Page 184 of House Ignis

"Come out, motherfucker." I stepped toward the forest line as fog began to roll in, thick and unnatural. My shields were up tight; I didn't need Asher to save me.

I lifted my hand toward the darkness, my flame brightening the trees, and a hand shot out of the mist and clamped onto my wrist. My fire extinguished instantly. A wet hiss crawled from the creature’s throat.

The grab was firm—cold.

. I looked up into dark eyes, and oh my gods, they were rimmed in vivid, bleeding red.

"Ava!" Aether growled and lunged forward. For a second, I thought I saw the glint of fangs, but the face was obscured by the swirling fog.

Pain shot up my arm as its grip tightened. Aether clawed at the thing, earning another vicious hiss.

While it was distracted, I slammed a second, concentrated burst of fire into its fingers. It screamed—a high, piercing sound—and let go. I stumbled back into the grass and the creature vanished into the mist.

"Aether!" I called into the dark. He burst out of the trees a moment later, panting, fur on end.

"I lost it," he said. "You okay?"

"Yeah," I breathed, my throat tight. I lit up the forest line again, but there was nothing but shadows. "What the fuck just happened? Those eyes... they were red, Aether. Just like in the journal."

Anxiety clawed at me.

The Veyari were real, and they were here.

"We need to get out of here," Aether growled.

We ran through the Academy's back paths toward House Ignis, my heart jackhammering against my ribs.

I rounded the final corner and slammed into something solid.

Warm hands grabbed me, arms locking around my ribs.

Panic flared. I bit down hard on the arm holding me.

“Aaah! Ava, what the fuck?” he swore, the familiar voice cutting through the dark.

The scent hit me before I stopped struggling. Pure, unrelenting shadow. I froze. The voice softened near my ear. "Breathe."

My shoulders started to unclench. I closed my eyes, the adrenaline finally ebbing away.

"There we go," he breathed, and my body eased into him like I'd been found in a storm.

He spun me toward him, and I came up into silver eyes that were searching mine with a terrifying intensity.

"How—how did you find me?" I stammered, the journal and the red-eyed creature tangling in my head.

Asher's brows drew together, calculation settling into his features.

“Why wouldn’t I?” His brows drew together. “I can feel you, remember?”

"Oh—yeah. Sorry. We were spooked." I forced a laugh that sounded too high, too brittle.

He blinked, looking slightly amused. "You okay? Because you bit me," he said, half-smirking, half-challenging.

"Yeah. Sorry. A rogue wolf boundling spooked us on the path." I smiled, trying to be casual. “Aether went after it, but we lost it in the trees.”

Disapproval hissed through my bond with Aether, but I kept my face smooth.

"And where is it now?" Asher raised one brow.