Everlasting (The Immortals #6)(26)
Holding, lingering, strangely enduring, as I make my way toward my car, and head for my next set of good-byes.
After stopping by Miles’s only to learn he wasn’t home, I swing by Ava and the twins’ only to find they’re gone as wel . Then I stop by Haven’s old house, the one she shared with her little brother Austin and their parents. Parking on the street, seeing a FOR SALE sign stuck in the lawn and an open house in progress as a long line of looky-loos stream in and out.
And I wonder if her parents even realize she’s gone, that she’l never return. Or, if they’re stil looking past her, al around her, everywhere but at her, just like they did when she was stil here. And since I’m already mired in a deeply blue mood, I decide to drive by Sabine’s, but that’s al that I do. I don’t stop. I don’t go inside. I already said a silent good-bye last night.
And with no further reason to delay, I cruise down the next street, abandon my car at the curb, close my eyes, and manifest the portal that leads me to Summerland. Landing in the vast fragrant field with its pulsating flowers and shivering trees, and stealing a moment to enjoy the pure, unadulterated splendor of it al —the unmitigated mass of beauty, love, and everything good—before I find my way out and venture toward its opposite side. The place where the trees are al barren, flowers don’t grow, and magick and manifesting do not exist.
My suspicions confirmed the moment I notice the thin trail of muck leading from Haven’s memorial al the way to the dark side I first stumbled upon. It’s growing.
Encroaching.
But even though I’m not at al surprised to see it like that, I have no idea how to stop it. No idea what I’l do once I arrive. And though I tried to mental y prepare myself for just about every possibility of what I might find, I failed to prepare myself for the one I stumble upon.
I stop, my eyes wide in wonder, jaw practical y dropped to my knees when I see Jude, Ava, Romy, Rayne, and… Miles?—standing there waiting for me.
The only person who could make this reunion complete is Damen, but sadly, he’s absent.
“How did…” My voice trails off as I gape at Miles, the biggest surprise of them al .
“Wel , it took some doing, more than a few tries for sure, but between the four of us pooling our energy and Miles’s own fervent desire to see you off on your journey, in the end, we managed to pul through.”
“I hope you at least showed him around the nicer parts first.” I cringe, thinking how he must’ve felt to go through al that only to step through the beautiful, shimmering veil and into such a dark, dreary, bleak place.
“Later,” Ava says. “We were in too big of a hurry to catch you before you leave.”
“But—why?” I glance at Jude, correctly
assuming he cal ed them, convinced them al to meet me here, just after I left him standing in his doorway.
“Because you deserve a proper send-off,”
Romy says, nudging her sister hard in the gut until she nods in reluctant agreement.
“I—I don’t know what to say.” I swal ow hard, warning myself not to cry in front of them.
“You don’t have to say anything.” Miles grins.
“You know I’m more than able to handle the talking for al of us.”
“True.” I laugh, stil getting used to seeing him here.
“Oh, and we brought gifts.” Ava nods excitedly. I try to look pleased, though the truth is I have no idea what I’l do with them, or if I’l even be able to bring them where I’m going—wherever that is. The thought extinguished the moment Rayne steps forward, motions for me to lower my head, and drapes a smal silver talisman dangling from a tan leather cord around my neck.
I grasp the pendant between my forefinger and thumb, lifting it to where I can better see it, unsure how I’m supposed to interpret the message behind it, especial y considering it came straight from her.
“An Ouroboros?” I gape, my voice sharp, my brow raised in question.
“It’s from Romy and me,” she says, eyes wide and serious. “It’s for protection. Damen was right. It’s not at al evil and we’re just hoping it’l remind you of where you started, where you’l end up, and where we hope you’l find yourself again.”
“And where’s that?” I ask, my eyes never once
“And where’s that?” I ask, my eyes never once straying from hers.
“Back here. With al of us,” she says, her voice ful of sincerity. Her dual nature, her ability to run so hot and cold, especial y where I’m concerned, is so confusing I can’t seem to get a grip on her. Reminding me of the old man I ran across that time in Summerland, the one who insisted the twins bore opposite personalities to the ones I’ve grown used to. Claiming Rayne was the quiet one and Romy the stubborn one, and I can’t help but wonder just how often they play this game.
Before I can formulate some kind of reply, Ava comes forward and hands me a smal shiny crystal ine stone made of a blue-green so bril iant it reminds me a bit of Jude’s eyes.
“It’s cavansite,” she says, studying me closely. “It enhances intuition and psychic healing. It also prompts deep reflection, inspires new ideas, helps rid oneself of faulty beliefs, and aids in inducing the memories of one’s prior lives.”
Our eyes meet and hold as she shoots me a meaningful look, and I can’t help but wish Damen were around to hear that.