Chapter 34
Nightmares plagued Jacinda’s sleep once they finally finished practicing magic. She couldn’t get Thanatos out of her mind, but she had no good direction for him. And maybe he couldn’t find her behind the wards, but she couldn’t stay there forever.
Chatan soothed her every time she bolted out of bed. The comfort didn’t last. Maybe it was because she summoned the image, maybe because she shared the story. She spent most of her time avoiding thoughts of Thanatos.
By dawn, she gave up on sleep and moved to the couch with her father’s journal. She kept reading it. There was nothing about what to do with the gift. Nothing at all.
She needed to go to the pillar where she could hear her father’s voice and ask him. It was the only way. And maybe she needed someone to watch over her.
Chatan was the only choice, of course. But would he encourage another trip? Last time could have been bad, but then again, if he had been with her, maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad.
There was no good choice. Go without him and cause him to worry. Tell him and make him worry. Or take him and let him worry with her right there.
He knelt beside her. “Can’t sleep?”
“Pulling up those images left me with nightmares about him. That’s how we know he’s on the search for one of us.” She rolled to her side. “Or maybe, it was me sharing the story that left me with nightmares this time because I don’t sense a direction. Usually I sense where he might be. It makes running easier. Though we’re all caught eventually.”
“Why do you seem like you’ve given up?”
“I haven’t. My mom worried me last night. She’s never like that. I just wonder if she saw something I couldn’t.”
He swept his fingers through her hair. “What do you want to do?”
“Visit the pillar. I hear my father’s voice there, I see him. Like part of him is still there. I need to ask if he knows what to do with Dove and Hawk because he didn’t write about what to do.”
“Maybe he didn’t know.”
“But then how did he know I needed them?”
“I don’t know, but get dressed, and we’ll go there first.”
She gulped. “I’m probably going to pass out.”
He smiled. “Then you’ll pass out and I’ll make sure the asshole brigade doesn’t come looking for you. But no one has seen Mason in a couple days. Maybe Josephine got tired of her pets and killed him when she took the other guys’ memories.”
“That’s grim,” she said.
“Maybe, but I wouldn’t miss the bastard. Come on, get ready. We’ll go there, then breakfast, even if we’re late. Besides, my aunt has some news she won’t simply tell me.”
“Want to do breakfast first?”
He shook his head. “No, too early yet. We’ll go to the pillar first, and maybe you’ll finally be willing to get some rest.”
She smiled. “All right, you’re on.”
* * * *
At the pillar, Jacinda knelt before it, closed her eyes, and slipped away from him. Her body was there, but she went between the realms, out of this one.
He sat down beside her and dug out his phone since she didn’t move. She was as still as a statue.
Dad answered after a single ring. “Chatan, I’d been hoping to hear from you. Sounds like you found your dove again. Did she unlock your magic?”
“Slow down. I have questions. Did you know her father?”
“Tyrell Lavelle. One of my closest friends. He was a smart man. Healer, shifter, his blood is even more mixed than yours. He loved his wife and his little girl more than anything and led Thanatos away. Your mother found him, tried to stop Thanatos from slaying him, and she grew sick. All because I was searching for answers in all the wrong places.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You only met Jacinda once, on her second birthday. You met Tyrell a few times. I knew from the moment I saw the necklace you two would wind up together. Then you laid eyes on her, and you were captivated. She was always your other half.”
“Dad, she found Dove. She freed her. Do you have any idea what she’s supposed to do with Hawk and Dove, or the bracelet?”
“I’m still working that out. I have one of Tyrell’s journals. You should bring her to me so I can give it to her.”
“Yeah, first the elders need to deal with someone who wants to drain her magic. If she leaves here, the strigoi will follow.”
“Yeah, well, Jacinda will try running eventually to protect you. You have to be strong and follow her. And you need to be there for her when she falls apart.”
“What are you talking about?” Chatan demanded.
“I’ll explain when you get here. Just tell me you two are bound. Otherwise, she could lose you.”
“We are,” he answered slowly. “I will follow her to the end of the world. But she told me everything she knows about Thanatos. I don’t think she’s going to run.”
Dad sighed. “Something is going to happen to make her run. I can’t tell you everything. Just follow her, no matter what.”
“I will.” He looked at Jacinda. “Why do you think she’ll run?”
“You’re young, Chatan. You see love in one way, and believe everyone experiences it the same. That’s not how it works. If she loves you, and I’m sure that she does, she would leave to protect you, rather than watch you suffer because of Thanatos.”
“Damn it, Dad. Do you know what she needs to do to stop him?”
“No,” he admitted. “I’ll help her figure it out. With some friends of mine, we can stop him.”
“I hope so. She’s at the pillar now, hopefully talking to her father, or his ghost, or whatever.”
“Good. She needs words of comfort only Tyrell could give her now. Bring her to me when you get a chance. I want to see how she’s grown over these many years. I haven’t seen her since she was tiny.”
“Sure.” He hung up, more confused than he had been before. First, they needed to deal with Josephine.
* * * *
Jacinda fell until she landed on her knees before her father in the same position. “Daddy, what am I supposed to do?”
“Dove will show you the way. That’s the part Hawk didn’t understand. He showed me you needed Dove. He didn’t tell me what Dove would do when you finally released her. I only know she will show you the way, like she showed Hawk.”
“Why all the riddles?” She dropped her head, defeat weighing her down.
“Don’t you dare give up. You’ve come farther than anyone else in your bloodline. Keep fighting. You will defeat Thanatos. You have the pieces, now solve the puzzle. And whatever you do, don’t let go of Chatan.”
“How do you know?”
“I watch over you. And, baby, you couldn’t find a better man. He loves you more than anything else.”
He faded and she woke with a start, staring at the pillar flashing with bright lights in the etching.
“He doesn’t know,” she whispered.
Chatan wrapped his arms around her. “That’s okay. I know another way to find the answers.”
“Josephine needs to be dealt with first.”
He nodded. “And the elders are getting ready to make their move.”
“How do you know?”
“Feeling I have. Only reason Loretta wouldn’t tell me what’s up over the phone. You ready?”
“Yeah.” She blew out a breath. “I don’t know what else to do here.”
He took her hands and pulled her to a stand as he stood. “We should hurry.”
* * * *
Chatan made it through breakfast without demanding answers. As soon as they were finished eating, he sat forward. “Okay, Loretta, what the hell is going on?”
“Josephine killed her cousin the night Butch and the gang tried to abduct Jacinda. Mason is still around. Loval saw her teaching him to use magic. Reality altering magic.”
“A transcendent mage?” Jacinda asked.
“That’s what her cousin was classified as. Her husband was a warlock. He’s alive. He’s helping to teach Mason to use the magic.”
“Mason can’t sustain that magic. He has no anchor of his own.”
“Not unless they use a druid to anchor it,” Loretta explained.
“And where is there a druid around here?” Jacinda asked.
Chatan rubbed at his head. “I’m half druid. My mother was a druid.”
Jacinda’s mouth popped open. “Please tell me whatever you all cooked up doesn’t use Chatan as bait.”
“She’s already planning to come for him. May as well,” Loretta said, but fear coated the words.
“No. This is a terrible idea. You can’t seriously expect me to believe the only way to deal with them is for Chatan to let himself be taken.”
“It’s the only way to stop them in the act,” Chatan explained. The elders would stop her. Nothing that bad would happen to him. He could live with being a little banged up in order to stop Josephine from killing another person.
Jacinda held up her hands, her glare stopping on each of them. “There are plenty of ways to prove they did whatever they did. He doesn’t have to play bait. Point me at the damned place and I can recreate every murder that happened with a spell.”
“We can’t find the place they’re at. It’s hidden from view,” Chatan said.
“Then how did Loval see the training?” Jacinda demanded.
“They were in the woods, not on anyone’s property,” Loretta explained.
“Then I need to be part of the group that goes after him. I can track him through anything.”
“Will you be able to break through wards to get to him?”
She smiled. “Not a problem there. But this doesn’t happen unless I get to go.”
Chatan took her hands. “You shouldn’t be the one to do this. The elders and the Silver Council will protect me.”
“Nope, not okay with this.” She shook her head. “You can’t be serious.”
“Wish I wasn’t. Look. I don’t want to go without you, but I won’t let her touch you.”
“I can see through any illusion they throw at me. I can tear down their reality warping bullshit. I should be there,” she insisted.
“We’ll figure it out. They have a solid plan. Go to the meeting and see what the plan is. They want you there anyway,” Loretta assured.
He knew what was going to happen. They’d try to convince her not to go, and when that didn’t work, they’d find another way to keep her from going. It was the only way he could be sure she was safe.