Ambrose
The trail of blood stops in front of Lumi like I knew it would. I begged it to choose me. To choose Nyx. Anyone but her. But of course, she’s the one guaranteed to be in the mating pair. Of course, the gods would choose her over either of us.
I tighten my grip on her hand, like I can somehow keep her with me. Or go with her.
But one second she’s here, the next gone.
My hand closes into a tight fist. Maybe if I grip harder, I’ll find her hand in mine. She’s simply gone, though. Gone to the gods.
I have no doubt that’s where she is. This isn’t a trick. Isolde didn’t send her anywhere else. She’s with the gods. And somehow, that’s more terrifying than anything else.
I should focus on Isolde, on the vampire king. On a way to kill them before Lumi returns. But the blood is moving again, in the opposite direction.
I can’t take my eyes off of it.
It’s moving fast and slow at the same time. There’s a sinking in my heart, a gut feeling that tells me exactly where that blood is going. I don’t accept it.
I have to stop it. I can’t let it take the only person in this world who I love and who actually loves me back at the moment.
I’m about to move when lightning cracks, sending Lumi barrelling down onto the ground in the same spot she was taken. She was only gone a second, maybe two. Not enough time for the gods to be useful to her.
Nyx managed to move in the two seconds she was gone. I track his shadowy movements right to the spot where the blood is headed.
I lunge for Lumi, trying to help her to her feet. To check her over and make sure she’s not hurt. But she’s on her feet before I move an inch toward her.
“Well done, now tell us what you learned? Who is your true mate?” Isolde asks, practically giddy.
“I will never tell you anything I learned,” Lumi says, her voice booming, her confidence unwavering.
Isolde doesn’t wait—she blasts her magic at Lumi, swift, brutal. The kind of power that will overwhelm Lumi, making it impossible for her to withstand.
I jump into Lumi’s mind, desperate to try to help her build a wall to keep Isolde out before she completely fries what’s left of her mind. But I know it’s not possible. There is nothing I can do to help her.
“She’s not getting in,”Lumi says confidently.
I almost tumble out of her mind at her voice. I have no idea how she’s speaking. She shouldn’t be able to. That doesn’t mean Isolde hasn’t caused damage.
I search frantically, but I don’t find any inkling of Isolde in her mind. Instead, I find a shield of pure snow and ice. One that Isolde should have been able to melt through, but it’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen. It’s not melting. It’s not bending. Not breaking. She’s not in agony trying to keep the shield up. She’s solid.
“Incredible,”I tell her. I have no idea how she’s doing it. Even with my full strength and ability to tap into my powers, I wouldn’t be able to keep Isolde completely out. And she seems to be doing it with ease.
Isolde pulls her magic back, a deep scowl on her face.
“Calling a meeting with the gods was foolish of you when you don’t have a mark that allows you to speak to them,” Lumi holds up her hand with the snowflake on it.
“You’re a witch,” Isolde says, suddenly figuring it out.
Lumi laughs. “I have magic, but that doesn’t make me a witch.”
“You can hate that you’re a witch all you want, but it doesn’t make you less of one. And when the curses catch up to you, you’ll be begging me for help to figure out how to break them,” Isolde says.
“You’re the last person I want help from,” Lumi says.
Horror breaks out in the crowd as panic causes them to stampede. And our eyes snap to the blood trail.
It’s moving fast now, almost reaching its final destination.
I hold my breath.