Page 40 of Solar Shadows

ISAAC

Isat cross-legged on the floor with my back pressed against the wall, staring at the titanium door of the celestial room with Emma Bunton playing in my earbuds.

It was room only me and my brothers could enter, packed with more power to fight the rising apocalypse.

“One day,” I said. “One day you’ll be here, Preston, and we’ll cross the threshold together.”

Filling our totems with diamonds activated our powers and unlocked the bolts across the door. The gold and sliver ones were gone now, only the pearly white one remained for The Star to open.

“One day,” I said again, wide awake after a two-hour nap.

Sleep? Pfft. Who needed sleep when the brain wanted to ponder things?

I’d awoken to the sound of rain beating againstmy window, and lots of questions about the fae woman. They did their own kind of beating on my brain, driving me crazy.

And so, I came here to think. Ever since I saw my starry brother descend in a cone of magical light, I came here to meditate and hope. To manifest, pleading with Hecate for an answer.

I never used to pray much, not until I learned about my true self. Now I spoke to the goddess every single night, and sometimes during the day.

“I just want him here,” I whispered, eyes on my littlest brother’s lock.

There was a window to the right of the door overlooking a small courtyard with a bench and empty flowerpots. According to the layout of the mansion, there wasn’t a room behind the door, only the outside.

Wild. A properly secret space indeed.

The deluge outside fell in relentless sheets, the water shimmering on the windowpane in the light of a wall sconce. Kind of nice, kind of soothing in a way.

Along with thinking in this spot, I liked to read Juliet Aurora’s diary. The black-and-gold tome book with an embossed, golden Mickey Mouse on the cover sat in my lap.

Correction: my birth mother’s diary.

It kind of gave me strength in a strange way. Not just because of the note she’d left us, but because I felt like the baton had been passed to me. The responsiblyto be the head of my family from one Sun to another. Which was ridiculous. I didn’t need to do that to myself. But wanting to keep Riley safe only exacerbated it.

As if I’d summoned him, Riley appeared, shuffling over to me in a canary yellow dressing gown and pink, fluffy slippers.

He sported the messiest bedhead ever.

I smiled, always happy to see him. “You look like a Battenberg cake.”

He glowered, then yawned. “Rude.”

“Battenberg is elite,” I said. “Take it as a compliment.”

He plonked himself beside me.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“Can’t sleep.” He yawned again.

“You seem super sleepy, though.”

He shook his head, rubbing at his cheek. “I’m not. Can’t stop thinking about everything. This fae woman… What are we supposed to do?”

As usual, I didn’t have an answer for him. Only that I was shitting a brick about the next stage.

However, I did offer a sliver of comfort. “Her being a pile of bones might buy us some time to gain the upper hand.”

“I really hope so.” He rested his head on my shoulder after another yawn.