Page 37 of The Bonds of Indigo

“A smart, stupid girl. It’d be hot, but…” I trail off. There’s no point in finishing that thought.

Her head turns just enough for me to catch the edge of her profile in the moonlight. “You’re going to have to try harder to hurt my feelings, Butcher.”

Then she stumbles forward, catching herself on a branch with a sharp exhale.

“Watch your step.”

“Watch your step,” she mocks under her breath. “Excuse me for not having extraordinary, see-in-the-dark eyesight like some Dylox.”

She puts her hands out in front of her as she moves up a small incline, slower now but with more control. The moonlight barely filters through the trees, yet somehow she’s still managing to navigate better than most mortals would.

“There it is.”

I see it before she says anything. There’s an opening, like a small meadow that is free of trees blocking the moon. Something happened there, because the floor is scarred with burned ash and tarnished soil.

She steps into the center of the area. I can hear a creek off to our right, close enough she probably can too. To our left there is just more forest, and of course behind us would be where the road was. If we kept going, I think we’d hit the lake, but equally maybe more trees.

This isn’t too far from Mundane and Dylox activity. Had someone reported it?

“Can you tell if it opened from their side or ours?” I ask as I move slowly into the clearing.

Amarah lifts the dark blue dress she changed into at the gas station and lowers herself to her knees. “This one opened from the Beyond. You can tell by the markings. The stripes that end in a pointed tip indicate it ripped outward, not inward. Think about punching through a piece of paper; the tears flare in the direction you exit.”

Makes sense.

“Of course it does.”

“Huh?”

She quickly shakes her head and clears her throat. “Of course it does depend on the force. How big these markings are. This was a small opening, which means nothing likely came through. At least… not anything big.”

Her hands flatten against the dirt as she leans forward, threading her fingers through it. Then she starts whispering. The words tumble out in no real pattern that makes sense. “Vendra.” “Grant me your energy.” Then more fragments, half phrases, unfinished thoughts.

“Gates to the Beyond…”

I glance around us. Nothing moves, nothing stirs, but the way her voice sounds, low and pleading, sets something uneasy crawling up my spine.

“Come on… please…” Her tone cracks, so soft it’s almost a breath. I turn back to her. “Why aren’t you answering me?”

She bends forward until her forehead nearly touches the ground. The wind stills, like even the air is listening.

“I know it’s not my fault… It’s not.” Her voice doesn’t grow louder, yet somehow it’s closer, like I can hear it echo inside my head. “Why can’t I hear you? I’m sorry… I’m… trying.”

Her chin lifts slowly and when our eyes meet, I swear I feel something press against my chest. A ripple of power that isn’t mine.

“She’s not ready to reconnect with me, it would seem,” she murmurs.

“Something tells me apologizing to a God for killing over a hundred kids just doesn’t cut it these days.” Crossing my arms, I lean my weight to one side, keeping my gaze fixed on her.

She sighs and sits back on her calves. “She doesn’t want an apology.”

“Clearly.”

“You know—” She doesn’t finish before something rustles in the bushes to her right. In a blur of motion I can’t stop, a shadow launches and tackles her to the ground.

“Shit!”

I lunge forward to help, and another thing barrels straight at me—eyes burning crimson, fur black as night, jaws sharper than any wolf’s, that snap at my arm.