by Jaymin Eve
Rone was at my back. I knew his scent and energy really well now. I could tell all the guys apart without even having to look at them. “We have no choice,” he said to Larissa, the two of them close friends without all the sex of Ilia and Calen.
Larissa shook her head. “It’s too dangerous.” She rubbed at her eyes, smudging the makeup. “I can’t lose any of you.”
She whispered the last part, but we all heard. Rone tried to reassure her: “We’ll be careful, but we can’t leave him there any longer. His circumstances have changed, and we’ve let him handle this on his own for too long already.”
She took a long moment to answer. “I understand,” she finally said. “Asher would do the same for any of you. You should save him. I just… Let me come.”
That was immediately shot down by everyone. “It’s too dangerous,” Rone told her, a bite in his voice. He rarely used that tone with Larissa; he was gentle with her in ways he wasn’t with anyone else, but this got him fired up.
“If Maddi is going, we’re going,” Ilia said stubbornly, finally coming up for air from Calen.
Axl, who was still calculating something on his paper, lifted his head then. “Maddi is one of us. Part of this world. She’s also connected to Asher somehow. This is her fight, but you two, you would be liabilities.”
Ilia took offense, even though Axl was merely stating the facts as he saw them. “I’ve never been a fucking liability to anyone, Axl,” she snapped; her anger brought a shocked look to his face. “Not one person or supe. So you better switch your argument up right now.”
Axl might be a buff, over-six-feet-tall Atlantean genius, but under Ilia’s ire he looked like a child chastised by his mother. “Sorry, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it that way. It’s just, you’re not Atlantean. We might have to swim deep, and our bodies can adjust, but yours cannot, among other things. I know you’re a very strong and well-trained fighter. And your attack magic is second to none. But this is a different set of circumstances.”
Ilia was very good at what she did. That was the reason she had the job of tracking and returning lost supes. She was almost always an asset. Except under the water, she would be exactly as Axl had said: a liability.
Red flared across her high cheekbones, and Calen must have seen the signs of her impending explosion, because he started gently rubbing his hand over her back—one of the very things that told me this was more than just sex between them. He cared.
“How long will you be gone?” she asked, her voice controlled.
“The jet leaves in two hours,” Jesse said, walking back in the room. “I sent a message through to them. But I have no idea how long we’ll be gone.”
There was literally no way for us to know. We might find Asher in five hours, or it might be five days.
She looked at me for a long time, then shook her head. “I don’t like this at all. But I do understand that this is Atlantean business and I’m not going to be that useful.”
Larissa sniffled at her side, shoulders curving forward. I wrapped my arms around them both. “I love you guys,” I said.
Ilia growled as she squeezed me tighter. “Don’t start that bullshit. You’re coming back okay. You’re more powerful than you believe. You can do this.”
Larissa sniffled louder. “I’m so scared for you all. You’re walking into a danger you know nothing about, and I’m afraid I’ll lose someone. You’re family to me now.”
Vampires could be very cold with anyone outside of their immediate family, especially when they’d suffered the sort of trauma Larissa had in losing her mother. She’d closed herself off for years—until this year, when everything had changed. And now we were heading straight into the sort of danger that supes didn’t return from.
I understood her tears.
We hugged for a long time, and then Ilia and Larissa pulled themselves together and took off to distract Princeps Jones so that he wouldn’t delay us.
35
Asher’s plane was nothing like I expected. It was fancy: thick plush carpet; gold inlaid fittings; Locke Industries insignias across the wall panels; and huge captain’s chairs made from leather so soft and buttery I was almost certain it was magic. And the best part: it had a specially designed engine and electronic panel that was protected from our energy, so hopefully it wouldn’t fall out of the sky.
When we were all buckled in and ready to go, the pilot announced that we were about to taxi down the runway. Nerves took hold of me. Flying had always felt foreign, like we were never meant to soar in the clouds. Discovering I was supernatural didn’t change that feeling. If anything, I was more certain that Atlanteans should not fly. We were built to swim.
Jesse, who was the closest to me, reached out to take my hand. I clung to him with almost embarrassing strength, but it didn’t seem to bother him. The initial takeoff threw me back in my chair a little, and my ears felt funny as we rose in the air, but after another five or so minutes, my fear faded, and I was more fascinated with the clouds out the window.
“Incredible,” I breathed, my hand pressing against the glass, like I could reach out and run my hands through the fluffiness.
“I love all your firsts,” Axl said, shooting me an odd look. “You’re the best thing that happened to the five of us. We needed…” I waited with bated breath for what he was going to say. “You,” he finished. “We needed you in our lives.”
“It’s true,” Calen added from the chair behind Jesse.
“Yep,” Jesse chimed in.
Rone didn’t say anything, but he shot me his version of a smile, and my heart fluttered at this sweet moment. No one had ever said anything like that to me before. I’d never been needed or wanted. I’d never been anything.
“Thank you,” I whispered, reaching out to squeeze Axl’s hand, and then Jesse’s. Jesse had been my rock these last few months as we searched for the library and I dealt with my powers and school, both of us missing Asher with a desperation that was borderline obsessive. I wasn’t sure I would have made it through without him.
Without them all.
I must have dozed off at some point, waking up as we came in to land. Axl was still doing his tracking thing, making sure we were on the right path. “How does it work?” I asked, watching as he filled the page with symbols and numbers and small graphs.
“I tag your energy with mine,” he said softly, his forehead creased in concentration. He was only giving me half his attention. “Then I receive coordinates when I tap into the spell.”
Wonder filled me at the possibilities magic could bring. “Can everyone do that?” I asked.
Calen snorted. “Nope. It’s advanced magic that Axl shouldn’t be playing with. But he’s never been great at waiting for his age to catch up with his magical abilities.”
Axl finally lifted his head, dark smudges under his eyes. The tracking was tiring on his energy, that much I already knew. “Tyson Compass managed to become a sorcerer last year, and he’s pretty much the same age as us. Sure, the quads are famous, and he has no peer, but still … it’s doable. You just have to exercise your magical muscles.”
I had no idea who Tyson Compass was, or the quads, but I believed that Axl could do anything he set his mind to. I’d already seen him do amazing stuff.
The plane really started to descend now, and I spun in my chair, tightening my belt and checking the small tray table again, making sure it was locked in place. “You okay, sweetheart?” Jesse said, looking relaxed across from me.
I sent him a tense smile. “Yes. I’m good.”
We were that much closer to Asher. I was fucking amazing.
The plane landed smoothly, and when we exited via a set of stairs, I stared around, trying to take it all in. It was late, but I could see bits and pieces of the sparse landscape. It was warm as well, the breezes carrying a hint of salt in them. We couldn’t be more than a few miles from the ocean, the body of water calling to me.
“We will find a room for the night,” Rone said, “and then
come morning we will track Asher.”
I didn’t argue, though the thought of waiting one more night almost drove me crazy. I understood, though. We had to take a boat to wherever they were, and heading out in the dark wasn’t smart or safe.
A large black car was waiting for us, a driver ready to take us into the small village nearby. There were not a lot of accommodations available, but Axl had managed to secure us two rooms in a three-level, white-walled, grecian villa. There were two double beds in each room—we were going to have to share.
“It’s just one night,” Axl said pragmatically. “Let’s get some sleep and head out at first light. There is a speedboat with our names on it waiting at a nearby dock.”
I sank down onto one of the beds. “I’m going to share with Maddi,” Jesse said. “And I think Rone should take the other bed. We need to keep her safe now that we’re out of the Academy.”
No one disagreed. “We’ll be next door,” Calen said.
I tried not to worry about sharing a bed with Jesse, and it would be nice to sleep soundly because I wasn’t worried about being kidnapped.
We’d all brought a small bag with us, and I used the bathroom first, changing into a tank and soft pj pants. I brushed out my hair, braiding it to keep it out of my face. Jesse went in right after me, and I was already in the bed, squished to one side when he returned. I was across from Rone, his bed two feet away. Having these two on either side of me was about as safe as a girl could be.
We were quiet for an extended time, but I sensed none of us were asleep. I was actually afraid to fall into a deep sleep, because then the dreams would come.
“Why do you think I’m having the dreams?” I asked. “I mean, if they’re real … that’s got to be odd, right? Me seeing Asher’s situation…”
“We don’t know,” Rone said gruffly. “Asher mentioned … from the first time he caught you in his arms … that there was a connection between you. We thought at first that it was because of your strong Atlantean blood and the shield over your power.”
“But then you broke that,” Jesse added, “and the connection never went away.”
“It didn’t,” I admitted. “I mean, at first I thought it was just because Asher is insanely hot.”
There was a moment of silence and then both guys laughed. I had to laugh too. “But it’s not,” I said, sobering. “It’s something more. Deeper. A connection that extends beyond the normal sexual attraction and chemistry.”
“You guys definitely have that,” Rone said with a low groan. “Trust those of us who had to be around while you two tried to avoid it.”
It was true. That night of the party we’d finally woken up to ourselves, only to have everything go to fucking shit around us.
Eventually exhaustion caught up to me, and I let my eyes drift closed.
“Maddi!” Gentle hands wrapped across my shoulder and I choked out a sob, stuck half in the dreamscape and half in reality. “Sweetheart, come on, wake up.”
I finally managed to pry my eyes open, seeing the stark white hotel walls. Jesse had his arms around me. Rone was somewhere close by too, the icy bite of his energy hitting my skin. “The dream?” he asked, deep voice close to my shoulder.
I nodded, trying to clear my throat and wipe the tears from my cheeks. “It’s getting worse. That bitch pretending to be his mother is unhinged. If what I’m seeing is true, we have to find him today or we might be too late.”
“I don’t understand why he’s even indulging this,” Jesse bit out, anger tightening his hands on me. “He’s the strongest of any Atlantean, even those recruited into the Arterians. That’s why they’ve been trying for years to get him.”
“He’s stronger than his parents?”
Jesse nodded, early morning light washing across his dark features. “Asher’s a lot stronger. We don’t know why, but somehow his genetics threw back to purer lines. He’s the first to be able to control water the way he does. He is virtually unstoppable in the water.”
“And out of it,” Rone said drily.
I remembered all of the bodies he’d dropped at the cabin.
“Maybe he was stalling them and now he’s too weak to fight back,” I guessed. Because the Asher I saw in my dreams was suffering.
Jesse growled, the lion taking over. “Either way, we’re going to find him today and end this.”
My breathing and heart rate eventually slowed to a normal level, and since I needed to pee, and the sunlight was starting to make itself known, I climbed out from between the two guys and made my way to the bathroom.
“Was there anything new in the dream?” Rone asked, just before I shut the door.
I paused, my hand tightening on the frame as images flashed my way. “Yeah. There was a woman, one I hadn’t seen before. She was touching him, whispering in his ear while he was … was restrained and bleeding.”
I wanted to kill her and his fake mother, who had stood by watching.
“Asher didn’t look conscious,” I choked out. Spinning around, I slammed the door shut, sinking back against it, covering my mouth to silence the sobs.
36
We were a somber but determined group as we made our way along cobbled paths to a small harbor. There was a multitude of fancy boats docked there, and I guessed this little town was popular as a vacation spot. I didn’t blame them. The weather was gorgeous, perfect blue skies, with just a few fat, white fluffy clouds in the distance. Crystal-clear waters. Islands dotted about in the distance.
The man we got our boat from spoke only Greek. Which wasn’t an issue, because Axl fluently conversed liked he’d been raised right here in this village.
“How many languages do you all speak?” I asked, standing back with the other three.
“Axl speaks … shit, like ten at least,” Calen said. “Asher the same. The rest of us lesser supes … about six.”
And I spoke one. Story of my underachieving life.
The sun was high and hot when we hit the water; I had to shade my eyes against the glare.
Calen, who was apparently a bit of a boat enthusiast in his spare time, took the control, or whatever it was called. It looked a little like a steering wheel. Axl sat beside him, still navigating.
I alternated my time in staring out across the perfect view around me and wringing my fingers in my lap. The dream still had me shaken, and the thought that we were heading into a dangerous, unknown situation was not at all reassuring. But I was more than willing to risk my life for Asher. He’d already proven he would do the same for me.
As the mainland disappeared from sight, my stomach rolled, and I felt slightly disoriented. Which lasted all of five minutes before the soothing lull of the water snapped me out of it. This was my happy place, the salty water, and the swell as it rocked our boat. Unlike the plane, I didn’t fear anything out here.
Anything except the bastards who had taken Asher.
When I couldn’t stand the silence any longer, I leaned toward Axl. “How’s the tracking going?”
He nodded a few times, still staring at his numbers. “Good. They’ve stopped moving, and we’re getting closer, so we have to move with caution.”
Calen immediately cut the powerful engines, and I was wondering if we’d have to row … or maybe swim to the location. Then I felt a whisper of magic and we started to move again.
Right. One day magic would be my first thought.
“Slow,” Axl said, his voice low.
The magic across my skin lessened and we glided until we almost came to a halt.
Axl stood, and leaning over the side of the boat stared down in the water. It was still clear, but at this depth the visibility wasn’t as good as in the shallows. “He was here,” Axl murmured, his eyes still darting about the water like he could find what he was looking for that way. “I think the entrance is somewhere close by. We’re going to have to go below.”
My first thought was to freak out, because holding my breath for five, even ten minutes, was great, but it was
n’t enough to get us into the deep.
My worry must have been written across my face, because Jesse let out a low laugh. “I guess Ash never got to this part of your water magic. All Atlanteans, no matter race, can manipulate water. We bring the oxygen to surround our mouths, almost like scuba gear. It takes practice though, which you don’t have, so you’ll have to stay close to one of us.”
Water Magic classes had been canceled when Asher disappeared. We had barely gotten to anything there.
“Calen is the best after Asher,” Axl said, still half distracted. “He has the strength to bring oxygen to both of them.”
I raised an eyebrow at Calen. “Look at you, being the overachiever.”
Calen shrugged, but his grin held pride. “I’ll keep you safe.”
“I know.”
I had no doubt.
Calen dropped the anchor, and we ditched all unnecessary clothing. I was in a black bikini with a tank over the top. “Are we sure this isn’t stupid?” I said, hanging on the edge of the boat. Jesse was already in the water, his dark hair slicked back. Calen was beside me, Axl doing one last calculation. “I mean, we have no idea what waits for us down there, and Asher might not even be there, since the entrance moves, and—” I cut myself off, the sound of my high-pitched voice irritating me.
“Asher is here,” Rone said, sounding sure. “And we have let this go on too long. It’s been months. I’m ready for some action.”
Asher. I just had to think about him. About his dark hair and beautiful eyes that could be green one minute and then filled with blazing silver in the next instant. His perfect face. If anyone was born of a god, it was Asher, not me.
“I’m ready,” I said, determination filling me. It washed away the fear, allowed me to straighten my spine and push myself off the edge of the boat, sinking under the cool water.
I closed my eyes for a brief moment, allowing the stress to fade as the world above disappeared. I’d been swimming a lot lately, and my body had adjusted in more ways than one. My eyesight could switch to underwater vision almost instantly, allowing the world to come into clear focus. My skin adjusted to the cooler temperatures with ease, and I found it comfortable and easy to move about. I couldn’t breathe underwater, of course, but I wasn’t panicked when holding my breath. I could hold it for a long time.