Chapter 9
It takes a day for us to organize everything, even though I want to leave straight away, and that entire day, I could only imagine Vale’s screams. Vale is the strongest man I’ve ever met, and he wouldn’t scream for nothing.
He didn’t even scream when he was in a room full of death magic…
not until I walked into it for him. He screamed for me to stop, begged me using his nickname for me, and broke my heart when I thought he actually cares for me.
Vale and I are as complicated as it gets, but he is my rival, my once-enemy and my bonded.
The Umbral Authority cannot have him for a moment longer, not without a fight.
Maz and Black haven’t stopped since the choice was made to leave.
They made sure the people we are leaving behind understood to follow Aster, that it was safe where they were going, and we helped pack up the children as best we could.
Looking into their young faces made me realize why we need to bring the Umbral Authority down.
These kids need to be back in the real world and have a chance for a free life.
No one should grow up as I did.
I won’t let it happen.
The wind whips straight across my face as a heavy rain-filled gust blows through, and Black’s dragon dives high across into the clouds as thunder bangs.
The storm is my spell, a way to hide the beat of dragon wings, and no one would suspect it was a spell when Bloodstone Academy often has bad storms. I lean down, my braid whipping against the back of my cloak, and wipe some of the rain out of my eyes.
I know what to expect, so I whisper a spell, covering myself in a bubble of air right as Black dives out of the clouds with all the power only a dragon has.
I can’t breathe for a second, the force of his dragon making it hard to even move.
He slams straight into the sea headfirst, powerful wings swimming easily through the currents, faster and faster towards Bloodstone Academy.
Not from above, where they would expect, but from underneath, where a series of cave entrances big enough for dragons are.
It’s dark and I can barely see much through the gray water, but Black clearly can.
My spell holds tight, making breathing easy for the few minutes, and I focus on maintaining the spell.
Black swims up into the cave and climbs out onto a ledge, pulling himself out with the strength only a dragon has.
Fire snorts out, breathes out of his mouth, lighting a series of lanterns on the wall, bringing orange light everywhere as water drips onto the stone, and I loosen my spell.
Maz soon climbs out of the sea after us, and I slide off Black’s wet scales.
His dragon huffs before shifting back, and I watch him in the warm light as I hand him his clothes and he gets dressed.
I walk over to Maz and hand him his clothes after Lyra, Zeph and Mell turn away for some privacy.
Once everyone is dressed, we move to the fire lanterns. Lyra is staring into the fire. “It was strange to be on dragon back once more,” Lyra whispers. “Your father used to fly for hours with me, and we’d travel the seas, only to return home. We had endless hours of flying.”
“I’d like to know more about him. And you, actually. Your childhood, life, everything,” I admit, touching her hand. “With everything going on, I haven’t had a chance to tell you that, but I’d like to get to know you.”
“I’d like to know you too, my baby.” She squeezes my hand.
“And I’d love to tell you all about your father and all the stories he’d love me to tell his daughter, but for now, this is for you.
” She pulls out a ring. It’s gold, with a crest in the center, the design marked out in emeralds and rubies.
The crest is a red dragon wrapped around a green tree, and the band is covered in diamond stars.
“It’s a family heirloom. He gave it to me the day we decided we were far more than bonded and that we were a couple.
I know it belongs to you. I gave you your name, and this is from your father even if he can’t give it to you himself. ”
She lifts my hand and effortlessly pushes the ring onto my middle finger. It’s a perfect fit. “Thank you. I will cherish it.”
“Give it to your own child one day.” She lets me go and clears her throat. “Stay safe, okay? Get to your bonded. We will distract them as long as possible and draw them from the island.”
“Remember the plan?” Black asks. “We need to get him back to the caves. They won’t be able to find us down here because only the shifters know these caves well enough to hide in them.
I’m hoping Kane’s been hiding somewhere and will join us when he can.
” They can’t leave the island, but we can at least hide.
Lyra hands me two potions. “Strong healing tonics. I put as much magic as I could into them for Vale, just in case.”
“Thank you.” I clutch them tightly, knowing they will go right beside the ones in my cloak that I made yesterday.
“He shouldn’t die, you know, because he’s linked to the academy. Blood spells like that are tricky and usually bind life to matter, to the soul of a building or land,” Zeph ponders.
“So you think he’s immortal—but immortally trapped here in Bloodstone?” Maz asks.
“Yes. We need to get him out before his mind breaks. Immortality doesn’t save a broken mind.” Zeph nods. “My family studied blood magic, and I will be able to look at the spell done when he is well.”
Lyra squeezes my hand one more time before leaving with her mates, none of us wanting to say goodbye because it feels too final.
We go in the opposite direction, and I link my hand with Black’s for comfort. Maz clips daggers onto the belt at his waist, a sword onto his back, before pulling a cloak over him. Black doesn’t need any weapons. He is a weapon. One touch and they’re gone—Mindless included.
“What if we’re not getting here in time for Vale? What if his mind is broken like Zeph said could happen? What if he can’t come back from this?” I whisper all my worries to my mates.
“He’ll come back for you. Vale is too stubborn to break,” Maz reminds me.
“If anyone can bring him back from the edge of darkness, it’s going to be you, Juni,” Black softly suggests.
“Okay, I think I might be a little messed up here, but hopefully I can rage-bait him back from the edge of darkness with the simple ‘I win’ if he doesn’t come back. He never likes losing to me. Never has done—he is the biggest rival I’ve ever had, the ultimate rival,” I mutter.
Maz’s laugh echoes off the walls. “Please let me watch. It’s always entertaining with you two.”
I shake my head, my lips tipped up with a smile.
We make our way through the forest quietly, well aware that Mindless are close, but the spell that I cast works—a simple deflection spell.
I feel the weight of the tarot cards in my pocket, of Minnie on the back of my neck, knowing that if worse comes to worst, I have them and their magic.
I won’t be taken by the Umbral Authority again.
We get to the edge of the forest and quietly look around at Bloodstone Academy.
The tall black walls are as imposing as ever, but now there are four witches outside, two at the doors at the back, and two more pacing up and down.
Maz leans down, a spell leaving his lips.
Ice trickles across the floor, practically unseen, before it gets to them.
The four witches freeze, turn to statues in minutes, before the ice shatters, taking their bodies with it.
They don’t even get a chance to scream, which is better for us.
I would like to have given them a chance to see if they are actually on the Umbral Authority’s side, but we can’t risk being seen.
I won’t risk Vale. Maz nods once at me before we move out of the treeline and jog to the academy.
I wince at the blood and ice on the floor as we step through it.
The second we get inside, Maz locks the doors behind us, and we all turn to face the castle that has been a home to us for so many stolen years.
The academy is silent and cold. The warmth of the gothic interior that I’m used to is gone, and there is a feeling in the air.
I wonder if it’s the creature or if it is something more.
For a second it is still silent, before I hear him.
I hear Vale scream. “Vale,” I whisper his name, horror echoing through me and eating me alive.
My body screams too, for me to do something. Anything.
A buzzing builds in my chest as fury and hate for the Umbral Authority burst through me. How dare they touch him? I can barely see anything through a red haze as I rush forward.
“Wait, no!” Black tries to stop me, but it’s too late—I rush around a corner, straight into a group of witches at the bottom of the steps, and behind them, at least twenty Mindless waiting to attack.
The witches at the front—I can’t see their faces hidden deep in cloaks—but they all turn, and so do the Mindless. “Hello,” I mutter as Black and Maz come to my side. I don’t need to look at them to know I messed up and we are in deep shit. “Well, they know we’re here now.”
“They won’t touch you,” Black firmly warns before facing the crowd. He rips his gloves off and curls a hand. “Come on, then.”
“What he said. Try us, dickheads,” Maz growls, getting ready.
Before anyone can move, a man in a hood jumps down from the top of the stairs.
He rips off the cloak, drops it on the ground, and looks right at me.
My eyes widen as I realize it’s Kane, even with some kind of spell smothering him from my senses.
He smirks once before turning around, and magic like I’ve never seen explodes out of his hands.
Trails of silver and blue fire strike through the air, burning through the witches and Mindless in one go, until they’re nothing but ash on the floor.
Everyone is silent as Kane turns, his eyes locked on mine again.
I can only feel relief and something so much deeper as he closes the space between us.
His hands sink into my hair, his lips are instantly on mine, pulling my body closer to his.
“Fuck, it’s good to see you. Tell me you’re okay. Tell me no one hurt you.”
I won’t mention the fresh scars on my back right at this moment. “I’m okay. Tell me the same.”
His forehead rests against mine. “I can’t. It’s been a fucked-up couple of weeks.” Kane lifts his head and looks at Black and Maz. “Good to see you both, but you shouldn’t have come back.” He pats Black’s shoulder, smiles at Maz.
“Where did you get the power boost from, bro?” Maz ignores his warning.
“This.” Kane holds up a familiar watch and winks at me. “Turns out it can tap into your magic and boost it. It healed me and it shows me spells in my dreams.”
Vale’s scream cuts through us all. Kane looks up.
“This morning, I finally got enough ingredients so we can get to the top floor, and I’ve undone all the spells.
I was working on the door when I heard you.
I’ve been trying to get to him without being caught myself, but the Umbral Authority finally left ten minutes ago.
It’s the first time he is alone, and we can’t waste it. ”
“I have family distracting the Umbral Authority. We don’t have much time,” I explain, and Kane frowns but leaves it for now.
No one needs to be told twice, and we all run up the stairs, past our rooms and the bodies of witches Kane has taken out.
Every step, I feel Vale closer and closer.
By the time we get to the door, I can feel him on the other side.
Maz goes to touch the handle, and Kane grabs him. “I’ve tried to get in several times. It won’t let me, and the spell to break it will take hours, but…” Kane looks at me. “I think you can get in.”
“Why?” I whisper.
“I think you know the answer to that as well as I do. As we all do. Nothing in the world separates mates,” Black softly answers.
“Juniper, go in and get him.” Kane nods. “He might be a bastard, but he is our family. He is yours.”
Vale could be my mate.
I stare at the door, knowing the answer is there if I walk through it. Vale is my mate—the one that’s pushed me away, claims to hate me, tormented me, and I never knew why. But as he screams one more time, I know there’s nothing in the world that will stop me from getting to him.
I open the door and walk in.