Chapter 3
Chapter
Three
Killian
Iwas still kissing my mate, unable to get enough of her, when the dark vortex hit, tearing her from my arms.
“Barbie!” I roared, lunging forward. My fingers grazed her golden curls before the storm wrenched her up into the spinning tunnel, out of my reach.
A bell tolled, and an announcement rippled across the courtyard. “Due to the current threat, we are bringing forward the second bride trial. It begins now!”
“No, you fucking won’t!” I bellowed.
Lightning shot from my fingers, striking the vortex with a crackle. Rowan’s earth magic followed the path of my lightning, vines sprouting and shooting high to grab Barbie from the vortex. Cade’s metal magic, Silas’s water, and Louis’s air all joined the assault.
Our combined powers could tear through anything. They should have frozen the vortex in its tracks, but it kept spinning, moving higher and faster, taking my mate and the other bride candidates with it.
My dragon roared his fury through our bond, but before he could break free and shift to chase the vortex, it vanished without a trace.
I stood there, throat tight and chest heaving, staring at the empty space where Barbie had been seconds before.
A deafening silence fell over the courtyard, the ground still trembling from the residual energy of our combined powers.
The scene felt abandoned, wrong. Where thousands of masked students had packed every inch of space from here to Windsong Woods, now barely a hundred souls remained.
Then, everyone began removing their masks, voices rising in confused whispers and shouts.
“What happened?”
“It’s the second bride trial!”
“Was that planned?”
“Where the fuck have they gone?”
The glowing magical lights seemed hollow now. Abandoned drinks littered the edges of the courtyard, and the orchestra’s instruments lay scattered where the musicians had fled. Even the Tree of Life’s eternal blossoms had dimmed.
I pressed a fist to my chest. The mating bond felt muffled, as if a dark force had shrouded it. I had an inkling where she was. Our bond would only be dampened if she were in the Underworld, but I needed to be sure that was where the vortex had taken her.
The small comfort was that my mate was alive—I could feel that much, even if she was beyond my reach. For now.
My gaze snapped across the space to where Lilith stood, poised and regal, untouched by the chaos.
Her impossible green eyes met mine, and one perfect eyebrow arched.
Rage boiled in my blood. But before I could close the distance between us, before I could wrap my hands around her throat and demand answers, hellfire and light swirled around her.
“Don’t you dare—” I snarled.
In half a heartbeat, she was gone, leaving only the scent of sulfur, roses, and icy fire in her wake.
“We’re so fucked!” Cade’s voice carved through my fury. His usual playful demeanor had vanished, replaced by a sharp, grim focus. “There’s no magical residue left to track them.”
Rowan trembled with a rage that mirrored my own, stark fear coating his silver eyes. He was afraid for his girl, Sy, who happened to share a body with my mate.
The other heirs formed a half-circle around me, each scanning our surroundings with enhanced senses.
We still wore the black tuxedos that signaled our unification, but our masks were gone.
Louis’s fangs were fully extended, his head tilted as he listened for sounds beyond mortal hearing.
Silas dropped to one knee, pressing his palm flat against the cold marble.
“Nothing,” Silas growled, rising to his feet. “No scent trail. It’s like they never existed.”
Clockwork loomed to our left, the Infinite Library to our right, and the ivory tower’s light pulsed faintly. The heirs and I had purged the corruption in its bowels left by the druid, but without my mate by my side, the academy felt lifeless.
“We won’t be able to track them within Mist of Cinder,” I said, the words tasting of ash and fire. My hands clenched into fists, lightning crackling between my knuckles. “I believe the trial is happening in the Underworld, and Barbie is the target.”
“As is Sy,” Rowan snarled. “Let’s storm the fucking dark realm!”
“Not yet,” I said, meeting his heated glare.
“I want to get to my mate more than anything.” My gaze swept over the other heirs.
“Barbie and Sy mean a great deal to all of you as well.” Louis, Cade, and Silas all nodded in solemn agreement.
Rowan still fumed; without Barbie, Sy was lost, too.
“But we need to be certain where all the bride candidates are and formulate a strategy. A smart one.”
“Then get to the plan!” Rowan shot back. “Every moment we waste talking here, our mates are pulled further away!”
My dragon growled in agreement. The fae has more sense than you.
“Let’s find Lady Ethel.” Cade’s calm voice cut through our frenzied thoughts. “She’s the mouthpiece for whoever orchestrated this. She’ll answer for it first.”
“We won’t forgive this betrayal,” Louis snarled, baring his fangs. I’d once wanted to pluck them all out for daring to sink into my mate’s neck. “They should have consulted us before moving the trial forward. This breaks every protocol...”
“Someone’s head will roll for this,” Silas interrupted, his muscles bunching as his wolf strained against his skin.
“Enough,” Cade said. His wand materialized in his hand, and with a complex gesture, a sound barrier enclosed us, muting the noise from the confused crowd. “I get it. I’m not just extremely fond of Barbie; she is also a valuable member of my house. And we all know how important she is to the realm.”
“And Sy is the future of the realm,” Rowan said, his jaw clenched in tension. “The last of the old magic. Barbie took my mate with her.”
“Blind action won’t bring them back,” Cade countered, his glare daring any of us to challenge him. “Or protect the other bride candidates! Every single one of them matters. We are responsible for bringing them all home.”
The mage heir placed a hand on my shoulder and the other on Rowan’s before continuing.
He stepped up when the rest of us were losing our heads.
“Killian and Rowan, you two deal with Ethel. She’ll talk to you, or she’ll burn.
Louis and I will return to our courts. Our parents must know something, and we’ll confront them if they kept us in the dark. ”
“And me?” Silas asked, his voice a low rumble.
“You track. Use that big wolf nose wisely,” Cade directed. “Use every shifter sense you have. There has to be some trace, some thread we’re missing.”
It was a good plan. Logical. Cade and Louis had the diplomatic touch needed for their monarch parents. Silas had the best tracking abilities among us. And I...
I had the reputation for extracting answers by any means necessary.
“Before we go,” I said, punching my fist into my palm. “The Covenant.”
Understanding dawned in their eyes. One by one, they placed their hands over mine. We spoke the words we’d sworn in secret, renewing our vow.
“We swear by blood and chaos,” I began.
“By crown and raven,” Cade continued.
“By fang and flame,” Louis added.
“By earth and beast,” Silas growled.
“By star and mist,” Rowan finished.
“To stand as one,” I concluded, the words a solemn promise. “No matter the cost.”
“The Covenant holds,” Cade affirmed. “Whatever comes next, we’ll face it as brothers.”
Power flared between our joined hands, sealing the vow.
“We’ll find them, all of them,” Cade said, punching Rowan and me on the back.
“If worst comes to worst,” I met each of their eyes in turn, “I’ll move against my father. I’ll take the throne by force if I have to. I need the crown’s power to protect my mate properly.”
Silas sucked in a sharp breath. “That’s treason, Killian.”
I’d mentioned this political move before, and Silas still hadn’t warmed to the idea.
“It’s survival,” I said brutally. “You all saw how our parents reacted to that fucking god’s invasion. Each kingdom huddled behind its borders, hoarding resources. We fought and bled alone while they played fucking politics.”
“Queen Lilith’s demon army came to our aid,” Louis pointed out. “But after tonight, after you publicly claimed Barbie and...”
“Good job, Killian!” Silas’s sarcasm always grated on me. “Humiliate the Queen of the Underworld, your ex, in front of everyone. What could possibly go wrong? And when the Shriekers show up next time, and they will soon, do you think the demons will fight shoulder-to-shoulder with us then?”
“They might have beaten back the Shriekers once,” I sneered at the shifter prince, reining in the urge to lash out in my foul mood, “but you’re a fool if you think Lilith and her demons are our salvation.
” I drew a sharp breath, the air crackling with my frustration.
“Demons are a permanent threat, regardless of my history with their queen. There’s a reason all five kingdoms refuse to acknowledge the sixth house. ”
“Killian’s right,” Cade affirmed. “We could never trust Lilith. It’s better to know where we stand. We’ll protect Sy, Barbie, each other, and the realm at all costs. There can be no division. If one kingdom falls, the others follow. It doesn’t matter which falls first, brothers.”
I gave a grim nod. “Our selfish, shortsighted rulers don’t think as we do.
They’ll never trust each other—not like us.
We grew up together, trained in the same academy.
Our bond is solid, but our parents inherited nothing but distrust and ancient feuds.
Their paranoia will be the realm’s undoing. It’s time for our generation to rise.”
“Let’s tread carefully,” Cade cautioned.
“There isn’t time for caution anymore,” I countered, my jaw clenched with tension. “We have to be bold.”
Cade shook his head. “I’m not shoving my dad aside while he’s still in his prime. I can persuade him. He’s the most open-minded of our parents, a good king and a good father.” He gave a one-shouldered shrug. “Besides, the last thing I want is more responsibility.”
“But if he betrays our alliance?” Louis pressed.
“He won’t,” Cade insisted.
“Then why hasn’t he sent his army?” Rowan demanded.
Cade rolled his eyes. “And let the other kingdoms stab him in the back while his forces are deployed here? This needs to be a joint effort.”
“We can debate succession later,” Silas cut in. “Every second we argue is a second Barbie, Sy, and the other candidates spend in danger. Let’s fucking move and get our jobs done!”
We nodded, a silent agreement passing between us, and broke apart like wraiths into the night.
Rowan fell into step beside me as we headed for the administrative building where Ethel would be, no doubt congratulating herself for orchestrating this disaster.
Fear clawed at my insides, not for myself, never for myself, but for my mate. My little scorpion was strong, but she was the prime target of our enemies, and now she was beyond my reach.
Hurry! my dragon growled, his impatience a fire in my blood. Let’s get to the headmistress. As soon as you get your answers, I shall toast her.
Lock away your emotions, especially your fear for our mate, I lectured him, the words a cold mantra. Emotions make us sloppy. Emotions can get our mate killed.
I shut it all down, letting only the icy fury that had earned me my reputation and the calculated ruthlessness that made even my father wary dominate my mind.
If anything happens to our mate, my dragon vowed, his voice a dark promise in the depths of my soul, I won’t just kill those responsible. I’ll make them beg for death, over and over.