Synergy (See #3)(47)

“She better not be,” Willow said through gritted teeth. At that moment, thunder exploded above the house; it was so loud, I ducked before I could tell myself I was safe.

The girl with Willow gripped her arm as if she were telling her to stop making it thunder. Was that possible? Could Willow control the weather? How? No way that was possible! Then all at once, that witch’s words from this morning made sense: ‘The Goddess of Mother Nature is seeking you.’ She was talking about Willow looking for Madison. The question now was who was the Great Witch that woman was talking about, and was she dangerous? Did Willow have someone in her corner that could literally summon people across dimensions? I was in way over my head, and I knew it. My ears began to burn, and my heart raced.

The girl looked at all of us. “You know of us? You know why we’re here?”

“We see it, Olivia,” Aden said.

He must have had a chance to look into her life and now knew her name. I had been too focused on Willow.

“How do you know my name?” Olivia asked, as her eyes grew wide.

Aden stepped forward cautiously, trying to keep them as calm as possible. “I told you. I see it.”

I looked nervously at Draven. His eyes were as black as coal, and there was no doubt he was deep in their thoughts. He was faster than all of us at this, and it was clear that he was trying to take it all in before these girls figured out how to close the door on us, how to block us from seeing their past.

“What? What do you see?” Willow asked with a voice that was just as tired as she looked.

“The past,” Aden said calmly. “Everything that brought you here.”

Olivia looked over Aden cautiously, clearly not liking the insight that we had. “What’s your name?”

“Aden,” he answered. He smiled nervously, charming them with his trademark dimples. He nodded toward Draven and said, “Draven,” then looked at Monroe and said, “Monroe.”

Just as Aden went to introduce me, Willow’s chest swelled with what looked like fear. “Charlie, the girl who has already been to Chara, met Preston.”

I tried to understand if she was angry or relieved by that, but I couldn't tell; she was too unraveled. I couldn't stop staring, asking questions. I needed to know how frank I could be with her, if what I was would scare her, but in her thoughts, from her point of view all I could see were Landen and Drake. Bianca, or whoever was behind all of this, had to know that taking them would kill Willow, and I was beginning to assume that that was the goal all along. I could only hope that Landen and Drake were able to see through Bianca as clearly as Draven did, but I had my doubts; I knew the illusions in The Realm were all too real.

“What?!” Willow shrieked. “Why are you staring at me?”

I looked at Draven. He had caught her stare and was walking slowly to her. I tried to see if a memory was sparked in the old soul I knew she was, if she would see the friend she told me he would be in this life, if she knew that he was a part of her family of souls.

His stare seemed to calm her down, and she seemed to recognize something in him, but it wasn’t a past life. Her thoughts focused around Drake, the prince, which almost made sense. If I had to guess, I would bet that Drake played the role of Draven’s friend or brother in a past life. Even though I hadn’t had much time to dwell in Willow’s thoughts, it was clear that Drake and Draven shared the same hypnotic essence.

“There is a lot to see. Your existence is vast,” Draven said to her.

I knew then that he and I were on the same page. He was trying to see what she knew about her lives before, if she recognized him, his energy.

“Well,” Willow said, holding back tears, “it’s about to end if you don’t help me.”

Before Draven could say anything to bring her comfort, more figures emerged from a light that wasn’t there before: three men. My heart was pounding out of control. I couldn't figure out how they were just appearing. I mean, I knew there were passages that were man-made, but I wasn't there when Austin first fell through one; he had used regular doors around me.

My eyes grew wide when I focused on the tallest one. He was lean, but he was strong with broad shoulders and crystal blue eyes. At first I thought he was Landen, that this was over, but my natural instinct was to ask ‘Who are you?’ in my mind. When I did that, I saw that he wasn’t Landen; he was a friend or a brother, and right now he was fighting to keep Willow sane. She wasn’t making it easy on him. He was clearly furious as he leaned into Willow and said, “We had a deal.”

Aden and Draven charged forward, willing to protect Willow without question. “Hey! HEY!” Aden yelled.

“Brady,” Willow said as tears emerged from her bloodshot eyes. “He sent me here.”

Brady’s anger left his expression as confusion took over. I glanced at the other two with him; it was clear that they were concerned, but they didn’t seem to be as emotionally connected to what was going on. It was like they were waiting on orders or something.

“Brady? Like Landen’s brother, Brady?” Aden asked as his pupils expanded and he saw his answer. He was his brother, his big brother.

Brady nodded once at Aden as he looked around the room and tried to find his bearings. My heart sank for this boy. I could see that he was fighting not only for his baby brother, but also for a daughter, a baby that he and his soul mate feared would be pulled into this. That child was in the center of his thoughts; every decision he had made since her birth was done to protect her, to protect his family, and right now Brady’s perspective was telling me that he thought he was failing.