Chapter 6

Carrow

A moment later, we reached a heavy wooden door at the end of the corridor a dozen yards past the last guards.

"To my knowledge," Grey said, "we're at ground level. This should lead us to the seer's cavern."

The magic that pulsed from the door made my insides churn. I pressed a hand to my stomach and breathed deeply. "Is this why the guards were positioned so far away?"

Grey nodded. "It's impossible to stay long in this spot. Come on."

He reached for the iron door handle and pushed inward. As the heavy door swung open, the magic became more repulsive.

I drew in an unsteady breath. "This is awful."

"We just need to get through, then it will be better." He entered the dark corridor, and I followed.

Immediately, stairs descended. We took them two at a time, hurrying into the darkness. Every three meters or so, torches on the walls burst to life as we passed. Their glow was faint but welcome.

It took us at least five minutes to descend the entire way. We had to be a dozen stories underground. The air grew icy and damp, and I rubbed my arms, wishing my jacket hadn't been ruined. The wet, blood-soaked shirt at my back turned hard, freezing in the air. My teeth chattered.

"Almost there," Grey said.

We reached a huge room at the base of the stairs, a cavern carved right out of the black rock. Icicles hung from the ceiling, and a white mist filled the otherwise empty space.

"Who could possibly live down here?" I asked.

"The seer is not actually a person," Grey said. "It's a shadow from the past. The collective memories and knowledge of all turned vampires."

"Wow." I'd had no idea that was even possible.

"Come." He reached for my hand, but right before our fingers could touch, he drew his hand back and clenched it into a fist. He shook his head. "Not safe. Follow me."

I searched his face, looking for the beast that so terrified him. What was it like to have a monster inside you that would force you to do its will?

Terrible.

Normally, he had it under control without issue. But with this curse growing stronger by the day…

He turned and walked toward the center of the cavern. I followed, moving deeper into the mist. It flowed around me, icy cold, and I felt its touch everywhere. Almost as if it were trying to know me.

"Stop here." Grey's voice was soft.

We stopped.

The mist swirled, kicking up a breeze, then coalesced in the middle of the cavern, growing thicker and whiter right in front of us. It reached critical mass, then fell to the ground in a splash of opalescent water that lapped gently toward the tips of our boots.

Grey stepped back, and I mimicked the movement.

Breath held, I watched the water. It rose upward, forming an ethereal figure with no gender or race. The features were indistinct, but a sense of wisdom emanated from it.

Grey bowed, and I copied the gesture, not able to take my gaze from the strange form. I'd seen a lot of weird stuff during my time in the magical realm, but this might take the cake.

We straightened.

"Why have you wakened me?" the seer asked, its voice echoing with power that shook my bones.

"Thank you for appearing," Grey said. "We are here for help, if you are so inclined."

"Of what sort?"

"We are Cursed Mates," he said.

The figure tilted its head, then drifted forward, so close that I could see through it to the other side of the cavern wall. The seer reached out an indistinct hand, hovering it over my chest, then over Grey's.

"Yes, I can feel that. It has been a very long time since I have seen a pair of you. I assume you are here because you want to break the curse?"

Grey nodded. "We'd both like to survive."

"Do you want to break the bond as well?" the seer asked.

Shock raced through me.

Break the mate bond?

I'd assumed it wasn't possible. After we'd tried with Cyrenthia's magic and failed, I'd assumed it was something that would always be there.

Did I want to break the bond with him?

Did it matter?

Even though we'd temporarily severed it, I'd still felt so strongly for him.

"You are uncertain," the seer said. "Which is not unexpected."

I said nothing. I'd never been quite so out of my depth as I was then.

"Is it possible to break the curse?" Grey asked.

The seer raised a shoulder in a shrug. "Not that I have ever seen."

"So there is no hope?" Grey asked.

"A moment, please." The seer drifted toward me, its form moving quickly.

My heart leapt, and I moved to step back, but I was too slow. The seer's entire ethereal body flowed right into mine, freezing cold.

Suddenly, my soul felt full to bursting, like energy was blasting around inside my body, inspecting every inch of me.

I gasped and reached for Grey. He gripped my arm, helping me stand upright. My head spun and my vision went fuzzy as the energy grew and grew.

Finally, it exploded out of me. I sucked at the air, my body suddenly empty and warm.

Normal.

Panting, I looked up.

The seer stood in front of me, looking the same as ever.

"A little warning next time," I said, panting.

Grey kept me on my feet until my limbs stopped shaking. Looking at him, I asked, "Did you know that would happen?"

He shook his head.

I looked back at the seer. "What did you see?"

"Cursed Mates almost never survive. They aren't powerful enough. But you…I think you might be."

"How?"

"The answer is inside you. Inside your power. You doubt yourself and your ability to lead because you don't understand what you are. But knowing your past will help you know your power."

My ability to lead. My mind flashed to the leader's chair I'd been unable to sit in. To Mac's words. But how was I even qualified? "What power?" I barely understood my magic.

"The answers are in your past, but you must find them yourself. This is something I cannot see."

"What about my past? Where in my past?" Again, I wished I'd known my mother. I couldn't stop thinking of her lately, wishing that she'd survived so I could know her. Learn from her.

"That is for you to discover. Once you know what you are, what your true power is, you will have your answers. You will be able to save him."

"I'm a seer."

"No, you aren't."

It was right. The Seer's Guild had never claimed me. Though I had a gift similar to a seer's, I wasn't actually one of them.

"Come." The figure motioned me forward. "Let me see if there is anything inside your mind."

"Are you going to do that thing again?" I asked.

"No. Then, I was looking at your magic. At your soul. This is different."

I approached, my heart racing. The figure rested cold fingertips against my temple. They felt like an icy mist—there, but not. The chill seeped inside my head, seeming to float around inside my mind. Searching.

"Your memories…"

I looked at the seer, wanting it to continue. To speak more quickly. Finally, it did. "You have recently found a book. Your answers are there. Your friend will help you."

"Seraphia?"

"No. The raven."

"The raven?" Confusion flickered. "Eve's raven?"

"Not Eve's. Yours. The raven waits with Eve, drawn by her Fae energy. It is life, keeping the raven here while it waits."

"I don't understand."

"You will. But first, you must open the book and find your past."

"Seraphia is working on the book."

"And she will be successful," the seer said. "But it will take your blood to finish the spell that will open the book. Then you must find the raven."

"What about the raven? And I'll just read all the answers in the book?" It definitely sounded too easy, especially given how difficult and unpredictable my magic could be. My skills were improving, but erratically.

It laughed—or at least made a sound that might have been a laugh, raspy and rough. "No, nothing so simple. But it will be a guide, helping you along the path to discovering what you are and what you can do. Once you know, you will be able to save them both."

"Both? Grey and me?"

The seer disappeared, its form fading out into mist that once again filled the chamber. I looked at Grey, almost more confused than when I'd arrived.

He rubbed a hand over his face. "That was…not bad."

"Not bad? I have no idea what to do."

"No, we don't know exactly what to do. But we have plenty of clues now. And the seer is gone. We need to leave."

I nodded, my mind racing to catalog and memorize everything the seer had told me. Obviously, we needed to get to Seraphia immediately. And the raven…

We had to find that bird, whatever that meant.

"Can we transport?" I asked Grey, wanting to avoid the trip back through the castle.

"Not until we are outside. Silviu would never let his prey go so easily." He turned and headed toward the stairs.

I followed, racing up behind him.

The corridors were empty as we hurried toward the exit. The bodies of the guards lay still and undisturbed, and I began to hope that we would make it out of there without trouble.

We were nearly to the exit when a voice boomed behind us. "Devil."

We spun around, spotting Silviu on the other side of the room.

He stood on the stairs, his tall form stiff. His black suit was so perfectly pressed and he stood so still that he looked like a mannequin in a department store in Hell.

"Silviu." Grey's voice sounded bored. "We are leaving now."

"I need her. You know that."

"I'm afraid you cannot have her." He stepped forward.

"No," I whispered.

"I'll handle this," he said. "Get out of here."

"The point is for both of us to survive. I'm not leaving you."

"I cannot allow you to depart so soon," Silviu said.

"This isn't the way to obtain Carrow's help," Grey said. "You've been cooped up here too long. You no longer know how to engage with people."

Silviu shrugged a slim shoulder. "Perhaps you are right and I am out of date. All the same, I like things my way."

I scoffed, watching him, looking for any kind of weakness that I could exploit. I wouldn't jump on it—not unless Grey really needed me to. But this was his maker. His fight.

"Unfortunately, you cannot have things your way," Grey said. "I proved that last time when I left here, and I'm going to do so again."

A shadow of rage passed over Silviu's face, and he raised a hand. It burned bright red with flame, and he hurled the fireball directly at Grey.

Instead of dodging, Grey stepped into it, taking the blast on the chest. It exploded around him, enveloping his form, and he seemed to glow briefly, growing stronger.

"You've forgotten my particular talent," Grey said, a smile in his voice.

"Bastard," Silviu hissed, annoyance in the tone.

"I learned the gift here, you know." Grey approached slowly, like a predator. "Adapted to survive. To escape."

"You'll not escape this time." Silviu prowled closer.

* * *

Grey

Silviu stared at me, rage in his eyes. His time alone in this castle had twisted his mind. He was still powerful—massively so.

But rage drove him now.

He would make mistakes.

It made it even easier to manipulate his thoughts.

I imbued my voice with power, letting my magic flow through my words and into him. "You will let us leave unharmed."

"You know that does not work on me," Silviu muttered, stalking closer, moving like a panther out for a kill.

"Doesn't work well." I smiled. "But it does work."

He growled.

"You will not fight us," I said.

His steps stuttered, as if his body fought to stop him from walking, yet his mind wanted to force him to keep going. He pushed onward, moving more slowly, his brow furrowed with effort.

"I will punish you for this," he hissed.

"Your ability to do that disappeared long ago." I charged, hurtling toward him with every bit of speed and rage that filled my body.

Protect.

I could feel Carrow behind me, no doubt debating which angle to attack from. I wanted to finish this before she even tried. She shouldn't be anywhere near Silviu.

I reached him a half second later, raising my fist and delivering a swift punch to his jaw. He spun backward, staggering. The pain seemed to have shocked him free of my mind control, and he whirled toward me, slamming me down.

He fell upon me, swinging for my face as his speed took me to the ground. Before he could land the blow, I kicked up, hitting him in the stomach and hurling him off of me.

He flew into the nearby wall. I stood, and he straightened. We collided in a blur of fists. Silviu landed a hard blow to my jaw, making pain flare. I felt the bone crack, the agony nearly blinding me. Instinct drove my movements, and I returned the blow, striking twice in a row.

Thoughts of Carrow fueled me, making me stronger, faster.

Silviu raised a fist for another punch, but I blocked, putting all my strength into my next blow. My fist slammed into his jaw, radiating pain up my arm. He sailed backward and landed in a heap, lying still.

Unconscious.

I turned toward Carrow, who stood nearby, a dagger and a potion bomb clutched in each hand.

"You never gave me an opening," she said.

The corner of my mouth quirked up in a small smile, but pain from my broken jaw made starbursts explode behind my eyes. "Come. He'll regain consciousness soon."

She nodded, and we hurried from the castle, racing down the steps and onto the gravel path. We sprinted downward through the gauntlet, the freezing cold piercing my bones.

We were nearly to the end when I heard a shout from above. The rage that echoed in the sound competed with the blasts of thunder that tore through the sky.

Silviu.

I looked back, spotting the tiny, pale figure of my maker standing at the door to his castle.

He'd always been a bastard.

I turned back and raced alongside Carrow. A dozen meters later, and I felt the protective charm that surrounded the castle break.

I grabbed her hand and pulled her to a stop. "We can transport from here."

"Thank fates." She spun toward me, face pale and lips shaking with cold.

I plunged my hand into my pocket and withdrew a transport charm. Quickly, I slammed it to the ground. A silvery gray cloud exploded upward, and I gripped Carrow's hand tightly, imagining the courtyard outside of my tower.

Together, we stepped into the mist. The ether sucked us in and pulled us through space, spinning us wildly until my feet landed on the cobblestones of Guild City.

Night had fallen, the sky dark and the city streets nearly empty. Streetlamps flickered with a golden glow, giving Carrow's pale face some color.

She heaved a sigh and tipped her head back. "That was close. No wonder you got the hell out of there as soon as you could."

I nodded. "It was an unpleasant decade."

My shirt stuck to my back, torn and bloody. Though those wounds had healed, I was a mess and needed another healing potion for my jaw. My natural healing was gone now. "I haven't had a hit like that in a while."

"He was powerful." Worry twisted her mouth. "Are you all right?"

"Fine."

"Will he come for us?"

"Possible, but doubtful. He hasn't left that castle in centuries. I'm not sure he knows how anymore."

"Good."

"I need a change of clothes," I said, feeling the wind on my back through my torn shirt. My jaw ached, a reminder of the mortality biting at my heels. I needed to seek another healing potion immediately. "I assume you want to return to the library?"

"I do." She shifted, pulling at her ruined shirt. "But do you mind if I get cleaned up at your place first?"

"Not at all."