A Rip of Realms (A Shade of Vampire #39)(51)

My dad was clearly thinking along the same lines as I was, as in the next moment he changed his line of questioning.

“We were thinking of opening the stones, in a controlled environment,” he announced. “Enabling us to understand what they contain, as well as what our chances might be against them if this dimension is revealed to be populated by these mysterious creatures.”

“It is sheer madness!” Sherus replied, clearly still convinced that we should leave the portal shut for all time.

“It is risky,” one of the elders replied. “I would show more caution than that.”

I sighed inwardly. It seemed baffling to me that the fae didn’t want to get to the bottom of this mystery. They had been guarding these creatures for all time. Didn’t they want to know what they were?

My cellphone started buzzing. Making my apologies, I left the room. It was Mona, and I answered it immediately.

“Any news?” I asked.

“The portal’s moving…” Her voice came in ragged breaths. “You need to get down here… All of you.”

With that, Mona hung up.

I ran back into the room, my heart in my mouth as I announced the news to the group.

“We need to go—now,” my father said.

“What?” Sherus bellowed.

“It can’t open without us there!” my father replied impatiently. “There’s more danger that way—we don’t know what’s opening it.” My father turned to me, his eyes determined. “We need to gather everyone. You, Rose, fetch Kiev and his siblings, Brock, Vivienne and Xavier, Shayla and Eli—tell them to come at once. Get the rest of the parents together – Claudia, Yuri, Ashley and Landis. I know they’ll want to be there for this – but tell Claudia to keep her temper reigned in. Caleb, make sure Ibrahim and Arwen are on their way, I had asked them to meet us here after the meeting. Then speak to the werewolves, let’s take three—Micah, Kira, and Bastien. And we might need dragons—talk to Jeriad, Ridan and Azaiah, and whoever else they wish to bring. The more of us the better. I will fetch River, Grace and Lawrence. Corrine, ask the witches for help—there are plenty who will need to be vanished to the island.”

We all nodded, moving from the room as swiftly as we could. Before I left I turned to look at my husband in relief. We’re finally doing it. He returned a small smile, but his eyes were troubled. His look was a reminder that we still had a long way to go till our children were safe—this was just the beginning.





Benedict





The vulture soared across the sky, and I felt sicker and sicker with every passing second as we approached the cove. I had fought with Hazel to be allowed to come, and eventually Tejus had intervened on my behalf, saying that I was safest with them, and not riding with the others. She had eventually relented, letting me fly on the back of Tejus’s vulture. I was glad—he rode at the front of the line, faster and more furious than the others. I had to hang on tightly to his robe not to be swept off.

“Are you all right, Benedict?” Tejus turned around, checking I was gripping on.

“I’m fine!” I yelled over the rushing wind.

“She has no power over you—neither does the entity, not anymore. Do you understand?”

He had obviously sensed my fear, but I was grateful for it. I needed to hear those words—I needed to remind myself that I wasn’t at their mercy any more, and I was damned if I was going to let Queen Trina and the entity manipulate a bunch of kids the way they’d done to me.

“I understand.” I nodded, my heart fluttering with anxiety anyway. I still wasn’t looking forward to coming face to face with the queen again, let alone the entity if he managed to rise.

Tejus nodded, turning his attention back to the vulture. I could see the cove appearing in the distance—it was partially blocked by swirls of mist that hung low over the ocean, but I recognized the horseshoe shape of it and the dark forests that surrounded the rocks, leading back all the way to Hellswan castle.

“Don’t let anything happen to my sister,” I announced suddenly. I needed to say it just in case.

“Never,” he replied.

I believed him. As long as Tejus lived, my sister wouldn’t come to harm—he would protect her with every last breath in his body.

“We’re close. I’m going to land behind the cove. We can follow the path up, and that will lead us to the temple.” He pointed at the small one-man track, nothing more than a sand-covered gap in the rocks, that wound its way down to the cove.

“Why are we not landing on the beach?” I asked, confused.

“I want the element of surprise. I suspect Jenus was left at the palace to direct us here, so we need to be cautious.”

That made sense. It also delayed our arrival at the cove, and suddenly I wanted that more than anything—my heart rate was spiking, and I felt like I couldn’t breathe. I desperately wanted to be brave, to be as courageous as Tejus and Ash, but I was terrified.

Tejus swooped down silently, the bird shooting through the air like an arrow.

We landed on a small clearing that led down to the path. The rest of the birds landed, and we all disembarked in total silence. Ruby and Ash had shared a bird, and they walked toward Tejus with questioning eyes. In whispers, he filled them in on the plan—we were to go single file up the path, fanning out when we reached the cove, keeping them trapped until the rest of the army arrived.