20. Aries
Aries
T he gnomes scream so loudly I am sure my eardrums will burst.
Before Phillip has fallen, I surge forward, a snarl ripping from my lips as I rush at Constantine.
He merely steps aside, and two monsters emerge from the portal behind him—intercepting me before I can snap the asshole’s neck.
One is a giant, the likes of which I’ve only ever read about in Astronia’s history books.
He stands at least three heads taller than me and carries a mace in his hand that he swings as if it weighs nothing.
The other is a long-beaked bird of some kind with talons that look sharp enough to slice right through flesh.
Bingo, Mag, and Blossom appear beside me, but I wave them off, calling up my dragon, who is desperate to reduce these creatures to ash in one breath.
Constantine clears his throat, offering a sharp, “Hold” to his bodyguards. They stop, and I pause as scales begin to replace my skin, my dragon all too eager to cut down every single one of these beasts including the monster who brought them here.
“Aries, I can see you're letting your temper get the best of you,” Constantine says, “so I’ll remind you that your winged counterpart has a tendency to incinerate anything in its path...which now includes a library full of dusty, old books that will go up like tinder.”
Shit.
I glance around at the shelves and realize he’s right. With considerable effort, I manage to shove my dragon back down again. When I’ve regained control, I curl my hands into fists and start for the giant, prepared to fight as a man.
Already, I can feel Paige’s fear spiking and—
“Not so fast.” Oliver’s sharp, jumpy voice is completely changed from the smooth, friendly talker he pretended to be before. I glance at him and freeze, fear slamming into me as I realize he has Paige in his grasp, his bloody blade pressed to her throat.
Bingo bares his teeth, growling at Oliver.
“Let her go,” I demand, every cell in me screaming to kill him as fast as possible.
Paige’s eyes are wide as she stares back at me, but she doesn’t move or speak. I can see the blade pressing firmly enough that any movement would likely cut her.
“Not yet, loverboy,” Oliver sneers, and I make a promise right here to give him a very slow death when the time comes.
Constantine comes to stand beside the traitor who is apparently his nephew. “Relax. Oliver isn’t here to hurt anyone,” he says.
“You expect us to believe that? He just murdered that guy,” Blossom says, jerking her thumb at Phillip whose blood is now puddling beneath his body where he fell. “And I’m going to bet that he’s the one who killed Tawny.”
“Fine. He’s not here to hurt anyone else ,” Constantine corrects. His gaze flicks from me to Blossom. “He’s just making sure everyone fully considers the consequences before doing something stupid.”
“What the fuck do you want from us?” Mag demands, stepping forward to reveal his body an ashy grey since it is now made of stone rather than flesh. I know he wants to kill them almost as badly as I do.
“Nothing from you,” Constantine says. “You’ve already done so much, little keeper.
In fact, you all have. Working so hard around the clock to protect this place.
” Oliver snickers, and my eyes narrow, but I keep my gaze on Paige and the blade pressed against her skin.
“And to reward your hard work, I’m giving you a much-needed break,” Constantine adds.
“You’re all officially relieved of your duty. ”
“What?” Blossom demands.
“You’re not in charge in here,” Mag tells him.
“That’s where you’re wrong.” Constantine reaches into his coat and pulls out a book. It’s vaguely familiar to me, but apparently the others recognize it because the gnomes all scream again, this time chanting a word I instantly know.
“Vetus, Vetus, Vetus.”
“That belongs to the library,” Mag says.
Constantine’s eyes are lit with victory. “No, this collection now belongs to me—and that means the library does too.” He opens the book, lifts a hand, and reads off words in a language I don’t understand.
Paige struggles against Oliver, but he whispers something in her ear that has her paling as she stills.
“What—” Blossom begins but stops as the lights begin to flicker around us.
One by one, the lights wink out, the power to the entire library shutting down until we’re plunged into absolute darkness. The hum of magic or power that’s been a constant in this place since I arrived is suddenly silent.
A feeling of dread slithers up my spine.
A monster or creature threatening those I love is something I can fight. But whatever Constantine’s done, this is a threat I cannot see much less kill.
In the darkness, the gnomes begin to whimper.
I take a step forward as my eyes adjust, intent on ripping through the giant with the mace while he is hopefully blinded. But then the lights begin to come on again, this time with an orange glow emanating and a hum in the air that is much softer than before.
The books on the nearby shelves begin to shake.
Constantine snaps a finger, and they fall silent again.
The gnomes gasp and shrink away.
“It’s done,” Constantine says with glee.
“Now to get rid of them,” Oliver says, tightening his hold on Paige.
“If you harm one hair on her head, I will make you wish for death long before I allow it,” I tell him.
Oliver has the sense to look nervous, but he doesn’t release Paige.
“Whatever magic you think you have,” Blossom says, “It’s not stronger than the Athenaeum’s power. You’re an intruder here, and we will deal with you accordingly.”
She lifts her arm and utters the words Mag always says when he’s conjuring a portal. Nothing happens, and Constantine smirks.
“How else can I spell it out for you, little unicorn?” Constantine snaps at her. “The Vetus collection is the source of the Athenaeum’s power. And now that I possess the collection, that power is mine to wield.”
“Oh, shit.” Mag stares at the book Constantine holds up like some sort of trophy. “Guys, look.”
“What?” Blossom hisses.
“The symbol on the cover,” Mag says.
They both stare in horror.
“What is it?” I demand.
“That symbol is the same as our—” They both look down at their arms at the same moment, and Blossom falls silent.
When she looks up again, fear has edged into her expression for the first time since I’ve known her.
“Your what?” I press, not understanding.
Blossom swallows hard. “Our tattoos are gone.”
I look at her arm which is now unmarred skin rather than holding the intricate symbol that was once inked there. Then I look at Mag and find the same thing. Finally, I glance back at Paige in time to see her holding up her arm to her face and staring at the spot where her tattoo had been.
When she lowers her arm again, I see her tattoo is also gone.
“I control this library now—no one else.” Constantine’s eyes narrow on Blossom. “And that means I decide who is an intruder.”
He snaps his fingers again.
Overhead, the alarm begins to blare much louder than I’ve ever heard. The orange lights flash on and off in an emergency signal. Constantine’s keepers shift their weight, snarling and screeching at us in impatience.
“The alarm recognizes uninvited guests,” Blossom says, stubborn in her accusations.
“Precisely.” Constantine snarls. “Which is why this alarm is for you.”
She and Mag exchange a look.
Behind Constantine, the portal swirls to life again.
Through it, I see a flash of movement, and then another figure steps out into the library.
The gray-skinned humanoid, who is currently missing a hand, moves much slower and clumsier than the others, and I stare in confusion as it hobbles toward us.
Mag takes a tiny step backward, which makes Oliver laugh.
“You don’t want to go another round with the zombie, Mag?” Oliver taunts.
“How is that thing here?” Mag demands.
“You mean how do I know you’ve tussled with this guy before?” Oliver asks, grinning smugly from behind Paige. “Because it was my basement you found him in the first time.”
“Your....” Mag trails off, and I put the pieces together at the same time as he does.
Once again, I meet Paige’s eyes and see the realization reflected there too.
“Hoc was in your basement,” I say.
Oliver glances at me. “Took you long enough to figure it out. I was grateful when Paige brought him here. He was really starting to smell.”
Snarling, I take a step forward, ignoring the giant who raises his mace menacingly in my direction.
But the distraction is apparently what Paige was waiting for.
I watch as she slams her elbow into Oliver’s gut then wrenches from his grasp.
The knife slides along her throat, drawing blood.
Even though I know it’s not deep enough to worry about, I roar at the sight of her lifeforce draining from her flesh and launch myself at the asshole who dared to hurt my mate.
The giant intercepts me, and I gladly rain down blows against him. His mace swings, but I duck, and he narrowly misses my head.
“Bring out the rest of the keepers,” Constantine yells.
More monsters pour from the portal, and I realize he plans to have a lot more keepers in this place than Hoc ever did. This is why he’s been stealing books, I realize grimly. Collecting an army to use against us.
At the sight of so many threats, the gnomes scream out a battle cry, but it’s Paige who grabs my wrist and yanks me away from the fight.
“We have to go,” she says.
“I will kill them for hurting you,” I growl, a darkness settling over my soul as I watch the thin line of blood drip down her throat.
“There’s no time,” she says, tugging me again. She glances past me to where I know Constantine is ordering his army of keepers to attack us. “We have to get everyone else out.”
Constantine utters some kind of incantation, and the portal he used earlier vanishes as a new one appears. This one is swirling black, and from the other side, all I hear are screams that sound like endless suffering.
“Time for all former employees to exit the building,” Constantine calls.
Paige stares at the portal with mounting horror. “Where does that lead exactly?”
Back on his feet, Oliver says simply, “The end of your story.”
Paige’s fear slams into me then, and I know I can’t let her be sent through that portal. No matter what it takes, I will save her from that fate. The gnomes appear, pressing in close to my legs as they too stare at the portal with trepidation.
“Don’t worry,” Oliver tells them, “By the time you get there, you won’t remember a thing.”
“We’re not going in there,” Paige vows, a fire burning in her desperate gaze.
“Oh, quite right,” Constantine tells her, eyes gleaming as a second portal swirls to life behind Oliver. “You’re far too powerful to waste on an ending like that, my dear. You’re coming with me.”
I see it coming but seconds too late. I’m not fast enough to reach Paige before Oliver yanks her backward, straight into the swirling darkness of a portal that swallows the three of them up and vanishes before I can ever hope to follow her through.
In a second, she’s gone, leaving us alone with Constantine’s monstrous keepers and no trace of where my mate has gone.