Page 136 of Claim Me

“And we’re certain she’s not still there?” Kaspian inquires, the question one that’s been asked a few times now, not just by him but by Nox, Bane, and me. Because all of us are eager to track down our mate.

“Her aura isn’t in his home,” Ayla tells him. “The only links to her aura that I’m sensing right now belong to the four of you.”

Kaspian studies her for a beat and nods before looking at me. “Continue.”

“Ayla and Amala think the patriarchs may be holding Fallon captive in the death plane,” I explain. “She suspects Issy is there, too.”

“As well as dozens of other witches,” Amala mutters, her green eyes flashing. “The patriarchs use our souls to bolster their own magic. They’re like fucking leeches. And they do it all through the death plane.”

I nod. “So the theory holds merit. Which is why I agree with Ayla’s recommendation for how to proceed—we need to take out the patriarchs. If we do that, we sever their magical hold, and that should allow Fallon to come back to us.”

“Or trap her there indefinitely,” Bane says, his brow furrowing. He looks at Ayla. “We were able to pull her back when we had her body before. But earlier, she didn’t respond to us at all. And without her body now, we can’t even try to replicate what worked the one time.”

“I think they did something to counter your ability to revive her this time.” Ayla doesn’t sound entirely confident, but it’s a theory I agreed with when she mentioned it to me before. “If we disable the patriarchs, it should disable that spell.”

“But we still don’t know where her body is,” Bane points out.

“It may be in Daithi’s house.” Ayla lifts a shoulder. “I just know her aura—hersoul—isn’t there. But it’s possible we’ll find her body.”

Nox’s eyebrows lift. “If that’s true, then it has probably suffered catastrophic damage since we weren’t there to keep it alive. You’re the one who said to keep doing compressions…”

Ayla shakes her head. “If the patriarchs have her body, they’re keeping it alive. They wouldn’t want her to deteriorate too quickly; otherwise, they would lose their ability to use her.”

“She’s right,” Amala agrees. “They need Fallon intact. She’s too young and too powerful for them to allow her to rot.”

I know all this already because we had a similar argument shortly after Fallon’s soul disappeared. While I didn’t want to blow my cover prematurely, I also wasn’t going to just let Fallon’s body start to decompose.

But Ayla and Amala convinced me this was the right path.

“So we need to take out the patriarchs,” I say, bringing us back to the plan. “We don’t know where they are, just where they live. And Ayla thinks they may have some secret meeting locations in the city, too. But I think we should start by taking down their homes and declaring open war on their clans.”

Kaspian nods. “I’ve already spoken to a few other House allies on the topic. They’re aware the Outcast Coven attacked us first. Not that it truly matters—this is still No Man’s Land and fair game—but I wanted them all informed.”

“Chancellor Ward knows as well?” I guess.

“She does,” Kaspian confirms. “She’s neither supportive nor unsupportive. She’s neutral.”

Given that she recently escaped this hellhole, I’m not surprised. She probably wants nothing to do with Supernatural Syndicate issues.

“All right, so I assume we want to hit each house at the same time, take full advantage of catching them off guard?” Nox proposes.

“Yes. That’s the general idea.” I glance around at the group. Kaspian brought eight mercenaries with him, all of them more than qualified for this mission. “There are fourteen of us, so we’ll go in pairs.” I look at the phantoms. “I suggest you two split up. If all four of us head to different locations, we have a better chance of finding Fallon.”

Nox and Bane dip their chins in acknowledgment.

“I’ll partner with Khaos,” Kaspian says.

The shifter-god hybrid arches a brow. “You sure?”

“You bested Cara in a fight.Twice.I’m sure.” Kaspian starts divvying up the group and pairs me with one of Khaos’s brothers. I haven’t spent much time with the three hybrids from Talino’s territory in Finland, but I’m familiar with their impressive mercenary records. So I agree to the pairing.

“All right, we—”

Kaspian’s words are cut off by Ayla’s gasp, her knees suddenly buckling as she begins to collapse. Amala catches her, only for her own legs to give out on her, sending both females to the ground.

I dart forward at the same time Bane and Nox do, but all three of us come up against an invisible barrier of sorts. One that’s ice cold and prickles goose bumps all over my skin.

“What the fuck is that?” Nox demands.