91. Jax

91

Jax

"Help us," I said slowly to Saris. "You can't let this happen."

"I told you; I am not allowed to interfere. I've already broken Fae law by infiltrating the cult and helping you. I'm only here to retrieve what was stolen from us." Slowly, she leaned down and gathered the dead witch in her arms. "I am sorry."

Then, she disappeared.

London's wolf came tearing out of him, and I quickly blocked his path before he left. "If anything happened in my pack, I would know. I would know it through the bonds. I can feel Jenson and Kenzi. They're fine."

London growled, and I shook my head. "She's lying to us London, and it could very well be to separate us. Get control of your wolf. I'm going to get the satellite phone and call."

Lowering his head, he reached for the pack and tossed it my way. The implications were clear. If I made the call, and he didn't like what they had to say, he'd be gone, and it would be up to me to catch up.

The phone was double sealed in a watertight pack. I pulled it out and made the call. Kenzi answered on the other end. "Did you find her?" she asked.

"No, I'm still tracking her, but I have a reason to believe that Maeve has discovered who Lunessa is. When was the last time you saw her?"

"A couple of hours ago. Jenson is with her now."

"Call him. Verify that she is fine."

If Kenzi thought that was odd, she didn't say anything. We heard her make the call and heard Jenson verify that Lunessa and Irene were both with him. "Anything else?"

"Let her know, as gently as you can, that the third witch of their coven is dead. Anticipate trouble, and remember, Maeve has a helicopter and access to dozens of witches."

"Like I could forget."

I hung up and London slowly shifted back. "Sorry," he muttered.

"No problem. I lose my head when it comes to my mate too," I said lightly. For once, he didn't deny who Lunessa was to him. Instead, there was just relief on his face.

"Why would she lie to us?"

"To make us move faster? I don't know. What I do know is that Anna was here. Give me an hour to search the place, and then we can head out."

London nodded shortly, and we split up. If Maeve was here, it was possible that she left something behind, or I could get a sense of where Anna was going next. It wasn't like there were a ton of places on the mountain where she could find sanctuary.

Her scent lingered on many of the books I found discarded on the floor. Some had been stacked neatly on the side, and I glanced at the titles. Journals. No doubt she was looking for answers about the prophecy.

"Jax," London shouted. "Come look at this."

I followed his voice down the hall to a room with a splintered door. Whoever was here left no stone unturned. Every room had been torn into it. "What?"

"Do you recognize this?" London asked as he held up a pale blue crystal. "It's for communication."

I frowned. "How do you know? It looks like every other crystal I've ever seen."

"Ava uses them to talk to other witches. It's got a chip in it, like a phone chip, but it's symbolic." He held it up for me to see. "And heavily magicked."

I took the crystal. "You think this is going to help us? If we contact another witch with one of these things?"

London rolled his eyes. "It doesn't work like a phone. I said the chip is symbolic. With the right spell, the holder can connect to anyone. You can connect to Anna."

"Anna is a null. The magic won't reach her."

"It will if you use your bond. Call Lunessa and Irene. See if I'm right."

I half suspected that he just wanted to hear Lunessa's voice, but it was worth a shot. If I could just reach Anna, I could get her to see the danger that she was in and come home. We could sort everything else out later.

It took a little bit of time, too much time as far as I was concerned, for Kenzi to connect us with Lunessa and Irene, but once London heard Lunessa's voice, he relaxed immediately.

Lunessa had clearly been crying. I hated that she had to hear of the Mother's death over the phone, and from me. "Hello, Jax," she said stiltedly. "Kenzi says you've found our communication crystal."

"London seems to think I could use it to reach Anna if I do it through my pack bond or mating bond, but she's darkening it."

"It doesn't matter. Magic will still reach it. There is a spell, but since you have no witch there to cast it, I'll have to improvise. Give me just a moment…"

A second later, she appeared in front of us. London shouted and nearly fell into the wall behind me. She looked around in surprise. "I wasn't sure that would work. There are supposed to be wards in place to prevent that from happening, and my magic is weak with both the Crone and the Mother dead."

She looked around, as if looking for the witch's body. I cleared my throat. "You can cast a spell to make the crystal work? London can fill you in on what has happened, although you shouldn't be out in the open like this. You need to return to the pack."

Lunessa nodded shortly. "There's enough magic here to get me back. As I explained earlier, these crystals are activated with a spell, which I will cast for you, but using your mating bond might be a little unpredictable. Especially given the magic she's wrapped around it. Generally, the crystal mentally transports the user to a place of their choosing where they can converse with whomever those choose. We tend to visualize a body of water as the water and air elements aid in communication. You may need to visualize your mating bond. If you do connect, your body will fall unconscious, so London will have to keep an eye on you."

Great. This just kept getting better and better. Lunessa and Anna were now both out in the open. There was a Fae creature running around. I'd be unconscious, and we weren't even sure if this would work.

But what other choice did I have? I couldn't keep chasing Anna around forever hoping to catch up to her.

"Thank you," I told her. "And I'm sorry."

"I know you are." Her eyes filled with tears. "I'm sorry too, but it may be some time before I can forgive you."

I nodded, understanding. At her instruction, I sat cross-legged on the floor and held the crystal in my hand. "Focus on your mating bond. Fight through whatever magic Anna has coated it with, and find that pulse of life that connects the two of you. The thread your wolves have woven. Picture a place that has meaning for the two of you. Where you connect."

I zeroed in on the bond, or at least, where the bond should have been. It was so muted under Anna's magic, so cloaked it almost seemed dead, but that's not how bonds worked. They were either there or they weren't, so as long as I could feel it, I knew that she was still with me.

Lunessa whispered an incantation, and the crystal warmed in my hands. My heart thumped in anticipation, and darkness surrounded me.

When I came to, I was in the middle of a clearing. It seemed vaguely familiar, and thunder cracked open in the sky. The earth was muddied beneath my feet, and my body was soaking wet.

The crystal was gone.

Frantically, I looked around. Familiar faces stared at me. Jenson. McCable. Warrick. Trusted guards. And the last time we were all together, we were hunting Dirk Kipling.

Horror dawned on me when I realized where we were. At my feet, Dirk's wolf was dead, and Anna was on her knees, staring up at me.

The mating bond slammed into place, and I nearly doubled over. Anna gasped, but her captors didn't let her go.

"Anna," I whispered. "Mate."

I reached for her. I needed to talk to her. To tell her to come back, but somehow, my body didn't seem to be my own.

I grabbed her head and twisted, and my mate fell lifeless at my feet.