I hesitated to ask, but I had to know. “The energy around him is so powerful.”
The Watcher’s gaze remained steady. “It doesn’t get more powerful than Nikolai. He is a type of Bellati known as a Perditor, and he could destroy an entire realm, if he ever fully unleashed, by tapping into the core power that resides beyond the life energy.”
My eyes widened. Kinda put my issues into perspective. “Entire realms?” My voice squeaked.
“Yes,” Cara admitted. “He’s potentially very destructive, but I have been guiding him. He has a good heart, and with the stability provided by Lucas and Aria, he is doing well.”
I stared after them, just as Trix bounded past them and straight to me. She was dragging her leash.
I’d left her with Kitani, so the female Sabre must have come out to greet Cody. As I petted my dog, I bit my lip. I hadn’t sensed her coming. Dammit, I needed to get my head in the game here if I was going to help my guys.
We emerged into the back field and, despite the hour, Cody was greeting Kitani, Ryan, and the twins. Clearly, family support, for them, transcended normal bedtimes. Trix rejoined them, and the twins giggled as they petted her.
Kitani smiled at me. “Do you want to take Trix?”
“Is she helping them at night?”
She scanned me. “She needs to be cloned,” she diagnosed. “But I think she should spend the remainder of the night with you.”
Trix ran back to us, and Mari bent to pet her and pick up her leash. I figured that between the twins and me and Mari, Trix had her work cut out for her.
Cara led me to the steps and sat down. “Have you felt anything from Matt?” she asked.
Mari settled to the steps too, still stroking Trix. I plunked my tired ass down between her and Cara and told the Watcher about the contact I’d had, along with the sense of something being very wrong.
Her mouth pulled straight. “Nothing since?”
“I think he’s blocking me.”
“Well, we have to unblock him. Jacques has a list of Xumi’s strongholds, and he’s looking for her. He figures she will be wherever they are. But so far, she’s been keeping her head down. Bess is working on the Mierva gate, trying to track the pathway they took, but it is a busy gate. We need more to go on.”
“The only reason why Matt would block you is to protect you,” Mari interjected. “You’ll have to convince him that isn’t his job.”
Mari was surprisingly perceptive, but she was right. To break through his walls, I needed to embrace my inner alpha bitch.
So I closed my eyes. Our trial mission had shaken me, and I had to reach deeply to find that confident, no-nonsense power. I gathered it to myself and pushed it into my mental yell.
Matt! I will not be ignored!
I sensed him immediately, along with his shock that I could push through the barriers he’d so laboriously erected.
I’m not ignoring you, Angel.
Oh, yeah, you are.
I’ve been—busy.
His energy was all over the map, and it didn’t feel like him. If it wasn’t for the familiar warmth and the accent that carried through even in his mindvoice, I wouldn’t have recognized him. I took a deep breath.Can you give us any details about where you are?
Nothing concrete. Typical stone block construction. This room looks much older than the other one, like a retrofitted dungeon. Smells like mildew, and it’s damp. Think we’re underground now, if that helps any.
Any other smells?
I sensed his surprise that I would think to tap into his Dire talents.Dragon piss. And another, kinda acrid, stench. Makes my nose sting, from a species that hangs out here. Think she uses them as staff. Big and burly, all muscle. Really heavy features, and strange red eyes.
I straightened on the steps.Red? Like the entire eye, or just what is usually white?
Just the whites are red, if that makes any sense. The irises are brown.
