Chapter 10

Autumn didn’t pause or wait for anyone, she moved through the trees without so much as touching a leaf. Abe always figured she was street smart in a city setting but now knew her instincts were built in for any situation.

Uncle Rafael was to his left and moving at a slower pace, most likely because of his swords. His two long swords were getting caught on everything. It made him appreciate his shorter weapons even more. He had one drawn to clear the path for the thicker areas. Aunt Daxx was in front of him, and she was most definitely not used to the country setting. Her footing wasn’t steady, and her hair kept getting caught because she didn’t duck soon enough through the branches.

Through the trees, he saw a small building—if the cedar shingles were any indication, had to be at least sixty years old. He paused and glanced at his uncle, “Shack up ahead.” He said quietly into the comms.

“There’s a worn path heading that way,” Daxx veered off from the direction they’d been walking. And then she started swinging her blade around.

He couldn’t see anyone, but being as he knew next to nothing about this realm, he quickened his step to see if she needed help. Was she fighting someone that was invisible? His Aunt Raegan could do that, and Bastian said that most in his realm could, or at least the ones that harvested souls could. He drew the other sword from his back and held them both out from his body. If he touched them, they’d be visible, or that was his understanding of it.

Daxx growled low and stumbled back a few feet. Abe rushed to help her, and a branch whacked him across the face. “Get it off me.” She swatted at her face.

Grabbing her shoulder, he spun her around to see that she was wearing a mask of cobwebs. Cringing, he wiped at her face and pulled most of it off.

“Hate spider webs.” She glared at him like it was his fault and then turned to catch up to Autumn and Rafael, who had reached the shack.

***

His father eyed Abe’s cheek and raised an eyebrow.

Abe wiped at the blood on his face, knowing he’d probably just made it worse. He jerked his chin toward his Aunt Daxx, “She attacked a tree, and I was too close.”

“I did not attack a tree,” Daxx gave him a hard look, “I was covered in cobwebs,” she glared at him, “on my face.”

His dad smirked, then turned so she couldn’t see him grin. “Where is everyone?”

Daxx continued to run her fingers through her hair, searching for any leftover webs. “Only four guys were at that shack, so most are back here at the cells.”

“I’m going to wait for Prince Bastian and his brother.” Abe didn’t mind that task at all. Watching the mind seeing, thought reading members of the family at the cells was something he still wasn’t comfortable with.

“I’m heading to the cells.” Daxx didn’t wait for anyone to acknowledge her and left.

“Stop by your room and wash your face. I’ll go keep Bastian company until you get there.”

Once again, he chose to walk to his room from the landing room. Everyone else always ported out, but he preferred to walk and think. When did they ever have time to process anything if they were always getting somewhere as fast as a blink?

When he reached his room, he quickly washed his face and assessed the mark. It wasn’t bad; one feeding and it would heal. He leaned on the counter and looked at his reflection. Was his life better now or worse?

For over two hundred years, he had to always be on the move, hiding, and trying to blend in when it called for it. He had to pace himself because regular feedings were hard to come by some years, depending on what was going on in the world. Now, he walked around with his family, garbed in black leather, and blending wasn’t an issue because he didn’t have to here. He could go feed whenever he wanted, although that still felt weird. Having others offer themselves up for feeding was like something out of a movie, and yet now it was his everyday life.

Blowing out a breath, he straightened from the mirror and then caught a glimpse of the medallion hanging around his neck. He touched it and looked at the image in the mirror. He was part of a royal family and royal guard. Images of similar medallions flashed in his head. They weren’t the same, but there was no mistaking the moon and star emblem. He didn’t see any faces, so he couldn’t be certain who they were, but the location was wherever those stones were.

Turning around, he flicked off the bathroom light on his way out. He needed to go feed and get to the acclimation chamber. Being alone wasn’t working out for him. Every time he was, he saw more and more images, and it was starting to make him think there was something very wrong. Why were they accelerated now?