Page 49

~Ariana~

I frowned as I arrived at the location that I’d tracked Cassius to.

The home belonging to Grandfather and Gramps.

What on earth was he doing here, of all places?

I’d told the boys that I’d needed to head out to smooth things over, so that the first training session with Cassius wasn’t absolute and total hell.

Fortunately, Kai had been so focused on his lab work now that he had Cassius’ blood that he’d accepted that.

And Vorzyr had been the same as well, although his interest I suspected had more to do with what he’d seen in that vault.

The memory had revealed the origin of his bloodline’s Celestial corruption, but it hadn’t revealed everything .

Now that they had the blood of someone fresh from the Celestial Plane—someone intrinsically linked to it—there were answers to be found beyond just testing it against the Rift Mark.

There were comparisons to be made, truths to uncover.

Nyx was back with Crossborn. He didn’t have classes until tomorrow morning so he was attending a meeting that he’d been summoned to.

It wasn’t being held at the Guardian Compound.

After what had happened, they would be convening inside the Chief Sanctuary Zone where I’d erected a ward.

I’d sent a bit of my magic over to Gramps so that they could pass through.

They would be safe there. No one else could enter at this point in time with the way it had been set up.

It would be extended to others over time, but fortunately that wasn’t yet.

I sucked in a centering breath.

In the brief moments that I was away from the boys lately since the Compound attack, the warning from the necromancer, Sylas Morgrave, had been playing on my mind.

“Death circles you. But it can’t… it can’t be allowed to come to pass. The world needs your Light. Without it… darkness comes for us all.”

I hadn’t told the boys about it.

When I’d walked into Kai’s lab and seen the strain on them, the state they’d been in, I’d been reluctant to put anything else on them.

I’d even considered not telling them about the Celestial coercion magic being mine, or any of that. But it directly impacted our foursome and had far-reaching implications that I hadn’t been able to hold back from them in good conscience.

But this? This warning from somebody I didn’t even know? It was different.

For one thing, it had come out of the blue.

For another, I was extremely hard to kill. More so than any other being alive. Even Cassius. He was tied to the Celestial Plane, while I wasn’t—the whole bargain and duty thing aside. So it wasn’t believable to me that Sylas’ warning could actually hold merit. Not outright like that, at least.

I needed to investigate further and obtain concrete answers before bringing it to them. I couldn’t stand the idea of putting more weight on them, especially when it concerned me possibly dying, which would be a weight greater than all the rest so far.

It had just been a random warning from an unknown figure.

That was all it was at this point. There was no true weight to his claims. And there wouldn’t be until I looked into it further.

To do that, I needed to know more about my power, my heritage, and my place in relation to the True Celestials.

And the key to obtaining that was Cassius, learning from him.

I pushed those thoughts to the background for now so I could focus on the immediate situation before me, and I took in the house.

I knew Grandfather wasn’t home, so Cassius hadn’t come to meet with him.

Grandfather was with Gramps. He’d been freaked that Gramps had been within the vicinity of the attack and that Crossborn had been one of the targets—the very team that Gramps headed and had even created.

I couldn’t imagine him leaving his side for a long time to come now.

He’d always been extremely protective over him and this would take it to a whole other level.

I zoned in on Cassius’ energy, but I couldn’t make the connection. There was some sort of interference.

I made my way around the outside of the house.

Just as I was turning the corner, I caught sight of him.

Not just him.

Velra Nox was with him, clad only in a black bathrobe, her ombre hair both cutting through the night and blending into it.

I hurriedly cloaked myself, then cast an auditory enhancement spell.

And then their voices gravitated toward me.

“I wasn’t in distress, Cassius.”

“What do you mean?”

“I was feeling your distress. You were hurting.”

She couldn’t see the evidence of his hurt, because he was now wearing a fresh, clean shirt—this one black linen, not what had become known as his go-to white.

“You needn’t concern yourself with me, little shadow .”

She wrapped her arms around herself. “You saved my life.”

“That cannot be known. It is bad enough that Nyx Laryn is aware. He has no doubt conveyed that to Ariana and her loves.”

“Nyx? He’s a friend of mine. I can talk to him about keeping it quiet.” Her brow furrowed in thought. “Strange, he didn’t say anything about witnessing that when he and Warlow escorted me home.”

“That’s not necessary. Don’t trouble yourself with concern for me. I will see to it.”

“Will you be punished for saving me?”

Cassius reached out and laid a hand gently on her shoulder.

“Please heed my words. Do not trouble yourself with this. Concentrate on living your life.” He smiled.

“On the good and positive. That cannot come to pass for you if you allow yourself to care for me. I am linked to a fate that does not allow for that.”

“It doesn’t allow for goodness and positivity?”

“That isn’t—”

She grasped his hand on her shoulder. “You deserve better than that. I’m so sorry. Perhaps there’s another way, another path, one you haven’t yet considered.”

Instead of speaking more to it, he gestured at the house. “Are you comfortable here? Warlow moved you from the Guardian Movement safehouse, I see.”

“He felt bad about the whole thing. It wasn’t any fault of his, though.

” She bit her lip. “But I couldn’t… I couldn’t tell him that there was so much more to it, that Puritas wasn’t just intending to take out Crossborn, but had come for me specifically as well.

I’d be seen as a burden and then I’d likely be cast out.

” She grimaced. “Maybe I should just stand down from the team anyway, and—”

“You will not. You are not responsible for being targeted. Those who perpetrated and planned such a heinous act are. You were a victim of them. It is because of Sorin, yes? I heard what Caius said when he stabbed you.”

Velra took an unsteady step back.

“He is your blood kin?”

“My older brother. He hates what I am. He’s been hunting me ever since. But, joining Crossborn, it had me stepping out of the shadows after two years of hiding. And it clearly got his attention. I stupidly thought that he would have lost interest, focused on other things. But he clearly hasn’t.”

“Fear not, I will see to him.”

“No.”

“No?”

“You’ve done more than enough for me already.

” She beamed up at him. “You brought me back from death, and you made me want to be brought back. I’d…

I’d given up. But I feel different now. There’s…

hope. And it’s all because of you.” She pressed her hand to his chest, over his heart, and he hissed at the touch, but didn’t step back.

Instead, he stared at her in what appeared to be a mixture of awe and confusion.

“You didn’t have to do that, to help me, or to even care.

And I’m so sorry it’s causing you problems now. ”

“You need not feel responsible. I made the decision.”

“Why… why did you? Why did you care? Why did you choose to heal me?”

“Your fate would have been unjust. You are good and altruistic.”

“I’m a Wraith-Dark Fae hybrid. Darkness runs in my veins.”

“I disagree. Your heart is pure. As are your intentions with all that you do. And, little shadow , never forget that there is no light without darkness.”

Her hand rose to his face and she stroked his cheek tentatively.

A moan escaped her and she uttered breathlessly, “You’re so warm, so incredible to touch.”

“Velra,” he said, grasping her hand carefully and drawing it away from his face.

“Is it cold for you?”

“Cold?”

“When I touch you? It is for everybody else.”

“No.”

She arched an eyebrow. “Really?”

“There is only warmth.”

“Because you tethered me, healed me?”

“I believe so, yes.”

“I—”

He released her hand. “You must go now. Do not spare me another thought, but you may have some peace of mind knowing that I will see to your brother.”

“Cassius, I—”

“ Go ,” he said, more firmly, making her jolt. “You have another chance at life. Embrace it.” His eyes shone at her. “Show them. Show them your worth. You have a lot of good to do.”

She stared at him for a few moments, clearly torn, and definitely hurt by him brushing her off.

“Okay,” she murmured.

And then she took one last look at him and disappeared in a burst of shadows that I watched climbing up the house, before spilling into the balcony on the second floor.

I dropped my spell and before I could do another thing, Cassius teleported right in front of me.

“You wish to use this knowledge as leverage, yes?”

I started at his brazen question.

“Listen, I just—”

“Be frank, aberration.”

I let out a weighty sigh. “I don’t want to. But I’m not the only one you need to worry about.”

“You are speaking of Kai Hunter.”

“He is far more schooled than I am with this sort of thing. He’s been researching into powerful beings for years on end. Obsessively. While I’ve been running and ignoring my own heritage, and a lot was also denied me from my family with them even embracing me not wanting to know more.”

“I am sure he has already identified this then,” he said, pushing his shirt aside to reveal the mark I’d seen before on Guardian Compound grounds that night. “It is called a Soul Brand.”

“ That’s what one looks like?”