20. Raven

Raven

T he second we stepped foot on the dock at dawn, finally back in the Werewolf territory I knew something weird was going on. Not just the snowflakes drifting lazily from an overcast, early morning sky, or the fact that I could see my breath. The weather had been volatile for a while now and was escalating daily. But what had me on high alert was the fleet of ships in the harbor. Half a dozen packed high with crates and turned out with a full array of weapons from catapults to cannons.

"Raven?"

I turned toward the call, laced with a Scottish brogue, and hefted Diana higher in my arms.

"Fucking hells!" Lochlin roared, his tree-trunk legs churning as he broke into a run my way, pounding down the dock. "What's happened, man? Is she?—"

"No," I cut in, gripping her more tightly as he slowed to a stop, arms extended. She might be his Queen and longtime friend and packmate, but she was mine to carry. "She's...fine. Let's get her to the keep and once she's resting comfortably, I'll fill you in. We need to get Sienna here immediately."

He tore his gaze from Diana's motionless form. "She's here already. Dominic as well. All of us, besides Will and Bee, who were putting together a second fleet to launch from Vampire Territory."

“A second fleet?” I shook my head, nonplussed. "For what? Has a war begun?"

His bushy, auburn brows rose high on his forehead. "Raven, we were preparing to come after you. We thought either the Vanators might've captured the lot of you, or those feckless demon bastards had pulled a fast one. Where the bloody fuck have you been?"

I frowned. "What are you talking about? We've been looking for the gem... as planned.” I wasn’t going to go into detail about how Maverick hadn’t had the right gem, that it had been in Jade. Time for that later. “And we found it. Pretty quickly, in my estimation."

"Quickly? You've been gone and completely out of touch for nearly two months."

"What the hell are you on about, man? We've been gone a couple of weeks at most." Not that I'd been keeping track, precisely.

"Even less than that, twelve days by my count," Nicholas chimed in as he and Myrr pulled up next to me, with Theo trailing behind.

Lochlin shook his head, expression grim. "Either you've got the scurvy and are all addled from it, or that goddess bitch is playing games, because you've been gone nigh on eight weeks. We spoke to the demon Gabriel, and he said you left Isla Naranja over seven weeks ago. Hamish and the others returned and confirmed that message."

My mind raced as I tried to piece together what had happened. Had Ludimon Island somehow managed to steal time from us? Or maybe?—

"Nefir," I snarled, an image of the puckish god floating through my mind. 'Time is a construct,' he'd said. How long had we been at his oasis? We had assumed his magic water had healed us. Had it kept us asleep long enough for us to heal ourselves? Or had he warped time to make it seem like a day when it had been far longer? How strong was his magic that even Diana hadn’t been triggered to shift by the full moon? Or had we all just slept through it?

I couldn't be sure, but as I looked over my shoulder at the ships prepared for battle, one thing was clear. We'd narrowly avoided starting an all-out war.

Lochlin put a hand on my shoulder. "We can discuss exactly what happened after. Let's get to the keep and let the others know you're alright. The Duchess has been fairly climbing the walls with worry."

By the time we got to the keep's great hall, the news had already reached the others. We stepped into the room to find Dom, Sienna, and the Duchess waiting.

"I can't lie. You've aged me a hundred years this time, old friend," Dominic said as he stepped toward us, his eyes going to Diana in my arms. "What happened to her?"

"I am hoping Sienna will know." I let myself inhale Diana’s sweet scent one last time before allowing Dominic to take her. Not because she was his more than mine, but because his wife was the best chance we had of figuring out how to fix what had been broken inside her.

"Let's get her to her quarters," Sienna said, concern etched on her pretty face. "It will bring her comfort to be in her own bed."

She led the way, and Dom and I followed, but Sienna turned and shook her head. "You stay here and fill the others in on exactly what happened. Dom will join you as soon as he gets her into bed. I need to focus on Diana and Diana alone. I can't have you two hulking over me. When I'm open and healing, I can sense the emotions of others so fully, it can be incapacitating. Myrr," she called, craning her neck to find the old Oracle. "You can come and give me the rundown."

It was actually a good call on her part. Myrr didn't have many emotions, so she was a pretty safe bet.

"Can do." She pointed a gnarled finger at Nicholas and said, "Just make sure they send some breakfast in. I'm nearly starved."

She toddled after them as they all disappeared up the stairs.

"If anyone can fix her, it's Sienna." It was the Duchess who spoke, but when I turned to face her, I flinched. Gone was the strong, vibrant woman I remembered, always the same since my childhood. I'd seen hints of her decline after Lycan's death. The loss of her beloved had been a shocking blow. But the past couple of months had not been kind. Her face was gaunt, her skin and hair dull, as if someone had drained her life force. I couldn't help but wonder when she'd last taken blood...

"Yes," I agreed as I crossed the room to take her hand. "Sienna's powers are unmatched. Diana will be alright."

She squeezed my fingers, eyes pleading. "She must be. Lycan gave his life to save her. I refuse to let it be for naught. Thank you for bringing her back to us, Raven."

I cleared my throat, unable to speak, settling on a nod.

"Let's all sit so our weary travelers can introduce us to their new friends and bring us up to speed," Lochlin said with curious glance toward Theo, Maverick, and Kevin, who still stood by the entrance. Uncertainty written across their faces.

Dominic re-entered the room and joined us as we all took a seat.

For the next half hour, we took turns telling the tale of our travels. From the Vanators with their new and enhanced magic, powered by the goddess Lilis, to meeting up with Gabriel at the Wild Queen. From the battle with St. George's undead army, to rescuing Maverick from Sal the water dragon. By the time we got to the mermaids and giant spider people, they were all just staring, open mouthed.

"If I didn't know that Nicholas didn't have a dishonest—or humorous—bone in his body, I would think you were putting us on," Dominic said, shaking his head in disbelief. "And this all happened in the Human Realm, you say?"

"Some of it," I said, getting impatient now. Where the hell was Sienna with an update on Diana's condition? "And some in what I can only describe as the space between. The longer the Veil is down, the weirder things have become. If we add..." I paused, still hesitant to say her name aloud, "the evil goddesses' twisted games to the equation, things get even more unpredictable. And I only expect it to get crazier until we find the rest of the keys."

"Raven?"

Sienna's soft voice had me jerking my head toward the doorway. "Yes?"

"Can I speak with you...alone?"

I lurched to my feet and rushed to join her. I would know it if she was gone. Surely, I would feel the loss of her light on this earth?—

She tugged me further from the room, and still lowered her voice. "It's clear that something has...changed between the two of you on your journey. Myrr confirmed it for me, so I hope I'm not overstepping in assuming that you are the person to consult on the matters of Diana’s health?"

"You're not overstepping."

She let out a sigh and rested a hand on her lower back. It was only then that I remembered that she was pregnant. Selfish bastard that I was—I’d only thought of Diana.

"Raven...I've tried everything I know to reach her, but it's like she's in shock. I don't sense any internal trauma. I can feel her life force, and that of the shard. I just can't connect to her in the way I'm used to being able to do." She gnawed on her lower lip as we made our way down the hall. "I still have work to do when it comes to mastering my powers. If I was better at it, maybe?—"

"It's not your fault, Sienna." As much as I wanted to rail at the world and everyone in it for this injustice, adding to Sienna's suffering wasn't going to help Diana. "I know you're trying your best."

When we stepped into the room, Myrr was gone, and it was just my Frostbite stretched on top of the sheets. She looked so small...so fragile...nothing like the woman I knew her to be.

"I'm going to go talk to the medical team here," Sienna said. I had been so focused on my own feelings; I also hadn't noticed until now how exhausted she looked. She'd likely not been taking care of herself these past weeks as their concern mounted for our party. She was still in the early, most crucial part of her pregnancy and here she was devoting all her remaining energy into Diana. A better man might have told her to rest. To revisit this in the morning once she regained her strength.

I was not a better man.

"They're a brilliant group," she continued, rubbing at her tired eyes. "I want to run a few thoughts by them. I'll be back shortly."

She left the room, and I moved to Diana's side. For the next hour or more, I knelt next to the bed, head resting on her chest as I listened to the steady thump of her heart.

Please come back to me, Frostbite.

"She looks so...normal."

I scrubbed a hand over my face and turned to find Dominic standing in the doorway, gaze locked on his sister.

"Like she's sleeping."

"She is," I growled, trying not to take his head off for the insinuation otherwise. "Sienna said she couldn't sense any internal injuries. Maybe just needs to rest...adjust to the shard inside her."

To his credit, Dom didn't argue. "She can do that, and we will all be here waiting when she wakes up. Why don't you come on out for a while. Feed. We can talk. You can't just kneel at her bedside and?—”

"As if you wouldn't do the same if it was Sienna?"

"Ah, so that's how it is now? I wondered," he said with a wry smile. "I will read you the riot act for taking liberties with my sister once this crisis has passed. But you're right about Sienna. I wouldn't leave her side if I was in your shoes. There is nothing I wouldn't sacrifice to save her. Which is why I need you to give this some space. Sienna can sense your worry...all our worries. Along with her healing abilities comes a heightened sense of empathy. The more she absorbs of that, the more pressure she puts on herself. I love my sister dearly, even though we didn't grow up together. But we must find a balance here. I can't risk Sienna and our unborn babe..."

To save Diana.

Fucking hell, I knew he was talking sense. But that didn't stop my fists from clenching at my sides as I resisted the urge to pummel his face in.

Before I could say anything more, Sienna swept into the room, jaw set, eyes steely with renewed determination as a male and female dressed in lab coats pulled up behind her. "We've come up with an idea. We think it has a fair chance of success. But Diana isn't going to like it one bit..."

I'd done a thousand and one things Diana hadn't liked all to keep her safe and alive. She couldn't be consulted for permission, so I'd just have to hope I had the opportunity to beg her forgiveness.

"Let's hear it."

"We've been toying with the idea that perhaps it is Diana's blood—half-vampire, half-wolf—that is causing this issue. The shard was such a shock, and this third element is very likely too much for her body to handle."

I eyed Sienna and then Dominic, who shrugged.

“And what are you suggesting, exactly?”

Sienna looked at Dom and then back to me. “We think that the healing property of her mate’s blood could help bring her back. To push her wolf down enough so that the balance is no longer split evenly within her.”

“How sure are you?” I asked.

Sienna closed her eyes and then gave a slow nod. “As sure as we can be. The medical team thinks that being turned into a werewolf didn’t fully erase every part of her that was vampire. If we must choose her to be one, more than the other, then we can push her wolf back. Allow her vampiric side to rise again. This may be the only chance she has.”

Diana might hate me forever, she’d think I’d done it so we could be together…but if Sienna was right, at least she would be alive to hate me forever.

The answer was clear.

"Let’s do it."