Chapter Thirteen - Wilder
I knew Leigh was hiding something from me, but this?
A daemon rift between realms that she opened and concealed with her magic is beyond anything I could have imagined.
The Blades have been trying to solve this case for months.
Leigh sat through a series of Council meetings about it and managed to keep a straight face.
The realization of how deep her betrayal truly goes is unimaginable.
She and Ravi visited Glaucus months ago after failing to cross Aradia’s spirit over. I thought she needed time to grieve, but apparently, the trip was all part of a plan to bring Aradia back.
The Dullahan, the Nothing, Mictlan—these names meant nothing to me this morning.
But Leigh’s known about all of them for months.
Now, a child who bears her brother’s name has been taken, and she believes it is her responsibility to save him since she opened the gate.
Leigh’s a diplomat, though, not a soldier.
If she had only trusted me with her plan, I could have helped her.
I could have alerted the Blades. They could have gone after the boy immediately if she had just shown us where the rift was, and I could have kept Leigh safe.
We are getting married, and she thought I was so wrapped up in our wedding that I wouldn’t be able to help.
She’s my future wife. I’d slay dragons for her. I’d do anything she needs.
“Here we are,” Ravi announces.
We reach the muddy banks of a lake so dark it seems to swallow the night itself. I scan the shoreline, searching for any sign of magic. “Where is it?” I ask.
Ravi shrugs in his damp, blue crewneck. “You’re looking at it.”
I blink. “The gateway is the lake?”
“Not the entire lake—just its center, deep below the surface.” With a flick of his hand, Ravi brushes the shadows away with his magic. “Much better.”
I exhale slowly as a purple, pulsing light appears. “Leigh went through that?”
Ravi nods. “She swam, yes.”
“Without a firm understanding about what’s on the other side?” I’m not sure whether to be impressed or pissed.
Another nod.
Fuck me.
“Leigh told me to tell the Blades where she went if she wasn’t back with Fynn by dawn, but I couldn’t risk anything happening to her before that.”
I give Ravi a harsh look. “You mean, aside from disappearing into a mysterious realm full of daemons and dead people?”
Ravi drops his gaze.
Now that I know where to look, I can make out the faint energy field surrounding the small lake’s shore.
It’s no wonder the Blades couldn’t find this place; the gateway is like a spider’s silk brushing against my fingers.
Even the hoof prints left by the Dullahan in the mud are barely visible to the naked eye.
I take out my phone. Ravi glares at it as if it were my gun. “Who are you texting?” he asks. “Leigh said to wait.”
Leigh isn’t here. I text Jax our coordinates.
“Wilder,” Ravi protests. “I gave her my word.”
My glare is sharp. “Leigh made me promises, too.”
Ravi clamps his mouth shut.
Yeah, that’s what I thought. I can’t hate him for his involvement in Leigh’s deception. He’s loyal to her, which makes him an ally, but he made a terrible mistake by keeping the rift a secret. If Leigh doesn’t come back, he will be filled with guilt for the rest of his life.
“Wait, Wilder, what are you …” Ravi’s words fade as I step into the water.
I hiss as the icy current seeps through my clothes and bites into my skin.
I reach for my solar magic, letting it coil through my veins, warming me from the inside out.
Familiar heat spreads from my core to my limbs, forming a barrier against the biting cold.
“I’m going swimming,” I shout over my shoulder.
Ravi wades in next. I dive beneath the surface. I blindly swim through the dark depths toward the lake’s center. My solar magic continues to pulse within me, a small sun keeping hypothermia at bay.
My lungs scream for air, yet I push farther. I’ve wasted enough time already. Leigh may be in trouble, may be hurt, and the longer I remain in this world, the greater the chance I have of losing her forever. There’s no living without her.
Breaking through the water’s surface, I inhale sharply. I shake my head, flinging soaking-wet hair from my eyes. A second later, Ravi emerges beside me. Beads of water roll like diamonds down his face.
“We’re here,” he whispers, but I already know.
A strong gravitational pull is tugging me toward the lake’s floor. As I swim against it, my body feels drawn out like a sniper’s patience. Out here, the wind no longer touches my face; the air is stale, and the water is unnaturally still.
“What’s your plan?” Ravi asks.
“I am going to bring Leigh back,” I say firmly.
“Find Jax and the others. Tell them to set up a blockade around the lake in case any daemons come through. Inform him that no one is to enter the portal. There’s no telling what is waiting on the other side.
If Leigh and I are not back before sunrise, you close the gate. ”
Ravi stares, pupils blown wide. “With you still inside? Leigh needs to come back.”
I nod. If Leigh and I aren’t out by sunrise, it means we’re gone for good. I refuse to endanger another child—or let those daemons claim anyone else—by keeping the rift open.
“Then, you’d better wish me luck.”
“The B-Blades will take the news better if it comes from you,” Ravi sputters.
He’s right, but they can’t depend on me anymore. Leigh is my priority. The rift is theirs. “If I don’t see you, take care of yourself and this kingdom.”
I inhale a deep breath before delving beneath the water’s surface.
As I let my body become an anchor, I sink to the bottom of the lake.
There, nestled among the dark sediment, I spot a giant tear, resembling a crack in the earth’s foundation, glowing a pale purple.
I swim straight for it, praying that Leigh is okay and that, by some miracle, she’s already found the boy taken by the Dullahan.
All at once, the world dissolves into havoc. Suddenly, I’m not just falling; I’m tumbling through an endless prison with no end and no beginning. The air isn’t just seeping from my lungs; invisible hands are yanking it out.
I gasp at the emptiness. I clutch my chest. Is this what death feels like? This sensation of my soul being ripped away from my flesh, layer by excruciating layer?
Heaven above, what the hell have I done?