I wanted to relive our afternoon together and not go out into the harsh reality, but we had no choice. Too many souls and issues were waiting on our next move.
“Your eyes seem normal now, too.”
“I still see a glow around you,” he whispered, letting his energy hold the tray of food in mid-air as he pulled me to him.
“That glow is you.” My words spiked his passion and matched my desire to stay right here in this room.
Just as he picked me up and wrapped me around the hum of his body, I felt a warm rush of air and knew we were not alone anymore.
“Good night? Seriously? Is it not out of your system yet?” Phoenix complained.
Landen let his lips linger on mine as he slowly set me down. His fingertips traced my cheeks as if he wanted to wipe away my blushing complexion.
“Not a chance in hell that this ever gets old,” he said to me, even though it was stated for Phoenix’s benefit.
Landen let me go and grabbed the tray. I opened the door for him.
“Where are you going?” Phoenix asked in an annoyed tone.
“To put this back,” Landen answered.
A warm rush of air surrounded me. Before I could reason what it was, I was downstairs leaning against the counter, hearing a dishwasher run.
“Done. It’s back. Seriously, act like the power you are,” Phoenix said, crossing his arms in front of Landen and me.
“It was the ‘thank you’ we wanted,” I complained.
“Well, she’s asleep, so unless you want to wake her, we have work to do.”
I didn’t budge. Paper and a pen appeared in Phoenix’s hand.
“Will a note do? Or what is that other thing...um...yeah, a text?”
I couldn’t help it, a grin spread across my face.
“Ah, Sunshine is smiling, and it’s still dark outside.” He glanced at Landen. “Good work, mate. I was a bit worried about how long her control would hold.”
“It wasn’t all me. It was a lot of her, and the friend she wants to thank,” Landen told him as I wrote a note to Nana to thank her for the rest and food and told her we were going to try this spell. One way or another, I would bring her grandsons here to see her.
Phoenix took the note from me, vanished for an instant, then returned.
“On her bedside table,” he offered when he appeared again. “Let’s go.” And with that, we appeared in the field next to the graveyard.
“Moving two bodies at once? You must be feeling the power of being whole,” Landen applauded.
“If she ever even gets the notion to take my ashes again, I swear—”
Landen stopped him. “Where is she?” he asked, glancing around the field.
“She’d better be in the veil,” Phoenix answered.
He was mad at her for a reason outside of his ashes, outside of what was going on with this spell. I just couldn’t figure out what that was. Apparently, Landen had. He offered Phoenix a sincere nod, obviously promising to help him with something. Landen was close to his brother, close to Marc, but not like this. It was like he and Phoenix were connected at the soul or something. The rich past between them echoed in every glance they shared. That made me feel safe, made me feel like the two of them would protect each other and everyone under their watch.
A wave came across the darkness, creating a doorway for us to move into the veil. The screams were the same as last night, but I could swear I heard Charlie’s name being screamed, along with Draven’s. The ghosts lined our path once again, but there was no Skylynn waiting on us.
“She wants me to kill her,” Phoenix scoffed.
“Have you been fighting with her today?” Landen question.
“Not about this,” Phoenix said with a tone that was laced in agony.
The scarf bracelet came to mind again. Before I could ask what that was about, he changed his composure.
“I did try and find out what is up with Xavier, and by the way, rumor has it that Donalt has some of his ashes. Whatever witch you have in that dimension is either careless or playing both sides.”
I went to lash out at him, but a glance from Landen caused his energy to bellow within my soul, reminding my body of his essence. I was powerless to be angry when I felt him consume me.
“They are neither,” Landen said dryly. “I burned him, he fell to ash and escaped through the fireplace. He’s had them all long. We’ve recovered some, taking them from him the last three times we have fought him.”
“How much ash?”
“Not enough, but if he used what he had to appear, it would be a horrid sight.”
“I don’t really think he cares what he looks like, mate.”
“Neither do I. Let Skylynn be right now. It’s better for her to figure out where her lover is than for me to tell her.”
That was one of the questions I’d asked him before, one I didn’t get an answer to: who was Skylynn after? Before I could press on for the answer I wanted, a flaming pentagram appeared on the grass before us.
“The timing is off, too,” Phoenix stated. “Jupiter is not square yet.”
“The power lies four days before and after,” Landen countered.
“On average, the point it squares is the most powerful you know that,” Phoenix argued.
Landen glanced at me. “I want to try.” His gaze moved over the ghosts that were lingering around us.
“Looking for me?” I heard Clarissa say before noticing her standing on the other side of Phoenix.
Landen nodded once. “Keep her safe,” he said to his sister as he and Phoenix moved into their places around the pentagram.
Clarissa locked stares with me.
“I know, I know...The Realm,” I muttered as I focused on how to get there. It was instantaneous this time.
“Well done,” Clarissa commented as The Realm appeared around us.
At that second, Dane appeared at her side. I lunged myself at him, embracing him in the biggest hug I could manage. I felt him hug me back.
“I want to fix this,” I said into his neck.
He gently pulled me away. “I will.”
“You’re here. Is this going to work now?”
He looked over my shoulder as the ground fell and opened the same scene I’d seen over and over again last night. “I don’t feel it.”
“Maybe it’s because Skylynn is not there,” I offered.
Dane glanced up at the heavens, then all around the battlefield. “It’s more than that.”
“What are you looking at?” I asked, trying to see what the sky could have told him. It was too overcast for him to see the stars.
“The other levels,” he offered as he and Clarissa locked glances, clearly agreeing with one another on some obvious silent notion.
“Levels like up and down, or side by side? I don’t get this.”
“Both,” Clarissa answered.
At that second, Silas appeared at their side, peering out at the field of war. I shied away, not knowing if I should trust him. He must have sensed that; his glowing honey eyes found mine, and he nodded once as if to say hello.
“The time is off,” Dane said to him.
“It’s stopped,” Silas answered.
“Do you see her anywhere?” Dane asked.
“What are you guys talking about?!” I asked, growing more and more scared and frustrated.
“The eleventh hour,” Silas stated, capturing my stare. “Everything stops at the eleventh hour. At first it was for a breath, but now it stops longer each time.”
“Because of this?”
“At first, that was what we assumed. Doesn’t make sense,” Silas answered. “The Escorts stop fighting us, but not because they are weak. They have power. I think it’s a shift. Something is blocking the echo.”
“Echo?” I muttered.
“A shift was supposed to occur at some point, or many. It didn’t happen,” Silas explained in a somewhat annoyed tone. “So now the clock stops at the eleventh hour, as if it is waiting for th
at shift, for the echo to reach it and guide it again.”
“Is it this spell?” I asked, not caring to tell him I already knew what an echo was.
Silas crossed his arms as he took a step toward me. “It’s everything. Just because you are not aware of something does not mean it does not exist in someone else's reality. The opportunity to remake this night happened long before Dane and Clarissa crossed over, as did the opportunity to undo others, but you have been locked in a triangle. This pause occurred long before it reached us now.”
“Like you’re not,” I countered. “Look, I don’t get what you are, but I know you care about Charlie, so we may not be the only ones that are distracted. How many pauses have you caused?”
“I do care. And yes, I am aware that my actions impact her, but I’m not going to send her into the arms of Hell for the fun of it.”
“The arms of Hell, or the arms of Draven?” was my sarcastic comeback.
Something above me caught his attention. Dane and Clarissa’s, too.
“Is that what I think it is?” Dane seethed.
“It’s not his mirror, and that is not his mom,” Silas answered just before he and Dane vanished.
“What is going on?” I demanded, reaching to catch Clarissa, fearing she would vanish next.
“I’m not going anywhere,” she said as she effortlessly unclenched my grip. “Winston is mirrored by Bianca, or at least he was. The real him is in here, chasing his mother’s image. The Escorts are trying to lure him in, all of the Donalt children.”
I shuddered, thankful that I knew Donalt was in no way, shape, or form my father in any life. Clarissa was intently listening to something I could not hear, looking all around us.
“How strong is your control?” she asked me.
“I think it’s good. Why?”
“Because you have to hold it. No matter what you hear.”
“What do you mean? Is something bad about to happen?”
“It’s already happened, but long before today. Stick to the plan, Willow. Undo the spell in your own way. Do not panic or push. If you do, you will make this worse.”
“What’s worse?”
“Time stops here because you were not moving forward in the past. There is a delay from reality to now. We have to pause now because of the past trials, the lack of real progress. Don’t think that what you are doing now is causing it; realize that it was the past and that you have to keep on your course in order to know if it’s right or wrong.”
“Tell me what is going on now!” I demanded.
“No,” she stated, leaning her head to the side, as if she were trying to hear more intently. Her pale green eyes met mine. “Listen, trust me. If something was really wrong, you know no matter what I would tell you. I’m just telling you now not to panic. It’s the echo.”
“Echo? Like the dead reading our intent and knowing what will be?”
“Right, but the echo will come to be. You will live through it. There is an echo coming at you, and I’m more than sure it ties into this. The echo is hitting a wall. This spell, I have faith that if you undo it, if Landen does, what you are about to fear will not matter. Time will move again, until you give it a reason to stop.”
“Clarissa, stop. Tell me. What do I do now!”
“No one can tell you that. Trust that you are living in the echo. As of now, the threshold into Jupiter's Square is here. When it passes, the echo will diminish, and you will then live through what you are doing now. In order for that to be a good echo, you have to move forward, patiently, powerfully, faithfully. Do not question your instincts. Ever.”
The Realm vibrated violently, knocking me to the ground, but when I fell, I didn’t see her above me, or The Realm for that matter. I felt the heat of the blazing pentagram.
The ghosts around us were rumbling in dismay as they watched Skylynn stomp out the fire of the pentagram with nothing more than the fury that was clearly seething from her.
Instantly, Landen and Phoenix were focused again. Skylynn charged toward Landen, throwing her fist at his chest over and over again. I jumped up to stop her, but he’d effortlessly gripped her wrist and was glaring down at her.
“You bastard!” she screamed. “You knew where he was! You knew he was marked for death! What did you do! Nothing! I will destroy you! Call every enemy and tell him where you are! I will take your little key you call a soul mate and feed her to the hounds!!”
The sensation of blood moved through my mouth, but one glance from Landen sent his essence into my core once more, bringing my control back. He let go of Skylynn’s wrist. I don’t know if it was him or Phoenix that was holding her in place, but she struggled against the nothing that was pinning her. Landen and Phoenix then began to circle her like she was prey.
“Do you want to rethink that threat?” Landen said against her neck as he circled behind her. His tone was cool, controlled. It was enticing to me, but I had no doubt it caused the tremble of fear I saw wave through her body.
“You betrayed me,” she answered as one tear came to the corner of her eye.
“I. Betrayed you,” Landen repeated.
“Guardian,” she pleaded as the hold on her became tighter.
“Do not ‘Guardian’ me,” Landen replied. “You knew.”
She looked away from him.
“Tell me you knew,” Landen demanded.
“Answer him!” Phoenix bellowed.
“Fine. I did. You should have, too.”
My eyes rushed across the three of them, not really sure whose side to take on this. I’d never seen Landen so cold, and it was like Phoenix was his guard dog, ready to attack.
“I was drunk on her essence. You had control. You knew, and you let us go through with it. You let her die in his arms, feet from me.”
“You did!” she screamed. “It was the fate you love so much Guardian. You were drunk on her and using who ever you could to satisfy that addiction.”
“I never used you!” Landen bellowed, causing her to tremble.
“That was not fate,” Phoenix added. “You didn’t want your little crush to leave you, and you had no hold on anyone else. You needed time to trap me.”
“He was not a crush!” she screamed through gritted teeth. “You would have left me,” she said to Landen. “I wasn’t even close to finding him, and you know that. We were not ready.”
“I was ready. You were not,” Landen said as his eyes raked over her in disgust.
“You were not ready then. You would have altered your course to fight Xavier. You made me promise to never let you forget who you wanted to destroy.”
“You caused this to fail,” Landen seethed. “A chain reaction that I have to undo now. If I lose my sister because of this that karma will follow you forever more.”
“It has already followed me. I have regretted this night a thousand times over. You know that.”
Landen stopped his slow pace around her and peered down into her blue eyes, which were glassed over with tears. “Are you holding it back now?”
“No...my lover is.”
“How?” Landen asked flatly.
“You know how. That is your Karma. You did nothing to stop it.”
Landen glanced at me, then all around him. “He’s alive. The dead would have said otherwise.”
“A mirrored soul opened his mind. They are showing him life on this side but not the other. They are pivoting against his brother. If they bring him down, this web of yours will be destroyed. You want have my energy for the spells.” She glanced at Phoenix. “And if he has his way you wont have his much longer.”
“Phoenix’s fate will lead him where he needs to be and when.”
“Both of you are too stubborn for your own good.” She said with a glare.
“Did Silas strike him?” Landen asked.
They must be taking about Draven. I was so confused.
“Not yet,” she said, breathing out as if the hold on her had loosened.
“Even if he could s
ee me, I can’t go to him. He’s in the heavens, getting his head together, apparently.”
Landen’s gaze met Phoenix’s. “I don’t know, mate. We could waste a lot of time leading that bloke to the water, but no one can make him drink. Maybe destruction is best.” His stare met Skylynn’s. “We brought Guardian back to flesh. We could find a way to get you there.”
“No,” Skylynn coldly stated. “I’m not dying. Obviously, you are too self-centered to help anyone unless it benefits you, so let me be clear: if he dies, half of the web of spells crumbles, and no matter what magic you use it will be over in the worst way possible. You can’t fight his battle, but you can’t allow him to throw his fate away.”
Phoenix sauntered closer to her, peering down. “I am not self-centered. And I would have helped you before, but you didn’t ask. You stole my ashes, and clearly you have punished me in the worst way possible.”
Skylynn looked down as grief consumed her image. It wasn’t for her lover. It was for someone else...scarf girl, I’m sure. There was a story there. One I would unravel if I was not lost in my own.
“Guardian would have helped you, but you stole his. You played him at his weakest point. Learn to ask for help, and you will gain friends—not enemies.”
She let her head fall. “Help me. Go there. I’m not asking you to tell him anything. Get him out of there so I can guide him.”
“He can’t see you. You know that,” Landen offered in a more approachable tone.
“No, but others will be able to. The Escorts have divided them on purpose. Out of sight, out of mind.”
Landen walked away from her and to my side.
“Guardian!” Phoenix shouted in protest.
“It’s not working tonight. Paths are crossing,” Landen returned.
“Don’t lay it out for him,” Phoenix stated his one condition for allowing Landen to do this.
“I’m not. I’m going to be Landen. Someone he knows and respects.”
Phoenix glanced at Skylynn. “Bloody Hell,” he said, then followed Landen and me.
“Where are we going?” I asked as we reached the passageway out of the veil.
Landen sat down right there in the grass and pulled me to him. “Pelhan’s, through meditation.”