A Shield of Glass (A Shade of Vampire #49)(26)

“Viola,” Draven repeated, nodding slowly. “We may be able to use this bond between you to find her. Key word here being ‘may’. I wouldn’t want to get your hopes too high.”

“Either way,” Serena added, giving Draven a reprimanding sideways glance that expressed her discomfort at his sometimes inappropriately brutal honesty. He shrugged in response. “You know she’ll be safe with them, and you know they won’t let anything happen to you, since you and Viola are so deeply connected.”

Phoenix exhaled sharply, his lips tight, a muscle still twitching in his jaw. He looked at me as he took a step back. I hadn’t had time to tell him what Vita’s visions had shown. We’d been running and fighting Destroyers since we’d left the farmhouse. Everything had happened so fast, and I didn’t want to risk giving him even more to worry about while he battled the slithering beasts.

“Yeah, about that,” I managed to say, feeling terrible for having to spoil the moment. But Vita’s vision could no longer wait. “I spoke to Vita.”

All eyes were on me, including Field’s. He’d seen me distraught after I’d reached out to Vita during our stop at the farmhouse, but he hadn’t pressed me with questions. He’d understood the lack of time for properly delving into everything she’d told me.

“She says the future has changed, but not for the better,” I continued, choosing my words carefully. I glanced at Phoenix, then at Draven and Serena, and bit into my lower lip. I had no choice. “Viola won’t cause that massive explosion anymore. But she will die…”

I immediately looked at Phoenix, whose face was livid. He didn’t say anything as I struggled to speak.

“She will die because Phoenix will die,” I continued. “Draven will kill him.”

Draven and Serena gaped at me, their eyes huge. The Druid’s lips parted and his shoulders slumped, while Serena’s gaze darted between me and him. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. I couldn’t bear to look at them as I told them the rest of Vita’s vision.

“I believe it has something to do with Azazel’s snake medallion. Vita saw Draven wearing it, turned into a Destroyer. Draven will destroy Azazel, but victory will come at the price of his own soul, and the medallion is key. I think it holds whatever it is that makes that monster so powerful. But Draven won’t be able to resist that darkness, and he will turn. He will kill us all when we try to stop him. Eritopia will burn, but it will be at Draven’s hand. Those who do survive will be exiled to Marton, doomed to die in the desert. That’s all I could get from Vita in the short time we had together. I’ll reach out to her later for the details, but… it’s not looking good.”

A few minutes went by, my stomach churning in the meantime.

Draven’s gaze was fixed on the floor, as was Phoenix’s. Jovi, Field, Hansa, Anjani, and I looked at each other, while Serena stared at the Druid, pain flickering in her eyes. I couldn’t stand the silence anymore.

“It’s only a possible future,” I added weakly. “We’ve changed it before, haven’t we?”

But no one answered. I saw other creatures in the archive hall with us, three of which I’d not met before. They all watched quietly, occasionally glancing at each other before shifting their focus back to the Druid.

“It can’t be,” Draven finally spoke.

His eyes were dark, flickering black. His jaw twitched, his mouth turned into a thin, straight line.

“The snake pendant,” Serena whispered. “You’ll take Asherak’s curse into your…”

“Ashe-what?” I replied, my confusion evident. I’d clearly missed out on some information.

“Azazel’s pendant,” she explained. “It’s a curse. It holds Asherak’s soul. He was the first evil Druid. Think Azazel in his beta version. He created dark and powerful magic, forbidden spells that he used to torture and kill those who opposed him, thousands of years ago.”

“I’ve heard that name before,” Anjani muttered. “In old Eritopian legends. I never thought he was real…”

“He was.” Serena nodded, while Draven boiled by her side. “He went crazy, like Azazel, but the Grand Temple Druids got together and defeated his invading armies. By the time they got to him, though, all they found was his lifeless body. He’d stashed his soul with all its poison inside that snake pendant with ruby eyes. The Druids tried to destroy it, but they couldn’t. So they never spoke of him again and passed the pendant over to the Grand Druids. Only they knew about it, and they kept it safe and hidden from the rest of the world…”

“Until Azazel took over the Third Kingdom and became a Grand Druid himself,” I concluded, putting the pieces together. “It’s why he’s so powerful. He draws energy from the volcanoes, the little Daughter, and the pendant…”

“This cannot be,” Draven said, his voice trembling.

“Draven.” Serena moved to take his hand in hers, but he pulled away, taking a few steps back. I could see him unraveling.

“No. No, it cannot be. I would never.” He looked up at Phoenix. “I wouldn’t… No… I am a Druid; I’m sworn to protect you all. No, I… This can’t be.”

“It can, if it’s a sacrifice,” Jax mused from the edge of our group.