Chapter 30 #2
A flock of birds startled from the willow tree, distracting me enough that my hold on all that magick fell flat.
Whirlpools fell silent, and my frozen bubbles beneath the surface melted.
The squawking stopped, and the steady drone of buzzing insects went silent.
The hair on the back of my neck rose in warning.
Something wasn’t right. On the opposite side of the pond, figures in black emerged from the trees.
Djinn.
My mind had to be playing tricks on me because there was no way they got past Ezra’s wards. There wasn’t a storm this time to move the crystals, and the thump in my chest told me no harm had come to my bond. So then, how they fuck were they here?
I ducked into the water, leaving only my eyes above the surface, but it was no use.
They’d already seen me. They were here for me.
Splitting into two groups at the apex of the pond, the djinn moved closer.
The one in front was older and obviously the leader.
A voice inside me screamed when I saw his face.
It told me to run, but it was a little too late for that.
The djinn’s dark oily hair was thinning in the front and swipes of gray spread from his temples to betray his age.
I froze as he casually walked toward me, in a direct line; hands loose at his sides like this was a breezy evening stroll.
He looked like an older version of the guy who kidnapped me, he—
Soloman.
The name circled my mind like a deadly twister; dark and destructive.
It’s crazy how swiftly one can sink into fight or flight mode.
My power already gathered in my chest, making my skin glow faintly, while my thoughts methodically cycled through my options.
Flight definitely wasn’t it. I was done being a victim.
The pond was my greatest weapon; they couldn’t touch me in here, whereas I had a very long reach.
I wasn’t sure if I could take down this many djinn at once, let alone Soloman, but it was better than having a stare-off.
My other option was disappearing to the bottom and staying underwater until Ezra came for me.
I frantically tugged on our bond, pushing every frazzled emotion I had down it while telepathically screaming for him.
He was probably too far away to hear the words, but he once told me a bond could feel their partner’s distress no matter the distance.
Also, their pain and death, but I hoped it didn’t get to that point.
Unfortunately, the djinn had other plans.
Surrounded on all sides but one, I watched in horror as all five hunters pulled industrial tasers from their belts.
Focusing on the enemy closest to me, I watched the bright blue arc of electricity and flinched at the loud crackling it made.
Solomon stood silent, a heinous grin on his face, as his men tied elastic around the tasers to keep them on.
The blood drained from my face. They were going to electrocute the pond.
They were going to kill me. I swam hard and fast for the only open spot along the shore, using all the strength in my body and an extra push from my magick to part the water and let me through.
My feet met the muddy bottom of the pond as I heard the first taser plunk into the water.
Far enough away, it did nothing to me, but already I sensed it in the water molecules.
They now held a charge, and each taser only added to it until my skin tingled.
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
I wasn’t moving fast enough. Fingers gripped the slippery weeds on the shoreline, and I tore at them while trying to claw my way up through soggy earth.
The water hurt now, like a nonstop static pop that I felt all the way to the ends of my hair.
Sobbing, I got my knee onto the shore. It sank into the mud, furthering the water’s purchase, and I knew I was out of time.
I’m so sorry, Ezra, I cried, calling out to him one last time. I tried.
All but my foot was out of the water when the last taser dropped, but it wasn’t enough. For a brief moment, every cell in my body vibrated. My limbs stiffened as that final jolt lanced straight for my heart, and then it was lights out.
Ezra
There was a definite pep in my step as I strolled beside my cousin through the twisted forest on siren land. This was a serious moment, a converging of five factions in the name of peace—there was no knocking the smug smile off my face. For once in my life, everything was going my way.
Rani accepted my bond. We found Frederick, and he was willing to help us. Solomon would be dead and buried very, very soon.
Rani accepted my bond.
I felt like I could skip. It would look stupid as fuck, but I didn’t care. Only Kai’s exasperated glare kept my feet rooted to the ground and the tiniest of wiggles in my hips.
“Can we hurry this up?” I complained, bouncing on the balls of my feet. “My girl is waiting for me.”
Kai sighed in annoyance. “Focus, Ezra! I’m not going to tell you again. This is too important.”
I grumbled but reined it in. Twigs snapped to my right, and I spun to stand between my cousin and whatever caused it.
More footsteps from the opposite direction, and Kai’s shadows came out to play.
The tense moments while we waited for the new arrivals to reveal themselves were enough to clear my mind of anything but my duty; to both my cousin and Rani.
Cova appeared first, his blue hair not at all easy to hide in this environment, which meant that that had to be Ember coming from the other side. The vampire heir walked at normal speed, and heartbeats later, all six of us stood staring at one another in the most awkward secret club meeting ever.
Each of the factions was represented here, except the oracles, but they were neutral anyway. This was monumental for the future of our people. Shit, this was the future of our people, all the heirs.
“This must be the guy replacing Soloman,” Cova affirmed, taking in the less-than-threatening djinn on the other side of Eryn.
The kid had the same dark head of hair that ran true in his line, but that’s where the similarities to his cousin and uncle stopped. Frederick wasn’t bulky or built for war. He was lean and average-looking, with thick-rimmed glasses over his studious gaze. A stiff wind could blow him over.
Supposedly, he had strong magick and I did notice that he didn’t shy away from Cova’s intense frown. Another point in his favor. I wasn’t trying to be a dick, but if I was going to risk my life and Rani’s safety to put this guy on the djinn seat, I needed to be sure he could keep it.
“My uncle has been in power for too long,” Frederick spoke, voice low but firm. “He killed my father—his own brother—for the seat when I was just a baby. You may not trust me because of his brutal tactics, but if nothing else, trust that I want him dead more than you for that sin alone.”
Well, fucking okay then. Dude didn’t really talk on the entire walk over, and then he comes out with a hammer like that? I think I liked him.
“I’ve already cleared him,” Eryn said, eyes glowing faintly. “He’s sincere.”
“Not that we have many other options if he wasn’t,” I added. Eryn rolled her eyes at me, and I shrugged. “Tell me I’m wrong.”
“As fun as this is,” Ember interrupted, her forced smile revealing a fang. “ How are we going to get this kid on Soloman’s seat?”
And so began the next two hours of heated discussion.
No one actually knew how to brazenly murder the head of a faction.
Soloman was secure on his land or heavily guarded when not.
We couldn’t get near him without an invitation, and one from Frederick didn’t count…
yet. To set foot on another faction's land without permission from those in charge was an act of war.
Getting bored with the stagnant ideas, I decided to scout the perimeter.
The likelihood of anyone finding us out here was slim to none, but never zero.
Especially when people didn’t know how to keep their voices down.
As I circled for a second time, a bolt of fear hit me so hard I bent in half, clutching my chest.
Rani. There’s something wrong with—
I collapsed to one knee as pain seared through every nerve in my body.
It felt like being struck by lightning, and my heart kicked into a sprint at the knowledge that what Rani felt had to be ten times worse.
Body twitching with aftershocks, I clutched at the tree behind me to try and get back on my feet.
Kai was by my side in seconds, supporting me since my legs still wouldn’t cooperate, but they were getting better. Whatever happened to Rani, it was fading. There was no way of knowing if that was a good or bad thing.
“What’s happening, cuz?” Kai whispered, unsure if this weakness was safe to share with our allies.
“It’s Rani,” I managed to gasp. “Something is wrong. She’s in danger.”
Tapping into our new bond, I traced her and frowned when I felt her unique signature not too far from where we were.
She was close. How in the fuck was that possible?
I told her to stay put, and she had no reason not to listen.
My wards didn’t fail, because my connection to them hadn’t been severed, but something had still gotten to my bond.
I didn’t have time to stand here and try to figure it out. I had to go to her. Legs finally steady, I pushed past my panic and the lingering pain in my gut and took off into the trees. Rani was somewhere on siren land, she—
The pond! I cursed. Fuck, I was still an idiot. She thought the pond was safe because I told her it was; I never explained that it was outside the wards. I wanted to scream, but that would have warned my enemies I was coming.
I knew exactly who was after her, and their invasion was an act of war. The very thing we were trying to avoid. And the very thing that would now allow us the opportunity we’d been searching for.
Solomon was going to die. Tonight.