“It’s all right, Serena,” he replied. “You should spend some time with your friends and your brother. This conversation is between myself, Anjani, and Bijarki for now.”
His tone was flat, something I hadn’t heard since my first days at the mansion, long before I’d felt my heart flutter at the sound of my name on his lips and the feel of his body heat consuming me like wildfire.
I frowned but didn’t say anything. I’d felt the line open between us since our first kiss back at the Red Tribe, but something had shifted again. A wall had risen between us, cold and quiet and unyielding. I felt nothing now, as if Draven had shut himself off entirely, once again pushing me away. There was a pang in my stomach and the fear of distance lurking in the back of my head.
I decided to let him have his discussion with Anjani and Bijarki first and talk to him later about this. I’d just started to open myself up, to allow new emotions to take over around him. I wasn’t ready to let him slide back into his Druid shell. Not when I’d felt his lips on mine, his skin against mine, his soul pouring into mine during our mind-meld.
Instead, I turned my back on him and focused my attention on Vita. She seemed a little pale, but it didn’t surprise me. She’d been unconscious for quite a while, and the visions she had experienced were haunting even from her description. I could only imagine what being in them and seeing and hearing everything must have been like.
“Are you okay?” I asked her, hearing Draven’s footsteps disappear up the stairs.
Vita nodded and gave me a weak smile.
“We don’t really know what we’re doing, do we?” she asked, a tinge of dark humor in her voice.
“Would it give you any sort of comfort if I told you that I don’t think Draven knows either?” I grinned, trying to keep my composure.
She chuckled and ran her fingers through her hair, resting her elbows on her slightly elevated knees.
“At least we’re not on our own,” Vita replied. “We’re not alone.”
“That we definitely aren’t.” I smiled. “Besides, you guys are making incredible progress on the whole Oracle thing. I feel so useless compared to you.”
“Don’t.” A shadow passed over her face. “I still don’t know how much of the Oracle gene is in us. Whether we’ll go blind and whatnot. This was the first time I saw the runes on my body, and I don’t know what to make of it. I have no idea whether they will become permanent, whether it will get worse. I don’t know…and believe me, Serena, if you’re feeling useless, at least be grateful you’re not feeling the uncertainty that we’re feeling, not knowing what we’ll become.”
I didn’t have a reply. I hadn’t thought about the impact the runes had on Vita’s psyche. It made me wonder how Aida and Phoenix were faring from that perspective. If they were to go blind, I knew I would do everything in my power to help them, to make their lives easier.
“I’m sorry, Vita,” I said, “but I won’t let any of you fall into a pit of despair over this. Whatever happens, we’ll get through it together. Draven’s father was able to help Elissa, after all. Draven will do the same for you.”
She looked up at me and pulled me into a hug. I held her tightly and felt her shudder in my arms. Vita may seem fierce sometimes, but she had moments when she needed reassurance that what lay ahead wasn’t all death and gloom.
“I swear, I won’t let anything happen to you. And whatever I cannot control, I’ll do my damned best to make it easier for you. You are one of the most important people in my life. I don’t know what I would do without you. And honestly, based on all this Oracle stuff, I’m pretty sure you’ll end up saving our asses someday soon.” I chuckled, and she laughed, her face nestled in my hair.
We parted, and she wiped the tears that had filled her eyes during our hug.
“I probably wouldn’t be alive if it weren’t for you, Serena,” she said with a smile. “Which is why I have to be one hundred percent honest with you. There’s something I didn’t tell Draven about my visions.”
I watched the corners of her mouth drop as she said that. Concern started chipping away at my demeanor. I counted my breaths in an attempt to prepare myself for whatever she had to say.
“What’s that?” I asked, my voice but a whisper.
“When Draven traded his freedom for your safety, there were certain words between you. Like you had feelings for each other. You know…love,” she replied.
“Oh,” I blurted, not sure how to react.
It brought back the pain of Draven’s potential death, and I wasn’t ready to deal with that yet. My heart twisted in my chest, wondering why Draven would completely surrender himself to Azazel just to keep me alive. Why he’d give up this fight to keep me safe. I was a complete stranger, an otherworldly creature that he knew little to nothing about. Regardless of the attraction that surged between us, Eritopia was his world, the core of his existence, his reason to keep fighting.
“I don’t know what to say, Vita,” I mumbled. “It’s a possible future, but I don’t know what to tell you.”
I did have an inkling, but Vita’s mention of the word love sort of freaked me out. The attraction between Draven and me had become undeniable. It was a fact. I had made my peace with that and relished every second of it. But from that to Draven sacrificing himself for me—it seemed like a long road ahead, a product of time and factors I had yet to fully understand.
“I know. I’m aware of that,” she replied. “But it has to start somewhere, right?”
I nodded.
“Do you two have feelings for each other, maybe?”
I sighed.
“There’s definitely something going on between us,” I finally answered. “I might as well admit that there has been a substantial shift in how Draven and I interact, so to speak.”
“So to speak?”
Her left eyebrow was lifted, and her lips slightly pursed, as if telling me she wasn’t buying the brief explanation I’d tried to give her.
“Well, neither of us expected this to happen,” I said, feeling my cheeks flame. “We don’t really know how to react to it, to each other even. So, we’ve taken it one step at a time, I guess.”
“Just so you know, I’m pretty sure we’ve all noticed it.”
“Noticed what?”
“That there’s something brewing between you and Draven.”
Leave it to Vita to put me at a loss for words as wave after wave of embarrassment hit me. Was it that obvious? Was I that obvious?
“Oh yeah, I saw it too,” I heard Aida say as she walked up to us.
I hid my face in my palms, suddenly feeling like I was in a bad dream where I stood naked in front of a crowd of strangers. Aida grinned and nudged me with her elbow. I looked up and saw her winking at me.
“It’s okay, Serena, I can’t really blame you,” she said. “The Druid is hot. Like midday in August hot.”
I couldn’t help but laugh, heat still sizzling beneath my skin. We all seemed to agree on that particular aspect, given the way we all nodded simultaneously.
“Well then, what about you and the incubus, huh, Vita?” I quipped, eager to shift the girls’ focus away from me.
I had a lot to deal with regarding Draven, so I wasn’t really ready to talk too much about him and about what had happened between us. Based on how he’d just rejected my company earlier, I didn’t want to talk about something that had the potential to fizzle out with just one argument. The Druid and I were very good at arguing.
Lucky for me, Vita blushed all the way to the tips of her ears. I’d caught her with her guard down, and her expression confirmed my suspicions.
“There’s not much to talk about,” she replied, but I didn’t want to let her off the hook so easily.
“No, no, there’s definitely something to talk about!”
“Don’t think we haven’t seen the way Bijarki looks at you,” Aida chimed in with a half-smile. “Although that probably is just his incubus nature.”
“Okay, fine!”
Vita conceded, raising her arms in a defensive gesture. “I’ve been having some trouble acknowledging it, but I think there’s definitely some kind of attraction between us.”
“Hah! I knew it! But is it real?” Aida asked. “I mean, does he affect you with his incubus whatever?”
Vita laughed, and I felt the mood lighten between us. So much had happened. We’d forgotten how to be just girls. We needed this.
“His incubus whatever?” Vita replied, still laughing, then took a deep breath. “He swears he’s not using his nature on me, and I believe him. He’s been nothing but honest and kind so far, so…I don’t know.”
“Did you kiss?” Aida grinned.
“Wow. How old are you? Twelve?” I smirked, and Aida nudged me again, this time with a little bit more strength.
We joked around for a while, teasing and questioning each other about the creatures that seemed to have taken hold of our emotions. Aida was coy when I asked her about Field, side-skirting my questions, but the glint in her eyes and the color that rose to her cheeks spoke more than words could.
For a few minutes, as we stood in the cold basement beneath a mansion protected by ancient magic, Vita, Aida, and I felt entitled to laugh everything off. Just for a few minutes.
Soon enough, the harsh reality would crawl back into focus and remind us of our possible fates. Soon enough, the thought of Draven dying would stab my heart over and over.
I quietly relied on Vita’s visions of the future to help me save him. To help me keep him safe and fighting the good fight.
Every single creature in Eritopia needed him. Every blade of grass and every sunset. Even the last Daughter needed him. Most importantly, I needed Draven. He annoyed and enchanted me at the same time, and I was once again convinced that while I might get to experience sheer bliss if I lost myself in him, Draven might also end up being my undoing.
Jovi
I sat with Field and Phoenix on his bed for a while. None of us felt like moving around much, and the cool basement seemed to comfort us. We’d all heard Vita’s vision of the future, and it had landed heavily on each of us.
My gaze wandered around the chamber before it settled on Aida with Vita and Serena engaged in conversation. Then I looked at the Daughter sitting on the floor, close to Phoenix’s leg. She quietly looked over all the pages of scribbled charcoal runes. I wondered if she would be the one to save us or if she’d be the reason why the Daughters would eventually abandon Eritopia. I had so many questions that no one could answer. So many possible scenarios that could lead to that devastating outcome Vita had described.
I let a heavy sigh out of my chest, feeling a small amount of pressure leaving my back muscles along with it.
“I think you speak for all of us,” Field said to me, the shadow of a smile passing over his face.
“Well, it’s not looking all that great right now,” I replied.
“You know what the worst part is?” Phoenix joined the conversation, while occasionally glancing down at the Daughter. “Before Azazel even gets to that point where he takes his Destroyers into our world, he will destroy Eritopia first if we don’t stop him. I can’t help thinking about the millions of creatures that will suffer and die here because of him. It just isn’t right, man.”
“Yeah, I feel the same way,” I said slowly. “I mean, the succubi alone are extraordinary creatures. I don’t know nearly enough about them, but what I do know is mind-blowing. I’ve only had a little time to spend with the Red Tribe, but they’re something else.”
“What’s with that grin on your face?” Field asked, and I realized I was beaming like the Cheshire cat.
In my defense, I had just remembered Anjani pulling me into her tent that night after claiming me in front of her sisters. The way her skin glowed when she blushed heated me up from the inside. I wanted to feel that again.
“I was just remembering something from that night with the tribe,” I said.
The guys and I hadn’t caught up in a while. Not that we made a habit of discussing our feelings, but we had been raised together and were comfortable enough around each other to talk about stuff.
“I think I’m interested in Anjani,” I continued and took a deep breath. “There’s something about her that I’ve never come across before. She fascinates me.”
“The succubi do seem extraordinary,” Phoenix nodded in agreement. “But they’re also genetically engineered to seduce, aren’t they?”
“Yeah, good point,” said Field. “Are you sure that what you’re experiencing is real?”
“She keeps her nature suppressed around me,” I replied. “She hates being a succubus because she wants genuine interest toward her, real affection, not nature-mandated drooling over her stunning body. I think it’s one of the things I like about her the most.”
“That and her stunning body,” Field quipped, and I gave him a sideways glance meant to curb the imminent jokes.
“She was made to enslave and break men down, there’s no doubt about it,” I said. “But there’s something more to her that interests me. Like a challenge of sorts. I want to find out all I can about her, but she keeps her guard up most of the time. She’s not used to getting a man’s attention, funny enough.”
The silence that followed made me turn my head to find Field and Phoenix grinning at me like immature dweebs. I sighed, loudly enough for them to register my fake discomfort with their childish reaction.
“What?”
“You’ve got a crush, Jovi,” Field announced.
“I’d do the Jovi-and-Anjani-sitting-in-a-tree thing, but I’m trying very hard to be an adult right now,” added Phoenix.
“Yeah, I’m guessing you’re trying to make a good impression in front of the ladies here,” I shot back with a smirk. “Or shall I say one lady in particular?”
The look he gave me was priceless. His face turned red, and he quickly glanced down to check if the Daughter had heard us. She was deeply immersed in her reading of the runes, and I could almost see the relief wash over him.
“That was a hit below the belt, Jovi,” he jokingly berated me, but I’d already been put on the defensive, and I wasn’t done yet.
“You’ll live. You’re a big boy, after all,” I replied, and then turned my sights on Field with the most serious expression I could muster. “What about you, Field?”
I’d seen him stealing glances at Aida during our little back-and-forth and decided to address that, since he’d been so eager to poke fun at me for talking about Anjani and the effect she had on me. He froze and looked at me, reminding me of a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
“What about me?”
“What’s up with you and my sister?” I asked, my tone heavy with a dash of warning.
Field blinked a couple of times, looked at Aida, then back at me. His face showed no emotion, but his irises flickered every time he saw her. He then shook his head, prompting a grin to bloom on my face.
“Nothing,” he replied, his voice carrying a slightly higher pitch than usual.
“You’re a terrible liar, you know that?” I shot back, close to bursting into laughter.
“No, I’m serious, I don’t, I can’t, I…” he paused and cleared his throat, trying to find his words. “I’m not interested in your sister, Jovi. I’m still…I’m still processing my breakup with Maura.”
A moment passed before I replied. Not that I had nothing to say, but I was fond of Field, and I knew he deserved to be with someone extraordinary. And as protective as I usually was of my sister, it did seem like the right time for both to get out of their comfort zones and explore the possibility. I wasn’t an idiot. I knew what those glances meant, even if they didn’t.
“Hm, that’s a shame,” I said, looking at my sister. “In that case, you’re definitely missing out.”
“What?”
“Aida’s an incredible woman. Any guy would be the luckiest creature in all the worlds to get her attention,” I replied, perfectly aware of the blank
look on Field’s face. “I mean, she’s been head over heels for you for as long as I can remember. It’s a shame you don’t see her like that.”
I turned my head slowly to see his expression. I bit my cheek to stifle a smirk of sheer satisfaction.
Field looked stunned. He moved his gaze from me to Aida on the other side of the basement, and I could see his blue-green eyes flaring as she looked back at him. He immediately looked away, once again focused on my nonplussed self.
A minute passed. I could no longer hold it in, and neither could Phoenix. We both laughed hard, further adding to Field’s visible anguish.
“I can’t believe you didn’t know, Field,” I continued. “You are blind. You’ve been blind for the past ten years if you haven’t noticed something that we all knew. All of us.”
“I mean, I knew. It was that obvious,” Phoenix added with a chuckle.
Field looked at both Phoenix and me for a moment, then back at Aida. The girls were all the way across the room, and they’d only heard the laughter, not the context. Nevertheless, it was fun to watch the Hawk experiencing befuddlement.
He got off the bed, unable to take his eyes off my sister.
“I need to go. See you guys later,” he said, without even looking at Phoenix and me, and hurried up the basement stairs.
I laughed, shaking my head. I watched my sister and her best friends for a little while.
I had a feeling that those three would withstand anything together–their bond was strong, and they somehow complemented each other perfectly. Vita was the introvert, but Eritopia had managed to bring out a side of her that none of us had previously seen. Serena was the firecracker, the curious and inquisitive one; and Aida was the fighter, the girl who always felt like she had something to prove—more to herself than anyone else.
I liked their dynamic and, given our current circumstances, I felt like they could really come into their own and accomplish some extraordinary feats together.
Field, Phoenix, and I had a different yet similar rapport—where one faltered, the others pushed until we reached our goals.