Page 132 of Hell Fae King

Another nod, this one with a slight tremble. “The book is no longer enchanted,” she whispered. “It’s… it’s his mother’s journal again.”

Frowning, I finally looked at the book in question, as did Ajax.

“That’s Vita?” Ajax asked, sounding uncertain. “I don’t remember it looking like that.”

“Because it used to be layered in Typhos’s essence,” I said, my voice softer than intended, as I was in shock. “Cami’s right.” And not just about Vita, but about everything she’d said. “Something’s wrong with Typhos.” They were the exact words she’d uttered mere moments ago, but now I felt it in my soul. “Verywrong.”

Because he was no longer inside me at all.

The palace trembled around us, like it was agreeing with our assessment. Or perhaps warning of a catastrophe to come.

“Melek’s wounds are a distraction,” Cami said, her focus on the Hell Fae Prince. “A way to tamper with my emotions and force me to react. All while Vivaxia hides whatever it is she’s really doing.”

“How do you know that?” Ajax asked.

“Because it’s what she’s been doing the whole time,” Cami told him, her voice regaining some strength as frustration broke through. “The portals, the chaos, hurting you and Az… It was all a distraction. Or maybe it served as a layer in her plan, to instill distrust in others. Regardless, she’s been up to something for a very long time.”

She pointed at the book and then at a quill on the ground.

“Vivaxia never stopped playing this game with Typhos,” she went on, sounding angrier by the second. “And whatever is happening right now is her real play. Because she’s here. I feel hereverywhere.” That last part came out on a growl.

I studied Cami, concerned. “Tell me what it feels like, Cami. Because I don’t sense her at all.” Which meant whatever Camillia was picking up on might be related to her link with Vivaxia. Or perhaps it was linked to whatever had happened with Vita.

How did we miss it?I wondered.If Vivaxia had put something inside the book, why did none of us sense it?

Because we thought it was over.

Typhos had fallen, and she’d remained in her precious Virtuous Fae Realm. It wasn’t until recently that we’d even realized she was the one behind all the portal attacks.

Her goal seemed to be founded on revenge. But Typhos had wondered if perhaps she’d merely been playing the long game.

Which would only add credence to Cami’s assessment regarding Vita.

“Cami?” Ajax prompted as her eyes took on a dreamy quality again.

Nothing. Like she hadn’t heard him at all.

“We need to wake up Melek,” Ajax said after a beat.

I glanced at him, then down at where Melek lay prone on the floor. “Wake him up how?”

“By flooding him with energy,” Cami replied, suddenly with us again. “Help me, Az.”

It wasn’t a request but a demand. And it was like my question and Ajax’s concern hadn’t been heard at all.

“I can channel some of the magic I absorbed from the quill back into him, but I don’t know if it’ll be enough. So I need your inner Phoenix to blast him, okay?” She wasn’t looking at me while she spoke, but it was clear she was talking to me.

“Okay,” I told her. Though, I was trying to figure out what she meant about thequill.As in thequillthat had stabbed Melek?I wondered, noting the old-fashioned pen on the floor. The feathers appeared to be wilted, like the object had recently died.Because she siphoned the spell out of it.

Wait…

I looked over to the corner, my eyes widening.

That wasn’t just any quill; it wasthequill. The one Typhos had used to sign his deal with Vivaxia.

A quill that had been riddled with magic for eons.

Just like Vita…