Page 81 of Shadows Lost (Remnant Archives #1)

I watched the muscular bronze chest of my sated shifter soulmate rise and fall softly as it pillowed my head. The strong beat of his heart thrumming against my ear and the warmth of our soulmate bond humming happily between us left me in awe.

“You’re awake.” His husky purr vibrated against my body.

“I am.” I murmured, trailing my fingertips languidly across his sculpted chest.

He hummed. “Good. Not that I want you to stop eye fucking me but I was hoping you could maybe tell me what in the Sheol your shadows are doing?”

Lifting my head sleepily off Emon I blinked up at the ceiling where he pointed. “Huh.” I said, watching them pulse rhythmically above us.

Emon snorted. “That’s not an answer, little umbra.”

My black hair fell in a curtain around us when I turned to glare down into his handsome face. Flashbacks of his smug grin between my thighs had me shivering with desire again. I was afraid I would never tire of his carnal hunger for me.

“Listen, shifter. I didn’t even know they could portal us until yesterday. So yes. Huh is my answer.”

Emon chuckled, reaching up to sweep my hair over my shoulder, then cursed as he rolled me quickly beneath him, shielding me with his naked body when a loud thump hit the fluffy clouds next to us.

“Goddess damn it shifter, I can’t see. What was that? Get off me!” I shoved at him but he ignored my demands, snarling up at the shadows.

“It’s the scroll. They damn near dropped the fucking shadow scroll on top of us.”

“What?” Hooking my leg around him I rolled and slammed him onto his back. Huffing with exasperation, I scrambled off before the gleaming desire sparking in his eyes caught up with his physical actions.

Chuffing he rose into sitting, his carnal gaze raking over me.

Sitting beside the scroll, I stared at it before looking up to see the shadows swirling ominously before popping out of sight.

“Huh.”

Shifting closer, Emon tucked my hair back again, letting his hand trail down my arm with a chuckle.

“You know I was a little worried that I didn’t pleasure you enough last night seeing how you have been awake an hour ogling me, but now I’m starting to think I fucked you well enough that you lost the capability of intelligent speech. ”

I couldn’t stop the crimson blush that crept across my face. “I wasn’t ogling.”

He snickered and the clouds rose to cradle him. Leaning back he pulled my into his lap. “You are correct. Eye fucking is a better way to describe it.”

I squirmed against him to find a more comfortable position between his naked thighs, I clamped my mouth shut. I wasn’t about to admit he was right. Emon was gorgeous and he was mine…and the way he fucked me like a depraved beast…

Goddess. My blush deepened.

Emon’s chest rumbled, his hand trailing the blush seeping into my pale skin. “You’re so fucking beautiful. Especially this way. Unmasked and full of desire. Every piece of you, inside and out, I can see—and it takes my breath away. ”

I sighed. “You’re pretty eloquent for a feral shifter that has been up all night pleasuring his soulmate.” I teased and snuggled closer into him, letting my head drop happily against his chest.

Snaking his arm around me, just under my breasts, he growled into my hair. “Here's eloquence. Stop squirming that ass or I’m going to worship it in every fucking way I know how and forget that the shadows just got murdery and dropped a fucking scroll on us.”

I eyed the ominous object with pursed lips. “That sounds more preferable.”

Emon sighed and kissed the top of my head. “I won’t deny you if that is what you really want Remnant Dark but I don’t think it is. I’m here with you, what-ever is in that thing, we can face it together. You’re not alone anymore and you never will be.”

“We don’t have time to worry about the scroll.” I stared at it mutinously. “The quicker we go through that gateway, the quicker we kill Deirdre, and the quicker we can get back to Riella—to our daughter, to be a family.” I choked.

A family. We were a family. I barely had time to digest it. There was so much more we needed to talk about, to figure out.

Emon tilted my head up and kissed my nose tenderly, his eyes a soft glowing gold full of unwavering love.

“You know time moves differently here, little umbra. We do not need to leave for a few more hours yet.” Kissing my lips he said.

“I cannot wait to start our lives together, with Riella, with you and that day will happen. But I also trust your shadows, whatever is in that scroll is something they want us to know now.”

Sighing, I turned away from him, pressing my lips into a thin line. “Together then.” I blew out a reluctant breath and plucked up the scroll.

He huffed. “Together.”

Popping the lid off the black casing, I slid the heavy parchment into my hands. The knobs were made of clear glass, the same glass as the dome of the City of Night and unrolled, the paper was as black as the throne room itself.

I narrowed my gaze on the silver script and held it up in the crystal light.

“Cave, my apologies, I do not know what to call you but I will need more light please.” Instantly, the cave’s crystals glowed brightly and the silvery script became clearer.

“Thank you.” I murmured while I read the script with a fast beating heart, my only solace was Emon’s steady and strong presence at my back fortifying me to continue.

Beware, behave

Darkness takes your life away.

To the city of death

Where love is regret

The end of your soul.

Lives within the Sheol.

Beware, behave

The darkness you will obey.

Beware behave,

Night will lead the way.

An old power rises as the fair one weakens,

Golden becomes the one true beacon,

Blood will run on the darkened moons,

Run child run, I will see you soon.

Beware, Behave

May the shadows keep you safe.

Emon groaned and his head slammed back into the clouds. “Why is there always a fucking tedious half riddled prophecy attached to shit like this? Why can’t it be simple like a human action hero? Bad guy, good guy, fuck up the bad guy, good guy wins…happily ever after. Now that’s a better formula.”

I laughed dryly, focusing on the words—even the water dragon had told me I should pay attention to them. “Fortunately for you, I grew up with half of this one. I've had many years to try to piece it out.”

My fingers traced the chickadee stamped on the scroll.

Emon grunted. “A chickadee…”

I continued to trace the etching of the bird lost in thought.

“When I was younger, I would dream of a chickadee singing and playing with me. In my dreams, we would go on adventures to new worlds, worlds I had never been to before but somehow knew they existed despite not ever going through their gateways in real life. I became so infatuated with chickadees afterwards that my family started calling me chickadee. As I aged, the dreams became less and less. Now they have become symbolic for me…a guide in a way. ”

“For the shifters, a chickadee symbolizes truth and bravery…even foresight. You have chosen quite the powerful guide.” Emon nuzzled his nose along my ear then nodded his chin. “Open the rest.”

Sighing, I traced the chickadee one last time and then unrolled the scroll further, staring wide eyed at the detailed etching of curved lines, ridges, and ancient text.

“It’s a map.” I breathed.

Sweeping my hair further back, Emon growled out the one word etched across the illustrated map. “Sheol.”

“These markings…” I ran my hand along them at the bottom of the page, "…they look like—”

“Your tattoo brands.” Emon reached across to grab my forearm and held it against the onyx paper. “They don’t just look alike, they are exactly alike. When did you get them?”

“They appeared when I reached my centum . It’s very common for the shadow fae to receive brands during their transition into adulthood in their hundredth year.”

Emon’s hand traced the design on my inner wrist thoughtfully and I shivered at the intimate touch. “Do all the shadow fae have them?”

I pursed my lips. “Not in such detail, not the full arm. My brother and I have the same ones but are the only ones marked this way.”

Raising my wrist up, Emon kissed it possessively. “Has anyone ever licked them from here…” He followed one of the swirling brands with his tongue. “...to here before me?” Moving my arm to the side, he kissed the trailing tattoos on the top of my shoulders.

“No.” I whispered, remembering the way he had woken me up again for another round of sensual love making hours before and I shifted at the memory of my soulmates talented tongue.

He chuckled. “Still haven’t fully gained back your ability to use more than one syllable words I see.”

“That’s because you completely rob me of words with your sex vibes.” I snapped and leaned away from him with an arched brow. “Stop it.”

Laughter bursted out of him and echoed off the cave walls. “My soulmate is naked, sitting in my arms and demanding I stop being sexy…I should ask you to do the same.” He rasped against my throat and I savored the feel of his beard against my flesh .

I waved my hand up in the air. “I could always have the shadows dress us to help keep you focused.”

“Fuck no.” Emon growled. “We had an agreement. Keep them far away from my dick!”

“Goddess forbid anything should happen to it!” I teased.

Emon pressed his hard member up into me. “It is in your best interest to protect it at all costs, little umbra.”

I grinned up at him before turning my attention back to the map, shaking my head. “We are losing focus.” I traced the words with my fingertip. “Sheol. The shadow fae must be in Sheol.”

Emon hummed behind me. “When I was younger, my father would always tell me to listen to the words Jarquinn did not say. That day in the study, when Jar spoke of your mother being sent to retrieve the god of death. There were words he didn’t say…”

Biting at my lip I nodded. “That, Shea, the God of Death is my long lost father? Yes, I listened to his unsaid words too and it makes more sense now than ever.”