Page 12 of Shattered Galaxies (Tears of the Siren #6)

Rhett

“Desmond, you need to chill the fuck out.” My tone was lighthearted, but I was being completely serious. The demon let out a low rumble, turning around in the SUV to look at Lorcan for the fifteenth time. Apparently, her being in the back of the car with Adriel was unacceptable.

It probably didn’t help that Cash and Draven were in the row that separated them.

Up front, Dean and Zander were talking in quiet tones—it was odd for the pair of them to even be communicating, if we were being honest—but ultimately, they weren’t really paying attention to what was going on.

Probably good, since Dean’s possessiveness could make it worse.

“It’s my demon, not me—not fully, at least,” Desmond got out, his tone tense as he put his head down, trying to get a hold of himself.

He’d been like this since we all woke up, finding the two of them in the back suite of the plane, Desmond watching Lorcan from the bed as she moved around the space getting ready.

He hadn’t left her side from what I could tell, and I would have been really fucking confused if I didn’t recognize the similarities between this and the last time they’d fucked.

It wasn’t just him acting off, either. Zander was too.

He seemed fucking flighty, and he kept avoiding being in the same space as Lorcan, especially as we got off the jet in Scotland and made our way to to the rental car.

Call me crazy, but I was almost positive something had happened between the three of them.

I was just fucking jealous that I hadn’t been involved.

“I hear you,” I told him earnestly. “My lion pulls the same shit.” I just apparently had better control of it, which was shocking since I felt like my restraint was completely absent when it came to Lorcan. Especially when I was buried inside of her.

“I’ll be fine, just need some fresh air,” he murmured. I heard Lorcan say something to grab his attention, but he didn’t look up, our bond tugging with concern.

If someone didn’t say something, she’d be up here in seconds.

“Keep your pretty ass seated, bunny,” I called out. “It’s his demon. We gotta keep some space between the two of you for now.”

“Oh, shit. Sorry, Desi,” Lorcan said as he put up a hand of understanding.

“No problem, love.”

Luckily for Desmond, it was only about five minutes later that our GPS announced that we’d arrived…

in the middle of nowhere. I’d never been to Scotland before, but the area right outside of Edinburgh was gorgeous, decorated with forested sections between large spans of rolling plains.

Everything was intensely green, and the skies seemed to dance with magic, rain sprinkling with each fresh breeze.

It felt invigorating after being in the heat of Bora Bora and then Dubai.

“A chapel?” Lorcan asked curiously as we exited the vehicle.

The company we’d rented from would be here to pick it up, no questions asked, so Dean just left the key in the wheel well.

I walked next to him as we approached a one-room stone chapel that was surrounded by thick, tall grass that we had to trudge through, sweeping it out of the way as we reached the structure.

“It’s been here forever,” Zander said. “There may be wards?—”

As if on cue, Lorcan’s magic interacted with the ward surrounding the chapel, and I had her in my arms before I could think about the danger.

The air around us electrified as if lightning was about to strike, and I grit my teeth, feeling the suction of power it put on Lorcan as we stepped through the front door.

Her frame shuddered under the pressure, and my lion roared in my head, practically begging to break out. To protect our mate.

“Shit.” I grunted as we stumbled forward, the ward releasing us in a swoosh of power.

The room was in ruins, stone benches broken and statues to the Christian god crumbled on the floor.

Ivy and plant life had snuck through the windows and broken parts of the building to overtake the area.

In the very back of the chapel stood a stone archway, the columns shaking as each member of our group passed through the ward.

This may have been a portal into another realm, but it wasn’t a very strong one. In fact, I could easily imagine it collapsing under even the slightest amount of strain.

“How do we activate it?” I asked, taking note of the obvious fact that the portal stood empty.

“Blood,” Lorcan instantly responded, her fingers dancing across the stone. I knew she meant to offer her blood, but I didn’t hesitate to take out one of the daggers I kept on me, sliding it against my palm before dripping the crimson liquid onto the floor.

The ground shook in response, and winds began to whip around us. The others steadied themselves as a glowing green light grew from within, shimmering with gold and seeming to call to us.

“Where should we expect this to spit us out?” I asked the others.

“I’m not sure,” Desmond admitted.

“I would hope near the central kingdom,” Adriel stated. “We need to be careful, though. They’ve reportedly returned to civility now that Wicked Blaze Correctional is gone, but in the decade leading up to that there were rumors of everything from cannibalism to?—”

“They weren’t rumors. There’s a village there that absolutely did that,” Draven said. “It was a place we heard of often in Black’s territory.”

“I don’t like that we’re going to this hellhole,” Dean bit out.

“If it means finding the composition piece and finding my kitten’s stalker, I think it’s worth it,” Cash said, and I nodded in agreement. I wasn’t crazy about going to this place either, but Cash was completely correct on it being worth it.

“We’re doing this—let’s go!” Lorcan chirped before tugging my hand—right into the damn portal. Everything went dark around us as a cool, wet wind surrounded me, Lorcan’s warm hand clasped tighter around mine. It was the only comfort I felt as my world was absorbed by darkness.

“Holy shit.” Lorcan’s voice was filled with awe as I caught her around the waist, the portal spitting us out violently. I knew her words weren’t about the portal as much as the land around us, and ‘holy shit’ was the perfect way to describe it.

The air was alive with power, like the energy in the air before a storm.

The skies were thick with clouds, rain skating across our skin much like in Scotland.

Thunder rumbled, and the unnaturally emerald-green grass swayed with the wind, the blades sparkling with dewdrops.

That alone would have been enough to catch my attention, but the kingdom in the distance was truly unique.

“Ghrian, the Southern Kingdom. We made it to the right place,” Zander said.

Ghrian . I didn’t know what the word meant, but the city sprawled on top of a hill, surrounded by a vast stone wall decorated with emerald flags.

The flags featured a tree of life, and the symbolism carried to the castle at the city’s center, which was radiating ancient magic that was perfectly intertwined with a pulsating life force.

“Are there other kingdoms?” I asked as we began to walk.

“One other. Ghealach, the Northern Kingdom. When a brutal attack was lodged against the rulers of the kingdom and it fell, it was turned into Wicked Blaze Correctional and the whole realm became a place dedicated purely to harboring the most dangerous of criminals. Things changed, though, when the true heir returned—Wicked Blaze fell and the realm became whole again.”

“I wonder if anyone survived Wicked Blaze being destroyed,” Adriel said so quietly that I don’t think most of our group heard. I could tell Lorcan had, though.

“What exactly are those?” Cash asked as black shadows soared above us in the sky, ghostly figures that had gaping mouths and sickening magic coming off of them.

“ Caomhnóirí draíochta —magic eaters,” Adriel said, looking fascinated. “I’ve only read about them.”

“Creatures we should avoid, then,” Desmond said as we approached the city wall, taking the last few steps on the winding pathway toward the gates. Guards were stationed at the doors, black shadows bleeding from their forms making me think they weren’t completely corporeal.

“I don’t want to be here for long,” Dean said, and Lorcan cast him a concerned glance. I completely agreed. Lorcan was mostly magic, so the idea of there being creatures that could consume her essence? Absolutely fucking not.

“Halt.”

We came to a stop as a guard stepped through the protective wards, his figure fluctuating between the ghostly form we’d seen above us and a humanoid one. It was really fucking trippy.

“State your purpose.”

Were we in fucking medieval times? Maybe I just hadn’t traveled enough, but even the Demonic realm was more modern than this.

“Let your ruler know that Adriel of the Kingdom of Night and Desmond of the Kingdom of Dukhan have arrived. It’s a conversation they’ll want to have,” Draven said.

The guard surprised me by springing into action, immediately signaling up to the gate.

I’d thought they’d have more questions for us, but when I turned to look at Adriel and Desmond, they were not only wearing their crowns but had magic coming off of them that was far more intense than normal.

“Sort of cool,” Lorcan murmured. “I really need to start throwing around some titles.”

I smirked because that was the last thing Lorcan would ever do, although I would love to see it.

As we passed through the ward, it shimmered over us like a wave and soothed against our skin, completely non-combative.

I had to imagine that it wouldn’t have been like that if we were trying to sneak in.

“It really is fucking medieval,” I said as we strode through a village that looked like it’d been plucked from Europe in the Middle Ages. It was much cleaner and filled to the brim with magic, but the overall vibe was very much the same. Lorcan was looking around with surprise and wonder.

“Considering they were cut off for so long and were fairly reclusive, it makes sense,” Zander agreed.

I could hear the others talking, but my attention was consumed with tracking every sight and scent around me, my lion picking up on everything.

Richly colored robes, flora of every size and shape, and even small woodland creatures crowded the streets.

Magic sparked in the air with movement of the crowd, and children ran past with bows and arrows, laughter filling the street.

We were drawing attention in our casual clothes, but there was no malice or anger in the gazes that found us—only curiosity.

It was an enchanting place to be, and I could tell almost everyone in the group felt similar.

Except for fucking Adriel.

“Dude, what’s wrong with you?” I demanded as he stood at my side, Desmond on the other side of Lorcan. The rest of our group was spread out protectively around her.

“Nothing, I just…I have a feeling I’m about to see someone I long thought dead.” His words were blunt and had Lorcan’s eyes widening.

“King of Nightmares, King of Smoke. Welcome.” Guards bowed as we walked into the large foyer of the castle, stealing our opportunity to question Adriel.

Like the realm itself, the castle was alive with energy, everyone moving around with excitement and happiness.

Even small creatures, like rabbits and birds, seemed to have made their homes within the castle walls.

As we were directed to the doors to the throne room, I noticed that the wooden doors had intricate carvings, all centered on a tree of life with different colored stones embedded within. Their beauty made me wonder what could possibly compare to the display, but the room beyond did not disappoint.

Gorgeous high peaks and stained glass windows. Expansive dark stone floors and long tables with banners hanging from the ceiling. At the front was a wooden throne covered in ivy, something out of Celtic lore.

When a door behind the throne suddenly flew open, I tucked Lorcan against me. The man that emerged instantly had me on edge.

He wasn’t massively imposing or anything, but the magic coming off of him was twisted—demented. His purple eyes tracked the group of us before landing right on Adriel. I could feel that the elven king was frozen next to us in shock.

“Milo?” Adriel nearly choked out, pure shock radiating through our bond. It was clear that he hadn’t truly expected to find the person he’d been looking for.

“Adriel.” His initial confidence wavered, seeming equally shocked. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“I…” Adriel paused for a moment, shaking himself. “We came to ask for help. There’s trouble coming to the realms. Something none of us have ever dealt with before.”

Milo seemed unsurprised by this news, but the silence stretched as I heard the door open, letting in others.

Lorcan finally spoke up. “Adriel, how do you two know each other?”

Adriel blinked, still stunned. “Milo’s my brother.”