttered. “I usually sleep naked in Aflora’s bed.”
A visual I did not want to entertain. “What the fuck is going on, Shade?” I demanded.
He palmed the back of his neck and dipped his head back to stare up at the ceiling. “Aflora is siphoning power out of us to help herself heal.”
That forced me to sit up. Same with Kols.
“You said he wouldn’t hurt her,” I said, narrowing my gaze. “What happened, Shade?”
“I don’t know!” he shouted, throwing his arms up in the air as he lowered his wild eyes to mine. “I can’t link to her without risking Zakkai getting into my head, and he already knows too much. I’ve risked a lot just by lowering the barrier between us to check on her. I can’t do it again, but trust me, I wish I could. Fuck, I wish I could do a lot of things right now.”
This was probably the truest Shade had ever been with us. And, unfortunately, it wasn’t fucking good enough. “Let’s try her dreams again,” I said to Kols. “Maybe she’s asleep now.”
“You can’t,” Shade started, but I held up my hand.
“Your head is a problem because of all your time fuckery. I get that. But I don’t know those details. If Zakkai wants to rummage through my thoughts, he’s welcome to experience my rage.”
“It’s more than that,” Shade insisted. “He’s the Source Architect. He can rewrite powers, Zeph. He can alter your powers.”
“I’m not afraid of his Quandary skills,” I retorted, refocusing on Kols. “We should—”
“He can undo the mating bond,” Shade interjected.
We could have heard a pin drop after that pronouncement.
Altering my powers was a consequence I could live with. Altering my bond to Aflora? No, that wasn’t an acceptable risk.
Kols cleared his throat. “What about our elemental bond?”
“I don’t know,” Shade whispered. “But maybe.”
“Has he undone our mating bonds before?” I asked.
Shade swallowed. “I don’t know.”
I frowned. “You don’t know? Yet you’re positive that he can do it now? Through a dream?”
Shade shook his head. “You don’t understand.”
“You’re right. I don’t fucking understand because you’re not telling us everything,” I snapped, tired of this convoluted riddle of a game. “Either give me something I can work with or get the fuck out of here.”
“Zeph.” Kols placed his palm on my thigh, the blanket the only thing separating his touch from my skin. “Are there timelines you don’t remember?” Kols asked, the question for Shade.
“Likely, yes.” Shade’s hands fell to his sides in a helpless gesture. “There are certain rules with time. If you bond to another fae—full bonding, not just an initial stage—then you can’t go back without taking the bonded mate with you. And the only way to ensure that a bonded mate forgets is if you sacrifice your memories as well. So it’s possible I’ve done that, but I wouldn’t remember if I had.”
“This is why I don’t fuck with time,” I muttered.
“You’re not helping,” Kols said, squeezing my leg. “Shade, has Zakkai ever dismantled our bonds to Aflora?”
The Death Blood stilled. “I already admitted to Aflora succeeding in that endeavor,” he said slowly. “Her Quandary magic comes from Zakkai.”
“Meaning, if she can do it, he definitely can,” Kols translated.
Shade dipped his chin in acknowledgment. “I’m not saying he will. I’m saying the possibility is there, and if you choose to talk to Aflora, you need to be very careful.”
“Who put the block in my head?” I asked him, narrowing my gaze. I’d thought it was because of her location in a paradigm, but something about the way he phrased his statement made me think otherwise. If I choose to talk to Aflora. Meaning I could talk to her.
“It’s a safety measure,” the Death Blood replied.
“That’s not what I asked.”
“I know,” he replied.
“Remove the block, Shade,” I demanded, reading between the lines. “I’ll control my own link.”
Shade started pacing. “It’s not that simple.”
“It is that simple,” I replied, conjuring my wand. “Get the fuck out of my head.”
“I’m not in your head.” He stopped to stare at me. “I put the block in Aflora’s mind.”
“Then fucking remove it,” I said through my teeth.
“Zeph.”
“Stop Zephing me, Kolstov. I’m not playing into his riddles anymore.” I pointed my wand at Shade. “Remove the block. Now.”
Shade released an insufferable sigh and sat on the bed, which was not at all what I anticipated. “Torture me all you want, Zephyrus. It’s nothing compared to the pain I’m already in.”
Kols put his hand on mine, lowering the wand. “He’s not going to remove the block, even if you hurt him.”
“Maybe not, but hurting him will make me feel a lot better,” I muttered.
“No, it won’t,” Kols said softly. “The only thing that will make any of us feel better right now is Aflora. I think we should try to reach her in her dreams, but tread carefully.”
Shade huffed a laugh. “The irony.”
“What irony?” Kols asked.
“Zakkai used to visit her mind while she slept between both of you.” His lips twitched. “You never noticed. Maybe he won’t notice either, except I’m guessing he’s waiting for you right now.”
“Since you know him so well, maybe you should come with us,” I suggested, only half meaning it.
“Actually, that might work,” Kols murmured. “You might be able to sense his energy signature.”
“His energy signature?” Shade repeated. “Aflora is drenched in his energy. They bonded when she was seven, and his magic has been growing with hers ever since.” He pulled his knee up onto the mattress and leaned against one of the posts at the foot of the bed.
A strange sort of silence fell between the three of us as we considered what that meant. Shade had mentioned the age of Zakkai’s bond to Aflora earlier, but hearing it again really drove the point home.
Fifteen years.
I hadn’t even been bonded to her for fifteen days.
“Aflora inherited the earth source shortly after their mating,” Shade added, his tone lacking his usual snark. “You can imagine what that’s done to her, right?”
“It caused her powers to mingle with his, which is what marks her as an abomination.” Kols sounded wary, but he mimicked Shade’s position by leaning against the headboard with one leg drawn up, the sheets pooling at his hips.
If Aflora walked in and saw this, she’d probably faint. Three of her mates, mostly naked, sitting in a weird triangle shape on the bed.
I would h
ave laughed if I had a sense of humor.
But nothing about this was funny or okay. And the dull ache in my chest only emphasized that fact.
“You said you were able to lower the barrier to check on her. Do it again. I want to feel her.”
Shade’s ice-blue eyes glittered even in the low lighting of the room. “My mental block isn’t the same as the one I put in her mind.”
“Then we go into her dreams,” I replied, done with this negotiation. “I need to know that she’s okay, and I’m not accepting your confirmation to the contrary.” He hadn’t earned my trust. Fuck, he was far away from that point.
“Call Kyros and put him on standby. If this goes badly, we’ll just shift backward in time.” Kols shrugged as though messing with the timeline mattered little to him.
His whole demeanor had changed since Shade had bitten him—an act that made my blood boil.
I was Kols’s protector. His Guardian. And a Death Blood had first-stage mated him while I’d been passed out from a spell.
A spell cast by the same Death Blood in question.
There really was no mystery here as to why I wanted to kill him.
The only reason I hadn’t touched him yet was because of Aflora. Hurting him would hurt her, and she was in enough pain already.
My eyebrow lifted with the thought. “Wouldn’t breaking my bond with Aflora hurt her?” I asked slowly, interrupting whatever the Death Blood had just been saying to Kols. “If your claim regarding his care for her is valid, then would he risk harming her in that manner?”
Shade stared at me. “Breaking the bond would hurt, yes. As to whether or not he would go through with it, I’ll just say that he’s not opposed to risks.”
“Meaning he would jeopardize Aflora if the situation required it,” I translated, my irritation renewed. Not that it’d necessarily left. “Right. We’re done with this conversation. I’m going into her dreams. If you two want to join me, then do.”
I lay down and closed my eyes.
Something was wrong, beyond the obvious. And I wasn’t just going to sit here debating when I could get to the heart of the matter.
In Aflora’s mind.
MAGIC CURLED around me in a cocoon of color.
Purple.
Green.
Cerulean.
A splash of red.
I reveled in it, soaking up the energy my soul so badly needed, while also prodding at my renewed connection to earth. It smelled fresh and sweet, the source a welcome hive of sunshine that warmed my skin.
Beautiful, I thought, twirling in my bed of flowers and inhaling all the fresh scents. It rejuvenated my depleted spirit. Yet I couldn’t recall how or why this rejuvenation was needed.
Strange.
Oh, but the sun! I missed the sun.
I paused. Why do I miss such a vital element of life? I tapped my lip, whirling around a little slower now, trying to determine what felt so off about this place.
It reminded me of something.
A safe place.
A meadow of flowers with a home hidden in a tree.
Shade, I breathed, sighing as violet energy flared around me. Sadness overwhelmed me, a sense of betrayal lurking beneath the waves of energy.
“Aflora…” My name came to me on a breeze, the deep, masculine tones reminding me of a Warrior Blood.
Zeph, I thought, my heart skipping a beat. Oh, yes. Zeph.
But he wasn’t in my meadow. Except his green magic flickered around me, the dark hue reminding me of a forest of evergreens. My lips kicked up at the thought, the scent of his woodsy cologne touching my senses.
I followed the trail created by his masculine presence, searching… searching… searching.
However, a trickle of purple light gave me pause. Shade.
His minty aftershave swirled around me, beckoning me toward a darker section at the edge of the meadow. I hadn’t noticed it before, the sun having lit up all the corners earlier in the day.
Hmm, something wasn’t quite right about this little nook.
But his presence grew with each step, his shadowy energy seducing my inner fae.
Dark magic.
I curled a cerulean strand around it, testing the tendril of smoke, and smiled as he tugged back.
Come dance with me, little rose, he was saying. Or that was how I interpreted the invitation, anyway.
My bare feet brushed the last hint of sunny grass before I stepped through the dark threshold into Kols’s Academy bedroom.
I blinked, startled by the shift. Then gaped at the three shirtless men in Kols’s bed.
“This must be a dream,” I whispered to myself, noting their chiseled features and gorgeous faces.
Kols with his auburn locks of thick hair and golden irises.
Zeph with his dark strands and forest-green eyes.
And Shade with that perpetual smirk and icy gaze. He sat against the bedpost at the foot of the bed, his legs clad in a pair of black boxers.
Kols and Zeph were against the headboard, the silky sheets low on their hips and leaving a suggestion of nudity below.
I glanced down to find myself similarly dressed in a threadbare tank top and boy shorts, nothing else. My lips twisted in consideration. “I’m usually naked in our dreams.”
“We’re ensuring that we don’t deviate from the purpose of this dream,” Zeph said.
“Oh.” I cleared my throat. “Well, you all are…” I waved a hand at their bare chests and cleared my throat again. “Sorry. What’s the purpose of what now?”
Kols chuckled. “I think she’s fine, Zeph.”
“Come here, pixie flower,” my Warrior Blood mate demanded, holding out his arm.
Normally, I’d balk at him, but I really wanted to comply this time. So I shuffled toward the bed and crawled on top of him to steal a much-needed hug. Although, I couldn’t remember why I wanted one. And touching him had my eyes welling up with tears.
I buried my face in the crook of his neck, inhaling his familiar scent, and shuddered against him.
“I don’t think she’s fine at all,” he said, his arms closing around me in an embrace underlined in heat and power.
Safe, I thought. I feel safe here.
Among my mates.
Except, it wasn’t real. This was all in my head, and that caused my heart to ache with a sense of acute loss. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me,” I admitted, swallowing thickly. “I… I… feel… I feel so sad.”
“He’s enchanted her mind,” Shade murmured, his voice low. “I can see the bands of his magic threaded through her thoughts.”
“He?” I repeated. “He who?”
“Zakkai,” Zeph said, palming my cheeks to pull my gaze to his. “He’s taken you to a paradigm. I could feel your pain. Did he hurt you?”
“P-paradigm?” I recognized that term. But I couldn’t define it. Just as I knew Zakkai, yet his description remained just out of reach. “This…” I trailed off, frowning.
Everything was so dreamy and perfect and pretty.
My mates were mostly naked.
Mmm, I wanted to lick them all.
Wait, I thought, shaking my head. That’s not right.
I’d gone from… from something… to… Did they all have to be so distracting? “You all need clothes.”
Kols reached for me, the inky lines along his arms writhing with hypnotic power. Zeph released my face, his hands dropping to my hips. I glanced down, noting how I straddled his thighs.
Why am I wearing clothes? I wondered, biting my lip. That’s not the point of dreams. I should be naked. But didn’t I just tell them…?
I flinched as Kols’s palm met my cheek. His skin burned against mine, his power a shock wave that yanked a gasp from my throat. “Oh!” I arched upward and nearly fell, but Zeph’s hand landed on my lower back, holding me steady.
Energy hummed through me, magic warring deep inside my soul.
I closed my eyes, falling into the black hole of whirling energy, searching
for the cause of the disturbance.
Red and cerulean battled.
Beautiful colors.
So bright and vibrant.
Only, they were trying to destroy one another.
No, no, couldn’t have that. They were too pretty to harm each other.
I plucked at them, tugging the two cords apart, and shoved them to separate recesses of my soul, then jolted awake on Zeph’s lap once more.
He was shouting.
Kols had fallen off the bed, and Shade was trying to help him up.
I frowned. “What happened?”
“Zakkai,” Zeph snarled the name.
I blinked, then gasped. “He wants to kill Kols!”
“No shit,” Shade snapped, his sharp tone startling me. He never spoke to me like that.
And considering how we’d left things, he should be groveling. “You gave me to Zakkai,” I said slowly, everything coming back to me in a surge of insanity. That part wasn’t important. I needed to tell them about his intentions for Kols. Except, hold on, I already did.
“Are you all right?” Zeph asked, cupping my cheeks once more. “I need to know you’re okay. I could feel your pain.”
“My pain?” I repeated, trying to pull away to look at Kols, but Zeph held me steady.
“Aflora, did Zakkai hurt you?”
“No,” I replied, frowning. “No, Dakota did.”
His eyebrows flew upward. “Dakota?”
“Some Elite Blood,” I said. “She hit me with a horrible spell. It… it paralyzed me. Zakkai made her stop. Then he took me back… to sleep… in his room.” I glanced around as the dream started to blur. “Zeph, he wants to kill Kols.” I tried to grab him to ensure he understood, but my hand went through him.
“Aflora!”
“Zeph!” I cried out, lunging for him. “He wants to kill Kols!”
He caught me by the waist as I nearly tumbled to the floor and yanked me back up onto the bed. I curled into his lap, shivering. “I don’t know where I am,” I whispered. “I don’t know where he’s keeping me, but there are mountains and sunshine.”
I glanced up, a plea for him to find me lining my lips, only his eyes had turned a silver blue. And his dark hair now fell in white waves around his shoulders.