Chapter 57

The line was quiet, making it harder for her to distract her mind from picturing bad, creepy things down here. They didn’t have Bethany’s light ball here, so Bastian held up his phone and used the flashlight to brighten their path. Nova didn’t even realize her phone was a flashlight until that moment. As if talking on it, taking pictures and texting weren’t amazing enough, it was a flashlight too.

“Shit,” someone said into the phone.

All four of them stopped walking.

“Is there more to go with that?” Emil asked.

“Yeah, about eight more,” Bethany whispered, “and they’re armed bodybuilders from the looks of them.”

Quinton and Emil looked at each other.

“Go,” Bastian said, shining the light into the darkness. “It looks like a dead end this way.”

Nova watched the men make the split decision to go help their family and they ran down the tunnel. Nova held Bastian’s look for a moment and then looked where he aimed the light. “It’s not a dead end.” She frowned and looked at the tunnel darkness beyond where he shone it.

“Then you are seeing something I’m not. I see a wall.” He started walking again.

“You see a wall?” There was no wall for her. She remembered the door that wasn’t visible on the outside of Halcyon cottage. “I think it’s been disguised or something by the fairy that spelled Halcyon cottage.” She wanted to grab his hand to settle her nerves but didn’t want to hurt him. She touched the pendant around her neck.

“Leave it on,” he said as if he’d read her thoughts.

Nodding, she kept walking.

Bastian paused and put his hand out and looked at her. “I see a wall, right here, but I don’t feel one.” He touched his ear. “We have a magical wall here that’s some sort of illusion. We’re going through it.”

“We’ll be—” There was grunting. “—there shortly,” Emil answered.

She heard the clang of metal in the earpiece. “Don’t get hurt,” she said quickly.

“That’s the plan.” Rafael sounded out of breath.

“Here.” Bastian held out his phone. When she took it, he pulled a knife out of the inside of his leather jacket and then a silver tube like the one Tor had that day. She gave him a wide-eyed look; he held up the tube. “My wand to, uh, remove souls.” He motioned the knife in a circle. “Self-explanatory.”

Nova nodded and it was strange, but she felt better about his wand than the knife. Shining the light ahead of her, she stepped across where he said there was a wall. She stopped to make sure he could follow her.

“I’m willing to bet your door is this way.”

She nodded. If all they found was the door into her library, she’d be very happy, anything else and she wasn’t sure she would deal well with.

“Sedric is in the shower now. Leone ported home to grab him some clothes,” Liri reported.

“He’s missing all the fun,” Bethany said quickly.

“How are you doing, Bastian?” Troy asked.

“We’re through the wall,” Nova answered so Bastian wouldn’t have to put either item he held away.

“Shoot. Two just took off,” Paisley said.

“Probably running home. Arius keep an eye.” Rafael blew out a breath. “We’re just sending them all to the cells and going to check down this tunnel and make sure it is the end. You can have a look see later, Bastian and we’ll see which leaders we need to call.”

Nova glanced at him, he nodded but turned to check behind them.

“He said okay,” she told everyone.

“We’ll be there in a couple,” Daxx told them.

Nova turned and saw an old, rusted door in front of them. “Do you see a door?”

“Yes, I do.” Bastian relaxed and went over to look at it. “I don’t know if this is going to open.”

Nova grimaced. “I’m not too upset by that.” She smirked at him. “I don’t see this as being a route I would use, ever.”

Bastian glanced at her, a smile on his face and then it slowly disappeared. He wasn’t looking at her, but behind her.

Nova turned to see two large men blocking the tunnel.

“It’s her,” one of them said and then pulled a knife, that was twice the size of the one Bastian held.

“That wall was an illusion,” the larger of the two said.

Nova shone the light at them, hoping to blind them. It was too dark in this place to see if they were the lawless that was after her or if they were just helping them. She hoped the others hurried.

Bastian moved with cautious steps until he was blocking her from them. “I suggest you both back off.” He wiggled the knife at them. “This is nothing compared to what this will do to you.” He held up his wand.

The one with the knife looked at it with recognition on his face. He had to be from Solrelm, she thought, or work with the ones from there. The one without the knife stepped toward Bastian. She didn’t know if the growl was from Bastian or the man, but when he stabbed the wand toward him, it flashed a light and the man dropped to the floor.

“Next,” Bastian said with not so much as a glance at the one now lying at his feet.

Nova knew she should inform the others and get help, but she stood there frozen, unable to get her hand to reach up and press the bud in her ear to activate the microphone. She didn’t want to distract either of them by moving. Bastian needed to focus.

“What the—” the one with the knife slashed it in Bastian’s direction. “You used a taser on my friend?”

Bastian grinned in a cynical way. “Your friend is very much dead, I’m afraid.”

It happened so fast, it barely registered in Nova’s mind. The one with the knife swung his hand out and knocked the wand from Bastian’s hand, she heard it clatter when it hit the stones. Bastian blocked his next swing. Then in slow motion, she saw the man stab the blade into Bastian’s stomach. Someone screamed and she realized it was her. She must have dropped his phone because when she scrambled and picked up the wand, she was grasping it with both hands.

Bastian knocked him back and deflected another swing. Nova charged at the man, jabbing the wand into his neck. The light was bright in the darkness as she held it there and held it until he crumpled to the damp floor in front of her.

Bastian stumbled back and slid down the wall. Nova dropped the wand and crawled to the phone. She shone the light to see how badly he was hurt. When the light hit him, there was blood on his hands and staining the dirty stones. She remembered the call and slapped her hand against her ear. “Help. I need help. Bastian’s been stabbed."

“We’re on our way. Put pressure on it.”

Nova scrambled across the floor to him and put her hand over his. He groaned. “Pendant,” he gasped.

Reaching, she tore the necklace from her neck and tossed it away.

“Pick up the wand,” he whispered.

She ignored him and pushed with all her weight into him.

“Other one. Not dead.”

She jolted and looked around for the wand. Dropping the phone, she reached and grabbed it and then checked the first man that had fallen. He was still unconscious.

“Bastian!” Tor called out, almost deafening them.

“Rae, get to Nova’s. Crissy, go get her,” Daxx said.

“On my way,” Crissy said.

Nova heard boots on the stones.

“Holy shit, it is an illusion.” She wasn’t sure which man said it.

Someone dropped down beside her and took her hand away from his body. There was blood between her fingers, her hand was covered in blood. It looked black in the low light.

“We’re trying to open the door in the library.” Liri’s voice was filled with panic.

“It’s deep,” Troy said.

Nova looked at the door that Emil and Quinton were trying to open from this side. It’s her magic a voice inside her said. Only the one soul.

“This one is dead,” one of the women said.

Nova had killed someone. She should have felt remorse, shouldn’t she? She looked at the stones she was sitting on and then at the men trying to open the door again. They were going to kill Bastian, no choice. She didn’t know if she thought it, or if her soul was telling her. Getting up, she staggered. Her legs were like jello. She went over to the door and placed her hand against it. The creaking of old hinges echoed in the hollow space and then warmth from her library hit her face. As the air filtered out, she inhaled the scent of the vanilla candles she liked to burn. She dropped to her knees.