Page 9

Peri had to agree with the kid that if all of them were alive, then most likely, barring some horrific attack in some other realm where the others had been sent, the others were most likely alive as well.

She certainly wasn’t about to burst his bubble of hope.

She was a lot of things, but a jackass to kids wasn’t one of them.

Wait. That was a total lie. She could totally be a jackass to kids, but she tried to pick her moments at somewhat appropriate times. This was not one of them.

If only they had a crystal ball…

“Dammit.” Peri wanted to smack herself. Why hadn’t she thought of that? “Have you tried to draw anything, Torion?”

“Like in the dirt?” The fear fled his face only to be replaced with confusion.

“Yes, in the dirt. I suddenly care that you might be bored, and I’m trying to give you ideas of how you can entertain yourself.

” Okay, so maybe she was a little bit of a jackass to kids.

She’d put it on her list of things she needed to work on in her own personal reflection therapy.

Not that she did any kind of therapy. She probably should.

Considering humans did therapy, and they lived a measly 80-90 years, she, a 3,000-year old female, definitely had issues.

Titus clucked his tongue at her as if he wasn’t 5, or was it 6— dammit, maybe he was 7. How the hell was she supposed to keep up with their ages?

“I think you need a time out.” The boy said, as he narrowed his eyes.

Peri could see the wolf shining out of them. She forced herself not to smile at the little twerp who one day might be an alpha judging on his need to not only protect Thia, Hope, and Slate as if they were his own, but to apparently boss Peri around.

“You say that like it would be a punishment,” Peri deadpanned.

She turned back to Torion. “Not in the dirt. On this.” She snapped her fingers, and a notebook appeared, then she snapped the fingers on her other hand and a pencil appeared.

"That whole drawing the future thing you got going on.

Do you know how to use your magic to locate them? "

Torion shrugged, looking a little sheepish. “My magic isn’t like a switch I can just turn on. Sometimes I can draw things that matter, and sometimes I draw a car, and that’s all it is—a car.”

“We’re not expecting you to pull something out of your ass that isn’t there.

You’ll be fine.” Lucian raised a brow at her.

She felt his pleasure at the unexpected display of encouragement from her.

Peri ignored it because she liked it too much when her mate approved of her. “Just focus. No distractions.”

Tenia’s son took the pencil and notebook.

Serapha snorted, gaining the boy’s attention.

She motioned her large head toward her body.

Torion, obviously speaking “draheim body language,” walked over and sat down, leaning his back against the large beast. He opened the notebook to the first sheet of blank paper and held his pencil over it.

For at least a minute, maybe longer, he simply stared at the paper.

Peri fought the need to speak, tossing out ideas of where his mom and Skender might be to see if it would spark his ability.

If the boy said that wasn’t how things worked, then she needed to trust him.

Finally, his pencil began to move. The space around Peri disappeared as she watched his hand slide across the page, and the only sound she heard was the scratching of lead against paper.

Torion’s face scrunched up in concentration, his brow lowering into a deep V .

Every so often the pencil would pause. He would turn the notebook a bit and then begin drawing again.

Peri had no idea how long he sat there, or how long she stood there like a statue, unable to take her eyes off of him.

“If you don’t breathe, you’re going to pass out. Last I checked, even high fae need oxygen.” Her mate’s voice filled her mind. Of course his attention would be on her and not the kid who could be drawing the answers to all the questions they have.

“Then you need to do better research. Now hush. I’m trying to concentrate.”

His humor and love poured through the bond, but he didn’t say anything more.

At least ten minutes after Lucian’s teasing, Torion let out a small gasp.

Peri took a step toward him but froze when he looked up at her.

Hope and confusion filled his eyes. Hesitantly, he held up the notebook, the picture facing her.

Peri’s feet slowly carried her forward as her mind tried to decipher what she was seeing.

When she reached Torion, she took the paper from him.

If they weren’t in the middle of a serious situation that was a matter of life and death, she would take a second to admire how amazing the drawing was, but things were serious, and Peri needed to figure out what the hell she was looking at.

She lifted a finger and pressed it to the page, and her magic rippled across it, replacing the pencil lines with color. She sucked in a breath as she stared down at a being she had all but forgotten existed.

Peri stared down at the drawing in her hands, her sharp green eyes darting over every detail.

Towering above an open book on the page was Raja, the ruler of the Realm of the Dead.

His form seemed to crawl out of the book itself, his body twisting and stretching, as if tearing free from the ancient text.

His face was grotesque, contorted with unrestrained rage.

His eyes blazed with an unnatural ruby-red light that seemed to burn through the page and into Peri’s very soul.

His mouth was open in a silent scream, his sharp teeth bared in fury.

His arms were raised, and his massive hands were clenched into tight fists.

Veins bulged beneath the surface of his gray, mottled skin.

The book he emerged from was enormous, its pages ancient and weathered.

The edges of the parchment curled slightly as though they had endured centuries of time.

Faint, intricate patterns of runes and symbols adorned the margins of the pages, their meaning lost to time but radiating an ominous energy.

Around the edges of the open book, rays of golden light—jagged and stark against the dark figure of Raja—burst forth.

The light was so vivid, it seemed to spill off the page, casting imaginary shadows on the ground.

But it was what framed the light that made Peri’s stomach drop.

Faces.

Dozens of them.

Each face was etched into the edges of the book’s pages with haunting clarity, their likenesses so perfect they seemed to be staring back at her.

She recognized them instantly. Some were friends, some practically family, but all of them a part of her life.

Tenia, Torion’s mother, her beautiful face frozen in an expression of pain and terror.

Next to her was Skender, his strong features strained as though he were fighting a losing battle.

Then came Fane, his face marked by fury, his sharp features hardened with determination.

Jacque’s face was there, too. Her expression was one of sorrow yet unwavering strength.

Peri’s breath hitched when her eyes landed on Sally and Costin.

Costin’s face was twisted in anguish as if he were trying to reach someone just beyond the page.

Sally’s expression was one of heartbreak so raw that it felt like a physical blow.

Dalton and Jewel followed, their faces etched with desperation, and behind them, the faces became less distinct, melting into silhouettes.

But the sheer number of them was overwhelming.

“They’re alive.” Torion’s voice broke the silence. “My drawing shows it, and I’ve never been wrong.” He sounded more desperate than sure.

“They are alive,” Peri confirmed. “If they weren’t, you wouldn’t have drawn them like this. They’d have been dead.”

Peri’s hands tightened around the edges of the page, her knuckles white as she fought the urge to tear it apart. A shiver ran down her spine as the glowing faces seemed to watch her, silently pleading for salvation.

At some point, Torion must have stood up because suddenly he was beside her, pointing at the page. “What … is this?” His voice was small, trembling, as he looked up at her.

“It’s Raja.” Peri’s voice was barely above a whisper.

Her throat was tight, her breath shallow.

“The Ruler of the Realm of the Dead.” Peri’s gaze dropped back to the page, her gut twisting as she studied the central image: the massive book, ancient and weathered, its pages glowing with ominous light, and Raja emerging from it.

Or was he being sucked into it? She couldn’t tell.

“And that’s the Nushtonia. ” She pointed to the book.

“I recognize the text.” She could feel the eyes of everyone around her, but Peri's focus was on the image. Her mind raced back to a time long ago, when the djinn had locked Raja away in the Realm of the Dead. She hadn’t thought about him—or his prison—in centuries or longer.

The djinn had sealed him there for a reason.

His hunger for power had been unrelenting.

Locking him away had been a necessity, not a choice.

But now, here he was.

She tapped the image of Raja’s form, frowning in frustration.

“I don’t know what this means. Does the drawing of the Nushtonia mean that Celise is somehow tied to this?

Does it mean she has succeeded in breaking him out of his prison?

If he is free, how is he tied to each of our pack members that are on this page?

Too many questions and no way to get answers.

It’s like a damn bad episode of Jeopardy . ”

“What does this mean for the others?” Torion’s voice trembled. “Why did I draw them all around the book?”

Peri didn’t answer right away. She was still soaking in the fact that she was seeing the image of Raja.

Like a bad itch she couldn’t reach, there was something she was missing.

It was significant that he was entwined with the book, but she didn’t know why.

Peri hated not knowing things. She took great pride in being a know-it-all and considered it a compliment if anyone happened to point it out.

After a few minutes of silence she looked away from the picture to Tenia’s son.

“At this point, the most important reason you drew them is because they’re alive. ”

“Good work, T.” Lucian’s voice was softer than usual. “Now we just have to figure out how to reach them.”

“Easier said than done,” Peri muttered. The hope the image stirred was matched by the fear it also provoked. But she was trying to keep Torion from seeing that fear.

“This is bad, Lucian.” Peri reached out to her mate because she needed to say it. “This is very, very bad.”

Phantom arms encircled her as he spoke into her mind. “We’ve faced worse.”

Peri shook her head before she could stop herself and looked at her mate. “I honestly don’t know if that’s true.”

He held her gaze for two heartbeats before turning to the young fae. “We’ll find them,” Lucian said firmly, his gaze steady as it met Torion’s. “We’ll find all of them. That’s a promise.”

Peri nodded, as she met Torion’s eyes and then looked at Titus, with Thia clasped onto his leg. As she spoke, she could hear the steely resolve in her voice. “And he always keeps his promises.”

Serapha’s large form shifted as she pushed up from her reclined position until she was standing on all four legs. “Why don’t we find you lot a place to sleep for the night.” She looked at Peri. “The cave where you stayed with Torion, his mother, and Skender is available and plenty large enough.”

“That’s a good idea. We aren’t going to be able to do much more tonight before the kids are going to need sleep.”

“If you’re getting sleeping accommodations, maybe you could help our merry, little band?” A familiar voice said as Myanin stepped through the forest with Jezebel, Gavril, and Dillon on either side of her.

Peri never thought she’d be relieved to see the smart-ass, djinn female, but at that moment, knowing that there were more of their group alive, she was a sight for sore eyes.

All of them were. “When has your cranky ass ever been merry? And yes, we can accommodate sleep, but you have to sleep in a tree. Like the snake you are.”

“Harsh.” Myanin grinned wickedly. “I’ve missed you, Peri.”

A second later, Myanin was nearly knocked over as Torion plowed into her, wrapping his arms around her. “Mom’s alive. I saw her. And now you’re alive.”

Peri had to press her lips together to keep from laughing at the awkward way Myanin held her arms out to her side, looking down at Torion as if he was a rash she’d suddenly developed.

Finally, she sighed. “Good grief, Myanin. You’re Tenia’s codependent friend, which means you are a tie to his mother—someone that makes him feel closer to her. Hug him. Show some freaking affection.”

Myanin awkwardly patted Torion’s back. “There, there. All is well.” Her tone was stilted and flat, and the longer Torion held on, the wider Myanin’s eyes got as she looked from person to person.

But no one helped her out. If they were like Peri, they were taking a certain amount of glee in seeing the butthead djinn suffer a little bit of uncomfortable affection.

Myanin finally pried him off her, but he still stayed right beside her.

“Now, everyone here looks pretty okay. I mean the kids are gross, but they’re not bleeding out.

So can we table the catching-up conversation and get to the sleep thing? ”

Exhaustion swamped Peri at the mention of sleep again.

“I can agree with that plan.” She looked over at her mate.

“Round up the kids and let's get to the cave I stayed in with Tenia, Skender, and Torion.” Then she looked at Serapha. “I’ll flash the kids with Lucian and Dillon. Can you carry the other three to the cave?” She knew the draheim would know which cave she was talking about.

Serapha nodded. “I reserve the right to toss the mouthy one off.”

“That’s everyone’s reaction to her.” Peri shrugged. “Do what you gotta do.”