Page 64

Ivy

S hocked was an understatement. I couldn’t even explain the waves of emotions rolling through me.

“Her mate ?” I almost rose to my feet, but Elias held me to him tightly, stopping me from moving away from him entirely. “That’s impossible. That would make him?—”

“As old as I.” Damon smirked as he glanced back at the window. “Yes. I am just as shocked as you are.”

“How is that even possible?” I couldn’t even wrap my head around it.

The Queen’s mates always died soon after she did.

That was the cycle of a Queen and her knights.

That had been hammered into me in my class on the Queens of Nyx .

Every five hundred years, when a new Queen rose, and the last Queen fell, her mates went with her eventually.

They essentially tied up loose ends after the passing of the late Queen before eventually joining her in the afterlife.

But if one of Queen Pandora’s mates was here…

No wonder my magic reacted the way it had. It recognised him. And maybe his presence had triggered that meeting with the first Queen.

“We don’t know,” Maeve said. “But when your magic exploded, he seemed to have an idea of what caused it.”

I wrapped my arms around myself as Elias pressed a kiss to the top of my head. “We’ll work it out,” he said.

I shook my head, but fully let myself enjoy the warmth of his embrace and the comfort it brought me. “Pandora told me Dante isn’t going for the crown.”

Somehow, the tension grew heavier.

“What?” Ry asked. I glanced over to see him rise to his feet. “What do you mean?”

I swallowed hard. “The crown isn’t exactly the only thing he’s looking for.

” Releasing a long breath, I explained the dream.

Pandora coming to me, telling me he’d almost found it.

I told them about the skull and the secrets she claimed had died with her, how she’d given up her power so that others could come after her.

There was an uneasy silence that followed my recollection of the meeting. I could tell Maeve was falling into her own thoughts, likely trying to find any other reference to the skull and crown within her own memory. Damon, who I expected to maybe understand the reference, only looked confused.

If Orion had heard his father speak of a skull, he didn’t let it show. Not on his face or through the bond. And not even Rowan, who had been seeing visions of a dim future, knew what the hell I was talking about.

But I vividly remembered the skull. Not from any recent dreams, though .

The nightmares I’d been plagued with before meeting the team. When Thea and I would have done anything to keep them at bay—like seeing a psychic. Nyx used to appear with it clutched in her hands, a skull that would always leave an impression in my waking thoughts.

“Could the dream be fake? By any chance?” I asked. Deep down, I knew it wasn’t. Not when I’d seen it before.

There was no response from anyone, the silence turning uneasy.

Maybe Dante had found a way to allow a dream demon or dream-walking Fae into my head to mess with me. To lead me astray.

There was nothing in my studies that would confirm or deny it—only my nightmares.

“The only one who might know,” Adrian said from a chair not far from me, “is standing outside in a downpour.”

In unison, we all turned towards the door, like the ancient demon male might walk in.

“Then he’s our only chance for answers.” Orion pushed off the wall he’d been leaning against and crossed the room.

Hawk stopped him by stepping in his way, features hard. “Or he will put Ivy in danger.”

Orion’s hands formed fists as his side. The pair were almost the same height, with Orion standing at least an inch taller than Hawk.

The half-Fae male held an air of authority, his years as a team leader for the Phoenix Compound showing through now.

But Orion…his energy shifted, crackled, and shadows slithered their way up his arms, curling around him protectively.

I doubted they would hurt one another. Orion, despite his faults, wouldn’t willingly hurt another of my mates. Not when he had done so much to protect me and had so much trauma about his father’s mates .

Hawk, though, was someone I couldn’t trust—not fully. I didn’t really know what to do about him. I wasn’t sure what he was capable of.

I rose to my feet. This time, Elias didn’t stop me as I moved to stand between the pair. The one thing I could be sure of was that neither would hurt me. Even if I didn’t trust Hawk, that was something I knew deep in my bones.

“Stop it,” I said, looking between them. Hawk clenched his jaw, dark eyes flickering to me. “I want to meet him. I need answers.”

Hawk snorted, shaking his head. “Something doesn’t feel right about this.”

He didn’t elaborate further. I had a feeling he was hiding more than he let on. “Then we discuss that later,” I replied. “For now, though, I want to talk to him. I need to know if what I saw in my dream was real.”

The half-Fae male stepped aside without another word. His expression was almost unreadable, except for the briefest hint of anger and disappointment.

I didn’t want to read into it much, not when it was clear he was hiding something. Instead, I steeled myself for the conversation to come. Just thinking about meeting the first Queen’s mate made my heart race.

My hand went to the door handle. Magic swelled, awakened once more as I pulled the door open.

Rain continued to fall in sheets, but standing in the doorway was a male that now appeared oddly familiar. I realised it was because of the story Captain Vale had spun when we first crossed the rift between worlds. The male in the doorway also felt familiar. Like deep in my bones, I knew him.

He was tall, at least a head taller than me, with dark brown hair that curled just below his ears. He had tawny skin, and dark eyes that met mine, surprise filling them .

He wore a white tunic and brown leather pants, with boots that went to his shins. He looked like he’d stepped out of a period film; a hero from a Jane Austen novel, or a prince from a fantasy movie.

My magic sparked within me, though not in the same way it usually did around my own mates. It was like it recognised him as someone who had once been connected to it, but no longer was. It was a strange feeling. Although I didn’t feel it, my magic yearned for him in a way that felt…nostalgic.

I swallowed hard as the male crossed the threshold. His eyes scanned me for a minute, before meeting mine. “So, you are her.”

A shiver rolled down my spine. He had an accent, like Pandora did in my dream. “I’m Ivy,” I offered. Did I shake his hand? Or just…move aside. Oh, great, it was awkward.

Sadness filled his eyes, but he moved to the side so the door could click shut behind him. My magic reached for him without my consent, but I quickly reeled it back in before it could touch him. Or caress him, I realised.

Maybe it was more drained and delirious from the explosion than I thought.

Clearing my throat, I looked away from the demon. Still standing at the window, Damon stiffened. He had his hands behind his back, but dark hair fell over his forehead. I wondered how they knew each other.

“Asael,” Damon said, his voice rough. “It has been a long time.”

The other demon, Asael, bowed his head. “And a lot has changed.”

“How are you here?” I asked, crossing my arms. “You should be?—”

“Dead?” He raised a dark brow before looking around the cabin. Heat crept up my cheeks. We had completely infiltrated his space. It looked like this was a sort of living room, with the fire burning at one end, and a table with four chairs in the centre.

When I’d woken up, I hadn’t taken much time to actually look around. But now, I noticed the little details. Where Elias had held me were a plethora of pillows, large ones I imagined were designed for sitting.

There was a shelf above the fireplace that held a number of different nicknacks; a large conch shell in the centre, surrounded by a few crystals, a silver brush, and other things I couldn’t identify. I noticed another door leading into a space opposite the front door.

“I am not here,” Asael admitted. My stare shot back to his, but he wasn’t looking at me. His eyes were on the flickering fire. “I am a remnant, a memory. Only my soul remains.”

“A spirit, tied to this building,” Damon added. “You are dead, Asael.”

A cruel smile twisted the old demon’s lips as he glanced at the Elysian king. “You would know something about that, wouldn’t you, cousin?”

Cousin? I stared at Damon for a long moment, before shaking my head. “Family reunion can wait,” I muttered. “Why are you here?”

Asael pressed his lips into a firm line as he met my stare. “I’m here for you, Ivy.”

A shiver rolled down my spine. “What does that mean?”

“Pandora asked me to stay here, just in case.” The sadness re-entered his eyes as he gazed down at me.

“In case of what?” I had a feeling I already knew. Her words from the dream came back. Her secret, the one that she had hoped would die with her. The one Dante somehow uncovered .

Asael looked away, his throat bobbing. “You said you saw her. In your dreams.” His expression softened. “How did she look?”

His pain was so heavy, it made tears burn my eyes. Orion stepped up beside me, his gloved hand entering mine. But emotion thickened my throat as I tried to reply. “She looked like Nyx.”

The demon dropped his head. “She is Nyx’s daughter.

” He laughed darkly. “I remember the day like it was yesterday. The cliffs. Pandora’s face when Nyx revealed her plans.

The terror when Nyx stole her away to close the rift.

” He stopped and shook his head. “The first time I saw her, she was coming out of the mating ceremony for her village. She was wearing white.”

“And she’d been wearing it in my dream,” I replied. His eyes found mine, shining with tears. “She said something about a skull and a secret. What do you know about that?”

Asael sighed and scrubbed a hand down his face.

“There were many who did not want to see Pandora as Queen. Primarily, the Fae.” Orion’s hand tightened in mine as he stiffened.

“They sowed dissent. Their High Queen had given her blessing before her demise, but that had not been enough, especially when her brother, Eryx’s uncle, swooped in and started laying the foundations for a take-over. ”

The demon moved to the fire, and everyone watched as he picked something up off the shelf above the flames.

“During the death of the High Queen, he’d been searching for a way to transfer her power to him.

There was a curse on the bloodline—I didn’t know that until a century into Pandora’s rule.

Eryx didn’t tell us. But his uncle had been determined to find a way to become High King and start a new rule—a new bloodline. ”

A shiver, one of horror, rolled down my spine. Why did that sound familiar?

“You must know how the mate line came to be, correct?” His eyes danced over the room, but it gave me a chance to see what he had clutched between his fingers.

It looked like a locket of sorts. The gold chain was wrapped around his fingers, and he clutched the locket part like if he held it any tighter, it might disappear.

I nodded, but it was Adrian who spoke up. “Everyone knows. It’s taught in schools. Told as a bedtime story. The most epic romance there ever was.”

Something about that seemed to soothe Asael, because he smiled fondly down at the locket.

“What you don’t know, though, was that while Pandora was experiencing her trouble with power, Eryx’s uncle was plotting.

When Eryx, Zyran, and I went to Nyx for Pandora, when we accepted the mate bonds Nyx offered us, his uncle was there in an attempt to steal her power. ”

My blood ran cold. “What happened to him?” There had to be a reason why none of us knew this part of the story. Captain Vale hadn’t mentioned anything, and when I glanced at my mates, it was clear this was their first time hearing it, too.

“The male tried to hurt Pandora. He had with him an artefact that should have been protected by the Fae.” Asael’s face darkened, and he shook his head.

“We defeated him, and his life was cut short. The artefact came with us, and we destroyed any mention of it in an effort to not only protect Pandora, but to protect the balance of all the realms. We knew, if someone else learned of its origins—its power—then there would be others fighting for her power. For your power, Ivy.”

“The skull,” I whispered. My skin prickled when the demon nodded. “What is it, Asael? ”

His eyes met mine briefly, before turning back to the fire. “When Gods first walked these worlds, they were like us. They had physical bodies. All of them.” He dropped his head in a bow and sighed. “But when their power became too great, they abandoned their bodies and took on ethereal forms.”

My stomach twisted. Gods, as in plural? My gaze shot to Maeve’s, who I hoped would give me some sense of stability with this revelation. But even she looked stunned.

Actually, everyone—but Damon—looked a little shocked by the revelation.

Hadn’t Thea and I literally joked about this? About there being more Gods?

She’d have a field day with this information.

“Their bodies turned to bone. And the bone turned to ash. Except for the skulls.” Asael looked up again and met my eye. “All of the skulls were collected. There were groups born to defend them. These skulls held the power of their god.”

“But not Nyx’s,” I realised. “I hold her power.”

Asael nodded. “If your enemy were to find the skull of Nyx, he could potentially take your power and consume it himself.”

My stomach bottomed out, heart skipping a beat as it all hit me.

If he really knew where it was, like Pandora suspected, then we were all doomed.