Jax seemed to realize the same thing. Because after our celebrations finally calmed and reality set in for what Saroly had done, he commanded her to destroy the magic she’d infused into it.
Removing its potent magic wasn’t as easy as it’d been for her to unlock it. Sweat soon lined her forehead, and magic rolled from her in continued waves. Her cupped hands remained around the collar for much longer than they’d been around my neck.
But eventually, a clash of magic shook the walls around us, and the collar evaporated. It happened in a clang of power, as though a bolt of lightning shot from the skies, and in one blinding moment, its magic was destroyed, and the collar was obliterated.
When the energy calmed, only the gemstone remained, the purple jewel bouncing along the table until the energy diffused completely. But it remained a loose rock, looking entirely harmless, even though it was one of the deadliest jewels created in our lands.
But the amount of energy it took Saroly to fulfill such a task made the magnitude of the collar’s might hit me anew. And to think I’d been wearing that thing for twenty-three summers.
Before anyone could say anything further, the door banged open, and Archon Oniville appeared. Face pale, her gaze sought Norivun’s.
She bowed quickly. “I’ve just come from our vault, and I . . . I . . .”
“Spit it out,” Trivan growled.
She bowed again. “I’m so sorry, but you were right. All of the rhifilyte gemstones in our vault that were harvested several months ago and over the seasons...” She gulped. “They’re all gone. Someone had cast a glamour over their container to make it look as though they were all present, so when routine accounting was done, it didn’t appear that anything was amiss, and”—her face paled even more—“I’m so sorry. As the archon here, I’m entirely responsible for?—”
“Are the other gems in the vaults accounted for?” Norivun cut her off. “Have more been stolen?”
The archon bowed. “We’re doing a thorough inventory right now, and I’ve called a spellcaster to come in to ensure no glamours or illusions remain. I’ll return when I know more.” She quickly fled the room.
Norivun growled low in his throat, and his cool gaze met Saroly’s.
But the fairy only faced him straight-on. The fear she first exuded when she entered this room was now entirely absent.
“We’ll get to the other missing gems in a minute,” Norivun finally said. “Adarian? Would you like to continue?”
Seething, Jax shoved a hand into his pocket. He pulled out my guardian’s adaptor. “Destroy this too.”
Spiteful eyes met Jax’s when he tossed the adaptor her way. But Jax’s face was carved stone. Unyielding rock. There was no mercy in his expression as he gazed down at Saroly.
Hissing, Saroly grabbed the adaptor.
It took her just as long, but the same clash of magic eventually shook the room, booming like thunder. Finally, the adaptor was destroyed too, leaving only the small rhifilyte gem it’d held bouncing along the table.
Two loose gemstones now sat before us, but nobody dared touch them.
“And now Bastian,” Jax said in a cold, hard voice.
“I give my permission to have him brought back here, even though his identity hasn’t been verified.” Norivun’s wings tightened. “If the receptionist gives you any trouble, notify me.”
Jax signaled Phillen, and the guard left the room. Only minutes later, he returned with the half-breed dangled over his shoulder and Bowan, Lars, and Norivun’s four guards in tow.
I still didn’t know if Norivun knew that Bastian was Jax’s brother, and considering the bargain I made with Phillen’s wife, Saramel, I couldn’t ask him outright. I made a mental note to ask Jax to relieve me of that bargain once we were home, since he was the only one who could do so given the bargain’s conditions. We’d been so busy recently that the thought hadn’t even occurred to me.
“Where do you want him?” Phillen lumbered into the room.
Jax pointed to the table. “Lay him down here.”
Saroly’s lips thinned when she caught sight of the anklet around the half-breed’s ankle.
Phillen carefully lowered Bastian, and Lars and Bowan jumped in to help straighten his limbs and support his antler rack. Despite that, Bastian’s large antlers knocked against the table’s surface, creating a tinny sound that rang through the room.
Once Jax’s brother was supine and appeared relatively comfortable, Jax returned his attention to the metalwork fairy.
“Did you create his anklet?”
I could have sworn Jax held his breath after weaving his Mistvale magic around her.
