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“They’re coming,” Brax states, and I follow his line of sight. I still come up empty-handed, but he’s right; we’re not going to be alone for much longer.
“You need to leave, Dove. Now,” Zane states, firmer this time, as my heart tightens in my chest.
I know I have to, I know I do, but fuck… saying it and doing it are two completely different things. I don’t know if I’m capable of it.
“Raven, we need to move,” Brax declares, like it wasn’t already hard enough to hear the words come from Zane.
My eyes fall closed, the world drifting to darkness around me as my soul bleeds out where I stand. Searching deep for strength that I know I don’t have right now hurts, but I find a semblance of something and I tug at it with all of my abilities.
I have to go. I have to say goodbye. Only for now. Not for forever. Never for forever.
Blinking my eyes open, I scan over my three men who are just out of arm’s reach.
“It’s going to be okay, Dove. We’re going to figure this all out,” Zane murmurs, warming my heart, and I nod.
“I need you to keep each other safe and keep a tally going for every time he’s an asshole so I can pay him back eventually,” Eldon states, wagging his finger between Brax and me, and the corner of my mouth tips up.
“Be strong, Raven. Be who you are, and we will work from both ends to try and figure this out as quickly as possible,” Creed adds, and as much as my heart breaks at the distance between us, I take the strength they’re offering and bask in it.
With a nod, I relax my shoulders and take a step back with Brax, who moves to my side. The words that have burned the tip of my tongue for so long need to be known, need to be heard, need to be tasted.
My lips part. “I?—”
Movement flickers and green swoops before my very eyes before I find myself staring at the cave wall. It takes a second for me to realize the doorway has closed between us. My men are gone. I reach for the handle, just like last time, but it’s no longer there. All that greets my palm is the stone wall of the cold, damp cave.
No green. No shimmering emeralds. No glimpse of hope.
Ripped away in an instant, my heart shatters into a million pieces as my knees give out and I fall to the floor. I don’t meet the ground, though, not on Brax’s watch. His arm bands around my waist, holding me off the dirt in one swift move.
I curl into his hold as he turns me so I can tuck my face into his neck, but it doesn’t stop the sound of others approaching.
I need to pull myself together and quickly. I can’t give anything away. But I’m sure the absence of Eldon, Zane, and Creed will be noted instantly.
Fuck.
“I don’t know how I’m going to do this,” I rasp, clinging to Brax like my life depends on it.
“Of course you do, Shadow. You’re the glue holding everything together, even now. Your strength is incomparable, and for Eldon, Creed, and Zane, I know you will do everything in your power to keep them safe.”
“And you,” I breathe, leaning back to meet his gaze. One brown. One green. One smile.
“And me,” he repeats, lowering me to the ground when he’s certain I’m not going to fall again.
The moment the soles of my shoes hit the floor, noise erupts around us. Erikel and his men appear through a darkened tunnel that forms in midair. I gape in surprise at the fact that they’re bypassing the way we got in here and manipulating everything around them.
My anger is instantly at the forefront of my mind again, desperate to be unleashed on this motherfucker and his damn followers. His dark eyes settle on me and I force myself to remain as calm and collected as possible.
“Where is it?” he snaps, wagging a finger in my direction as he prowls toward me, his fur cloak dragging behind him.
“Where’s what?”
“Don’t play games with me, Raven.” My eyebrows pinch in confusion as I try to understand what game he’s referring to. “Where. Is. It?” he repeats, coming to a stop a few yards away. Brax adjusts his stance slightly so he’s in front of me without blocking my view of the enemy.
“You’re really going to have to spit it out, Erikel. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“The Potens Ruby. I want it. Now.”
Understanding washes over me. The mention of what we were actually summoned here for comes flooding back to me.
