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“Not this time,” he mutters in response, and Brax takes the locket from him. My gargoyle drapes the gold chain around my neck, securing the clasp so that I can let the little prison of magic rest against my chest.

I glance back at him with a thankful smile as Sebastian clears his throat. He waits until my gaze is locked on his before he speaks. “I don’t know what it must feel like to be attacked by your own flesh and blood, and I only recall any of it because Lyra uses her magic to help me. I just… I haven’t… I’m…”

My senses tingle, understanding what it is he’s trying to say, but it seems showing any form of vulnerability is a Hendrix issue across the board. “I know, Sebastian.”

“What?” His brows crinkle as he stares at me and I’m suddenly at a loss for words. How do I explain or delve into this without making the situation worse?

“Well, I only think I know,” I start, rubbing my lips together nervously. “But I believe someone is controlling you, which makes me even more concerned that you’re under their influence right now,” I admit.

A darkness casts over his gaze but he quickly shakes it off. “I am. But not now, not in here. Lyra has made this my safe space. Even though she interrupts our time together to let my little sister into her secret room without explaining why,” he adds, giving Lyra a pointed look, and she shrugs.

“I told you, Raven is not a topic I’m willing to discuss. I trust her, and she trusts me. I won’t change that.”

My eyes widen and I hope her words are true, but now isn’t the time to delve into it. Turning back to Sebastian, I want to question him about who may be controlling him, but he seems to have other plans.

“The deal I want to make is to offer to help you with the realms.”

What does that mean?

“And what do you expect in return?” Brax asks, the chords in his neck tightening as he assesses my brother.

Sebastian glances between the two of us before settling his eyes on mine. “The deal is for you to promise to bring me back.”

Bring him back? What does that mean? Just as quickly as I ask myself, I understand. “Why?” I mean, I get why. I’m sure anyone and everyone would want to be saved from certain death, but this seems more specific.

“I know I’m going to die before the week is out,” Sebastian admits, rubbing nervously at the back of his neck.

“How?” This time the question comes from Brax instead.

“I just know.”

Brax shakes his head, clearly not happy with that answer, and Sebastian must sense it too because he’s suddenly pulling out a thick binder from thin air. He nervously hovers for a moment, the binder hanging between us as he thinks, but a moment later, he’s lowering it into my hands.

“What is this?” I ask, my fingers trembling slightly as I stare down at the blank cover.

Sebastian’s hands find their way into his pockets again as his chin lowers. “The reason I know I’m going to die. It contains everything you need to know to combine the realms. Everything you need to help put a stop to all of this.”

“Wait, what do you mean combine the realms?” I meet his gaze to find nothing but sincerity staring back at me.

“I mean, in the right hands, it offers insights into merging the realms. Merging us and… the Realm of Shadows.”

SIXTEEN

BRAX

What in the backwards Basilica Realm, shifting Drakes, and family drama is today? Because it sure as hell has me fucked over a barrel with no lube and a spiked dick. I don’t think I’ve ever been so mentally drained in my entire life, and I’ve been through some shit. I don’t even have the brain function to eat the food laid out before me.

I’m not usually an emotional eater. I see food and shove it in my mouth. Not today, though. My head is firmly lodged up my ass, and I can’t even comprehend what Raven must be going through.

Glancing in her direction, I catch the smallest glimpse of the new chain that hangs around her neck that she’s slipped beneath her blouse. It rests firmly against her chest, just above the valley between her breasts. If anyone else saw it, they would assume it’s just a piece of fashion jewelry, but in actual fact, it’s far more significant than that.

Not only does it harbor magical abilities that my fucking woman somehow snipped from Sebastian and Lyra, but the two pictures inside, those children, hold sentimental value too. It feels like a peace offering from Sebastian to Raven in some ways. I don’t know how to feel about that, and I know that ultimately, as much as I want to steamroll the entire situation, I can’t. So until she talks about it first, I’m going to keep my lips firmly shut.

Or try to, at least.

More than that, it’s not the biggest piece of information he gave her.

No.