XXV

G oosebumps erupted over every inch of Stella's skin. "River?"

She took a cautious step forward. River lunged upward, a sob catching in her throat as she stumbled toward Stella with arms outstretched.

"I thought I'd be stuck in there forever," River choked out. Stella caught her around the middle and held her close as she collapsed against her. Her body shook with the force of her tears. "I tried everything to get out, but the doors wouldn't open no matter how much I bled. No matter what I tried until I used its own magic against it." River sniffled and slipped back. She continued to shake and tremble as she wiped her face with the back of her hands. Bloody smears were left in the wake of her care. "Please tell me I didn't leave you waiting for years."

Stella's mouth opened, but she was too gob-smacked to answer. Instead, she stared at River's hands. Fresh blood covered the back of them, and as her eyes drifted upward, she saw her jacket arms were also stained. Stella paled.

"What did you do?" She reached for a hand, but River stepped back.

"It was the only way to get out," River claimed defensively.

Stella held up her hands in a placating manner. "Okay. That's okay."

River's throat bobbed, and then she showed Stella her palms. Scars crisscrossed them in jagged lines. Too many for Stella to count.

"Oh, River."

With a hiss, she rolled up one sleeve revealing the wounds on the back of her forearm. Strange markings engraved her skin. "I searched forever to find the magic that would get me out… then decided to take some for myself as recompense for being the library's prisoner."

"I'm sorry," Stella said, a mixture of confusion and growing alarm swirling inside of her. "But took some? What does that mean?"

Her friend stood straighter, knocking back the riotous curls and strands of hair that dared fall into her field of vision. "Let's just say I took some permanent notes on the magic that will set Irina and me free." She gestured to the carving board she'd made of her skin, then to her other that was still covered but no less hinted at a bloody mess beneath.

Stella was dumbstruck by her explanation and altered appearance. She gave River a thorough once-over. Her skin was duller, its youthfulness stripped from her features. Hollowed, defined cheekbones made her cat-like eyes more pronounced, and where smooth skin once claimed ground, frown lines cast creases in her forehead. Then, of course, the most obvious sign that years passed was her wild hair. Its growth alone attested to their time apart.

"How long... how long did I leave you out here?" River asked hesitantly.

"You weren't gone for a minute," Stella told her with a weak smile. "How much time do you think passed?"

River licked her lips and cringed. They were badly chapped. "To be safe, I assumed it was comparable to my own. About two weeks or so. It was hard to tell. I don't ever really remember falling asleep and my watch didn't work."

Stella's heart skipped a beat. "You think you were in there for two weeks?"

River nodded. "And you're positive I was only gone for a minute?"

Her grim nod in reply made the blood drain from River's face. "That's not possible."

Stella cringed. She's not going to like hearing she wasn't in the library for two weeks . Before she could break the news, a sudden quaking rocked the floor they stood on reverberating up the walls and all around them.

"What the—" Stella steadied herself as the shaking came to a stop, but River seemed not to notice the disturbance at all.

"That's not possible," River repeated to herself.

"Godly magic?" Stella offered weakly. Another distant rumble reached her ear. Stella glanced up and gulped. It didn't just sound like thunder, but true anger. "Um, I think we should go," Stella said.

"How could two weeks condense to a minute ?" She breathed in astonishment. "Even our walk to the temple didn't equate to that."

Stella tensed. Now's as good a time as any to tell her. "I hate to break it to you, River, but I don't think you were in there for two weeks."

"What do you mean?"

Stella cleared her throat as thunder rolled above growing closer. "Don't freak out, but you look... older. Like, significantly more than two weeks older."

River stilled, some of the color coming back onto her face. "How much older?"

"I don't know, ten years or so? Maybe more?"

There was a long pause before River whispered hoarsely, "I missed my 20s?"

Stella nodded with a grimace. "I'm sorry." A long breath rushed out of River. She started to pace, one hand coming to cup her mouth. Something underneath the temple moaned. "Um, River. I don't mean to rush you or anything. I know the whole, aging ten years is a curveball, but I'm getting the very strong feeling we should go. Now."

A violent crash sounded from somewhere nearby. Stella yelped with fright, her every instinct telling her to run. Seconds later the temple shook again, the same moaning noise rattling the vestibule until it turned into a growl.

" River ."

"That might be my fault," River confessed. Under Stella's incredulous glare, she flustered. "I had to get out somehow, Stella!"

Both women cried out as the temple quaked around them with such force loud crashes began to come from the hall. Worse was the ominous shaking of the library doors. Stella stumbled forward, careening into her friend.

"What the hell, River?" Stella hissed. "Your fault?!"

"I—"

Whatever excuse or apology River wanted to give never came to fruition. The world around them went completely still… save for the library doors where a heavy knocking intoned.

"Oh Gods," Stella moaned in horror as she stared at the doors.

"Literally," River said. "I think."

"You think ?"

Fear tainted the air around them. "I'm sorry." River glanced down at her forearms; regret lined her expression. "I didn't have any other choice."

A boom from the main corridor made them both stumble. "We need to run," Stella said.

"Agreed."

They took off in a sprint out into the crumbling corridor. Large chunks of white marble littered the floor, some pieces still falling from the arched ceiling with each rumble that tore through the temple. Stella's lungs burned as they escaped into the barren land.

Down the hill, they went at an alarming speed.

"Don't stop," River wheezed after pitching a look back over her shoulder.

Stella dared a look back as well, but the motion threw her off balance. Her footing slid a fraction to the left and she pitched forward with a cry. The ground met her without mercy. Hard gravel scraped her skin at every point of contact. Stella ground as she skidded to a painful stop.

"Are you okay?" River grunted as she hauled her up by the armpits.

"Fine," Stella croaked. "Dizzy."

Off they went again, Stella's gait slower from the throbbing ache in her hip and lower back punctuating every other step.

"Hurry."

"I'm trying."

They carried on at half speed with River keeping an arm around Stella's waist to support her. The chaotic rumbling chased after them, the world rebelling at River's escape or her pilfering. Stella didn't give it more thought than necessary. What was done was done.

"Shouldn't it be near here?" Stella asked with a breathlessness that she felt in her entire body. They slowed to a stop in the middle of the desert landscape where Stella cast a wide-eyed gaze around them.

The temple lay miles behind them with an ominous red aura around it. The sight of it brought a whole new wave of goosebumps cascading over Stella's body. It was the only color that saturated the landscape outside Stella and River themselves. Not good , Stella thought dumbly, her mind running on basic survival instincts.

"How did we make it so far out? We've only been running for fifteen minutes," River questioned. She was bent at the waist dragging in lungfuls of air.

"Godly—"

"Magic," River finished with an aggravated huff. She craned herself upright, hands on her hips as she continued to catch her breath. "Our original footprints stop over there." She pointed in the opposite direction of the temple. "But the mirror—I don't see it anywhere. Do you?"

"No." Familiar panic set in. "What do we do?"

"We search for it using our magic. It can't be far."

"But I don't know how to use my magic like that," Stella said. Overwhelm suffocated her senses leaving the ominous threat of the Gods' wrath a dull thundering in her ears. We're going to die . A preternatural stillness came over her. She'd always wondered if she would caoine for herself.

But what about River?

Her far-off gaze homed in on her friend. She was saying something, but the words weren't registering in Stella's ears. A frown pulled River's features down, and then she was striding up to Stella. Her hand rose and—

" Ow !"

Stella cupped the side of her face. It stung fiercely from River's reality-striking slap.

"Focus, Stella," River barked. "We are getting out of here. Do you understand me?" Stella nodded, latching onto River's sheer dominance like a lifeline. "You're going to close your eyes, calm down , and focus on looking inward. Although our spirits navigate this plane of existence, our corporal selves still maintain an essence and energy. Search for it. Let it pull you in its direction. I'm going to see if I can't sense the mirror's magic around us. Okay?"

"Okay," Stella agreed.

The ground gave a violent shake that knocked River to the ground. She grunted as her knees and hands hit the floor. "I'm all right," she insisted, locking eyes with her. Fear hovered around her expression. "Focus and do it fast."

Stella slammed her eyes shut, but she couldn't get her heartbeat under control. How was she expected to when the fearsome thunder overhead made her whole body cringe in fright? Calm would be impossible to find, yet Stella's lips set themselves in a firm line.

It wasn't the first time she was forced to work under pressure. I can do this .

She fisted her hands at her sides, ignoring the stinging pain across her bleeding palms. She dove into her subconscious searching for the elusive essence of her corporal form. Seconds turned to minutes. Minutes felt like eons . Nothing came of her efforts.

Panic sank in drawing a clammy sweat over her skin. A jarring clap of thunder sounded directly above them as if seeking to capitalize on her growing distress. Stella clapped her hands over her ears.

" Focus, focus, focus. " Stella bit down on the inside of her cheek. "Home," Stella muttered. "Just look for home."

Desperation eroded the last strands of forced composure. It almost masked the faint tingling sensation that came to life at the thought of home. Almost.

Stella dove inward toward it, her hands slipping from their protective posts toward her chest. One rested against her pounding heartbeat hoping to settle it, while the other drifted to the end of her sternum where her soulmark lay. The tingling sensation spiked.

Her mouth ran dry.

She dutifully ignored the source of her rioting emotions the past two nights, and now… now it would be the thing that saved them.

Although the thought left her unsteady, Stella wasn't about to let the lifeline go. Pooling all her focus to her mind's eye, a gleaming golden thread brightened before her. It was thin and stretched incredibly taut. She imagined reaching out to touch it and the fragile thread quivered beneath her fingertip.

There was a pause, and then the thread tugged her to the left. Stella shuffled after the inclination; eyes still closed.

"River, I… I think I might have found a way."

Stella licked her lips as anticipation and bright hope barreled through her. Her steps turned surer as she let her soulmark guide her. A warning tremor along the earth's surface curbed her excitement. Stella walked faster.

"This way," she called, unwilling to open her eyes lest she lose her connection with the now brightly burning golden thread. Her ears picked up on the sound of footfall—footfall that was overcome by a frightening rupture that tilted the world on its axis. Stella's eyes popped open as she tumbled to her hands and knees. The dry earth and gravel dug into her already abused skin as she grappled with it for equilibrium.

A sharp tug from her soulmark urged her on with a renewed sense of urgency. Stella looked around. Ten feet ahead the mirror lay flat on the ground, its glassy surface reflecting the stormy sky above. Stella crawled to the mirror, palms and knees cursing in pain.

"River! I found it!"

The sky roared and then the ground lurched beneath her. Stella gasped as the violent quake laid her out flat. Her chin slammed into the ground, and in turn, her teeth clamped down on her tongue. Blood filled her mouth. As she heaved herself back up onto her feet, she spat out a wad of blood.

Her sights locked onto the mirror.

Home.

Her soulmark sang.

"River! Hurry, it's—"

She turned to look for her friend and Stella's elation vanished. River wasn't more than a stone's throw away. But the devilish dog? It was within arm's reach.

Before she could process the danger fully, it was airborne. The beast's gaping maw exposing teeth capable of biting through bone, and claws that could drag down a bear shifter. Stella dove to the side, her sonic scream forgotten, and suffered the consequences.

Fiery pain slashed over her abdomen. The beastly dog's claws carved out a piece of her. Stella's cry of agony pierced the air at the same time as a boom of thunder.

" Shit ," Stella hissed. "Shit, shit, shit ."

Hot blood seeped from her wound profusely. The slightest movement incited burning pain across each lash that made her gasp. She wrapped her arm around her middle, wobbling where she stood.

I have to move.

The beastly dog circled her, its hackles raised. Stella's mind blanked as she scrambled back; legs struggling to hold her upright. The primal instinct to fight or flee struck her every nerve-ending.

Fleeing, however tempting it may be with the mirror so close, was out of the question. River would be stuck here without her. Fight. She had to fight.

Stella's body tensed in anticipation and a pained groan erupted from her. She never took her eyes off the beastly dog, choosing instead to shuffle in a painful circle to keep it in her sights.

"River." Stella's voice was weak. It barely reached her ears as her head began to spin. Not good. Definitely, not good . "River!" she tried calling again. The thunderous Gods above swallowed her plea whole with a crack of thunder worthy of ending the world.

The dog began to advance, tightening its perimeter. Unmistakable hunger simmered in its black eyes, the likes of which made Stella shudder. She was losing too much blood, too fast. If she had any hope of besting the beast, it was now while she still had her wits about her.

Swallowing roughly, Stella welcomed the familiar build of fire in her lungs. She let the dog edge closer. One shot, that's all you have. It growled as if sensing her thoughts and intent.

" River! "

Her sonic scream aimed true at the beast, but somehow it knew to dodge.

And now it sprinted straight toward her. Survival instincts propelled her backward, but Stella's vision swam at the sudden movement. The scream had depleted her, and she was falling—falling as her feet tripped over one another in their haste to get away. Time slowed as the beast bulleted toward her and launched itself in the air.

She thrust up a shaking, bloody hand.

One last shot.

Stella began to sing. She poured all that was left of her into the magic of her immobilization powers, and by some crazed miracle, it worked. The beast hung suspended in the air but only for a moment. Before Stella could blink, four dark bolts shot through its body. Stella's song morphed into a cry as the dog dropped to the ground.

"Stella!" River raced toward her, a trail of black and red smoke following from her hands. "Why didn't you call for help?" River demanded. She stripped off her jacket and pressed it to Stella's stomach.

"Took me by surprise," Stella hissed. "Mirror." She got out, a shaking finger pointing to their means of escape.

"Can you stand?" River's arm was already hooking around her waist and hauling her to her feet. Stella howled in pain as she got her feet under her. "You can do it. Just a few steps this way."

Stella breathed heavily through her nose, forcing her eyes to stay open the short distance to the mirror.

"You have to step in first," River panted. Stella made no move to do so. "What are you waiting for?" River demanded, panic lacing every word.

"There are cracks in the surface," Stella said. "Is that… is that bad?"

Stella chanced a glance at River. Her face was grim.

" Hurry ."

Traveling to the real world didn't feel a thing like entering the Otherworld. There was no treading of calm water, but a wind tunnel that threatened to tear them limb from limb. It was like a freefall.

Stella heaved in a breath, and in the next instant found herself back in her body. Her burning body. Oh Gods. She couldn't—

"Stella? Stella, wake up."

Cool water greeted Stella's face unceremoniously. She lurched upward, eyes rearing wildly around the room until they landed on River.

"It's okay," River said. "I got the bleeding under control and healed what I could. You're going to be okay."

It took several seconds for Stella to comprehend the situation at hand. "We're alive? We're back?" River nodded. "What happened?"

River jerked her chin over her shoulder to the shattered mirror. "We made it out, but the mirror broke behind us. You must have passed out when you got back. Your injury was—" River gulped face turning ashen "—severe. I healed as much as I could with my magic. The rest I had to do the old-fashioned way."

Stella glanced at her abdomen and nearly lost her stomach. Raised red marks with uneven stitches made tally marks against her pale abdomen. Bits of flesh and blood stained her ruined shirt and pants. She looked like she just escaped death. Stella swallowed. The description was too accurate for her liking.

"My stitch work isn't the best, but it will hold. Thankfully, Jax keeps a super stocked medicine cabinet, so you shouldn't worry about it getting infected. It might scar though."

Stella's shoulders slumped as a wave of exhaustion hit her. "I'll take the scars if it means my life." River smiled weakly at her, but the nervous energy she wore didn't escape Stella's notice. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"I need to go."

Stella balked. "Go where?"

"To Valdora," River rushed to say. "My notes." River showed her arms to Stella. The engravings she'd made on her skin were fading. "They're decaying. I need Valdora's help to document them before they vanish completely and make all that worth nothing. After, maybe she can help me with my, er, aging problem. Will you be okay to get home on your own?"

Dully, Stella affirmed she would. River's shoulders sank in relief and her eyes turned glassy.

" Thank you ," she said. "I owe you double, Stella, and I promise to check in on you in a few hours after I finish with Valdora. I grabbed one of Jax's cloaks that was hanging around for you. It won't hide the smell of your blood, but it will cover up your clothes and the damage—"

"I get it," Stella croaked. "Help me up?"

Her abdomen was surprisingly, and thankfully, numb, but the rest of her body protested the movement. "Here, let me help you with this, too." River snatched the robe from the ground and helped Stella into it, one arm after the other.

"What about the mess?"

"I'll take care of it, but you need to leave before Jax comes back." Stella felt the color drain from her face.

"What time is it?"

River looked frightened. "I don't know. I don't know if it's been five minutes or an hour or a week." Stella glanced at her watch. The hands weren't moving at all. Not even the second hand. "If Jax comes back— when Jax comes back—only one of us should have to face his wrath. If I'm still here when he arrives, I'll tell him I wanted to use the mirror alone and broke it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, now go and take these." River quickly gathered a few jars from the floor and dumped them into the cloak's hefty pockets. "I'll show you what order to apply them in later, okay?"

Stella didn't have the energy to argue, leaving with a grateful nod. It wasn't until she was traveling down the hall that she realized she didn't know where to go. The precariousness of her situation wasn't lost on her. She would pay a hefty price if she ran into the wrong courtiers.

But by some stroke of luck, she got to the grand staircase without a hitch.

It's about time something went right tonight.

Stella joined the fray of courtiers descending deeper into the bowels of the court, head growing lighter with each step. She had to stop at the halfway landing just to catch her breath. River's healing might have fixed her wound, but the blood loss she sustained and her tumble down the hill, was making itself known.

"Move it," a courtier snarled, shoving Stella to the side and into the wall. Her vision dove ninety degrees one way and then the other.

Keep it together , Stella commanded herself as she breathed steadily through her nose and out her mouth.

But once Stella stopped, she couldn't manage to get herself going again. Curious red-hued eyes lingered over her as they passed. Each one was hungrier and more lingering than the last.

Move.

Her feet obeyed and carried her down the rest of the stairs until the very last step. A vampyré sped past with its supernatural speed. Irritated snarls and stinging insults flew after the vampyré's lack of decorum by those still on the stairs. As for Stella, the frightfully fast vampyré stole away what little of her equilibrium remained. She clung to the banister as she stepped off the stairs. It took tremendous effort not to collapse into a heap on the floor.

The world spun chaotically around her. Courtiers moved at impossible speeds both slow and fast. Time, it seemed, had yet to right itself in her head too.

Stella shuffled to the nearest wall. She pressed herself up against the cold stone. It was heaven against her hot skin. Her eyes closed.

So tired , Stella thought weakly as her lashes fluttered open. She registered the occupants of the hall now moving at regular speed. Save for one person.

They stormed down the hall. Their expression steeled in fury and aimed at her. Stella gulped and tried to straighten, but only sagged further against the wall.

In a matter of seconds, Raphael stood before her, chest heaving and eyes raking over her from head to toe. In the calmest and deadliest voice, she'd ever heard, he leaned close and said, "Who did this to you?"