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By enacting a damned risky plan.
One she only shared with Elara.
Now, as they stand before a large, abandoned farmhouse, Elara sighs. Dinah assured that as time passes, her strength will restore. Once again, Kade has no choice but to trust her.
Laith hovers nearby, setting Kade’s teeth on edge. Kira isn’t far away, and if the guy doesn’t figure things out fast, he’s going to lose the woman who’s far more than any of them realized.
Especially when the war has only just started. The shifters won't stop now that they know exactly what the Arthurians are capable of. The wolves will come for them too, and who knows whether that will end peacefully or with blood shed.
Kade has to resist the irrational urge to pick Elara up and run as fast as he can. The direction won’t matter, just the distance. The more between her and the evil that’s coming, the better.
It’s only one piece of information that stops him.
One kernel of knowledge that’s kept him silent since the moment they left the cave.
Dinah drags Samara inside the house, and they follow. Upstairs, she throws her mother onto the dirty floor of an old bedroom as she begins to chant softly. Another spell.
"What are you doing?" Elara asks. Kade can feel a slight tug at his own energy and he wonders if she feels it, too.
Dinah spreads salt across the entrance to the room. Samara bellows curses at them that do nothing, unable to even walk within a foot of the line of salt without being thrown back into the room by some invisible force.
"She can't escape,” Dinah says, the words thick with satisfaction. “There’s the salt, but there’s also a spell of illusion. If anyone other than myself or you three try to find this room, it’ll disappear. The house will fold around it, and no one will be able to see, hear, or find Samara. That way, none of our enemies stand a chance of getting her back."
Even Kade has to admit that’s brilliant.
"Why keep her alive?" Kira wonders out loud.
"She’s useful for information,” Dinah says with a shrug, as if she isn’t talking about her own flesh and blood. “Samara's been on the other side, likely watching things from afar. If I can get her to talk, we could gain information to defeat the shifters or find Excalibur."
Elara shudders and Kade knows she realizes what Dinah’s not saying—what she’s willing to do to get that information. Or that Dinah’s more than happy to do it. She wants her mother to suffer.
Dinah ushers them back to the main room of the farmhouse, a cozy living room set up with a fireplace. Despite being abandoned, it still has some homely touches. "What is this place?" Elara asks.
"This farmhouse once belonged to a powerful witch named Blaise. It was passed down to Reign, who now shares the place with Arielle," Dinah answers.
“So, there's the connection,” Elara murmurs. “You were telling the truth about being an ally of Arielle's all along.”
"Reign and Arielle used this as their lair to confront the Sins and lead a mission to close the Gates of Hell," Dinah says, arching a brow as if her honesty is something that shouldn’t be questioned. "The two of them have a house in the city now. They seldom come here, so they’re allowing us to use this place. Everything we need to fight this war with the shifters is right here for us."
Dinah smirks, and Kade wonders what all secrets this place houses. He turns away from the witch, acknowledging Dinah is someone he’ll continue to watch. There's still a darkness in her, even if she's channeling it to help them.
With Samara safely imprisoned, Kade finally allows himself to step away from Elara. He wanders into the kitchen and stands beside the timber bench, gazing through a window overlooking a cottage garden. A cookbook lies open, the recipe for cinnamon bagels on the page.
“Kade?”
He turns, not surprised to find Elara approaching him. For the first time, he allows the sweet sensation of his name on her lips to wash through him, unhindered. To savor it.
He finally understands why.
All the signs were there from the beginning. The undeniable tether drawing them closer and closer.
His inability to stay away, no matter how hard he tried. Even when he thought he was defying the prophecy he’d sworn his life to.
Laith’s turning, but lack of connection to her. All because he’s Arthurian, but isn’t royalty. Not when Kira’s descended from Morgana, and Elara’s descended from Arthur.
Which means…
Kade opens his arms, no longer fighting the feelings that awoke within him the moment he laid eyes on Elara. She blinks, clearly surprised, but then moves faster than he expected. She sails into his arms like a boat that’s found home.
