Page 35

Chapter Thirty-Four

Talia

A s I finish tying my boots, I worry yet again that we’re about to walk into a trap.

People don’t leave the cult alive, ever.

I feel even more uneasy knowing that we’ll be separated.

Not that I don’t trust Wes and Forrester to keep me safe, I just don’t like walking into a situation like this when three of us are staying behind.

I know Wes did his research and even tested her blood to make sure she was who she said she was.

I don't trust The Croises though. Not former ones, nor current ones. I don't even trust the ones that are currently dead.

Not one of them thought that what they were doing to innocent people was wrong?

Or if they did, did they just not choose to fight back?

It leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

"Are you almost ready to go?" Forrester asks from the doorway of my room.

His eyes take me in and I blush with the sudden onset of memories from last night.

"Yeah, I just need to grab my jacket," I answer, dropping my eyes to my laces on my boots.

"Let me grab it for you," Forr offers, walking towards my closet.

"Which one do you want?"

"The green one with the extra pockets. It should be the first one on the furthest left."

Finishing up my boots, I stand up and take the jacket from Forrester, accepting a sweet kiss at the same time.

So much has changed in the last few months and it's been a whirlwind for me, but in the best way. There's still a lot we need to do, and we're nowhere near the end, but I know that as long as I have them by my side, we can accomplish anything.

"I'm feeling really weird about this," I murmur to Forr and twirl my hair. "She knows stuff about my mom. Maybe even my dad, too. But she was also part of the people who hurt me despite not actually hurting me. She was part of the cult. How can I trust what she says?"

Forr pulls me into his arms, rubbing my back and resting his cheek on the top of my head. "I know how hard it can be to trust this, because I'm honestly feeling apprehensive about it all as well. Wes made sure it was safe and verified who they are, but they could still lie to you. I think all you can do is take it one step at a time."

"That sounds easier than it actually will be," I grumble and pull away. "I'll hear what she has to say and maybe have Wes check the information out after."

"I was already planning on it," Wes says from the door with a smile. "I'm happy to hear that you trust in my abilities to find out the truth in these important matters though."

I smile back at him, stepping away from Forrester and straightening my jacket.

"Of course I trust you," I assure him. "It all just feels strange."

Wes nods in understanding. "It does to me, too. I do think there's some merit to hearing what they have to say. By the sounds of it, she heavily regrets her part in the cult."

That sentence feels like a weight in my stomach. I saw the people in that cult, and I don't understand how you can do the things they do and still have any heart or morals. They torture, hurt, and kill beings that they don't deem human enough to care about.

Shifters may not be human, but we're still living beings that deserve kindness and empathy. All living creatures deserve love and nurturing. They looked at us, considered us less than them and then treated us no better than insects they wished to destroy.

"Are you ready to go, love?" Wes asks, taking my hand and pulling me out of my thoughts.

"Yeah, let's get this over with. I just need to get through this," I say with a wince. "I don't think I'll feel better until we're done and out of there."

My mind is in a daze with anxiety and fear. Before I know it, I'm climbing into the front seat of Wes's large blue vehicle and buckling myself in. Forrester gets in the back, and we're off. I saw the others early this morning, but they had meetings all day with the different shifter leaders.

There's a lot of prep that goes into banding everyone together for a war that we don't even have all the information on. Adessa hasn't exactly been talking my ear off lately about what the next steps are so we're just winging it. That's what Drayton and Alaric said at least.

We have two other mythical shifters to find. Their roles will be a lot more war related than mine from what I've read, which is good because I am not good at war or strategy or any of the stuff they've been talking about the past couple days.

I am a healer, not a fighter. I can see the deepest wounds, down to the very soul of the individual. I’m meant to awaken something or someone, not lead an army.

I’m simply the beginning of all of this and as soon as we find the other two, I’ll be able to slip into the background as a healer once again.

Thank god my mates can handle planning until that time. The goddess knew what she was doing connecting my soul with these five men. They’re warriors through and through and know exactly what to do even with the little information we currently have.

Two hours later, we pull off onto a dirt road that’s easily concealed from the road. I sit up straight, my eyes darting around as we follow the twisting road until we come to an old cabin. It’s not falling apart, but it’s definitely seen better days.

The outside of the cabin has wood chipping in places, yet it’s clean and solid. The forest and brush around the cabin is well maintained and the porch has two chairs that look well weathered from the elements.

A man comes out of the door as we park, he looks a few years older than me, but there’s an exhaustion to his features that make him look older. His dirty blonde hair is buzzed close to his head. His face is clean shaven and his clothes neatly pressed if a little worn in.

The man’s blue eyes meet mine with relief shining clear as day in them. There were many things I thought would happen, but relief on her son’s face was not something that crossed my mind. Why the relief? And is that hope, I see?

I step out of the vehicle, Forrester and Wes both immediately on my heels. My mates both don’t trust this man when it comes to me, that much is clear. I do my best to push down my own discomfort and allow my magic to come to the surface.

The man is healthy by all accounts. He has some emotional pain, but it feels more like grief than trauma.

“You came,” the man says, putting his hands in his pockets and rocking back on his feet. “I’m Nick Hartfield, I’ve been looking forward to meeting you.”

Seeing Nick in person has the name Hartfield finally clicking in my head. “Do you have a sister?”

My question catches my mates off guard, yet Nick is unphased by it. In fact, it looks like he was expecting it.

“I do, and before you ask, yes, she is part of The Croises,” Nick answers flatly, his eyes shifting to the two men now growling beside me. “But we have nothing to do with her. For all she knows, both me and my mother are dead.”

I feel his grief when he answers and my shoulders drop as the tenseness leaves. He hates that she’s there and he mourns for her as if she were dead. I nod my head to his answer and give him a soft smile to let him know I don’t hold that against him.

“May we come in?” I ask, thankful Forr and Wes seem to be letting me lead this. I can feel them bristling behind me, but they’re trusting me and that’s all I can ask of them right now.

“Of course. My mother is waiting for you,” Nick responds then pauses. “I do feel I should warn you that my mother has been through a lot and it may be a bit shocking when you see her.”

“That’s quite alright. I’m thankful she wants to speak to us when I know it must be incredibly difficult for her,” I answer and walk up to him with confidence.

Going from fear and anxiety to this confidence and empathy must be confusing for Wes and Forr, but I wouldn’t be able to explain it to them if they asked. My healing magic has a way of driving my instincts to act in accordance with what’s needed in the situation.

The doubt that was there before I was in the presence of Nick, and close to his mother, has disappeared. My magic innately seems to know that we’re not only safe, we’re exactly where we need to be.

Maybe it’s instinct, or maybe it’s divine guidance. Either way, I know deep in my soul that this is where I was always meant to end up. My peryton preens in agreement, bolstering my confidence even more.

We step inside the cozy cabin, the inside warm and lived in. There’s medical equipment around the place, however it doesn’t take away from the loving and inviting nature of the furniture and indoor decor.

“Talia,” Miranda murmurs in a raspy voice.

My head whips to the side, finding her propped in a chair by an electric fireplace. Her white hair is pulled back in a low ponytail, showing the scarring of her skin on her face. One eye is closed, the skin around it deformed by the scarring.

There’s an IV hooked into her right hand, while her left arm is completely gone. She is missing both legs from the knees down and is wrapped in a fluffy blanket, obscuring the rest of her.

“They did this to you,” I say in a soft whisper, a statement of fact not a question. Her pain wraps around me, but my magic slides off of it like oil on water. “Why? Why did they do this to you?”

“Come sit down. I promise I’ll answer all your questions, but we don’t have much time.”

I sit down on the part of the couch closest to her. Wes sits beside me while Forrester stays by the door, near where Nick is propped up against the wall, seemingly keeping an eye on him and the whole room.

“Is something wrong?” I ask, confused by her comment. There’s a weight to her words that tell me there’s more to the lack of time than just our trip here.

“It is nothing for you to worry about. I am dying and while I am glad I got to speak with you in person, I do wish I could have connected with you sooner. Such is the will of the goddess, however,” Miranda explains, her voice soft and raspy from damage I can now sense in her throat.

“That’s why my magic is falling away from you,” I respond, my heart pinching in my chest. “You can’t be healed.”

“No, I can’t. It is my time to go, but before I do,” Miranda explains, and motions to her son. “I will not be leaving you with nothing. I had my son scribe things for you, about your mother and father, the goddess, and the Croises. In case we can’t get through everything, I wanted you to still know it all.”

I nod, admiring her acceptance of death even when I wish I could offer her more.

“To answer your earlier question; yes, they did this to me.” Miranda uses her hand to motion to herself. “This is what they do to those that defy the order. I was a blind follower for far longer than I should have been. I did and saw many horrible things while I was there. I justified it as doing it for the greater good, but eventually I couldn’t do that anymore.

“Once the doubts started, they grew and grew until I couldn’t ignore them any longer. The day you were born was the day I finally rebelled. I became a doctor to bring life into this world, and instead I was bringing pain and death.”

“They did this to you because you wanted to leave?”

Miranda sighs and smiles at me. “When I saw you, I knew you were the closest thing to a God that any of them would ever see and I told you as much. I hoped that one day you would make them regret all the awful shit we were doing. I was going to try to stick it out longer as my kids were both still being held by the Croises. That evil bastard, Arthur Beaumont, overheard me talking to you and ordered my execution.”

“I’m so sorr—“

Miranda cuts me off with a grunt. “None of that. I let your mother die in that room after your birth and I did horrible things while I was with that group. There will be no sympathy coming from you. Not for me.”

Wes grips my hand beside me and I silently nod, a single tear slipping from my eye. I don’t brush it away, I let it fall for her, whether she wants it or not.

“I have found solace in the Goddess Adessa after she saved me from the brink of death,” Miranda continues. “She told me that one day I would need to pass on information to you, to tell you of your ancestors. To give you the information you need to find The Middle and to join with her to awaken The End.”

“To awaken The End?” I ask, my heart racing.

“That’s your role in this coming war. To awaken the dormancy of the shifter race which is how you will find The Middle. Once you have The Middle, you must awaken The End. The Champions of Adessa are the only ones that can end the tyranny that’s coming from Poliaris, The Croises, and the human race as a whole.”

“What?”

“This is why I wrote everything down,” Miranda grimaces. “There’s far more to this than meets the eye and not nearly enough time to cover it all. So, let’s do what we can, shall we?”

I look back at my mates with my mouth dropped open, the weight of the world suddenly heavier than ever on my shoulders. A god, a cult, and all humans against us?

How are we supposed to overcome this?

Can we overcome this?