24. Twenty-Four

Twenty-Four

Caspian

“Do not cut yourself again,” I say low, warning my Primary when I see her once again reach for her mother’s blasted book.

For two weeks now, we’ve been holed up in my uncle’s room, or the south wing. Researching, reading, doing everything we can to get ready to leave in a week to check on the portals and hunt down her stash of blood.

The thirteen out of the fourteen days we’ve spent doing that, my Primary has cut her palms and smeared her blood across the cover of that book numerous times, in every pattern she can imagine.

Nothing has worked.

I’m over it and I won’t be watching her do it again.

While my brothers are handling everything they have to handle while we’re in here, I’m the one who deals with the disappointment, the outrage, and the confusion every single time it doesn’t work for her.

Granted, I will always be here to support her and I’m more than capable of dealing with it on my own, but I hate to see her beating herself up over it. I’m not allowing her to do it to herself again today.

Today, she will have a good fucking day .

If I thought torturing Oakly’s parents would make her happy, that’s where I’d take her.

“That wouldn’t make me happy,” she says sternly, eyeing her Perfecta Anima— who really drew the line about torture—then she cuts that glare back to me. “I have to continue trying, Caspian. We have a week, one, singular, until we go check on the portals, and I don’t know what the fuck I’m supposed to check. No other book in here has provided the answers either, so it has to be in here.”

She shakes the bound leather at me as if that’ll sway what I just said.

It won’t.

If she keeps it up, I’m going to take it and hide it.

Her eyes widen in shock before narrowing once more and the sassy little creature puts her hands on her hips, daring me to try.

“I won’t be falling for your whims and attempt at seducing me, Primary. We both know I’d get plenty of pleasure pinning you down while I take that book from you.”

Her cheeks blush a shade of crimson that could rival the vampire’s eyes and I lick my thumb, then flip my page, ignoring the lust now pumping in my chest.

Naughty, distracting little thing.

“Tell me what you’ve learned about the five families,” I say, closing the book in my hand so I can focus on her, and she can focus on something other than her mom’s book.

Huffing, she stomps over to me and plops down in my lap, leaning back until my shadows pull us as close together as possible. She should know better by now that her sassy attitude does nothing but bring out my sarcastic side. We can go around and around all day for all I care.

“I’m not trying to be sassy. I’m just frustrated. I’ve read through the book Aurora gave me, multiple times now, and it all fits together, plus explains being a true Primary perfectly. I don’t understand why this isn’t working.” She sighs, completely relaxing into me. “Maybe I’m not supposed to read what’s in it, or this isn’t another little tidbit that’s been left for me. Maybe it was my mom’s diary and Lyker just found it. No hidden message or anything in there I need to know. ”

The disappointment in her tone this time is for a completely different reason. She wants to get into the book just to have a piece of her mom. She was hoping to get a little closer to the woman she never got to know.

“Or hear me out, it’s not time for you to get in the book. Just because Corentin said it was time, doesn’t make it so. You of all people should know everything happens when it’s supposed to,” I say softly into her hair.

I hate giving anyone false hope. Especially her.

My words feel like the truth, though, as they flow freely with barely any thought given to them. No matter how fucking ugly, trying, hard, and catastrophic it may be on the way there, everything surrounding us happens just when it’s meant to.

She hums softly, nestling even deeper into me. “I hope you’re right.”

“I know I am. Now, the five families. Go.”

“Ugh, fine. The obvious traitors, the Everglows of Pyrathia. The council Primary is Kellie Everglow. I swear I remember all the men’s names for all five Nexuses, but I couldn’t care less to say them all right now, although I did take special interest in Gean Everglow, Gima’s father.”

My chest rumbles with laughter at the disdain in her tone. I’m sure she did take an interest in the man who was promising his daughter and the bitch who raped me, Nexuses made of us and her best friend’s men.

“Next, the Drover family of Terian. They seem like a rowdy bunch, and I was shocked to learn that the entire Nexus is a mixture of shifters. I mean, nothing wrong with that, but I had it in my head they were like Layton’s parents, where they all were different reptile shifters, not completely different species. And Tris, the Primary, being a bunny with a Nexus full of predators and a son for a predator was even more surprising. I don’t believe they’re the ones betraying us, though. I think if they were, they would’ve been involved with the Terravile ordeal.”

Sound reasoning but not disqualifying anyone yet.

“Don’t let the bunny fool you. She’s highly trained, strong earth element, and has a mean tongue when she wants to use it,” I tell her.

“I got that from my vision. She spoke softly to Kellie, but her eyes showed no sign of submission or weakness.”

“How about the Central? ”

“The Gale family. They’re the closest with Aurora and her men because of location and Vicki, the Primary, is close to hers and Tilly’s ages, only a few years older. I don’t believe it’s real friendship from the way Aurora spoke. Just more convenience and it was pushed on her by her mom. They’ve never had any children, but they still have fifty years, give or take. Also, according to Corentin’s detailed notes and Aurora, Vicki likes to talk. So much so, her men don’t. No secret is safe with her.”

“She gets on my last nerve. I haven’t seen her in years, but even when I was younger, I couldn’t stand to be in a room with her very long.” I chuff.

Catty chatterbox that one is.

“Corentin said the same, but he pretty much said that about all of them, so I sweep them all into the same pile. Aside from the obvious.”

“The Aeradora family?” I ask, although I know she knows. She’s studied plenty on them all, especially since her vision, but this is a helpful distraction for her.

“The Alewoods. They raised some red flags for me. Namely, Corentin claiming the Primary, Aaren, has an air element that could compete with his. I know that’s not the case anymore, but still, that’s a strong element. Also, I felt a deeper level of secrecy from their notes. How they wouldn’t send their son to Vito, how at meetings they only speak if addressed directly, never offering any solutions to anything or giving any input whatsoever. I don’t know if it’s a level of secrecy or arrogance, but either way, they were off-putting to me.”

I’ll move them up on the list.

“Finally, the Teals, or I guess Tealwaters since they changed their name themselves. They give me bad feelings too. Mostly because they believe the water element is above the others, but also, I found it disturbing that in Aurora’s notes, she mentioned she’s never seen the three men who don’t possess water elements, ever use theirs. The only reports are the ones from her spies who have followed them. Not just right now but over her ruling. That’s insane to me. And for their young daughter’s sake, I hope like hell she emerges with a water element. ”

Even though I possess the same element, it’s incredibly difficult for me to wrap my mind around the notion that it’s the most valuable, most important of all four.

The elements work in perfect harmony together. Without one, the entire way of our existence would fail.

I don’t understand how that’s hard for people to understand.

“Do you have any questions on any of them?” I ask.

“Not on any of them in particular, but I did notice a pattern or I guess similarity that I didn’t understand and that was the Nexus departure that all the five families took at some point in time. Is that like a vacation?” she asks and I snort.

“If you want to refer to the first year of your child’s life as a vacation, then sure, Primary.” I don’t believe I’d consider it that. “Each Nexus when they have their child is relieved of their council duty for a year. The only reason they would need to be brought in during that time is if something realm-ending happened. They all had their kids prior to shit really hitting the fan around here.”

“That makes—Wait, the Gale family don’t have any children.”

“No, they don’t. Vicki requested a year off when her parents died suddenly. That was some forty-odd years ago, so knowing what we know now, they were probably murdered by the Mastery. Mom of course felt bad for her and had only been ruling a few years, so she didn’t want to come across as someone lacking compassion like her mom. So she granted her leave under the stipulation that one of her men came to the monthly meetings in her place.”

None of us were even born at that point, but according to my mom, my uncle began hounding her about taking better notes and paying more attention to the people she’s surrounded by.

I have no fucking doubt he already knew by that point which two families would betray us, and he was trying to get her to open her eyes before such a time happened. She’ll even admit that her first ten or so years ruling, she tried everything she could to look and come across as completely opposite to her mother, but she took Uncle Orien’s words to heart .

She slowly but surely got into the ruling mindset. Realizing that spies were a necessity even against those you thought you could trust and that knowing both their strengths and weaknesses would be an asset.

“That was nice of Aurora and the right thing to do. Sometimes rules such as that need to be bent, depending on the circumstance, but beside the point, I still haven’t a clue which of them could be betraying us. Corentin, well, all of you, have such disdain for each of the families, and I see why. It’s blatantly clear. Well, other than the Drovers. I really just think they’re a rough bunch because of their shifter nature. But I know we can’t excuse them yet. Unless something just falls into our lap, I don’t think we’ll know who the second family is until the Spring Ball and we can speak to all of them, hear which man’s voice matches the one we heard in Layton’s memories.”

“I do believe you’re right about that, Primary, and if I’m being completely honest, knowing the identity of the second family is so far down on my list of fucks to give at this point. Is it something we still need to know? Absolutely. But Mom and my dads are aware and taking precautions. They’re careful with allowing them at the palace, they have spies tailing them everywhere, and they mind their words when speaking. This next meeting coming up, Mom has all intentions of acting as though the realm is in perfect alignment. So as far as I’m concerned, as long as you know everything we do about them, that’s as far as you worry about them for now,” I tell her.

Her to-do list grows by the week and the five families are a nuisance that won’t be going away until we figure out the second family, and even then, I don’t believe at this point they’re as big of an asset to the Summum-Master as we had assumed.

His biggest weapon is her blood, the ability to move realms, and the hundreds of soldiers, according to Keeper, who are marked. That doesn’t include the ones who aren’t marked but are still fucking stupid enough to join the Mastery.

Her worrying about a family who only gives a fuck about social hierarchy and betraying the realm is a waste of her valuable time .

She blows out a forceful breath of air, and I smirk at the flapping of her lips. Her frustration still slithers across my skin, and I don’t believe it’ll go away until she gets out of this standstill that she feels like she’s in.

“Would you like to try the Amplifier room today? You haven’t been in there for two days,” I ask semi gently.

Over the last two weeks, it seems the room that was supposed to be a tool to better her, has rebelled. Even with the guiding balance that Tillman taught her, that she practices daily, the room shows her one vision, and one vision only.

The Summum-Master destroying everything.

She’s broadcast it to us multiple times, in hopes we’d see something she missed that would lead to another vision if she pointed it out, but we see exactly what she does.

Two days ago, she declared a break from the room, stating that the vision isn’t going to change unless he’s stopped from moving through the realms. That the outcome is set unless we interfere, and she isn’t wasting time in there anymore for now. If there’s something she really needs to see, it’ll come to her.

“No, I wouldn’t. What I want is to be doing something productive. Not go around and around with no results.”

“Maybe a calming tonic would help, child. Or you and Oakly can practice on your tracking now rather than this afternoon. I believe you’ve got it down now,” Gaster says, smiling at her encouragingly.

“Hell yeah, I think she has it down. She’s tracking like a pro already. Vince hiding yesterday didn’t stand a chance against her,” Oakly tacks on.

“If neither of those opinions appeases you, Adored, Tanith is driving me mental. You could fly her to the academy and leave her there with Draken so I can have a moment of peace.”

Willow and I both snort as he shakes his head and plugs his ears as if that’ll keep the dragon out of his mind. I admit, I like the feisty little golden beast a lot. Now that she’ll finally speak to me, Corentin, and Tillman. She said she had to test our patience and worth for her Adored .

I told her it didn’t really matter what she thought because the Primary is mine. All she said was, you pass. Ever since then, she likes to give me little nuggets of knowledge.

“What I’d really like is to just sleep for twenty-four hours straight. Maybe then, my mind would dream up some shit that could help us or at least tell me what to do.”

The hums of their conversation, the snickering, and all the other noises in the room become nothing more than a distant murmur in my ears. Her words play on repeat in my head as the thought that was sparked from something she said tries to creep its way through the mounds of information in my brain.

My sudden narrowing of focus has the libraries’ worth of books I’ve read since gaining access to this room flipping across my mind’s eye.

“Fuck,” I breathe, hopping up out of the seat and bounding over to the stairs that lead up to the loft of books on the second floor.

“Caspian,” my Primary shrieks, and through my single-minded focus, I remind myself to apologize for dropping her on her ass just now.

Come on, you sneaky little bastard, where are you?

My eyes and fingers skim the books at rapid speeds.

The one I’m looking for, I merely glanced through it because it was irrelevant to anything we needed. Or so I thought. It was more of a recipe book, and who the fuck am I to be brewing up tonics or elixirs. That’s Gaster’s domain and he obviously passed a little of that to my uncle because his handwriting was in it. Changing up some of the ingredients and measurements.

There’s one tonic in particular I recall flipping past and it’s exactly what we need.

“Gotcha,” I hum as I finally spot the decorative spine.

After pulling it off the shelve, I fly through the pages until I get to the tonic we’re going to need for this crazy-ass idea I’ve conjured up.

The Dream Tonic.

Using my finger as a bookmark, I make my way back down the small staircase and come face-to-face with everyone. Who are looking at me as though I’ve lost my mind completely .

“Get to Uncle Orien’s room,” I say through our link.

“What’s wrong?” Corentin asks.

“Either Caspian just found something amazing or he’s cracked,” Willow tacks on, I thought sarcastically really, until I look at her very concerned eyes.

“I’m sorry for slinging you off my lap. I got caught up in a thought,” I whisper as I wrap her in my shadows and pull her to my chest.

“So you’re okay?” she asks softly.

“Fine, Primary, better than fine. I believe I have a plan.”

That concern washes away to unrestrained curiosity, and I smirk down at her before laying a kiss to the corner of her mouth.

One of two things are about to happen.

One, she’s going to be completely on board with this or she’s going to call me crazy. Well, she may do both. We’ll see.

“What’s going on?” Corentin asks as soon as he, Tillman, and Draken stampede down the stairs into our uncle’s room.

Their eyes widen with worry as they gaze at Willow wrapped in my shadows, and they’re on us in seconds.

“Everything’s fine. Caspian has a plan for something,” she says, rubbing her hands across them, calming their frantic thoughts.

All eyes turn to me and with a wave of my hand, I instruct everyone to take a seat, but I snatch my Primary back when the dragon tries to take her from me. He relents with a growl and takes a seat beside the vampire, who smiles at him as though he’s so proud of him for that little warning noise.

“Here, read this to the room,” I instruct, opening the book to the recipe and passing it to Willow.

She cocks a brow at me for a second, then looks down at the words. Clearing her voice, she begins, “The Dream Tonic. The drinker of this tonic can be pulled into a vivid, controlled dream state, where they can create a reality of their own making. Dreams induced by the tonic feel lucid, sensations may feel intense, and the reality they weaved may be completely foreign to anything they’ve ever seen. The effects last for hours, allowing the dreamer to explore or bask in the beauty of a crafted dreamscape of their most wanted desires. ”

She pauses, looking back up at me with confusion marring her beautiful face.

“Keep reading. Read my uncle’s insert.”

Her breathing shudders out of her as she runs her fingers down the page, passing the recipe, to where he wrote his notes.

“After many trials and errors with this little fickle tonic, I’ve found the results that heed what I wish of them. Firstly, don’t mix the tonic in with sleeping tea as the recipe calls for. I’ve learned I have no control over the crazy shit that comes to my mind that way, like the other night when I was almost eaten by a giant.” She snorts, then chuckles, as do we all before she clears her throat again and carries on. “Also don’t drink it straight. I woke thirteen hours later, completely unaware if I was back to reality or not. Mixing it with a calming tea, such as chamomile or peppermint has worked best in my favor.

“Second, create the tonic per use, not batch. That’s why the measurements have decreased. By doing this, I can set my intentions on a single individual while brewing the tonic. Thirdly, I’ve found it best if I go to sleep with an object of said individual’s. This allows my magic to connect with theirs.” She flips the page, searching for more of his words, but that’s where it ends. It’s enough for me.

“Cas, I still don’t understand.”

“Holy shit,” Tillman mumbles, and I shoot him a glare for reading my mind. He doesn’t get to announce my brilliant idea.

I sneer at him when his lip tilts up, and these are moments I wish the gigantic asshole would be more like the Primary and respect boundaries.

“This is your way to connect with the Dreamwalker, little Primary,” I say quickly.

“What?” the entire room, aside from Tillman, asks.

“You’ll brew and drink the dream tonic. I’ll walk you through all the steps following. I have them mapped out in my mind,” I tell her confidently when I see the doubt creeping in.

“I have no doubt you do, but I don’t see how it’ll work. Also, I don’t have an object of his. I don’t even know where he is.”

“We don’t need an object. We have his brothers. ”

Her head whips up to mine lightning fast and her mouth falls open as the rest of the room falls silent, I’m sure still trying to figure the schematics out. It’s a bit more complicated than just taking this tonic, I’ll admit, but I have complete faith in her and the wild plan running through my mind.

“Shit…” she breathes. “Okay. What do we do?”

“Go get the mind reader and sleeper. Then you’re going to take a little nap.”

“Then let’s go,” she says excitedly.

“Wait a second, princess. Cas, I need the entire plan you have laid out,” Corentin declares, standing and crossing his arms.

“You’ll get it as soon as we get to them. It’ll be best if everyone hears it at one time anyway. There’re some kinks that have to be worked out,” I tell him with a sly smile.

“Fine, let’s go then,” he grunts, lacing his fingers with Willow’s, dragging her toward the stairs. Draken, Tillman, and I laugh at his hasty retreat now that he’s shitten ’cause he doesn’t know every detail, but nonetheless we keep our teasing internal.

“Here, Caspian, while you all go inform them, I’ll gather the ingredients for the tonic. Where would you like me to meet you?” Gaster volunteers, holding his hand out for the book.

“Three tonics and the mansion,” I say.

Everyone turns to look at me, but I don’t explain further for now.

“Okay then. I’ll be there soon,” he says, then transports out.

“Oakly, if you’d like to be there for this, you and San can go get the others from the academy, then meet us at the mansion,” Tillman says.

She nods at him, lacing her fingers through San’s before blowing Willow a quick kiss, and leaves the room as well.

“You wanna go get Tanith and fly over?” Draken asks Keeper and I hold in my eye roll.

Not sure why everyone we know needs to be there, but whatever.

“We’ll meet you there, son,” Keeper says, clapping Draken on the shoulder, then speeding from the room. The dragon doesn’t cringe like he normally does when the vampire calls him that, and my little Primary smiles softly .

“You came up with this brilliant plan. Don’t know why you didn’t think everyone would want to witness it,” Tillman remarks as our Nexus surrounds Willow.

“Fuck off. Ready, Primary?”

“Ready.”

The five of us transport to where Trex and Codi have been placed in a Nexus house at the palace compound. With the lessening side effects of his mark, they asked if they could leave the healing wing, and Tillman allowed it under the condition that at any sign of trouble with Trex’s mind, he’d return immediately and not try to brush it off.

As soon as we step out in front of their house, we find the two of them already outside, fucking off with their elements.

“Well, this is either a lovely or fucking awful surprise. Which is it today?” the mind reader asks sarcastically.

“Hopefully lovely. Caspian’s found a way for us to reach Dec. We need you to come with us so he can explain what needs to be done.”

Both drop their smirks and elements, no questions asked, and step up to us.

“Wish every time I told someone to do something, they just did it.”

“He’s talking about you, little wanderer.”

“I do what I’m told. All the time,” she argues in faux outrage.

“Okay, Primary.”

“I can think of a couple times I’ve done exactly what I’ve been told to do, with no complaint from anyone.”

She accompanies that little snark with broadcasting an image of her on her knees in front of all of us. I hang my head, holding in my grunt as the others mutter a fuck through our minds.

Naughty little Primary.

Fuck, I love it.

Clearing his throat, Corentin’s the first to compose himself, of course, and he addresses the confusion on Codi’s and Trex’s faces. “We’re heading to the mansion. Caspian’s going to explain everything there,” he says, holding his arm out for them to take so we can transport out.

Moving through the fabric of Elementra gives me enough time to get myself back in check and I mentally remind myself to get payback on the Primary when this experiment is said and done. I believe I’m going to recruit the dragon’s help. He’s whispered in my mind all the things he wants to do as a group to her, and some of the ideas really walk the line of torture and pleasure.

We’ll see.

When we step out into the back lawn, we’re the first to arrive, but that only lasts long enough for us to pull the patio chairs out before Oakly and her Nexus are popping in.

“Gaster’s not here yet?” Oakly asks.

Willow turns in the direction of his cottage and shakes her head. “No. He’s still there gathering what he needs.”

“Look at you just casually tracking someone,” she cheers, shooting Willow a huge smile.

“Figured the more I do it, the easier it’ll be. And apparently, I’ll be napping during our lesson today.”

Turning to me, I nod, letting her know that’s more than likely true. I’m not completely sure the extent of how long she’ll need to stay asleep for this to work, but that’s what the sleeper is here for.

It isn’t much longer and the coming in for a landing warning roar sounds above our heads.

Keeper slides down the side of Tanith’s wing, and she gives him a little flick, sending him flying feet in the air. He just chuckles, gracefully landing on his feet and stepping in stride toward us.

“She’s a mischievous thing.”

We all turn to face Gaster, who, like a damn ghost, just pops in at the end of the table silently with a tray of ingredients in his hands. Tillman and Willow share a look that we all catch before bursting out laughing, leaving us all staring at them in confusion.

“What’s funny?” Draken asks.

“Nothing. Cas, take it away,” the Primary says, wiping the tears from her eyes.

I narrow mine on them but let it go for now .

Jumping straight in to explaining the Dream tonic to Codi and Trex, they listen with unwavering concentration and determination to make this work no matter what. Their eagerness will either help or hinder, but I haven’t even gotten to the important bits before Codi cuts me off.

Which is a hindrance.

“So if I’m catching on to what you haven’t said yet, I assume you want me to put her to sleep. That way she’s connected to Dec in a way,” he says.

“Yes, but not only that,” I say, glaring at him to shut the hell up. Then I look between all three of them, Codi, Trex, and Willow, softening my gaze for her. “I want Willow to wrap her magic around your minds and you all go to sleep. You’ll put Willow and Trex to sleep first, then you’ll join them. I believe by her pulling you both into her mind while she’s dreaming, it’ll create a stronger connection to him, and he won’t be able to ignore it. She may even be able to pull you directly into her dream, or at least that’s what I’m hoping for by you both taking a tonic. If that doesn’t work, your presence will still be felt in hers, and I think Dec will respond.”

The two men’s eyes grow comically large, but Willow nods mindlessly, working out what she needs to do and what she believes she’s capable of doing.

“If the goal is for me to pull them in with me, we’ll need to weave the same reality, and each make our own tonic with Dec being the center intention. I think, like I pull everyone into my memories, it’s going to have to work the same. But I won’t be for certain until we’re asleep. Plus, how are we supposed to keep the connection between the three of us strong once we’re asleep?” she asks.

I grit my teeth because I thought of that as well, and I fucking hate it.

“Touch,” I grunt out and the immediate rejection of that notion from her in my chest eases the displeasure I’m feeling.

“The three of you can lie down in a triangular formation, with your heads touching. Nothing intimate, and it’ll probably best serve you in that position as well with the amount of mind power you’ll be using.” Gaster offers, and the compromise seems to help the tension in all of us.

Breathing the way Tillman taught her, she settles herself down and a wave of calm rolls through her .

“You’ll have to open yourself to me, Willow. I wouldn’t usually be able to put you to sleep,” Codi says.

“I will. Keeper will me wrapping my mind around Trex’s mess with anything?”

“No, all should be fine, but if not, I’m here to help,” he says, shooting Trex a wink.

“If all that is settled then,” Gaster says, glancing around the entire table for confirmation. “Okay then. Let’s get to brewing. Very good job, Caspian, my boy.”

Yeah. Now let’s just hope this shit works so my Primary can get some fucking peace.