“Jael?” I hadn’t seen the Seelie prince since I’d interviewed him at Illuminae right after Sophie’s murder, and seeing him here in Raven’s Cape, standing on my sister’s front porch like some kind of Halloween trick-or-treater… It was so out of context I didn’t know what the hell to do next. I was literally frozen, staring at him with my mouth open, my hand still tightly gripping my gun.
“It wasn’t supposed to be like this, Detective Alvarez,” he said. “Not for any of us.”
I scrutinized his face, noting the concern in his eyes. He was telling the truth.
I stepped back, inviting him inside and quickly introducing my sister.
“What brings you all the way out here?” Elena asked.
“As much as I hate human colloquialisms,” Jael said, “I’m afraid your brother has just kicked the hornet’s nest.”
Thirty-Three
Gray
Using Sophie’s dagger, Ronan sliced open his palm, squeezing blood onto the ground at the edge of the forest not far from the pool. The soft whisper of his demonic incantations floated on the breeze, making the blood glow a bright, blazing orange.
He knelt down and pressed his palm flat against the ground.
Light blasted outward from his touch, and the portal flickered into view in front of us, a great swirling hole that glowed the same blazing shade as his blood.
“There she is. The way home.” Ronan got to his feet and cleaned the dagger, then handed it back to me.
Sliding it back into the sheath I’d strapped to my thigh, I said, “So that’s it? You guys just… step into the light?”
I peered inside, mesmerized. There was no beginning, no end. Only light. Infinite, blazing light.
“Precisely.” Darius put a firm hand on my shoulder. “But I’d feel much better if you took a few steps back, love.”
I did as he asked, rubbing a sudden chill from my arms. I didn’t want to get sucked into the hell portal—not when I was so close to getting back to my own realm.
“Gray, the gate is ready,” Liam called. “The runes are in full view.”
We joined him at the pool, the portal in full view. Beneath the water, my rune gate pulsed lightly, stirring the magic inside me. It felt like a ball of energy in my chest, and I took a deep breath, willing it to expand. To fill me.
The same blue orbs burst to life on my palms, and I laughed, feeling lighter and hopeful. We were really doing this.
The water swirled with color and starlight, just like it had yesterday. I dipped my glowing hands in briefly, then pulled back, watching the water spin into its lazy whirlpool. Moments later, it began to drain, revealing the stone archway that would lead us into my realm.
“Are you sure you want to go first?” I asked Liam.
“I must,” he said. “But I promise I’ll be waiting for you on the other side. Once we reunite there, we’ll need to shut it so nothing follows you through.”
I nodded, remembering his warning about the memory eaters and feeding time. I didnotwant one of those beasts slipping into my magic place.
“Then I guess this is goodby,” I said. “For now.”
I pulled Liam into a quick hug, but he held on a beat longer. When we finally broke apart, he looked into my eyes for one last moment, as if he were trying to memorize my face. He opened his mouth and took a breath, but then closed it.
The water had completely drained. The magic faded from my hands.
Without another word, Liam turned and climbed onto the stones surrounded the pool.
Then he jumped, vanishing into the depths.
“You’re next, vampire,” Ronan said.
“Gray should go next,” Darius said. “I want to be sure she gets through.”
