Chapter 48
The pit of her stomach bottomed out and her head felt light. Blinking, Nova looked around. She was standing in a large beige room. Crissy smiled at her and then looked over at a dark-haired woman that stood at the door.
“How do you feel? Any pain?”
Nova opened her mouth and then paused to see how she was feeling. “A little lightheaded, nothing else.”
The woman shrugged and looked at Crissy. “I don’t think she needs this.” She held up a small rubber bracelet.
“I just like to be sure.” Crissy set Nova’s bag down. “Vic said no more porting people without someone being here.” She turned and smiled at Nova. “I’m glad you didn’t die.” Nodding, she started to walk from the room. “Oh, welcome to Alterealm.” She looked at the other woman. “That’s what I should say, right?”
Nova’s eyes widened as she looked around the room. “We’re in Alterealm?”
The other woman smiled. “Yes. I’m Kinsley, Emil’s mate.”
Nova sucked in a breath. “A princess.” She gave her a hesitant look. “Should I bow or-or curtsy?” Not that she knew how to do that.
Kinsley smirked. “I don’t think that’s necessary.”
“Oh.” Crissy pulled her phone out of her pocket. “I want to listen and see if they get them.”
“Them?” Nova picked up her bag, not sure what else she should do.
“Mmm, the bad ones that want you.” Crissy put an earbud in her ear.
Kinsley motioned out the door. “Those of us not invited to help are hanging out in the office.” She walked out the door.
“Not-not invited?” Nova followed her quickly.
“Daxx, Leone, Michael, and the tag-team went over to help round up your dark-souled friends.”
“Dammit.” Nova stopped and stood there. She looked at Crissy. “Did he ask you to do this so I couldn’t do what I’m meant to do?”
“Yes. No. He was going to, I know that because I saw it so I went over to wait for him to, but then the bad ones made it have to happen before he could.” She shrugged. “So I did.” She touched her ear and then started walking down the long corridor.
Nova looked at Kinsley. She smirked at her and then followed Crissy. Turning, she looked at the room they’d come out of and then back to the women walking away. She was in Alterealm. She took her phone out and then jolted and ran after them, she didn’t want to get lost. “Will my phone work here?” She was in another realm, after all, so it seemed like a normal question. After she gave Bastian and piece of her mind, she was going to think more about the insanity of being here.
“Mmm, give him hell.” Kinsley went in a door, Crissy right behind her.
Nova stopped outside the door and looked at the sign on it. It said Girl Cave. She looked in to see several women standing around a desk looking down at it. She recognized Autumn, Crissy, and now Kinsley—these were the Alterealm Princesses. She scowled, despite the wow factor, she was still upset Bastian had sent her away like that.
Hitting send beside his name, she turned away from the door so she wouldn’t be distracted by meeting women that she’d spoken to numerous times.
“On a scale of one to ten, how angry are you?” Bastian asked before he said hello.
She glared at the floor, trying to ignore the women talking behind her. “Nine.”
“Ah, so there’s a little wiggle room. I had no choice.”
“I wasn’t given an option. How am I supposed to help if I’m here?”
“So, I should have discussed it with you first and then sent you there?”
She clenched her teeth together, then hissed out a breath. “No. You shouldn’t have sent me here to begin with.”
“Your lips are as soft as I imagined. More than worth the pain.”
Nova glowered at the wall across from her. He had touched her and kissed her while she had the pendant on. She touched her lips with her fingertips and wished she hadn’t been so stunned by his action at the time to sense what her soul and body had felt at that moment.
“Are you remembering it?”
She blinked and paced a few feet from the doorway. “No.” she lied.
“We’ll have to try later without the bespelled stone hanging around your neck.”
“Bastian—”
“You’re going to have to save your scolding for later, lovely Nova Gaines, my assistance is required here. Life and death and all that business.”
Her eyes bulged; she’d forgotten about the dark-souled ones. “As soon as you’re done there, we’re having a talk, face to face.” He sounded like he was running. “And you better be safe right now.” She growled it despite the way her heart accelerated.
“Ah, I knew you cared—and I am more than willing to have a talk, face to face.”
The line went quiet. Holding the phone out, she scowled at it. He was an infuriating man. Turning, she picked up her bag and went into the room with the women from the royal family.
Kara glanced at her. “We’re muted so if you need to rant, you can.”
A woman with long wavy black hair smiled at her. “Airing our frustration with the men is a favorite pastime here.”
Setting her bag down, Nova walked over and looked to see a woman with grey-streaked hair sitting at the desk holding a phone.
“Your left or mine?” She recognized Daxx’s voice. “Never mind. I see him. I might not be able to see souls and all that jazz, but I can still spot a dirtbag.”
Autumn glanced at her. “I’m getting one of those boxes so I can go next time.” She nodded.
Kara turned to her. “How are you going to send them to the cells if you’re fighting them?”
Autumn shook her head. “I’ll find a way.”
“I really need one of those earbuds.” It was Bastian talking. “So I don’t have to run and hold my phone.”
“I handed you one a week ago.”
“Tor, you’ve known me since before we could walk, you know you need to make sure I’m paying attention.”
Nova stared at the phone. They were having this discussion now? She glanced around at the women there, none of them seemed concerned.
“In the category of paying attention, if Paize holds this guy much longer, he’s going to turn into a permanent fixture.” Nova recognized Bethany’s soft voice.
“Almost there.”
“You’re getting slow, punk.” She knew that was Quinton.
“Don’t insult my man,” Bethany said.
“Bastian, get to the next building and let Ava and Karma know if there are any more over there.”
Next building? They were running around on the roof? She crossed her arms and stared at the phone.
“Next,” Daxx said loudly.
“Get over to the other side and help our Gemini friends if Bastian spots any.” She wasn’t sure but thought that was Michael who spoke. It was hard to remember voices, for the last seven years she talked to herself more than actual people.
Autumn was leaning on the desk now, glaring at the phone. Nova covered her mouth, definitely her mate on the other end.
“Red jacket, black cap,” Bastian said.
“Almost there.” Daxx sounded out of breath. “What? You’ve never seen someone run before?”
“Let’s not pick fights with innocent bystanders, shall we?”
Kinsley grinned and shook her head.
“They started it.” Daxx huffed out a breath. “Gawking at me like that.”
“For which they will receive ten lashes. Please focus on returning undamaged.” A man said into the phone.
“Yes sir, King Troy,” Daxx responded.
“You might want to discuss this later,” Bastian said, “I’m not sure what Ava and company are doing to that lawless sap, but he’s lying on the cement and clutching his stomach now.”
Autumn leaned over and taped the screen of the phone, “Ava lay him out with a gut kick?”
“Neither of them touched him,” Bastian’s tone was rigid, “whatever is happening to him, they’re doing it from a distance.”
“I hate magic,” Quinton grumbled.
“Hey,” Bethany chortled, “my magic is good magic.”
“Now you’ve done it.” It had to be Leone. “You insult me and now you dis her magic.”
“What kind of wickedness was that?” Daxx was breathless. “Karma, you or? Oh. Dang. Sucks to be him.”
“Anymore over here, Bastian?”
“I’m looking,” he replied.
“Arius, you have one ported to the cells that have had all his bad karma reversed back to him. He’s probably going to need to be medicated or something.” Daxx sounded amused.
“I can’t wait to meet him,” a male said into the phone.
“We need more eyes that can see these jerks.” Daxx sounded annoyed now.
Nova stepped closer to the desk, and the woman holding the phone looked at her.
“Let Nova speak, Rae,” the woman with the long hair said.
“I was thinking the same thing, Alona.”
Alona. That was the other queen. Nova looked back at the phone. Raegan tapped the screen and held it toward her.
Nova didn’t want to take the phone, so she just leaned closer to it. “One more reason why I should be there and not in another realm.”
“Oh snap. Someone’s in trouble.” Nova grinned at Paisley’s tone.
“Tor and I are doing just fine,” Bastian answered.
“Tor is not just fine. I almost missed that last jump,” Tor growled into the phone.
Nova scowled and nodded for Raegan to unmute it again, “when you’re finished playing batman and running across the roofs in the city, we’re discussing my idea to set a trap to get these dark-souled minions.” She nodded so the mic would be muted again.
“I like you, Nova,” Daxx said. “I’ll help with the planning.”
“A fellow movie groupie, I can tell, so I’m in.” Bethany sounded happy.
Autumn leaned back toward the desk. Raegan tapped the screen again. “We’ll all help with that.” The other women nodded.
“I could use a good fight.” A man said.
“It doesn’t have to be a fight, Arius,” Paisley said through the speaker.
“Good, evil, it’s always a fight, babe,” he answered.
“Anything would be better than this meeting.”
Alona scoffed and reached over Raegan’s shoulder. “Just focus on the meeting, my king. Both of you.”
“As you wish, beloved,” King Chase answered.
“A little difficult when my mate is running up and down the streets,” King Troy said.
“Do you want to go away on a vacation in the next thousand years?” Daxx didn’t sound amused.
“Of course,” he responded.
“Then focus on all that gunk, so someday we can do that.”
“What kind of vacation? I’m thinking the beach a little surfing…”
“You’re thinking bikinis, be honest,” Leone said.
“Kara in a cute little number, yeah, I can handle that.”
Kara blushed and grabbed the phone. “Concentrate on breaking in the horse, Rafael, and not your face when you fall off.”
Rafael snorted, “I won’t fall off.”
“Is that all?” Michael’s tone boomed out of the phone.
“I don’t see any,” Tor responded.
“Just checking this side,” Bastian replied.
“How many did we get?” Daxx asked.
“Five.” Arius’ voice echoed.
“Damn. We are going to talk about Nova’s idea, catching them one or two at a time is going to get old, real fast.”
Nova nodded at the phone.
“I don’t see any.” Bastian sounded disappointed.
She held out her hand for the phone. “Good. I will put the tea on and wait for your arrival.”
“Somebody is in trouble,” Chase sang into the phone.
Alona rolled her eyes and then held out her hand, “it will be more than one if you miss the ultrasound, Chase Whitham.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it, duchess.”
Nova looked at Alona’s stomach where her hand rested. She was pregnant. One more very important reason, she thought, to end this craziness with the dark-souled ones. The next generation here and at home had the right to a peaceful life, free from soul-sucking bad guys.
“We’ll be back in five,” Emil reported.
Nova watched the women relax and knew she had a few minutes for ‘holy cow, I’m in another realm’, before she dealt with Bastian.