Page 59 of Heir of Broken Souls (HOBF #3)

Chapter 59

Delilah

“D oes anyone else feel like they’ve just walked through Water Court into Air Court?” Lenox muses.

Everyone murmurs their agreement, some speculating on its ability and source of power while I cannot tear my gaze away.

Awe has been a constant emotion, beating through my body with all the magnificence the sunken island has offered. But this is far more marvelous than what I could’ve ever imagined.

For as far as my eyes can see, hundreds of floating islands rise.

Water flows over the edges of some, and forests bloom on others, but they come in all shapes and sizes. Ranging from a small one tree island to one big enough to house the city of Azalea.

My breath whooshes out of me as four islands part to allow through one of the largest I’ve seen so far. Mountain ridges spear toward the sky, the two largest sitting perpendicular on the edge of the floating island. Water pours from several directions, possibly from rivers and waterfalls, and falls right off the side of the island and below.

The island drops a few feet in the air, and from this new angle at our vantage point, I can see a large body of water in the center of the island, the surrounding area bursting with a lively forest. I clutch Knox’s forearm, stunned.

A flash of light hits my face, so starkly bright my hand reflexively shades my eyes to stop it from blinding me. Squinting past my hand, my eyes roam the skies and the hundreds of islands trying to find the source of the blinding light. It can’t be the sun, it’s a small, more direct light?—

My gaze locks again on the island with the body of water floating just below where we are perched.

For weeks, I have locked my emotions away, a part of me hoping that incessant buzzing of nerves would disappear along with it, but the stakes of losing everything we love to our enemy never left. And now, standing atop a floating rock with a hidden oceanic world behind my back and a blinding light trapping my attention, that nervous energy rises with a vengeance.

One so cunningly cruel that no matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to take a deep breath. My chest restricts me from doing so, feeling as if a thousand bees have taken flight within my chest, hammering wildly at my rib cage to be let out. It rises to the point of pain, until I’m gasping for air that won’t flow into my lungs.

My gods, am I dying?

A hand lands on my back, rubbing soothing circles and yet I cannot pull my gaze from the floating island, the one that has something ancient awakening within me, screaming a warning cry. Even my power coils as tight as a snake, readying itself to strike.

I can’t see. I cannot breathe, cannot blink, cannot move, cannot think?—

Angel , Knox calls down the bridge.

His voice is like a soothing balm to my soul, but it does nothing. Something is wrong, something is very, very wrong, and my body knows it.

I feel more than see Knox step through the gilded door of my mind.

Angel, it’s all right, I’ve got you. Slow deep breaths, Angel. Yes that’s it.

Something changes.

Calmness.

His energy fills me, his soul fills me, his power soothing me.

It’s him .

It’s always him. The one that is made for my soul, the other half of me.

Air.

It rushes for my lungs in a deep gasping breath.

My vision clears, sound hits my ears again, and my fingers twitch at my sides as the panic and fear subsides at Knox’s calming demands. He stands before me with a small, sad smile on his lips.

“Welcome back, beautiful,” he whispers before pressing a lingering kiss against my forehead.

His soul remains within my mind, fearful to leave in case panic takes me captive once more.

Do you know what caused such a fright?

Despite the calmness I now feel, that ancient knowing is still pounding against my heart.

Something is wrong.

His back straightens. Do you know what?

No, I just…feel it. On the island, something is very wrong.

Blinking furiously, as if it can hold back the panic waiting in the corner of my body, I peer past his shoulder, pointing to the blinding light emanating from the center of the island. “The mirror is in there, I’m sure of it.”

Knox turns, following my pointed finger. He and the rest of the court squint to see it, gathering on the edge of the ledge we fell on, nearly blinding themselves in the process.

Axel takes a cautious step closer to Elysia. “What caused the panic? It’s meant to just be a mirror, isn’t it?”

“I-I don’t know anymore. My body and my magic are just…panicking.”

Elysia reaches over and gently squeezes my hand in support. “It’s all right. Perhaps it’s afraid of what we will find when we peer inside the mirror.”

“Perhaps,” I say, yet not convincingly.

“Do you want to go back?” Knox offers, his worried gaze on mine.

I scoff. “Of course not. We can’t let my fear stop us from our only lead.” I shrug. “It’s just something about that island makes me…”

“Uncomfortable,” he offers.

I dip my chin.

He slides his hand in mine, our fingers joining. “We’ll take it slow and keep our eyes peeled.”

“Where’s the griffins when you need them?” Harlow grumbles.

Five sets of eyes turn to her.

Silence falls until she catches on, and she narrows her now red eyes at us. “No.”

Lenox scoffs. “What do you mean no? You’re the only one that can do it.”

“It would put Delilah at ease,” Knox says calmly, but the authority in his voice is undeniable.

Harlow rolls her eyes, muttering under her breath, “You owe me for this.”

She releases a string of curses a moment before jumping off the ledge.

I scream. My hand shoots out, my body lurching to catch her, but a hand snakes around my waist and yanks me back.

“Are you mad?” Knox barks.

My fear dies on my tongue as a griffin, one with red eyes, banks up and soars past, letting out what can only be a chuckling snort of a huff. Shaking my head to clear away the fog and the thought of what I almost did, I take two large steps backward.

“Next time, perhaps fill me in on what’s about to happen before she steps off a ledge?”

Knox lets out a chuckle. “You can scold her when she returns.”

“You tried to throw yourself off a cliff for a Fae that can fly,” Lenox drawls, a hint of laughter in his voice. “That’s going to be the talk for centuries.”

I’m about to snap a retort but the sound, the edge of humor in his voice, makes me grateful for the remark. I turn my head away before he can see my small smile. Shrugging, I murmur, “I’ll blame it on the lack of sleep.”

Despite the reassurance that she isn’t going to plummet to her death, the buzzing of nerves remains, only amping up she descends lower, slowly approaching the island with a caution that makes my hands clammy.

She stops suddenly, the large griffin wings flaring out wide to halt herself. She hovers over the center of the island, right above where that large flashing light comes and goes.

Knox frowns and his eyes lower.

“Is she showing you?” I whisper.

He remains quiet, until he suddenly lifts his head, his eyes locking on Harlow as she turns around and flies back toward us.

Lenox, who had been stiff since she left, deflates before a mask quickly falls over his face once she lands on our platform. Harlow shifts back into her body, her red wings flaring, the shimmering color matching the red streaks in her hair.

Her eyes gleam with humor as they land on mine.

I hold up my hand before she can speak. “Save it. Just tell us what you found.”

She tsks. “Later, then.” Flipping her hair over her shoulder, she crosses her arms over her chest. “Nothing that I could find. The island feels like any other?—”

“Until?” Knox prompts, a muscle feathering in his jaw.

She clicks her tongue. “Delilah’s right, it’s in the center. I can’t see it but…I can feel it. Any guesses?” she asks, turning to Knox.

“I’ll have to approach it myself, but it’s hidden. I guess—” Knox’s mouth snaps shut and he whips to me. “Your necklace.”

My hand wraps around it, and I’m surprised to feel it’s slightly warm. The Veil of Truth spell.

“It’s veiled,” I whisper.

“Delilah and I will go first. Everyone stay close behind in case there’s another spell in play.” Before Knox is even done relaying his orders, he’s scooping me into his arms and flaring his wings.

We plummet off the ledge, Knox beating his glorious black wings with a flourish that shoots us into the sky. His court follow behind, closer than he ordered. My eyes snag on an altercation between Elysia and Axel before she shoves him with a glare and flies on her own. Despite the situation, my lips twitch as he grumbles and follows.

Wind rips my hair this way and that as Knox flies through a current. A sound of confusion rises in his chest, the vibration felt along my arm. It has me turning back to the island—which seems to be farther away now.

“Hold on,” he warns before tightening his hold on me and soaring, wings pumping.

Before I can question what is happening, Knox blows out a breath, and along with it comes a large gust of wind from behind us. Axel’s air slams into us too, pushing us all forward to catch the floating island.

“What we need is certainly there,” Knox growls.

We’re fast approaching. Too fast. But we’re going to have to land atop it, otherwise it will continue to fly away.

My hold around Knox’s neck tightens as he squeezes me in warning. A second later, Knox dives for the water, and a shrill scream leaves my lips.

“Hold your breath!”

I suck in a deep gasp a moment before it feels like we hit a brick wall. Nothing broke the water’s barrier before we careened into it.

The icy water seizes my body and lungs, and pain shoots down the right side of my body. Even Knox convulses in pain. Over his shoulder, Elysia is the first to dive in after us, her own body locking up at the freezing temperature, and everyone soon follows.

Knox wraps his hand around my arm, pulling me to the surface. The moment my head breaches the water I scream in pain, my entire body wracked with it.

I can hear Knox apologizing profusely.

“Gods, I’m a fool, Delilah. I’m so sorry.”

The pain in his voice, not from his own wounds but from the belief that he caused mine, makes my heart trip over itself.

I bite my tongue, forcing myself to lock the pain away, to wait for the ebb and flow of the healing properties within my Fae body to overcome the agony. Floating on my back, I try to suck in deep gulps of air as I breathe through gritted teeth. I can’t even speak to tell Knox how he’s being foolish, since he didn’t realize how hard we would hit the water or how it would be ice cold.

“I couldn’t turn in time to take the fall,” Knox says, his voice full of emotion.

More voices ring out, questions being asked, but I cannot find a part of me to care, not while my body feels like it’s on fire.

Knox’s hands gently hold me up from behind and something fills my body, surrounding it like a cocoon until surprisingly the pain ebbs away and I can finally suck in a greedy gasp of air.

My head lifts to Knox’s agonized eyes, his hands glowing beneath my back as he heals me.

“I’m so sorry,” he whispers again.

The words are guttural, so much so that the moment the pain is gone, I’m scrambling to wrap my hands around his neck, holding his head in the palm of my hand.

“Shh,” I soothe. “Don’t, you have taken on enough guilt. You didn’t know.” I plant a firm kiss against his lips, my eyes widening as an electric current zaps between us, making me gasp and pull away.

Knox traces his finger over his lip.

“And I’m all fine now.” I push away, wondering what sparked between us like that as I swim. “You healed me. I would be more cross if you left me to?—”

Sharp claws wrap around my feet a second before a firm tug pulls me into the icy water below. Then everything goes dark.