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My jagged magic soothed as I stared at the swath of true, sable darkness. A shadow far too dark to cut between these trees. A darkness as old as the world itself.
"Hey, Busty," I said with a casual nod of greeting. "How's it going?"
He couldn't talk to me; all he could do from wherever he existed now was watch. But apparently he still had enough power left to influence the shadows on Earth. Wait, no, in Hell. Fuck, I was losing track of where we were.
Wyn was still freaked out; he pulled me back several steps, a low sound in his throat that reminded me of Harvey. "Stay away from us. This is your only warning."
I could just picture the withering look Erebus would give my mate. I squeezed Wyn's arm and said, "This is my friend; he's cool. Not a threat."
But what was he doing here? Was he here to deliver an ominous, albeit wordless warning? That was very on brand.
Wynvail relaxed in increments. The fact he didn't slice the shadow apart with his moonlight was testament to how much he trusted me.
The back door slammed open behind us, and the rest of my mates and Verena rushed out, panicked, protective, and—in Verena's case—confused as fuck.
"I'm fine," I assured them. "I'm in control of my magic now."
Em blew out a rough breath, stalking over to me and dropping a kiss on my head before stepping back, knowing full well he'd get trampled if he didn't let the rest of my mates touch me.
"Are you okay?" Kai demanded, knocking Wynvail aside so he could drag me into a hug. "What the hell happened in there?"
"Just a nightmare," I soothed him, lifting my hand so Harvey could hold my hand. His shoulders slumped, and his eyes closed for a long moment before he held eye contact, silently asking if I was okay. Whatever he saw in my gaze calmed him enough that he didn’t fight Kai for the right to hug me.
"Kai," I murmured, pulling away from my octopus-level-clingy mate with effort, searching until I found Wane's turbulent silver stare.
"I'm alright," I told him, smiling when his soul rushed against mine, seeking, checking, urgent. His gaze slid from me to the slice of darkness between the trees, acutely aware of its wrongness, but he pulled me close and laid a slow kiss on my lips despite the other presence in our back garden.
Verena was worried enough that she didn't make gagging sick noises while we kissed.
"Who is it?" Wane asked quietly, his lips brushing my ear.
"Erebus," I replied, turning my face to kiss his cheek before I stepped back, catching his hand and reaching for Harvey's, too. "Guys, that suspicious looking patch of shadows over there is my friend." I caught Kai's gaze with a smile. "Say hi to Erebus, the first shadow."
Kai's legs gave out; he sucked in a sharp breath, staring at the darkness. "How the fuck…?" he whispered, barely audible.
My mind conjured the image of a very smug looking Erebus, content with his impressive celebrity status. But he wasn't here for a social call.
"Are you here to warn us?" I asked, my nightmare rising to the surface of my brain again. A premonition? "Should we—avoid going to the prison?"
Avoid saving my friend. Fuck, it was hard to even contemplate it.
"You're talking to a shadow," Verena said under her breath, hanging close to Emlyn.
The shadow stretched further across the ground, but I didn't know what he was trying to tell me.
"Wane, can you speak to him in a secret shadow way?" I asked desperately.
My mate shook his head, his eyes wide. "Shadows don't speak, itzaia."
Alright, then. I was out of other ideas.
I squeezed their hands and let go. "Don't panic; I'll be fine."
And before they could say anything, I hot-footed it across the ground and stepped into the swath of shadow.
CHAPTER 24
Erebus didn't speak to me, didn't offer helpful platitudes or words of wisdom. He replayed our last conversation through a crackle of static like a record player, and a deep frown cut between my brows as my ears filled with the sound of his voice.
