Ok so Monroe rocks. No doubt there. Where was this ring before? “Considering where we’re going, that might not be a bad thing,” I murmured, closing my hand around the ring. The thought crossed my mind to give it to Willow so she wouldn’t tempt Draven when she was alone with him, but I knew Monroe well enough to know that if she wanted Willow to have it, she would have ensured that she did.
Aden began to explain to Willow how we were going to divide in The Realm, that Bianca had separated Landen and Drake. She was having a hard time understanding how Bianca was using memories of Drake and Landen to create illusions. She didn’t seem to care about the memories, but I knew from experience that she should; when she saw the illusion of them in her arms, it would be paralyzing to her. We also had to make sure we woke them up there, that they knew who they were, but that was a long, complicated story that I didn’t care to explain to Willow right then. I wanted to get this over with. Saving them now meant saving all of us; the stakes couldn’t be any higher.
Willow’s attention was immediately on me. “How do any of you plan to declare an illusion of Drake to be false? You don’t know him. I’m the only one that really knows him.”
She asked me that because Aden had told her that when we saw Landen and Drake in The Realm, it might not be them, and when we declared it was an illusion it would send the memoires - energy back to their souls. Basically, it would wake them up a little more. We all assumed there would be at least a few illusions we would have to face before we figured out where their souls were trapped.
It was obvious that Willow was afraid that we weren’t able to save Drake, at least not without her. She needed to learn to let go - divide and conquer. “We don’t know him,” I said, glancing to the doorway where Madison was, “but we know Bianca. I know her very well. If I call her out on who she is, seeing through the illusion, she won’t be able to hold that memory. Trust me.”
I knew that Madison would know who the real Drake was. Her sixth-sense of emotions was extremely powerful in The Realm, not to mention the auras of energy she could see. I also had a gut feeling that Madison’s dreams had led her to know Drake, more so than Willow thought.
“How many illusions of hers have you seen? How sure are you?” Willow asked.
“More than I care to have. Understand that the images she shows you of them in passion are the ones that are the furthest from the truth. When you’re close. Really close. She’ll show thousands. Everywhere you look, you’ll see her arms around him, him begging her to hold him tighter.”
“No soul. No innocence,” Draven said quietly as he pulled me closer. I assumed that he must have told her about what we went through, how Bianca had fooled him once.
I let the conversation of the room fall silent in my mind. I was trying to see into Madison. She was blocking me, but from what I could gather from the intense look on Perodine’s face, they were trying to talk her out of going into The Realm.
As calm as I was, I had a gut feeling that told me that I was on the verge of losing her. I kept seeing that image she’d sketched of the lifeless girl on the floor. I tried to tell myself that had already happened, but I couldn't shake the feeling. Even though I was supposed to find Drake in The Realm, I was going to keep my eyes open for the healer, for Landen.
I heard Willow tell Olivia that she should go with us instead. They’d just told Willow that if we die in The Realm, you die for real, and Willow was trying to prevent Olivia and Madison’s nightmare from coming true; she didn’t want to be near anyone who looked like her. I wanted to agree, but Olivia refused to agree to that plea.
Draven pulled me against him tightly, then slowly let me go and went to Willow’s side. Aden came to mine. I glanced up at him. “Look who’s finally going to hunt with me,” I said slyly, trying to take the edge off his mood.
He elbowed me and smiled, revealing his dimples. “What’s that about?” he asked, nodding toward Madison. I shrugged my shoulders and let him see what I knew. I saw the concern in his eyes, but my attention was pulled away. Draven was trying to explain to Willow that she had to be careful with her energy in that world. That a little would go a long way.
“Remember how we talked about pulling energy? How I pulled from Charlie?” Draven asked her. Her eyes reflected a yes. “In The Realm…that’s the place that I’m tempted the most. Everything is heightened. When I think that I’ll just take a little, when she thinks she’ll just give a little – we’re already crossing a line. You’re going to want to give everything you have to wake them, and you can’t do that.”
“If that’s what they need, I will,” Willow promised.
Draven moved his head from side to side as he locked his jaw in frustration. “That will kill you. That will kill them.”
“How am I going to know what they need? What I can give?” Willow asked.
“I can’t tell you that. You need to put aside your desire for instant gratification. There will be a delay, and in that delay you’ll want to give more, but you can’t, not until you know for sure that they need it. That you have it to give more.”
Even though the calm I was feeling had imprisoned my emotions, my mind forced me to be afraid. I didn’t know if Draven could handle that, seeing her light in that place. I doubted Willow would know when to stop, and the last thing she’d be thinking about was how she was tempting Draven. Not because she was cold, but because he hadn’t told her how addicting light was to him; none of us had.
As soon as I felt that emotion, Willow locked eyes with me. “We’re all coming home,” she promised. I nodded and turned the ring on my finger, and instantly calm came back to me. I was determined to wake them before Willow could, when Draven was far enough away from me that his hunger wouldn’t tempt him.
I focused on the man in the cloak. It looked like he was almost done setting up whatever he and Perodine needed to open a door for Willow. I caught a few glimpses of him, his memories, as I watched him. His name was Alamos. He was priest or something like that, and he was almost always at Drake’s side...but his history stretched all the way back to Willow’s first birth. He loved Perodine. I was sure of it. What a complicated web all these people weave. If there were going to be a tomorrow for me, I was looking forward to figuring them all out. It didn't make sense that Willow had two people in her life that were millions of years old and still needed us. Why could they not figure out how to see?
Draven and the others were explaining to Willow and Olivia how they could create any weapon, do anything in The Realm, and how they must have a degree of urgency while we were in there.
Perodine and Madison came in the room. Willow’s father stayed in the hall.
Madison came to my side, refusing to show me anything they’d talked about. I glanced at her stomach before turning my attention to Perodine and Alamos.
Alamos pulled back the drapes around the bed, clearly revealing Drake and Landen. I reached for Madison’s wrist to tell her I was there. She didn’t make a move as she gazed at Drake’s near lifeless body.
Perodine was holding a different chalice and the same knife she’d cut me with before as she stood in front of the makeshift altar at the foot of the bed. “Come,” she said to us, and we all moved forward.
Perodine came to me first. I knew she wanted blood again, and I held my finger out for her. As she pricked my finger, her eyes met mine. I felt a warning there. “Whatever wall falls....I’ll help you put up again,” she said so quietly that I doubted anyone else heard her. I questioned her with my eyes, but she moved on to Aden, then the others. I watched her avoid Madison more than once. Finally, she stood in front of her, but Perodine silently refused to take Madison’s blood. Madison took the knife from her and sliced her own finger, letting twice as much blood fall into the chalice.
Draven and Aden both looked at me for some kind of answer, but I had none to give them. It was clear Madison was purposely going against the advice of Perodine. I could only hope she had a reason that made sense.
Perodi
ne looked down, then turned to the altar. “Focus your eyes. See energy. See the auras of them. All of you.”
I had no idea how to do that, so I just focused on all of us, patiently waiting for them to tell me to see, for this race to begin.
“Now pull it to you,” Alamos said to Willow. “Imagine it is a sphere right here, one that I can hold.”
Perodine turned from the altar and nodded in our direction. Aden and Madison stepped closer to me. I glanced at Draven as he took his place alongside Willow with Brady and Olivia. I smiled shyly, and he winked at me; he was trying to tell me we’d be fine.
Perodine began to whisper words in a dark chant, and that’s when I saw this sphere of light that they were talking about. For a second I thought maybe I was in The Realm. I’d never seen anyone manifest anything like that; I was in pure awe of this display.
“Clear you mind, child,” Alamos said. At that moment, Perodine tipped the chalice and let the blood fall to the floor. Alamos then released the sphere of energy, and it caught the blood before it reached the ground. It fell further, and when it reached the floor, fire erupted from the sphere, then it turned blue and expanded into a wall of what looked like water.
On this water, I could see The Realm, the base of what you see without intent. I knew they didn't need us anymore. I reached for Aden’s arm. “Lets go,” I whispered.
And with that thought, we were gone.
Chapter Sixteen
Instantly, we were standing in the center of my city of ash. The sun was bright, and the people looked so happy. They were all gathering near a beautiful home, gazing at an open balcony.
“I thought we were over this now? We knew the dream was in the past,” Madison said as she glanced at me.
“Don’t look at me. I didn’t create it. It was the furthest thing from my mind.”
“Someone else did then,” Aden said as he reached for my hand. “Let’s see what they’re gawking at.”
“Why? It could be a trap,” I argued, wanting to change our surroundings immediately.
“Or an answer,” Madison said, agreeing with Aden. She nodded to the balcony. At that moment, I heard a woman scream out, then a baby crying.
“I’m interested,” I mumbled as I thought to move myself to the balcony.
In an instant, I was there, and Madison and Aden were at my side. There was a woman on a massive bed that had just delivered a baby. The midwife said, “It’s a girl.”
I looked closely at the new mother. I recognized her; she was the woman that was my mother when I lived in Pompeii. I saw a joy mixed with a disappointment in her eyes. Curiosity caused me to step forward. We were like ghosts to them, moving through a moment in time, which made it seem even more surreal.
The bed had a canopy over it, and white cotton drapes were lingering around the massive post. As I moved closer, I saw an image of a man on his knees. His head was bowed in what looked like grief, but his image wasn’t solid. It was obvious that these women didn’t see him, that a man wouldn’t have witnessed this birth.
The new mother reached for the baby. “I don’t understand...I dreamed of a son.”
“You’ll have your son one day,” the midwife promised.
At that moment, the man raised his head and I saw Aden. I was sure it was him; the mark of dimples was clear. His eyes were glassed over, and his ghostly image reached to cradle the head of the infant. “This was my place, my war...I’ll find you again, my love,” he said, then he vanished.
I felt my insides fall as I nervously looked at Aden. I gripped my hand around my ring, understanding that Monroe must not have wanted my emotions to be a weakness here that she knew they would distract us all from what we needed to do. Instantly, I found the lack of fear in an undeserved calm. I turned my attention to Aden, and I could see terror in his eyes. He didn’t understand anymore than we did.
Then I heard a laugh, one I knew all too well. The people in the room had frozen in place, and Bianca was standing where the image of Aden had vanished. She walked slowly around the bed, holding Aden’s stare. When she reached him, she tilted her head. “It’s time to let that wall fall. Why didn’t I think of this before?” Before she could touch him, I reached for the side of her head, feeling my hands vibrate with the awesome sound of music. Before I could even conceive the idea to bring light or push music through her, she vanished.
“Are you alright?!” I asked Aden, trying to get him to break out of the cold stare he had with the frozen images.
He broke his stare, but he didn't look at me; instead, his gaze moved over my head. I turned defensively, thinking Bianca had returned, but that’s not who I saw: Silas was standing there, his eyes full of confusion, pain, and betrayal. “Looks like I’ve been worried about the wrong brother,” he said as he swallowed stiffly, then glared at Aden.
I walked briskly to his side. “What?! That was a wicked illusion. Aden is light - don’t threaten him, too. We don’t have time for that. Where are they?”
He didn’t look down at me. I pushed against him to break his uncalled for stare with Aden.
“Close,” Silas said finally. “Landen is guarded now.”
“By who? You?” I asked, thinking this could be over sooner than I thought.
He moved his head from side to side. “By someone he would recognize, that he loves.”
“Silas,” I said breathlessly, “those people that you watched die. Were they...were they his family?”
He nodded coldly, looking from the bed to Aden. He was beyond distracted, and I knew then that Bianca had plotted this. She was throwing illusions at us that made no sense, ones that would blind us.
“Why did you do that?!” I yelled.
“He told me to,” Silas said as his eyes blazed through me. “Look for a girl with pale green eyes that glow, small like you. With her is a man, strong and tall, dark eyes...they glow now, too. When you see them -- you’ll be there.”
Before I could ask another question, he was gone.
I turned back to see Aden starting to come to his senses. Madison was gripping his arm. “Wake up. You’re a target now. We’ll be fine,” Madison demanded.
“No, I’m staying with you,” Aden said as he painfully stared into me.
“This didn’t happen. You know that, right? She was messing with you,” I promised. I couldn't let him buy into this falling twice idea. If there was a wall, it needed to stay up; I had enough problems.
“Let’s hope,” Aden mumbled.
“It wouldn't matter if it did,” I said as I stepped closer to him.
“Tell that to Draven. All he needs is an excuse to fall into the darkness. This - this would cause him to question everything.”
I stared into his eyes, which mirrored his brother’s. Growing up, they were always side-by-side, two of my best friends. Where Draven ignited passion, both on a physical level and within music Aden offered comfort, understanding. Aden and I would think deeply about what our purpose was, search through every philosophy we could find. We’d spend hours on the phone together, and when we saw each other, we usually found a few hours to hide away and talk about our theories, how we could change our course.
One night two years ago, we fell asleep side-by-side. Somewhere in the night, his arms found their way around me, and mine around him. Draven found us in that unconscious, innocent embrace the next morning, and as you can imagine with Draven’s temper, that didn’t go over too well. It was the worst fight they’d ever been in, that Draven and I’d ever been in. It didn’t matter what excuse we gave or how convincing Aden and I were about our platonic relationship; Draven never completely got over it. He didn’t talk to Aden for weeks, not until Evan locked them in a room without any instruments and told them that they were not to come out until they came to their senses.
After that fight, almost on an unconscious level, Aden and I made it a point never to be alone again. Not only to keep the peace with Draven, but also to keep ourselves sane, doubt free. Simply because with Draven’s a
rgument, he’d brought up a thousand moments that he’d thought that Aden was making a play for my heart or that he thought I was doubting my choice in the rebel brother over the one that was the philosopher.
Honestly, until this moment, that fight had remained dormant in my mind, a lost memory that I wish would have stayed lost because now, on top of everything else, I was seeing Aden though the same eyes I saw years ago. I was seeing how Silas was adding to wounds that were too fresh to be completely healed.
“It’s an illusion, and it’s over,” Madison said, and with her words the room vanished and we were in a field. Almost instantly, willow trees grew from the ground. Little white flowers were sprinkled across the long white blades of grass, and a gentle breeze caused them to flutter through the air. It would have been beautiful if I weren’t prepared for something ominous to happen at any moment.
“Who’s head is she in now?” I asked.
“Mine,” Madison said breathlessly.
I glanced at her, only to find her in a mystified stare. A few feet from us, a man stepped out from behind the massive willow tree; it was Drake. In a blind trance, Madison stepped forward.
The magnetism I felt of Drake’s sleeping body couldn’t compare to how his energy felt in The Realm. His dark eyes sparkled as they met Madison’s, and his flawless lips smiled slightly as he stepped closer. He reached his powerful arm around Madison and pulled her against his firm body. I thought for sure she’d run or use some kind of sarcasm, but she didn’t; instead, she gazed gently at him.
Aden and I looked nervously from them to each other. We had no idea how real he was. I had my doubts that we could have found him that easily.
Drake reached to cradle Madison’s faced, then slowly pulled her into his kiss; it was a slow, poetic kiss that made me hungry to feel Draven’s touch.
Drake pulled slowly away from Madison. The gentle wind was blowing long strands of her hair, and he caught a lock of it and tucked it carefully behind her ear. “That was a test … and you failed,” he said calmly as his eyes moved across her beautiful face.