He didn’t answer because the word was already in my head before he could.
Dead.
Both Cash and Jo were dead.
My eyes burned as I got to my feet. I wanted to run away. I wanted to hide. I wanted to scream and cry, but I couldn’t do anything except stand there and deny what I already knew to be the truth.
Aram was on his feet, trying to get me to look at him, but I couldn’t. I didn’t hear anything he said as tears burned down my cheeks.
If they were dead, what about the others? What was I supposed to do? What happened? How could they be dead?
My eyes shot up to the Nether Royal in front of me. “Take me back. I need to go back. I need to stop this.”
His wings shifted in agitation. “It might be a trap, V. I’ve been weakened by ancient pixie magic. It will take me time to recover,and you’ve used a great deal of your ability already. I can feel its toll on you. Not to mention, our bond—”
“I don’t give a flying fuck!” I screamed, voice hoarse with anguish. “Those are the people I love, Aram. The. People. I. Love. All of them. Every single fucking one. Either you take me back yourself, or I find a way to get back no matter if it means I go there just to get myself killed, all because our contract wiped my memories. But I’m leaving. You either come with me or get the fuck out of my way.”
I started to head toward the wall we’d come through, but he was already following. His frustration barely registered when my rage and grief were nearly destroying me.
I was frantic to find a way back, but I wasn’t even sure where I could go. Did they have portals? Where even were they? How did I get to them?
Cutting me off before I could try to slam my way through the now solid wall, he nodded after a little sigh. “We’ll first need to find where they are. I can track one of your Hunters with the map, but I suspect they’re in the space I projected my shadow into that day. If that’s the case, I can get us there quickly as long as I have you. I have the means to get us there in seconds.”
My whole body was shaking with fear and rage, voice quivering. “Okay, well, let’s get moving on it. If she’s ki—” I swallowed around the dreaded word, too afraid to say it out loud. “If it’s what we think, then I’ll need to reverse and freeze time. We’ll have to stop it from happening.”
He led me over to the map as tears continued to track down my face in vicious streams. “It’ll take me a few minutes, but I really should involve my brothers. Perhaps even the pixies, though they’ll be weakened by the dusting they did earlier.”
I rubbed the rune on my throat, barely keeping it together. While I’d been over here cozying up with Aram, they were being attacked. If I’d just gone with Big…
I was so afraid of what I’d find. What I’d be faced with when we went back. What if I made a mistake? What if I couldn’t reverse what happened? What if I couldn’t save them even if I could rewind time? Would I spend every day regretting that I didn’t go with Big?
I couldn’t lose them.
Fire erupted on the floor around me, ready to incinerate everything in its path. The powerful feeling in my gut called to me. It wasn’t one I’d felt before. It was dangerously dark and inviting. It urged me to destroy and wreak havoc on anyone who got in my way.
The fire around us grew and burned brighter. Without a doubt, this was chaos. The magical bond had been broken. I now had access to my chaos magic again.
Aram was bent over with his hands firmly holding my face in place. “I know what you must be thinking, little mate. I know you must be blaming yourself. But you can’t. That is exactly what Hera wants. She wants you to give into chaos. She wants it to consume you so she can use you. Don’t let her win.”
The flames flickered out of existence as my eyes focused on his. “What if I can’t save them without tapping into it?”
His mouth pressed against mine hard enough to make his point. “You will. Accept nothing less.”
Time seemed to crawl as he used the map to locate Phillip and Sloan. Could he locate them if they were dead? I never thought to ask, but the mere thought of saying it out loud was impossible. I’d choke on the words before managing to ask my question.
He spoke before I could sink any deeper into despair. “It’s as I thought. She found them in the space Marius created.” He stalked over to a desk nearby and grabbed something, then he was back in front of me.
“We can’t wait on your brothers. That green-haired bastard will argue. The longer it takes, the more time I have to reverse…and I don’t know how far back I can go. It’s already been nearly five minutes. I don’t want to risk it,” I said quickly. “Please don’t make me wait on them.”
Aram dragged a hand through his hair, his fear bleeding into my head. “If we go alone, we’ll be at greater risk. After you reverse time, we’ll need to act.”
Suddenly, the wall wobbled and a figure broke through and stood near us. He was still in the outfit he’d worn to the ballroom earlier, but now he carried a long sword. His dark hair was brushed away from glowing green eyes.
Aram let loose a breath and greeted him. “I should’ve guessed you’d pick up on my distress, Dagon.”
The looming figure with steely eyes and a silent but deadly presence took a few more steps into the room. I hadn’t expected to hear his voice again, but when it hit my ears, it was as dark and as ominous as his appearance. “I’m rather surprised Rayis isn’t here first. Is it the hybrid?”
His stoney face shifted my direction, and I glared at him, too anxious to get the hell out of here to care what he had to say.
