Page 85 of Lucifer's Mirror

This is a lot to take in. I decide I’m done for the day. I need some alone time. Without another word to Hecate, I turn and walk away. I don’t think about where I’m going, just about what I’ve found out. I’m not human.

Somehow my feet take me to the clearing in the forest, where we practice with Zayne every night. It’s an amazing place, and a sense of comfort fills me as I step into that circle of tall trees. I head toward the pond at the center and sit on the grassy bank, dabbling my fingers in the cool water. It laps against the lilies growing at the edge of the pool as if moved by an unseen breeze. It’s melodic, and I close my eyes and rest my head on the soft, mossy grass.

And suddenly, I’m dreaming. At least, I think it’s a dream.

I’m in a stone tower, and I’m afraid, but I don’t know what I’m afraid of. A sense of fierce loss almost suffocates me. A man is talking to me—I can’t see his face. His voice is soft and urgent, but the words are blurred. In the background, there’s the crackle of a fire. I desperately want to wake up before the bad thing happens.

Come back.The words whisper in my mind as they did earlier.

“Come back, fucking where? What do you want from me?”

Then the world is whirring around me, and I’m lost in a vortex.

“Amber,” someone calls my name. At first, I think it’s part of the dream.

“Amber!” The call comes again, urgent. I blink. Night has fallen, and the clearing is bathed in moonlight. Zayne is standing above me, his hands in his pockets, staring down, a worried frown on his face.

“Thank fuck. I thought you were unconscious.”

“No, just sleeping.” I sit up, rubbing my head, trying to grasp the details of the dream, but it’s fading. “Sorry. I was dreaming.” I frown. “Except I think it might have been a memory.”

“You’re remembering?”

I shrug. “Maybe… probably not.”

“You missed dinner,” Zayne says. “You never miss a meal.” It sounds almost like an accusation.

“I had a lot to think about,” I reply. “Apparently, it seems I’m not human.”

Zayne snorts, obviously not impressed with my momentous news. “Well, join the club.” He looks around. “This is an amazing place. I don’t realize it when the others are here. I guess I’m too wound up. But it’s sort of peaceful and full of life at the same time.”

“I know.” I scramble to my feet and brush myself down. “Where are the others?”

“I don’t know. They were discussing something, something too important to talk about in front of me and told me to come ahead.” He wanders around the edge of the water, then back to me. He’s clearly got something on his mind, something he wants to say.

Finally, he stops and turns to me. “I’ve been thinking. Maybe we should just leave.”

Shock punches me in the gut. I hadn’t expected this. “And go where?” I ask.

He shrugs. “Anywhere. Back to Earth first, pick up Josh, and then we can hide.”

Despair twists around my insides, tightening hard knots I don’t think I’ll ever unravel. “I don’t think I can hide. I think they’ll find me wherever I go.”

“Or maybe you don’t want to leave. Maybe there’s something else that’s keeping you here.”

I don’t know what he means. Or maybe I’m being purposely obtuse. I take a deep breath. “You really want to go?”

“I’ve only stayed for you,” he says.

I search my mind for some argument. “What about the shift thing? I thought it wasn’t safe. I thought Khaosti said you had to gain control before you could go back.”

“It’s not up to fucking Khaosti to tell me what to do. And maybe I’ll never shift, so it won’t matter.”

God, I don’t want him to go. I take a step toward him and reach out. I rest my hand against his chest, and I can feel the thump of his heart. “I can’t do this alone, Zayne.”

He snorts again. “You’re hardly alone. You’ve got Hecate, Thanouq, and Khaosti.” He almost sneers at the last name.

“You told me not to trust him,” I point out.