Chapter 35

Nova filled the tray with biscuits and cheese. Her hands were vibrating with nervous energy. When Bastian said he needed to tell her things, she could never have dreamt of what those things were. Somehow her life, her very existence was tied into the madness of evil plots, betrayals, and more secrets than she knew how to handle.

Pausing, she listened. He was still on the phone with his guard. Before that, he’d had to check in with the King in Alterealm, but not Troy. How many kings did the realm have?

Looking at the tray, she tapped the counter on either side of it. Tea, this definitely called for tea—something calming, soothing, for her nerves that were all firing in her body at once.

She filled the kettle and then plugged it in. A mage, not to be confused with a witch, who was older than time had been planning and executing a chain of events that would allow him, and his evil friends from all the realms to take over the world. She frowned at the cupboard, all the worlds. Was that right? Worlds? Realms? Did all of them exist on Earth or was there more than one planet involved? She blinked, none of that was relevant. She had no interest in astronomy at all.

Taking the box out of the cupboard, she set it on the counter and exhaled a slow breath. They’d—as in people from all six realms had caught this crazy ancient mage, but the threads of his plan were still out there and part of it was connected to the dark souls. Which was connected to her.

Dropping two tea bags into the pot, she poured the water. Six realms. How was it that no one here in her realm knew of such a thing?

She frowned, a journal spoke of those from ‘other worlds’, but had never elaborated on it further. She didn’t need to go searching for answers there. She added the teapot to the tray and picked it up. She had a living, breathing historian of sorts standing in her sitting room.

She watched Bastian type on his phone, so fast with two thumbs. Her skill on such a small device hadn’t progressed past tapping it with one finger. Although she had managed to stop taking accidental screenshots, so that was something.

Setting his phone on the table, he turned to look at her.

“Everything good?”

He shrugged. “Tor will cover my shift time today.”

His shift time—meaning when he was to be with people that were dying.

Bastian came over and looked at the tray. “Rebirths,” he said quietly. “Just think of it as rebirths, new lives.”

Biting her lip, she nodded. Had it been that easy to see what she was thinking? “It will take some getting used to. I don’t know how you do it, how your people have dealt with it so long.” She sat in the armed chair beside the table.

He picked up a biscuit and broke a piece off. “It’s not all my people.” He put it in his mouth and chewed it before speaking again. “Not all are able to see souls.” He shrugged.

She lifted her brows. “They’re not?”

He sat on the edge of the other chair and then shook his head. “Are all humans doctors? We all have a purpose.” He broke off another piece. “Which is why it’s important for me to unravel the lies we’ve been living.” His dark eyes held her for a moment. “Not all want to live forever, but currently, all watchers have no choice.”

“In case enough aren’t born?”

He nodded.

Nova glanced at her notebook, so far all she’d done with it was write down the name of the woman they needed to find. “How do you live forever?”

Setting the biscuit down, he leaned over and lifted the lip on the teapot, and inhaled. She smiled, it pleased her that he was deciphering what flavor she’d put in. “The elixir I mentioned that some traitor has been giving Arwan.” He picked up the teapot and poured the liquid into the two cups on the table.

“So, this elixir allows anyone to drink it and live longer?”

Bastian nodded but didn’t say anything else.

“What’s in it?” She couldn’t imagine such a thing as something you drank to make you live longer. If people knew about it, there would be wars over it. Many would want to break the natural order of life to live forever.

He paused with the cup halfway to his mouth. “If I told you that, you’d either find it repulsive or genius.”

Nova tilted her head. “You have to tell me now with an answer like that.”

His smirk was brief. “The old souls, that are unable to recycle again and, I suppose magic of sorts.”

“Souls have a shelf life?” Her words were much lighter than her thoughts. They drank the souls of others—was all her brain could process.

“Think of them as magical batteries, that go on for hundreds of cycles.” He sipped the tea and then nodded, approving of her choice.

“You’re drinking old battery acid?”

Bastian coughed and then set the cup down quickly. Chuckling for a moment, he looked at her. “I adore your perception of things.”

Nova picked up her cup and looked at the sepia liquid in it. “My thoughts aren’t as amusing, trust me.” Without looking at him, she asked the question that had been scrolling through her mind like a ticker tape on the news. “Bastian, why did Vic call me a Solrelm Prince’s other? What does that mean?” She looked at him over the cup.

“Ah.” He sat back. “I wondered if you caught that.”

“I was a bit distracted at the time with things, but later it hit me.” She took a sip, hoping she appeared more nonchalant than she was feeling on the inside.

He sighed, watching her. “Other is my people’s way of referring to their soul’s other half or soul mate. Literally.”

She put the cup down before she slopped the hot liquid on herself. “He thinks I’m your soulmate?”

Bastian could have lied or joked and blown the question off, he had a knack for doing that she’d discovered, but he didn’t, not this time. “Because, lovely Nova Gaines, you are my other half.”

There was a long silence. She could form no clear thoughts to say anything. With the intense, steady look he was giving her, she was sure she couldn’t have spoken.

“I don’t know why I had to chase your soul through history, but for whatever reason, we were meant to meet now, in this time, and no sooner.”

Her heart should have been drumming like a heavy metal song inside her chest, but it wasn’t. The tempo was strong and steady. The memories of panic and fear that often flooded her when she thought of him weren’t there. There was a stillness inside her.

“I would say I could prove it, but you’re wearing that.” He pointed to her pendant. “And it’s like being electrocuted if I get too close.”

Nova touched the pendant that rested against her throat. “That thing my soul did when we were closer.” She looked into his eyes to see a look more serious than when he told her of the atrocities of the men being taken and families torn apart.

“I think that was just to get our attention.”

She tilted her head to the side. “Get our attention?”

"Yeah.” He held out his hand. “Take it off and I’ll show you.”

“You can do that?”

He opened his mouth and then closed it, his gaze moving over her face for a moment. “I think so.”

“You don’t know?”

He gave his head a slight shake. “We only get one other, so it’s not something I’ve practiced, but I believe if our souls are connected, we’ll know.”

Nova closed her hand around the pendant. “That feeling.” She bit her lip. “It was a bit disturbing.”

“As I said, that was to get our attention. I believe I can control that intense heart-pounding this time.”

Nova waited to see if he was going to smirk, but there was no trace of amusement on his face. “You can control your soul?”

He quirked an eyebro., “I would like to think so, considering my very purpose for existing is souls.”

Nova had no idea how long she sat there, but she wasn’t going to rush to take the pendant off. She was in charge of this soul right now and it had been given to her for safekeeping. Even if that meant from a cute prince from another realm with a sexy smile. She inhaled slowly through her nose and blew it out gently. “If I say stop, you’ll listen?”

“Your safety and happiness are more important than anything else—to me personally.”

She sat there drowning in the look of tenderness he was giving her. Very few things had been done for her. Since the day she realized her soul had memories, every day was meant for what was best for the next keeper. Taking a moment more, she stilled and searched for that panic or wariness that always seemed to be inside her. Aside from anticipation, which she was sure was her own, and had nothing to do with the soul inside her, there was silence. “Okay,” she whispered and then reached and undid the clasp on the chain. Setting it on the table, she watched the chain slip through her fingers.

Bastian held out his hand. “The soul inside you got my attention, time and time again." She lifted hers, but she hesitated before putting her hand in his. “It captivated me, holding my undivided attention, distracted me from the tasks at hand, but you...” His gaze never faltered once from her own. A tender look was in his eyes. “You took my breath away.”

Nova touched her fingers against his warm palm, not sure of what to expect. Slowly, he closed his hand around them. She expected the tingling, that heavy feeling inside her, but instead, a warmth spread up her arm slowly. She didn’t know how, but it felt like something was moving from her hand to his as well.

“It’s...” She looked at their hands; she couldn’t think of a word to describe it.

“Beautiful,” he whispered.

She lifted her gaze to his, he was talking about the feelings, she was sure of it with the way he was looking at her. Bastian squeezed her hand, then glanced at theirs wrapped around the others. “Never leave here without wearing that amulet,” he said softly, then leaned down and lifted their hands. He kissed the back of hers and then released her hand and took a deep breath as he closed his eyes.

Nova looked at her hand as the warming sensation slowly left her arm. When she looked back at him, he was watching her, something dangerous was in that look.

“Put your protection back on, Nova.”

His tone was soft, but she still felt like it was a warning. With an unsteady hand, she picked the necklace back up and fastened it around her neck. The stone felt like ice on her skin, causing her to gasp.

Bastian chuffed, “It can sense my presence still in you.”

“What?” She grasped it in her palm, trying to warm it.

“Mmm, I only meant for a show of a reaction, but didn’t understand until now that would mean leaving a trace of my soul behind.”

Her eyes widened. Shouldn’t she feel something like that?

“Yours did the same, lovely soul. So while neither of us knows the rules in this game, our souls know all the steps.”

Nova let go of the pendant and felt a small comfort when it didn’t feel so cold. “Oh.”

“Exactly that.” He leaned forward and picked up his cup and took a sip as if none of that had just happened.

“So.” She let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding. “What does this mean?”

Bastian took another sip before setting the cup down, and stood up. “That things are going to piss me off a lot until all of this mystery around missing fathers and other is solved.”

Nova looked at his back, waiting for him to continue. “It is awful—”

Bastian snorted and then spun around to look at her. “Yes, that part is, but now that I’ve had a taste of the elusive soul created only for me, and I can’t go near you without fear of wanting more, or being electrocuted, it’s going to piss me off. Does piss me off.”

Nova frowned, she felt like she’d missed something important in the last few moments.

Bastian blew out a breath, stepped toward her, and then stopped. “Once we’re-our souls are blended, I’m not going to be able to let you out of my sight, or likely my bed for a decade or more, and with everything happening right now, I can’t risk taking you back with me and I can’t stay here, or it will never be solved.”

Nova looked at the hand he had held like it was going to have answers.

“I didn’t intend to do that.” Bastian motioned to her hand. “I only meant to demonstrate what I said to be true.”

She nodded, despite not understanding any of it.

“I will immerse myself in those journals now.”

It was the first time she’d heard him use a tone that proved his status and privilege. Nodding, she got up.

“I’ll just need a moment alone.” His tone was softer, imploring her to allow him that.

“Of course.” She looked around. “I’ll just go through some things to take upstairs.

Grabbing his phone, he gave her a stiff nod and then spun on his heel and left the room.

Nova looked at her hand again. Why now? Why me? She wasn’t about to deny anything that had happened, just wasn’t sure she was strong enough to do this. Helping find women and children, she could do. Search for dark-souled ones, she was fine with that, mostly. Connect or whatever with that intense man? Surely the next keeper would be better prepared for that. Biting her lip, she looked around the room again. Spotting her notebook, she sighed. Many questions were answered. Now, what she was doing with those answers, she had no idea.