Chapter 25

TWENTY-FIVE

BASH

It wasn’t until we stood at the door to Araqiel’s office that I doubted my plan.

But we really had no other choice at this point. I wasn’t disillusioned as to my abilities, I knew the extent of my magic. And in war, everyone had to be honest with themselves and their team, or success wasn’t likely. I had absolutely no idea how this bond my mother did worked. This had been the only thing in my entire life she’d kept quiet about. There was no boasting on this one. She only told us about it so that we’d do everything in our power to kill the Stone Keeper once she was found. Since then, she’d said nothing.

I knew nothing.

Ellie had a chance to figure it out because she had elemental magic.

My pride died the day Cleo took my voice. I’d just been waiting for someone who could help me. Now that I had that, I wasn’t going to hesitate. I took a deep breath, then glanced over my shoulder. Ellie and Stellan stood on the right, their arms linked together. Ellie seemed confident and Stellan looked like he was going to be sick. I knew how it felt. Savina and the twin Nephilim were behind me on my left, all three of them perpetual warriors with their game faces on. Jada stood directly behind me facing the opposite direction like she didn’t trust that tarp for one second. Good. I don’t either.

Sandra and Nickel had stayed with Collins. No one even questioned that.

The door flew open, yet no one was on the other side.

“Enter,” Zuriel barked from out of sight.

We rushed inside, then stopped short. Araqiel sat at his desk with a row of untouched tacos laid out before him. He held his head in his hands and just stared at them. The auras of my group went straight into panic mode.

Zuriel was leaning against the frame of the terrace doorway with his arms crossed over his chest. He narrowed his eyes on us, focusing on one of us at a time, then turned his gaze to Araqiel. He said something to him, but it was in their angelic language.

Araqiel let out a deep sigh and leaned back in his seat. He didn’t look at us, just stared at his uneaten tacos. “Thirty minutes.”

I frowned. “Pardon me, sir?”

“Thirty. Minutes.” He looked up and met my stare. “You may take Ellie into Third Realm for thirty minutes. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, sir.” I nodded.

“But Stellan must return to Second Realm.” He looked to the Prince. “I will not have both Wentworths at risk.”

“I will return now, sir.” Stellan was definitely going to be sick.

“Shylock and Weston will remain in First, guarding the infirmary until your return.” Araqiel rubbed his jaw. “Sandra and Nickel will remain with Collins to aid in her healing.”

“Yes, sir,” we all said at the same time.

“Go now,” Zuriel said with a rough voice.

At the same time, we all turned and raced back out the door with Jada in the lead. The door slammed closed right behind me. Araqiel wasn’t pleased, or maybe he was worried we were going to fail. No one spoke as we hurried down the stairs to the infirmary.

Sandra and Nickel jumped up when we burst through the doors.

“Ellie has been granted thirty-minute access to Third Realm. Time has begun,” Jada said without preamble. “Savina is going with us.”

“Ellie will need this.” Sandra reached up around her neck and pulled off the crystal necklace Collins had made for her. Then she reached for the table behind her and lifted an identical necklace that was splattered with blood. “And you, Savina. Jada, are you good?”

“I’ll be fine.” Jada took both necklaces, then handed them to Ellie and Savina. “We will be back shortly. The twins are to stand guard here so you two can focus on Collins.”

Nickel pressed her hand to Collins’ neck. “Be careful.”

“Good luck,” Sandra said softly. “You better go.”

Jada, Savina, Stellan, and Ellie turned and left—saying goodbye to the twins on their way out. Yet my feet were glued in place. I couldn’t peel my eyes off my soulmate on that bed.

“Better go, mate,” Weston said from beside me. “Time is ticking.”

Shylock stepped to the other side of me. “She’s in good hands. Ellie needs you now.”

I cursed and closed my eyes, then spun around and hurried out the door. I didn’t open my eyes again until I heard the infirmary doors shut behind me, otherwise I wouldn’t have had the strength to walk away from her. My stomach was in knots, my heart a frozen rock in my throat. I just prayed I wasn’t making the wrong decision with Ellie, but Araqiel and Zuriel had approved it, so it couldn’t have been too bad of a move.

When I got down to the portal, Stellan had Ellie’s face in his hands. He whispered something, but I purposely didn’t listen. Those were private words between soulmates. Savina’s red magic coiled around her fingers like little lightning bolts. Jada’s bow and arrow was strapped to her back, and she held a gnarly dagger in her hand. They were both prepared for battle.

I hated that they were probably right.

Stellan cursed violently. “Get in there and get the hell back out . . . before I lose my damn mind.”

Ellie kissed him quickly, then shoved him through the portal to Second Realm. The moment he was out of sight, she wrapped her fingers around the crystals of her necklace. “He was making me more nervous. Please, Bash, lead the way.”

"You’ll both need to hang on to us. Ellie, stick to Jada. If my mother shows her face, I want you both gone, right back here. Ellie, do not stop until you’re back in Second Realm where she can’t touch you. I’ll make sure Savina gets out.” I held my elbow out to Savina. “Understood?”

Savina took my arm. “We got it.”

Ellie clung to Jada. “Let’s do it.”

I took a deep breath, counted to three, then jumped through the portal with Savina. “God help us.”

My feet sank into the snow before the flash of the portal even faded. It was technically morning, but the sky was nearly dark. The snow falling from the sky was so thick I could barely see ten feet in front of me. A huge gust of wind slammed into us from the side, pushing us over a few feet. We all cursed and groaned.

“ My coat, ” I whispered. I’d lost my coat. At some point in the night, someone had given me a long-sleeved shirt, but it was nothing in this weather. “I forgot my?—”

“Here.” Savina flicked her wrists. There was a flash of red for a split-second and then we both wore thick white coats—actually, they were identical to my coat. The one I’d lost. She nodded. “Remind me later . . . I can probably teach you that.”

“Thank you.” I turned to look for Ellie and found her and Jada bundled in thick coats like us. “Okay, let’s venture a little ways from here first.”

Savina narrowed her eyes. “Where is the portal?”

I followed her stare and realized the portal, which was normally visible, was gone. I smiled and let out a low whistle in a specific tune. The snow rustled and then a familiar face appeared within the sea of white. Ellie and Savina jumped into fighting stances, so I leapt forward. “This is Aphid. He’s with us.”

Aphid bowed, which looked strange since his body was invisible beneath his cloak. “Your Highness, what are you doing back? She’s furious, been sniffing around for the portal. She knows you hid it.”

My stomach turned. “Fantastic. Listen, I need just a few minutes to check one thing out, then we’re leaving. Hold the tarp until we get back.”

He nodded and gestured to his left. “We’ve got it.”

“Listen, these two females are mages, and it is imperative they get back through that portal, even if they come back here alone. Understand?”

Aphid yanked his cloak off and handed it to Savina. He snapped his fingers, then suddenly a cloak soared through the sky and landed in his hand. He gave it to Ellie. “We shall be watching for your return. Hurry.”

“Thank you, Aphid.” I turned to the girls. “With this snow, you’ll have to hold on tight while flying.”

Savina wrapped her arms around my neck. “We trust you. GO.”

“Follow me, Jada.”

There was a small little forest made of crystal trees not too far from the portal. I didn’t want to have too long of a run to make, but Ellie using her magic near the hidden portal defeated the purpose of hiding it. Under the cover of these trees was the closest option. It took us a few minutes longer than expected to fly there with the strength of the wind trying to push us back.

I landed in the dead center of the forest, then dragged Savina behind a labradorite tree trunk to hide her better. “Savina, stay hidden unless we need you. Ellie, go a few feet over but keep your cloak on. Jada, stand beside her.”

Only Ellie’s hands were visible to the naked eye, but since these were cloaks made of my magic, their magic didn’t work on me which meant Ellie was perfectly visible to me. Jada didn’t seem to have a problem, thankfully. She stood behind Ellie with her bow drawn and an arrow notched and ready. Her hazel gaze swept the tree lines in my direction while I watched the trees behind her. Savina’s aura was tense, like a bomb about to detonate. She kept her magic concealed, Heavens knew she had practice with that, but her nerves were showing . . . and they matched mine.

Ellie’s purple magic flashed and sparkled a foot off the ground. Purple smoke coiled around her hands. Little purple lightning bolts flashed within it. I had absolutely no idea what she was doing or how. I just prayed with every fiber of my soul that she was learning something.

Then I felt it. A pulse in the air that was moving closer. I smelled the scent of roses. I balled my hands at my sides. “ Incoming, ” I whispered and nodded my head to the trees behind Jada.

Venus dropped down from the sky, landing fifteen feet away between two trees, her pink hair flowing in the wind. She arched one pink eyebrow and cocked her head to the side. “I never would’ve thought you bold enough to bring a mage into our realm, Bastien. Then again, I suppose you did help her escape last time. What’s the little trick you’re hiding her with this time?”

I willed my magic to conceal Ellie and Jada from sight, turning half the forest into a wall of black. “Just the usual.”

Jada had grabbed Ellie’s arm and dragged her behind a tree a few feet away.

“Tell me, brother dearest, how’s your soulmate?” Venus giggled and twirled her pink hair. “Didn’t get enough pain last time, so you’ve come back for more? Or did you really think that little dagger in my side was going to keep me down?”

“I am no longer your brother,” I growled.

She giggled again. “Oh, has she died? Is that why you’re back? Want me to put you out of your misery? Not a problem at all. What are sisters for anyways?”

Wait a second. She took my necklaces. When she was torturing me she took my necklaces. I was bare, unprotected. My mind had been so preoccupied by Collins that I hadn’t paid any attention to my own body or problems. I’d missed something huge. I braced myself. My mind and heart were free for her to mess with. She skipped forward a few steps and threw her hands up—red magic slammed into her chest.

Venus screamed and lifted off the ground, her back arching.

A massive shadow dropped out of the sky, but as Savina’s red magic flashed, it lit up the objects and my heart stopped. It was my parents. Both of them. The world slipped into slow-motion. I threw my hands up to fire my own magic to cover us when my mother grabbed my father by the wings and threw him in front of Venus.

Savina’s magic ripped through his body. He bellowed and twitched.

Mother didn’t even look at me. Her wide eyes glanced at Savina and her magic for a second before she wrapped her arm around Venus’ waist and took off . . . vanishing from our sight.