Chapter 23

Zenon flew fast and hard. The witch had told them the reason they had avoided detection before was because of his speed. He used that now. Perhaps he could reach Zandar and free him before the enemy could locate him. Either way, Nickie would not be in danger from one of their attacks. Once his brother was free, they would be unbeatable. Together, they would protect Nickie and the others from harm as they sought Zechariah and released him from his chains, as well.

As tempted as he was to look back, he could not. Leaving her the way he had had been difficult enough, he would not manage it a second time. He was aware of her gentle probing in his mind as she’d waited her turn for their breakfasts. Even glimpsed her doubt when she could not easily find him. But it was the absolute fury, chased moments later by the deepest pain he’d ever experienced, that nearly had him tumbling from the sky.

Her confusion beat at him, his betrayal swallowing her whole until she couldn’t make sense of what had happened. His lungs labored, not from exertion, but from the heavy burden of his guilt knowing he was the cause of that pain when all he wanted to do was keep her safe.

Unable to stand it, he changed course, turning mid-flight to return to her and ease her suffering, but he could no longer see the small gas station at the base of the mountain. What he saw instead was the mouth of a cave. Energy, too potent to be anything but phoenix, spilled from the darkened opening like a beacon calling him.

Zandar.

It would only take a moment to free his brother, and then he would go to her. He would do whatever it took to rid her of the pain he’d caused. He would beg her forgiveness and pray that she did, because no matter how hurt or how angry with him she was, he was not letting her go. He attempted a soft touch to her mind, wishing to soothe her if only a little, but his energy bounced back at him as though he had hit a wall of solid steel. His heart stuttered at the emptiness.

Every moment he wasted was one more that he was not with her. Tucking his wings close, he dove toward the cave. Even with magic working against them, he would find a way to release his brother. What Zandar lacked to free himself was his phoenix. Zenon’s would work just as well. Nothing would stop him.

He landed on the stone ledge feet first, shifting just before making contact. Snow covered the mountain so high up. The bitter cold immediately burned his skin, but he didn’t stop. Didn’t slow down. The cavern’s entrance was small, only a few feet wide, but it was enough to let the frigid air inside. This was the tomb his brother was kept in. Where he had been left in blistering heat, Zandar had suffered the cold.

Eyes adjusting to the dim light, he moved forward, purpose marking every step. A few feet into the tunnel, the cave widened into a single cavern. At the very center, a metal pole stuck out—attached to it, a chain only long enough to allow minimal movement. The rock walls and ceiling were charred black, as they would only get from many years of a phoenix’s fire scorching everything around it with each painful rising.

Damn and damn again.

“Zandar, where are you?” he yelled out but received no response.

Falling to his knees, he sobbed. He’d failed his brother. And worse, he’d failed his mate.

“How touching. One brother crying over the other. Tell me, will you beg me to spare him as he did you?” A deep voice called out from the entrance.

Zenon spun, ready to attack, but he wasn’t fast enough. The male sneered even as he pulled the trigger. The loud bang echoed in the cavern, making the man drop his gun and cover his ears, but it was too late. The small bullet tore through him, piercing Zenon’s heart. With nothing more than a gurgle, Zenon dropped to his knees, and all went black.

***

Nickie barely got the truck off the road and thrown it into park when the pain in her chest exploded. Her breath caught in her throat, and darkness swam before her eyes. She wasn’t going to die. Not for good. She repeated the words like a mantra as fear swarmed her and her body gave out.

When she awoke, she was alone. Jasmine wasn’t there to hold her hand and curse her out for dying. She wasn’t around to demand ice cream or Gucci gear in retribution for scaring the shit out of her. And the one person who should have been with her wasn’t. She didn’t want to think about the reasons why. Doing so would let all that pain in again, and she didn’t have time for that. She’d break down later. After she’d saved his stupid ass.

Gasping for air, she looked around her. She’d made it a few more miles up the mountain that time before dying. The first time, she’d been on a busy stretch of highway and had barely avoided causing a pileup. She could still hear the horns blaring as she crossed through traffic to get to the side.

She opened the window, letting some of the stench out. It seemed coming to life again now scorched her immediate surroundings. It wasn’t a blast like she imagined Zenon’s rising would cause, but the heat generated from her own blackened the seat and dashboard on the driver’s side.

She didn’t have a fucking clue where she was going, only that her heart told her to keep moving in that direction. Maybe Zenon’s energy called to her, or maybe she was kidding herself, but heading in the way he’d been flying seemed as good a place as any to start. For all she knew, he was a hundred miles away by now.

When she was able to breathe without seeing dots in her field of vision, she pulled onto the road again. She’d go crazy if she thought about what he was going through, so instead, she took a swig of the now cold coffee and hit the gas. The back end of the truck swung out toward the steep drop-off at the road’s edge.

Don’t get yourself killed, Nickie. At least, if she did, she’d come survive to tell the tale. She snorted at the morbid thought. She eased up on the pedal, bringing the truck into her own lane. She might be immortal, but the other poor suckers on the slippery highway weren’t.

She rounded a curve on the steep road and spotted a sliver of black along a ridge near the highest peak of the mountain. She’d looked there more than once but hadn’t seen it before. That wasn’t just a shadow on the snow, it was an opening. It had to be.

She kept driving, eating up the miles as quickly as she could, ignoring the ache that was starting once more in her chest. Fuck.

A sign up ahead announced a scenic lookout a kilometer away. She had to get there, otherwise she’d block traffic when her heart stopped again. Not that she cared about that with everything else going on, but a good Samaritan might think to call EMS for her, and she couldn’t waste time explaining that she was okay, when it was obvious to anyone with two eyes that she wasn’t.

Her fingers and toes tingled, and her head swam. It was as though she didn’t have enough blood to keep her body going. Her breath came fast and choppy as her heart sped and slowed, trying to find its rhythm, but it was no use. She pulled into the lookout parking lot too fast, skidding on the ice. The front bumper of the truck hit the railing, stopping her from careening down the mountainside but not from cracking her head on the steering wheel. Stars swam in front of her eyes before everything faded into nothing once more.

Shouts from outside the truck greeted her when she gasped her first breath. A man yanked her door open, reaching for her, but then stopped when she screamed.

“Are you okay? You looked like you were having a heart attack,” he yelled, his eyes bulged, and his chest rose and fell with harsh breaths. If he didn’t calm down a little, he’d be the one having issues.

“I’m fine. I just bumped my head,” she said, pointing to her temple. “I was getting too sleepy behind the wheel, so I stopped here so I could rest.” It was as good a lie as any. She was getting better with those.

The man’s brows lowered at the center as he scowled. “You shouldn’t be on the road at all if you’re that tired. You could kill someone.”

She sighed and waved her hand around. “Which is why I stopped.”

The man grumbled something and turned away, heading back to his own vehicle. A few others had come to look, but when they realized there was nothing to see, they turned their attentions back to the scenery. Thank fuck.

Shutting the door to keep the warm air in, she looked behind the seat to where she’d found the bag of clothes and cell. Sure enough, two winter jackets, as well as two pairs of boots, were waiting for her. From where she sat, the mouth of the cave was obvious. She didn’t know how much closer she’d get with the truck before she’d have to go on foot. It would be a hell of a trek up the mountain, but it wasn’t so steep that she couldn’t get there from here.

Yanking off her hiking boots, she put her feet in the thick-soled Sorel’s Clive had left for her. She pulled on an extra sweater, then added the winter coat on top. Layers. That’s what it was all about. Not that she ever went anywhere with any real snow, but it’s what she’d heard.

When she got outside, the cold air nipped at her skin. She threw the hood over her head and tucked her hands up the sleeves. It wasn’t perfect, but it would have to do.

She stepped up to the railing, looking out at the scene before her. Once the last of the vehicles pulled away—carrying with it, the last of the tourists—she hopped the railing and started walking. Each step she took brought her knee-deep in snow. Grunting, she kept moving forward.

You will face many challenges, both physical and mental, but we are confident you will overcome. Magdalena had told her and Jasmine once she’d agreed to the crazy witch’s scheme. “You bet your ass I’ll overcome.”

More than once, her feet slid, and she lost some ground, but she kept plowing forward. With the wind blowing fresh snow about, she shouldn’t have been able to see any tracks on the ground, but sure enough, someone had been around and left their mark. Three sets of footprints led in the direction she was heading. If she’d had any other choice, she might have turned around and gone for reinforcements, but what was she supposed to do? Call the cops?

The only people who knew what she was dealing with were on their way to a different set of coordinates. And leaving Zenon to face the enemy alone wasn’t an option, even if she was pissed at him.

She glanced up. Only another hundred feet or so, and she’d be there. Taking a deep breath, she looked around her. Nothing but snow, everywhere except…

She peered closer at the cave. There, right next to the opening, she caught movement. As if greeting an old friend, the man, covered from head to toe in white gear, lifted his hand and waved.

Fuck. She took a step back, then another. If they caught her, she couldn’t help Zenon. She’d make a run for the truck, then try to get a hold of someone. Maybe Hazel had left a number where she could reach one of the other witches in the contacts on the phone.

Spinning on her heels, she smacked into a hard body. Her momentum sent her sprawling into the snow.

“Now, where do you think you’re going?” the man said.

Even though she couldn’t see his face for the white balaclava he wore, she knew that voice. It was the same asshole that had stopped her and Jasmine on the road as they’d left Zenon in the field to deal with the nidhogg. She shivered as the image of the beast crystalized in her mind. That was what he’d dealt with. The attacks he’d suffered through.

“I was just hiking up the mountain and thought I’d check out that cave, but I see you guys got here first. I’ll just head down again,” she said. Maybe the idiot wouldn’t recognize her with the hood she was wearing. Right.

He threw his head back and laughed. It wasn’t a happy sound. If anything, it made her want to burrow deeper into the snow to get away from it—and him.

“No, I don’t think so. You’re going to want to see what’s in that cave.”

Nickie swallowed her fear and licked her lips. “Really, I have people waiting for me. I’ll go now.” She tried to get up, but he was quick. With a big boot on her chest, he shoved her down again.

“No, you’re coming with me.” He grabbed her sleeve and yanked her to her feet. He pulled a gun from his pocket and pointed it at her nose. “Now, your boyfriend is waiting for you. Either you walk up there nice and calm, or I carry your bleeding ass. The choice is yours.”

She’d survived death many times. Not once was it pleasant, but at least she’d never been shot. Holding up her hands, she took a step toward the cave. If she’d had any notion that Zenon might be safe, she didn’t now. She’d just have to figure out a way to get them out of the mess they were in before they restrained her, as well.