Page 45 of Veiled By Smoke (The Nature Hunters Academy #5)

"Every action creates a ripple, shaping more than we can see. Too often, we’re so focused on the outcome we want, we forget to consider the waves we leave behind." ~ Ra

R a found Penny and Fern in the library, the air thick with the comforting scent of old paper and wood polish.

Fern was curled into one of the armchairs, legs tucked beneath her, her face lined with worry, which she tried—and failed—to hide.

Penny was perched at the edge of the desk, hands tight around an abandoned mug.

Her eyes were vacant as if she was lost in thought.

At the sound of his footsteps, she looked up.

Her gaze was sharp as she spoke, “When you left, you looked defeated. Now, you look ready to go to war. What changed in the last thirty minutes?”

“Where’s Aurora? And Cordelia?” Ra asked, voice low. He didn’t want to startle Fern, but every second felt like a countdown.

Penny’s eyes narrowed, her worry morphing instantly into suspicion.

“Cordelia’s got Aurora upstairs. She said something about showing her the grimoire collection—figured it’d keep her distracted, maybe help her focus on something other than .

. . all this.” She waved a hand, encompassing the sense of dread that had settled over Blackhorn like a fog.

“We made magic bombs, but that didn’t take as long as we’d hoped it would. ”

Fern sat forward, her concern blooming into outright alarm. “What’s going on, Ra?”

Ra ran a hand through his hair, glancing at the door as if expecting it to burst open.

He drew a breath, steadying himself with the knowledge that the time for secrets was over.

“I just met with Aston, Liam, Elias, and Kimba. The first three are my brothers and also elementalists. Kimba is the soul-bonded elemental queen. We’re making our move. Tonight.”

Penny’s mug clattered to the desk. “You’re not handing Aurora over?—”

He shook his head quickly. “No. Kimba explained what Stonehenge really is—a soul-bonded prison. All of us have to work together to activate it, or the spell won’t hold.

We’re going to trap Viscious there when I ‘deliver’ Aurora.

But it’ll take every last one of us. If even one couple falters–” He didn’t finish the sentence. He didn’t have to.

Fern’s mouth dropped open. “You’re going to trick him into stepping into a cage?”

He nodded. “That’s the only way. And we don’t have long.

Viscious is too clever by half—if he has time to think, he’ll see through it.

I need you both to get Aurora and Cordelia ready.

Tell them . . . tell them this is it. We’re out of time.

” He looked at Fern and made another promise.

“I give you my word that no harm will come to your daughter.”

“Ra—” Penny started, but he held up a hand to stop her.

“No. She deserves that.” He continued to hold Fern’s gaze. “I do not break my word.”

Fern’s lips tightened as she seemed to measure his words, but then she nodded. “Okay. I will trust you with her.” She let out a shaky breath as if it took all of her strength to give him that, and perhaps it did.

Penny took a deep breath, her shoulders straightening with resolve.

“Right. We’ll get them. You—” she pointed a finger at Ra, fierce as any lioness, “you come back to us. All of you. I wouldn’t want to face Shelly’s wrath if you didn’t.

And besides, I kind of think you’ve grown on me. Like a fungus.”

Ra’s lips quirked into a crooked smile, gratitude and dread mingling in his gut. “I’ll do my best.”

He turned away, pulling out his phone—because no matter how much Viscious liked to play with the blood-bond oath, Ra refused to give him that kind of access to his mind unless he had no other choice.

Shelly was the only one he wanted in his mind.

He hit speed dial, heart thudding as the call connected.

“Ra.” Viscious’s voice slid down the line, all silk and poison. “Really? A phone, baby king? You’re coming across as weak.”

Ra rolled his eyes, letting just a hint of exasperation bleed into his tone.

“Just meet me. Ashtree Forest. Ten minutes.” He’d decided on one of the known ruins of the dark fire king in the fire realm because it would make Viscious more comfortable to be on his own turf.

That, and he wasn’t about to let the dark fire king taint his childhood home again but suggesting they meet there.

A pause. “Impatient, aren’t we? Fine. Don’t keep me waiting.”

Ra hung up, jaw set, and strode from the library, not letting himself look back.

* * *

The burning forest was a graveyard of charred trunks and embers, a fitting meeting ground for the likes of gods and monsters–not that Viscious was a god, but he no doubt fancied himself one.

Ra felt the heat before he saw the flames, the air thick with smoke and the bitter tang of ash.

The portal opened to blackened earth, and for a moment, Ra just breathed—steady, measured–letting the inferno’s chaos soak into his bones.

He had to look torn. He had to look afraid.

Because he was. The plan could fail. Nothing was a hundred percent no matter how well you planned.

And this wasn’t exactly planned down to the detail.

It was something new, something unpracticed, something Elias would call a “Hail Mary”.

This was something Osiris and Kimba were betting on their power to be able to handle.

Ra hoped with everything inside him that they were right.

Viscious appeared out of the haze, a dark silhouette against the unnatural glow, eyes catching the firelight with a predator’s gleam.

He didn’t walk so much as glide, the flames bowing away from him, shadows bending to his will.

The bond between them—the one Ra hated, the one he’d never wanted—throbbed in his chest, a warning bell and a leash all at once.

“Right on time, Ra,” Viscious said, voice low and pleasant, like a snake coiled in the grass. “I’m surprised. You took so long in contacting me that I was starting to think you’d lost your nerve.”

Ra forced his shoulders back, made his voice rough with conflict. “I needed time. This isn’t easy. You know that.”

Viscious smiled, a flash of white teeth. “It’s never easy, betraying your family. Or your friends. Or the young girl who trusts you. But sacrifice is what separates kings from cowards, isn’t it?”

Ra bit back the urge to rise to the bait. He wouldn’t give Viscious the satisfaction. “Enough with pointing out the obvious, dark king. Let’s get on with it. I have a place for us to meet, for me to give you Aurora." It took everything in him not to trip over his words.

Viscious circled him, boots crunching on the brittle earth. “Why should I let you choose the location?”

“Because I’m not letting you taint any other places in my life. This isn’t a damn game. I’m keeping my promise. I’m handing the girl over. I don’t think it’s too much to ask to pick the location.”

Viscious stared at him for a few heartbeats and then finally nodded. “Fine. I’ll humor you. Where?”

Ra kept his expression carefully neutral. “Stonehenge. In ten minutes.”

Viscious stopped, head tilting, doubt flickering in those inhuman eyes. “Stonehenge? That old heap of rocks? Why there?”

Ra met his gaze, letting anxiety leak into his voice just enough.

“I had a witch spell the place. I’m covering all my bases, so to speak.

The circle will keep anyone else out—no one can interfere, not even your rivals.

Once Aurora and I are inside, it’s just us.

You’ll get what you want, without any of the other royal elementals trying to snatch her from you or start a war. It’s safe. For both of us.”

Viscious narrowed his eyes, clearly weighing Ra’s words. The bond between them surged—images, doubts, flashes of Ra’s guilt. Ra locked it down, thinking only of the truth: he was afraid. He was worried. He hated every second of this.

“And I suppose you expect me to take your word for it? No tricks?” Viscious asked, voice slick with disbelief. “You’re a better liar than that, Ra. But you’re also desperate. I can smell it on you.”

Ra let his jaw tighten, let his eyes flick away for just a second. “You want the girl, or not? The spell won’t hold forever. If you want her, you meet me there in ten minutes.”

There was a long, silent pause. The trees crackled, the flames danced, and a blackened crow screamed overhead.

Viscious stepped closer, lowering his voice. “You know this is the end for you, right? Once you hand her over, there’ll be nothing left. You’ll be hated by everyone who ever loved you. That’s the price of survival, Ra. That’s the price of keeping your pathetic soul out of hell.”

Ra swallowed, let his fists clench at his sides, but he refused to react. He knew what Viscious was doing—digging in the knife, looking for weakness. He’d seen enough manipulation to recognize it for what it was.

“Just be there,” Ra said, voice flat.

Viscious’s eyes glittered with amusement, suspicion, and a flicker of something like respect. “I’ll be there. But know, if you try anything—anything at all—there won’t be enough left of you to even damn to the underworld.”

He watched Ra, clearly hoping for a repsonse—a flinch, a protest, some sign of fear or reluctance. Ra gave him nothing. He simply inclined his head, every muscle in his body taut with tension.

“Agreed. Ten minutes.” And with that, Ra spun on his heel, opened a portal, and stepped through before the flames could swallow his resolve.

Blackhorn’s cool, familiar shadows closed around him. He let out a shaky breath and forced his hands to stop trembling. Penny, Fern, Cordelia, and Aurora were waiting, their faces a mix of fear, hope, and grim determination.

“It’s time,” Ra said, voice steady, betraying none of the storm raging inside. “We leave for Stonehenge. Now.”

He opened the portal, and together, they stepped through.

* * *