House of Royale (Secret Keepers #4)(38)

No long-term commitment.

We ended up back in the room with the huge dining table. It was empty when we arrived, so everyone took a seat to wait. “So, the next step of the plan is to go to House of Royale?” Callie asked, holding one finger up like she was counting down. “Figure out the map?” A second finger came up. “Then go and get the stone before Laous tracks us down?”

The guys all nodded. I started to feel really nervous that I was going to let them all down. That maybe the map wasn’t on my body like they hoped.

“I’ve never seen anything on my skin which could be used as a map or coordinates,” I told them. My eyes flashed to Xander’s for a split second and he gave a minute head shake. He hadn’t seen anything either, and he probably knew some parts of my body better than me at this point.

“She doesn’t even have any freckles,” Maya added.

I literally didn’t have a single freckle. The only marks that marred my skin were a few faded stretch marks on my thighs—thank you, puberty—and the scars on my hand.

Chase replied immediately. “I think it’s going to have something to do with the legreto you were born in, Ava. Likely you have to go back there again.”

Daniel nodded. “That would be the place the map was first placed on Ava, so it makes sense.”

Xander straightened, his eyes going faraway for a moment. I was about to ask him what was wrong when he said, “Lexen is almost back. He found out something about the Draygo.”

We all turned toward the main door, waiting for them to enter. But, instead of the two familiar faces we were expecting, a silver-haired woman burst through the door.

Daniel shot to his feet. “Colita! What are you doing here?”

I blinked as the woman—Colita, apparently—hurried forward, her long dress trailing after her. She wore something that looked like a combination of a summer dress and robes, layers of wispy material fluttering around her as she moved.

“I had a vision,” she cried, and collapsed.





13





Xander caught Colita just before she hit the table, lowering her down into the chair he had just vacated. Her eyes were half rolled back in her head, and I found myself rushing to her side. I lifted her hand and felt for a pulse, relief hitting me when there was a strong buzz under my fingers. It seemed a little fast, but for all I knew that was the normal speed here.

It was beating at least, and that was the most important part.

“Who is she?” I whispered to Xander. “Is this the Draygo?”

She didn’t look the same as Lexen, all of that scary energy. But maybe the females were different.

He shook his head, face drawn with worry. “No, Colita is a normal Daelighter. Kind of. She’s a seer, able to discern future events through dreams and visions.”

“She’s also my drenita,” Lexen rumbled as he hurried into the room.

Emma was right behind him and she caught my confused look. “His godmother,” she murmured, giving my arm a quick squeeze when she reached my side.

Xander moved back to allow Lexen to stand at his drenita’s side. The Darken overlord reached out and grasped Colita’s hand. Realizing I was still holding her other one, I gently set it down.

Lexen’s eyes shot to me, and I quickly mumbled, “Just feeling for a pulse—it’s strong but fast.”

Something white flitted across the dark of his eyes and I swallowed roughly. It disappeared just as quickly though, and most of the tension left the room when he gave me a slow head dip. “Thank you,” he said, voice octaves lower than normal.

He turned back to Colita. Her eyes were open and focused again. She sat up slowly, shaking her head. It took her only a moment to notice the multiple sets of eyes locked on her. She stumbled to her feet.

“Lexen,” she cried as he steadied her. “I saw Laous. In a dream. He is amassing an army. Astoria is filling with Gonzo and Daelighters as we speak.”

Xander slammed his fist against the table, and when he pulled his hand away I could have sworn there was an indent in the thick wood. “He’s smart. He knows he can wait us out. Eventually we’ll have to return to Earth, especially if we’re trying to find the stone.”

“What if we never did?” Callie suggested, crossing her arms over her chest. “He could wait there for hundreds of years. If we stay here, then no one will touch the stone and everything can go back to the way it was.”

Colita shook her head violently. “No! No, he won’t wait. He has taken the town hostage, all of the humans outside of those safe in Daelight Crescent right now. He’s trying to draw you out, and if you don’t come back soon, he’s going to start killing the humans. By the end of my vision, Astoria was awash in blood.”

Emma’s eyes immediately filled with tears. “No,” she whispered, her hand pressing to her chest. “All of those innocent people. We can’t let him do this.”

“What else did you see?” Lexen pressed Colita. “You don’t normally dream your visions … how did that happen?”

Her face crumbled as she released Lexen to massage her temples. “I … I don’t actually know. But … you’re right, I don’t usually dream my visions in this manner. It also went on for much longer than I can generally hold a vision. If I had to guess, I’d say that someone was helping me see.”