A Clash of Storms (A Shade of Vampire #50)(36)

“I don’t think so. We’ve never met,” I said, helping her out of the cage.

“We haven’t, but I saw you at the Sarang Marketplace, not too long ago,” she replied, unable to take her eyes off my wolf’s head pendant. “Before they brought me here. You were with an incubus and the boy who smelled like a wolf.”

“Jovi.” I stilled.

My heart ached. I’d been so busy down here that I’d managed to put the thought of him aside completely. I knew he’d successfully extracted the Daughter, but I had yet to reach out to him via Telluris.

“Listen, he’s in danger,” the fae said, visibly worried, her lower lip trembling.

“What do you mean?”

My stomach tightened. She tucked locks of her white hair behind her ears and leaned against the cage. Her feeble legs couldn’t hold her up for long.

“I’ve had to do terrible things to stay alive in this world,” she explained, her voice thick with regret. “I’ve had to do Azazel’s bidding, collect blood samples from different creatures. After he felt the Oracles come through, he instructed me to keep an eye out for anyone who seemed like an outsider, not a native of Eritopia. Jovi was one such creature…”

“So you were at the Marketplace as Azazel’s spy?” I felt rage pouring through my veins but kept myself under control. “What have you been doing in a cage, then?”

“I couldn’t do his dirty work for him anymore.” She sniffed, and tears rolled down her cheeks. “He’d been working on a powerful blood spell, and he needed samples from all the creatures that weren’t from Eritopia. Whatever it’s for, it’s not good. I couldn’t do it anymore. I am not an evil person. You must believe me… I only did what I had to do to survive…”

“You’re telling me Azazel has Jovi’s blood? How did you get it from him?” I asked, gritting my teeth.

“You were all at the Marketplace that day, the three of you,” she replied, touching my pendant. “He got this for you. I gave it to him. And I snatched a drop of his blood in the process. He didn’t even realize what I’d done. After I passed it on to Azazel, I told him I couldn’t do this anymore. He sneered, and he threw me in here, promising to put me through a slow and torturous death. I’ve been experiencing it since I’ve been in this cage, but you saved me, and it’s only fair that you know the truth, that you understand the danger Jovi’s in.”

“Make yourself understood, old fae,” I growled. “What is that blood spell you’re talking about?”

“It’s meant to control creatures whose blood he has. But it gets worse. It can kill…”

My blood turned to ice. Jovi was up at the very top. I could feel him through Telluris. I had to get to him. I had to let him know. I broke into a cold sweat as I reached out to him in my mind.

“Telluris Jovi!” I cried out.

The old fae looked at me with confusion.

“You need to go to him,” she whispered.

“Telluris Jovi!” I ignored her, calling out to him.

But there was no answer.

I had to get to him, and I had to do it fast. I moved to leave, but the old fae grabbed my wrist, holding me back.

“Let me go, or I will punish you for what you did!” I snarled, fury burning in my temples.

“The pendant,” she said. “The pendant will save him!”

I looked down at my wolf’s head jewel, then at her, my brows pulled into a frown.

“What do you mean?”

“Make him swallow the stone.” She sighed. “I took his blood, but I gave him this pendant as a way out. I told you, I’m not an evil person. I couldn’t do it anymore.”

I had a long way up to go. I nodded briefly, then ran as fast as I could. I had to get to Jovi.

My heart started racing as heat spread through me. I ran up the service stairs, using a copy of the castle plans I’d tucked away in my boot to find the quickest way to the platform. There was no way I’d let Azazel hurt the man I loved. There was no way I’d allow any version of the future in which Jovi was killed come true.

No, Jovi, you’re staying with me, I thought furiously to myself as I passed each level. Hang in there. I’m coming…





Jovi





I had my crossbow aimed at Azazel, who stood tall and broad in the middle of the platform. My nerves were stretched to their limits, my muscles twitching, eager for a fight. My grip was firm, a finger clutching the trigger as the tip of the poisoned arrow pointed at his head. It wasn’t my call to attack, though. We’d made a plan and we were sticking to it, no matter what.

Vita was several feet behind him, holding up a torch, her knees trembling. She was ready to strike, while my sister and Phoenix were still, helplessly watching this unfold from inside their glass bubbles.

“Give it up, Azazel,” I said firmly. “There’s nothing you can do.”

He looked at me, a grin slitting his face in a way that sent shivers down my spine.

With slow movements, he brought a rectangular diamond up to his lips. It looked strange, with iridescent green veins flowing through its core. He whispered something into it.

“Tell you what,” he replied dryly. “How about you point that thing somewhere else, instead? Like at her, for example.”