Chapter 8
Chapter eight
Cassia
Cassia frowned as she walked the streets of Astraeus.
Light mist filled the air and covered every surface, including her skin.
The tops of the skyscrapers around her were split in half by a thick cloud.
Even when it rained, the city always buzzed with life.
But not today. The crowded stores and restaurants she usually frequented were lifeless and barely held a few patrons.
When she’d woken to thunder, she’d immediately made plans to visit the city.
Rainy days in Astraeus were an adventure for her.
Those were the days she was just another face in a crowd at a packed bar full of people avoiding the weather.
She guessed too many people had been watching the news.
Cassia even had to admit it was hard to tear her eyes away from the constant recycled footage from the Kastronian border.
Even though it was always the same video, the beast in it sent shivers up her spine every time she saw it.
It was identical to the one Cade had shown her.
Almost human-like, but small and wraith like, with rows and rows of teeth.
Instead of bright red eyes, the beast in the video had none.
Its hollow eye sockets oozed a thick, black liquid she would guess was the same texture of blood.
Today, though, she’d wanted to drink and get lost in strangers and forget about how everyone in her life had shut her out.
That plan had failed. As she walked back home, Cassia glared up at the building where she knew the news anchors were probably getting ready for their next broadcast and cursed them for ruining her perfectly good day.
She’d almost made it to the front entrance of the palace when someone called out her name.
She didn’t have to turn around to identify the owner of the voice.
He was the only person that insisted on always calling her Cassia, not Cass.
The only person whose voice could make her heart rate spike with only one word.
The only person she wanted to avoid when she looked like a drowned rat in the rain.
Maybe she should have just stayed and had a drink somewhere.
Slowly, Cassia turned around and spotted Castor jogging toward her.
Chest tightening, she clenched her fists so her fingers wouldn’t tremble.
How did he always manage to look so unbearably handsome?
Even with raindrops stuck to his black hair, he looked the perfect picture of a prince.
On the path behind him, she spotted every woman turned to stare at his retreating form.
Cassia couldn’t blame them. It was hard not to.
“You’re back,” she said. She hated that the words sounded cold, but it was taking every ounce of her self-control not to reach out and touch him.
Or smile. She’d lost the privilege to do that long ago, but it’d been so long.
And the last time she’d seen him, he’d fought with her father to cross the gate.
He’d only let him go because of Delphine’s sudden appearance.
Without the interference, she wasn’t sure what would have happened.
“I just arrived a few minutes ago,” Castor panted. When he approached her, he smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “I’m glad I caught you out here. I needed to see you before… everything.”
“What for?”
“How’s Cade? I wanted to get your opinion on his state of mind before I go see him. He knows I’m here. I feel him trying to get in my head, but I’ve been able to block him… so far.”
The growing flush on her body suddenly stopped.
Of course, it had nothing to do with her.
It was about Cade. Like always. The distress barely hidden in Castor’s dark eyes, though, made her pause long enough to stop from snapping at him.
In her head, she silently screamed at Delphine that she had been right. He didn’t have good news.
“How do you think he is? He’s obsessive.
Stubborn…” Cassia sighed. She thought about how her brother had been holed up in his room and the library the past two weeks, trying to find any information he could about Andarre and the Sanguis, no longer pretending to be in good spirits for their father.
Swallowing hard, she added, “He misses her. He doesn’t want to be here. ”
“We’ve known that for a long time,” Castor replied softly.
“It’s different now,” Cassia whispered. Cade wasn’t just stuck in Elyria, he was trapped.
And it was slowly turning him into a ghost. At least when Bridget had been here, he’d been close to his old self again.
Clearing her throat, she straightened her spine before she did something stupid, like cry.
Motioning for Castor to follow her through the palace gate, she said, “This is all just a guess. He’s barely spoken to me since his plan to get Delphine through the gate failed. ”
“His what?”
“See what happens when you go away for too long?”
Cassia’s heart quickened when she felt Castor’s hand brush her lower back, whether unconsciously or to comfort her, she wasn’t sure. The moment he pulled back, her body screamed in protest.
“It’s harder to travel back and forth without access to the Astraeus gate,” he replied. “And my family’s company is going through a bit of a crisis. I was here too long during the tournament. I missed some important meetings... Plus, Elyria isn’t the only place being bombarded by random creatures.”
“Is everything alright?”
“It’ll be fine,” Castor said, waving his hand. “My parents and older brothers don’t need my help, like always. You know that.”
Cassia resisted glowering at him. Even though she wanted him to share what was going on, it was typical Castor to keep everything to himself. He was always composed. Always calm. Never needed any help. She both admired and hated it about him.
Glancing back at the skyline, Castor murmured, “The city is quiet today. Before I left Tafari, I saw the video of what happened in Kastron.”
“That hasn’t been the only incident. My father sent Finn to check out another one. He still isn’t back.”
“Is that why you bought those herbs?”
Cassia locked eyes with Castor. The dark orbs knew too much.
Breathless, she fingered the small paper bag in her coat pocket.
How had he known what was in there? The purchase had been an impulse, a quiet yearning to be useful if one of those creatures did appear in Astraeus or someone needed her help.
“If you’re trying to learn again, I can help,” he said. “I know that last time…”
Cassia quickly shook her head. “I don’t need any help. That’s not why I bought them,” she lied. She reddened, remembering the last time she tried to perform a spell in front of him. Castor was the last person she wanted to know how weak she really was.
Brows furrowed, he opened his mouth to argue, but his curious gaze moved to the two figures waiting for them by the white stone wall of the northern courtyard.
“What are you going to say to him?” Cassia asked quietly, eyeing where her brother stood in anticipation, Delphine beside him.
Castor sighed. “The truth.”
As she followed him, Cassia wanted to scream at his back to lie to Cade, to spare him whatever bad news she knew that he brought. Especially when her brother looked more alive than she’d seen him in months. The excitement in his eyes made her stomach twist.
Her stomach twisted even more when she watched Delphine smile brightly and give Castor a hug. One that lasted a little too long.
When in the hell had that happened?
“Did you get trapped in a board meeting?” Cade grinned, grabbing Castor by the shoulder.
“Actually, a few. You wouldn’t recognize the New York office right now,” Castor replied.
Cassia wondered if she was the only one who noticed the hesitation in his voice.
He continued, “There was one week I had to fly back and forth from there and London three times. I think it’s mostly taken care of now. ”
When Castor went silent, her brother stared at him expectantly. “And?”
Castor squared his shoulders. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t find her.”
Cade stilled. Cassia’s heart dropped as she watched him pale… watched every inch of his face harden. Voice dangerously low, he asked, “What do you mean?”
“I searched everywhere. I spent as much time as I could combing through the internet and any source of information I could think of once I found out what happened…” Castor replied quietly.
“But I think I was too late. I didn’t get any of your letters until I was already back in Tafari, and there’s too much going on there right now for me to go back to London, despite what my family believes.
There’s no record of any Bridget Adams in a hospital, shelter… or cemetery.”
The second the word cemetery was out of Castor’s mouth, Cade flinched. Delphine squeezed his forearm. Swallowing hard, Cassia gazed at Castor. The muscles in his jaw were clenched. Not only did see Cade as a brother, he hated to fail.
“What about Nylah?” Cade asked hoarsely. “Did you see her? She must be—”
Castor reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded sheet of paper. “She’s missing too. I was able to find this.”
Cade ripped the paper from his hand and unfolded it. Peering over Castor’s shoulder, she peeked at the paper. At the top, Missing Child was written in giant red letters above a grainy black and white photo of Nylah. Because of Cade’s trembling hand, she couldn’t read the rest of the words.
“There should have been something,” Delphine argued. “News articles, hospital records… something. Unless he just…”
Unless that Warlock had just left her to die wherever the gate had taken them. Cassia didn’t need Cade’s powers to know what words Delphine didn’t want to utter.
Castor reluctantly continued, “I called your landlord about your apartment. Someone had broken in. He emailed me the footage… He was alone. It looked like he grabbed a bag…”
And then Cassia was sucked into whatever memory Castor was showing Cade.
She wondered if her brother even realized he was losing control and pulling all their minds together.
The palace garden around her disappeared and all of a sudden, she was standing in Cade’s old apartment, watching a grainy image of Archer pick the lock on the door and grab a large suitcase. Seconds later, he was gone.
Even though the memory had stopped, Cassia couldn’t break free from her connection with Cade’s mind.
For a moment, she was hearing his mind. She could hear him planning, calculating, reviewing every scenario that could have happened with Bridget and Nylah.
His thoughts weren’t the only thing he was projecting, though.
Cassia braced herself against the stone wall she could no longer see.
Rage, desperation, and longing choked her.
Pain, so acute, made her want to fall to her knees.
Each new feeling ripped through her soul. She was drowning in them. She couldn’t…
“Cade, stop,” Delphine gasped.
The world abruptly went back to normal. Eyes blurry, Cassia tried to catch her breath.
When her vision stopped spinning, she spotted Cade’s retreating figure.
“Come back,” she called, but he was already out of sight.
To her left, Delphine grabbed Castor’s arm.
Cassia couldn’t stop the white-hot rage that suddenly flowed through her veins.
Without thinking, she shoved Castor in the chest. “Why did you tell him the truth?”
“Are you serious?” Castor replied, staring at her in shock.
“You should have lied and said she was fine. Now who knows what he’s going to do.”
Castor took a step forward. His dark eyes bore into hers and she was suddenly afraid he knew that all of her anger wasn’t because of what he’d told Cade…
but because of something she had no right to anymore.
Chest tightening, she raised her chin and refused to break their stare.
Mere inches from her, he stopped. She felt his breath on her face.
“He deserved to know,” he stated, voice almost at a whisper.
Throat tight, Cassia hissed, “If he does something stupid trying to figure out what happened, it’s on you.”
And then she ran. Too afraid to know if he watched her. Too afraid to find out if he didn’t.