Chapter 9
TESSA
“Idon’t need you, Keeper,” Tessa said as she followed Tristyn farther down the passageway.
“Of course you don’t,” Tris replied over his shoulder with a smirk. “You don’t need anyone, right, wild fury?”
She frowned at his words, pausing for a moment, and her fingers flexed against the wall, her light winding around the digits like fine threads.
“That’s not what I said,” she finally retorted, resuming her pace. She wasn’t trying to keep up with Tristyn, but she couldn’t…stay still. There was too much…
There was just too much.
It thrummed in her veins, the power constantly seeking more, and with so many powerful beings around her all the time now, it took every piece of her to keep it at bay.
In retaliation, it had sunk its claws deeper into her, dragging her down and holding her in this perpetual place of feeling like she was going to crawl out of her skin.
Of wanting more and pushing them away. Of needing but not being able to have.
Of knowing eventually she wouldn’t be able to keep it confined. Not without a balance.
Knowing that in the end, the prophecy about her would come true, and Chaos would reign.
Neither of them spoke again as he continued to lead her along.
Xan always took her outside, which she appreciated, but Tristyn was leading her deeper into Luka’s cave system.
She hadn’t ventured beyond the spaces he’d shown her— the main living space and the guest rooms. There were far more rooms and passages, but she’d already shattered his trust in her.
She wouldn’t disrespect him further by intruding on his space when he clearly didn’t want her here in the first place.
A duty.
A burden.
A constant reminder of betrayal and what she’d stolen from him.
That was all she was to him now, and in the end, she wouldn’t let him bind himself to her to become her Guardian. Xan had told her how that bond worked and how it was created. She’d refuse and give him the freedom from her he so desperately craved.
Despite Tristyn leading her deeper into the mountains, the path was sloping upwards rather than down.
Somehow being here, it didn’t bother her quite as much that they were underground.
She still longed to see the sky though, and as far as she could tell, there were only two ways into the cave.
There was the main entrance and a secluded balcony off Luka’s room.
“Pick one,” Tristyn said, coming to a stop with two rooms on either side of the hall. Neither had a door, and she came up beside the male and peered into them.
The one on the left was a game room of sorts.
Paddles and a ball sat atop a table for table tennis.
Over in a corner was a green felt-topped table with a deck of cards and playing chips.
A TV hung on the wall, a few gaming consoles connected, and Tessa knew without a doubt that this room was mainly for Axel when he came here.
If she were to look, she was sure she’d find a phone somewhere that was connected to the sound system to play his music.
Crossing the passage to the other room, she stopped in the doorway.
The decor here was the same as the rest of the cave.
Overstuffed leather furniture. A cozy hearth.
A rug to warm the space. A round table off to the side with a few chairs while a long, low table sat among the furniture.
This space was for Theon, and she’d taken several steps into the room before she’d even realized she had moved.
The low lighting Tristyn had turned on cast a soothing glow around the room, and she made her way to a lamp on an end table.
Turning the switch, it illuminated the space further to allow for reading.
“I had a feeling this was the room we’d end up in, but I didn’t want to assume,” Tristyn said, sliding around her and plopping onto the sofa.
“You know what happens when we assume,” Tessa murmured. Gods, she could swear she could still smell Theon in here. And Luka. Both of them. Together.
This was her new favorite room.
Tristyn huffed a laugh at her comment as he pulled a lighter from his pocket and lit the roll of lull-leaf he’d placed between his lips. All Tessa could think about was how ridiculous it was that a deity had to use a lighter. Then again, she would have to do the same, she supposed.
“Sorry I crushed the other one,” she said.
“As if I don’t have more,” he replied with a wink, reaching for the remote on the end table.
She thought it was for the television, but when he clicked the power button, the fireplace sprang to life. Her head snapped to the flames, and she lurched forward. Crouching down, she didn’t stop until her face and hands were less than an inch from the glass.
“Fucking Fates, Tessa,” Tristyn yelped, suddenly at her side and trying to pull her back.
But she shrugged him off, instead dropping to her hands and knees as she crawled along the expanse of the fireplace.
“Always trapped,” she murmured, the flames licking at the glass. At each other. Oranges and reds. Yellows and blues. Writhing in every direction trying to find a way out. But if they escaped, there would be nothing but destruction as they devoured and fed and took and took and took.
There had to be a balance.
Tristyn had sat back on his heels, watching her, and when she stopped crawling around only to roll onto her back and stare up at the ceiling, he took the spot beside her, doing the same.
Their shoulders butted up against each other, and Tessa gritted her teeth as the thing inside her sat up straighter, inching closer to the surface.
Shoving it back down with a shudder, she reached over, plucking the lull-leaf from his lips and taking a drag. It was a terrible idea. If she became too relaxed, her control could slip. Or worse, she’d fall asleep.
“You owe me a story,” she sang while the plant did its job, the tension easing from her limbs.
“I was hoping you’d forget,” he muttered, taking the lull-leaf back from her and sucking in another deep drag.
“I don’t forget anything,” she replied.
“That’s not true,” he answered, a grim note in his tone. “But that’s not entirely your fault.”
Unsure of what that meant, she stayed silent, her fingers winding into the fabric of her dress.
“I’ve been waiting for you for a very long time, but when you—”
“That’s not how stories start,” she interrupted, lifting a hand and letting power pool there. That gave her more relief than the lull-leaf did.
She could feel Tristyn watching her magic, could feel him tensing despite the lull-leaf in case he needed to counteract her gifts. Or try to at least.
And still she waited because he knew what she meant.
She heard him swallow thickly before clearing his throat. “In all things there must be balance. Beginnings and endings. Light and dark. Fire and shadows.”
“The sky, the sea, the realms,” she whispered in kind.
“I’d been waiting for you,” he continued. “Not to use you like you believe, but you are the ticket to my salvation, Tessa. That is not the story I wish to tell you though. I wish to tell you a story about you.”
She hummed, contemplating, but finally she nodded. As much as she wished to know his story, she wanted these answers more.
“Your arrival in this realm had been prophesied for centuries,” he said, settling in once more. He took another pull from the lull-leaf before passing it to her. “And whenever someone finds their way to Devram, they are met by a Keeper.”
“I know this story,” she cut in.
“I assure you, you do not,” he said gently, almost sadly.
She fell quiet once more, passing over the lull-leaf to let him take the final drag. He put it out, setting the butt aside before clearing his throat once more.
“You know there have been many Keepers over Devram’s life. Some have gone to the After, some have vacated the role but still live, and some have deviated from their purpose. But the fact remains that a Keeper greets everyone who enters the realm through a mirror gate.”
“Wait,” she interrupted yet again, pushing onto her elbow to look down at him. “There is more than one?”
He nodded slowly. “You destroyed the main one, but each kingdom houses a mirror gate, Tessa. They keep them hidden and guarded. It was meant to keep power balanced, but like all things in Devram, the purpose has become twisted.”
“Hmm,” she hummed, lowering down once more.
“That’s all you have to say to that?”
“This is a dreadful story,” she replied, again toying with her power. “And I am beginning to believe you are stalling, Keeper of Lies.”
It was Tristyn’s turn to sigh, and she knew she was right when he cleared his throat again. He was nervous about whatever he was going to reveal.
“Cienna and I were met by Keepers, just like Xan was when he arrived with you in arms, his son and wife at his side.”
“His wife,” Tessa murmured. “Where is she now?”
“That is a question for Xan. A story for him to tell,” he answered, and she tsked under her breath.
“The problem with that is that everyone keeps their stories a secret until they are forced to reveal them—”
“I was the one who met them,” Tristyn interrupted.
The power in her palm expanded at the words. Light and dark spiraling upwards and out, seeking to sink its claws in and take as her fury grew once again.
“You met them when they arrived here,” she said, too calm.
Each word too even. “And you are just now telling me this? If you knew who I was, how the fuck did I end up at the Celeste Estate? If you knew who I was, how was I so godsdamn lost for years? You were waiting for me? For what? To watch me waste away in neglect and abandonment? Why didn’t you fucking do something? ”
She had no idea when she’d gotten to her feet, but she was standing over him as he scrambled to his own. A sage glow eclipsed his russet-colored eyes, and he reached for her before wisely shoving his hand through his hair instead.