Chapter 3 #2
Now, though, she was afraid that touching it would confirm her worst suspicion.
Cade’s father had destroyed the gate, and no one was ever coming through again.
Bridget moved to stand in front of the gate.
It was different from the one in Cavamyne.
Here, in the darkest part of the forest, five long, thin stones stood in a circle.
Each stone was connected by lines of gray and white rocks, most of which were buried underneath soil.
Shadows and sunlight warred for dominance over the circle.
Bridget took off her glove and grazed her right hand over one of the stones, almost hoping to feel a spark of magic, like Finn had in the ruins of the old palace wing in Astraeus. But nothing intensified under her fingertips. She hated that hollowness seeped into her veins, slow and unwanted.
She wasn’t sure whether one rock, all of them, or the center point of the circle took people back to Astraeus, so she picked the one illuminated by the most sunlight to approach.
Up close, etches of symbols ingrained in the dark, faded stone appeared.
Feeling a little silly, she struggled for a moment, unsure of what to do or say.
Eventually, Bridget closed her eyes and wished for the impossible.
She wished that somehow, Cade would hear her.
“I’m sorry,” Bridget whispered, laying a hand on the stone. “I hope you know that.”
Lately, guilt consumed her every waking moment.
She was the reason he wasn’t here. Because of her, they’d lost the Bloodstone.
To save her, he’d been forced to make a deal with his father.
She wanted to fix it. She wanted to fix it more than anything.
But the belief that she would ever get the chance was slowly slipping out of her grasp.
Some nights, the thought that Cade might hate her now kept her awake for hours.
“I never wanted any of this to happen... Archer told me you might think I’m dead. He thinks it’s better that way but I’m not so sure. I don’t want you to believe you failed. You didn’t. Nylah and I are together. That was the plan, right?”
Bridget inhaled sharply. Longing flooded her until it almost splintered her from the inside. He should be here with them. Not alone in Elyria, maybe thinking she was dead. There was never any plan that was supposed to involve goodbye.
Some reckless part of her still refused to believe it. But if she stopped now, she was going to break completely.
“I hope you know that I love you,” she continued, barely able to speak from the knot in her throat. “And…”
Behind her, a twig snapped. Bridget spun around, already reaching for the knife tucked into her boot.
Her fingers wrapped around the handle before her mind caught up with what her eyes were seeing.
A man stood at the edge of the clearing.
He was tall, perhaps even more so than Cade, and didn’t seem to be much older than her.
A dark green uniform clung to his lean frame, and tousled blond hair poked out from beneath a brown ball cap.
It wasn’t until she spotted the familiar park service logo stitched to his chest that she let out a slow breath and eased the knife back into its sheath.
He held up his hands. “I’m one of the park rangers. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
“But you did,” Bridget snapped, turning her face from him so she could discreetly wipe away the wetness on her cheeks. She couldn’t believe some guy had just listened to her crying to a rock.
“I’m just out on patrol.”
Bridget narrowed her eyes. “I didn’t know patrolling meant eavesdropping.”
He moved closer to her, and for a split-second, déjà vu washed over her.
The way his bright blue eyes flickered to the forest behind her, like he expected someone to be waiting there, tugged at a memory deep in her mind.
Bridget searched his face, hoping something else in his features triggered how she knew him.
Her stare must have been too intense because he suddenly paused his forward movement. Clearing his throat, he replied, “I’m sorry, most people don’t linger in this part of the woods. There are rumors it’s cursed, but I know that’s ridiculous. I just wanted to make sure everything was okay.”
Bridget slowly moved her hand behind her back.
Tucked between her jeans and belt, another knife lay hidden.
If she was going to figure out how she knew him, she needed him to keep talking.
Someone approaching her at the gate couldn’t be a coincidence.
Especially when they used the word cursed.
“Are you new? I come here a few times a week and I’ve never seen any kind of… ranger.”
“There was an incident in a state park in Connecticut a few months ago. A girl was shot.”
Ice filled her veins as her stomach dropped to the ground. He was talking about her. But how? There had been no news stories or articles published about her. Archer had made sure of that. She’d withheld every piece of personal information she could from the doctors.
“Since then, areas like this have been on high alert,” he continued. “We don’t want any more accidents.”
In the blink of an eye, his expression hardened.
Bridget swallowed. No more pretending then.
He circled her, trying to herd her away from the gate.
The action made it clear he knew exactly what this place was.
Muscles taunt, she gripped the dagger’s handle, ready to throw it the second he came closer.
And then she knew.
She’d seen him the night she’d returned through the gate, standing behind Archer with a phone in his hand. And then again, through the windows of the ambulance after they’d restarted her heart a second time.
And yesterday in the library.
“You were there that night. You’re the one who called 911,” Bridget said. “I remember the phone in your hand. And in the library… you were interested in that book about druids. You’re from Elyria, aren’t you? How did you get here?”
The ranger froze. Bridget didn’t miss the flash of surprise that lit up his eyes, like he hadn’t expected her to remember quite that much. He let out a hollow laugh. “I think you’re confused.”
Bridget shook her head. She scanned his body, trying to find any sign of who or what he was, but his long sleeves and pants covered almost every inch of skin. “Who are you?”
“I told you, I’m a park…”
The second she heard the lie, Bridget flung her dagger at him, aiming for his leg.
It wasn’t meant to kill, just to buy her a second to run.
But before it landed, the ranger lifted his hand.
The blade shivered in midair with a metallic hum, as if it had struck an invisible wall.
Then, yanked by an unseen thread, it snapped sideways and clattered against one of the standing stones.
Bridget launched herself at him. Her fingers caught the edge of his collar and tore the hat from his head before he sidestepped her with inhuman grace.
Momentum sent her crashing to the ground.
Pain bloomed across her knees and elbows as she rolled onto her back, gasping.
Without his hat on, she could see arched ears peeking out of blond hair, along with a snaking, blue tattoo. Her stomach dropped.
“You’re a Shaman,” she breathed.
The man cringed. “I really hate that’s what they call us now.”
What the fuck? Bridget tried to reach for the other knife in her boot, but before her fingers grazed it, she was in the air. Her spine cracked as she hit one of the standing stones. “Who sent you?” Bridget growled, trying to move her arms and legs, but invisible ropes kept her in place.
“Stay away from the gate, Bridget,” he warned, bending to retrieve his hat from the ground before placing it on his head.
She froze. He said her name like he knew her. Impossible. Terrifying. She shoved the thought down. She couldn’t let herself feel the full weight of it.
“How do you know my name?” Bridget demanded.
He moved until he stood inches from her.
Up close, she could see the power that glowed and swirled behind his pale eyes.
The orbs were unreadable as they searched her face.
Bridget couldn’t bring herself to look away.
Instead, she flinched against the rock, hoping to move something, but her entire body remained frozen.
Her heart pounded as she waited for his next move.
After a long moment, he finally said, “We’re out of time. For the good of all, never visit here again.”
Before she could blink, he grabbed her arm. Bridget screamed as they both disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
It was like Elyria, but worse. She’d forgotten the sensation of traveling with Delphine, forgotten what it felt like to have every atom and cell torn apart and put back together.
Bridget screamed, and when she thought her body would disintegrate entirely, she landed on her hands and knees on a gray sidewalk.
Bridget barely caught a glimpse of the man’s dark green uniform walking away when hands started grabbing her.
She tried to ignore the gasps and questions of the concerned crowd she’d fallen into in Boston.
Jumping up, she ignored the blood pouring from her nose and tried to run after him, but he was nowhere to be found.