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“I had hold of him, but something from the other side was stronger—while we didn’t see any hands, I guarantee you, there was something holding on to him. We played tug-of-war, but then he slipped out of my grasp. He didn’t run through that portal on his own—he was yanked in. He might have been drawn to it, but he didn’t go willingly.”
Chase’s scream echoed in my ears. “Great Mother, what took him?”
Trillian shook his head. “I don’t know. But whatever it was, it was big and mean and felt old as the world itself.” He gave me a long look. “I tried to hold him, Camille. I tried.” A broken look crossed his face. Trillian held no real love for Chase, but he would never have willingly let go.
“I know.” I pressed my hand to his cheek and kissed him softly. “We have to find out what this thing is . . . was. And why it opened up here.”
Delilah stared at the sparkles as they scattered, dissipating. Tears streamed down her face. “Oh, Chase . . . is he . . . do you think he’s dead?”
I swallowed the rising bitterness that rolled in my stomach. “I don’t know. We can only pray he’s okay.”
Smoky and Shade stared somberly at the spot.
Smoky let out a soft growl. “What next? How do we even hope to find him?”
I bit my lip. “Delilah’s right. We bring in Aeval. Ask her to suss out the energy. She’s our only hope. I’m to pledge to her Court in less than a week. And remember: She owes me a favor for breaking her free from the crystal in the cave. I’ll call in my marker, ask her to help us with this.”
“That’s a big marker to give up.” Smoky slid his arm around my shoulders. “Are you sure you want to do that?”
“We can’t just let Chase get swallowed up by . . . whatever that is. Was. Yeah, I think we have to get the Triple Threat involved.”
Delilah nodded. “When will you go talk to them?”
The urgency in her voice made me wonder—could she still have feelings for the detective? But I knew the answer. Of course she did, and always would. But her love for him was different now—that of a dearly beloved friend, a brother. He was no longer her lover. And I felt the same way. Chase was part of our extended family. And family wasn’t disposable, contrary to what my father thought.
“Tonight. I’m exhausted, but this can’t wait. Don’t wait up for me. I’ll go alone. The Triple Threat have no love for Smoky, and I don’t think they want a stranger on their land, Shade.”
“I’ll come with you.” Delilah glanced at me, her eyes flashing. “Don’t even say no.”
“All right. Trillian, can you drive Smoky and Shade home in the Jeep? We’ll take my Lexus.”
“As you wish, my sweet.” Trillian motioned to the two dragons, and they turned to go. Delilah tossed him the keys, and then we watched as they vanished into the snowbound night. I’d been surprised when I found out he’d quietly gone off and gotten his license with no problem. Trillian was an excellent driver, but he had a thirst for speed.
I turned back to the area around where the portal had been. “You okay, Kitten?” A glance at her showed she was still crying.
“Yeah, I’m okay, but Chase . . . did it kill him?” She closed her eyes and I could tell she was searching, hoping to find some sense that he was still around. I lightly touched her on the arm.
“Let’s go. We can’t help him by just standing here.” Reluctantly, I turned and she followed me, her head down. As we jogged back to the car, I kept thinking that if Chase hadn’t drunk the Nectar of Life, he might not be in this predicament.
Yes, but he’d be dead, a voice inside whispered. And would that be any better?
“Perhaps,” I whispered beneath my breath. Because what I’d sensed on the other side of the portal was old beyond reckoning, and the elder forces of the Earth could be terribly fierce. “Just perhaps.”
The drive out to the compound took us half an hour in the blowing snow, and I gave a breath of thanks that Morio had insisted I get snow tires on the Lexus. The thought of him home, still hurting, rankled. But he was healing up and would be good to go within a couple of months. The attack from the hungry ghosts had left him weakened, and regaining life force was a lot harder than just regaining physical health. Hungry ghosts sucked out life energy, and there was no quick fix for regaining that.
Keeping him and Menolly apart had been a chore in itself. They’d bonded when Sharah used some of Menolly’s blood to keep Morio from dying, and like it or not, the two had a thing for each other now. Both had been very conscientious about not staying in the same room alone together, but I feared it would only get worse once Morio grew stronger. The tension when they were together drove me nuts. It wasn’t that I was terribly jealous—if they ended up sleeping together, fine. I could handle that even though I’d prefer they didn’t. But I had to admit to myself, I didn’t want him in love with her. And right now, I wasn’t sure just what he felt beyond the lust.
And I—I had my own secrets. Secrets that could lead Smoky to murder. I’d had no choice at the time—or rather, the only other option I’d had was worse than the fate I’d chosen. However you sliced it, this Solstice promised to be less than merry at our house.
As I navigated the ice and snow, Delilah stared out the window. “So tell me about Iris. What happened? And don’t give me any bull. Of course she needs to tell me herself, but you were there. What went on?”
I bit my lip. We’d been gone only a few days, but it seemed like a lifetime. “She found Vikkommin. Or rather, what was left of him. Apparently . . . it’s a long story, Delilah, and I don’t feel like talking about it. But she proved . . . she won back her right to have children. She was responsible, but there were extenuating circumstances.”
Delilah let out a long sigh. “She’s powerful, our Iris.”
“More powerful than you know, and the powers they stripped away from her are returning. Everyone thinks of house sprites as cute, winsome little creatures who exist to be cleaning machines, but they’re so very wrong. Iris could probably level the three of us if she were mad enough. I don’t ever want to see her have to use her powers the way she did against Vikkommin. It nearly destroyed her the first time.”
“But she’s free now? To marry Bruce?”
