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Burton.
He bellows before we can take the information in, anger echoing around us as the rocks shake. One little move from him and the shadows seem to panic, and a moment later, we’re being transported again. Darkness swarms us for a brief second before Marieta and Peta’s home comes into view.
I feel breathless without even doing anything.
Spinning, I try to garner the attention of one of the shadows, but they disappear before I can even try, leaving me frustrated and helpless once again.
“What now?” Creed asks, planting his hands on his hips as his head hangs with the same deflation I feel.
“I think the Potens Ruby could help break us free from here,” Marieta thinks out loud, and Peta drapes his arm around her.
“Maybe,” he offers, guiding her back toward the house. Without a word, the three of us follow after them.
“All we can do is wait for Raven and Brax to get here. They’re our hope,” Eldon states, and I nod in agreement. The countdown continues to tick down.
Hurry, Dove. The end seems to be drawing near, and I have to be by your side when it comes.
EIGHTEEN
RAVEN
Ibarely make it over the threshold before Brax kicks the door shut with a bang, effectively blocking us off from the rest of the campus. I drop my backpack on the closest sofa and heave a heavy sigh as I plant my hands on my hips.
Today has been a whirlwind, and it’s barely lunchtime.
“We need to act sooner rather than later,” Brax states, speaking my thoughts out loud, and I nod. “We can’t keep waiting around.”
“I agree. After today, fuck, this morning, we need to get this moving along. Now.”
Glancing in his direction, I catch his nod, his stance a replica of mine. Silence descends over us as we stare at one another, chests rising and falling rapidly from the comedown of another run-in with Erikel. Or whoever the fuck he is.
I’m exhausted from trying to figure that out, nevermind any of the actual physical strain we’re under. Refusing to weaken or lose sight of what’s important, I give myself one second longer to gather myself before I set into motion.
Digging into my bag, I find the binder Sebastian gave me earlier this morning. It’s weighed down my backpack since the moment it came into my possession. Now, with the opportunity to actually delve inside the pages, it’s lighter. Like knowing of its presence added to its weight when I couldn’t actually get my hands on it.
“Let’s see if this has anything to offer.”
Brax eliminates the distance between us, engulfing my waist with his huge hands. I’m off my feet before I can process it, clutching the binder to my chest. My back ends up pressed against his chest as he lowers to sit on the sofa. “If not, I get full permission to off Sebastian with no repercussions,” he breathes against the shell of my ear.
A shiver runs down my spine as I glance over my shoulder at him with a quirked eyebrow. It takes everything in me to ignore the feel of his steel thighs beneath me, the outline of his cock that sits prominently between my ass cheeks. All the while, the smirk on his face doesn’t falter.
“And if I say no?”
The darkness deepens in his eyes as his smirk grows. “You’re assuming I’m asking for permission.”
My jaw grows slack as I gape at him, too stunned to find any kind of response before he reaches for the binder, perusing the pages without another word.
Fucker.
Our attention is quickly drawn to the sheets of paper and the cursive text that awaits us. Shuffling in Brax’s lap, we both gain a better view of the text. I reach out, glossing my fingertip over the aged pages.
It’s overwhelming at first, and to add to that, it’s as though the language is… different. Everything makes sense but with an extra E here and there or an unnecessary ST at the end of a word.
The first four sheets mean nothing at all. I can’t even decipher what the words are referring to. The frown on Brax’s face makes me assume he feels the same. Turning to the next page, I still when all that greets us is a charcoal handprint.
No words.
No gibberish.
