Jonathon’s words flowed from him in a gale. “We were on our way to do that. Louis, Lienda, and I gained entry to Vanguard, but he wasn’t there. No one had noticed yet, but upon investigation he’d been gone for about twelve hours. And … he managed to free Vlad and Scarface.”
“I thought they were dead!” I finally found my voice, it was hard enough to shatter glass.
Jonathon’s resonance matched mine. “I thought so too, but there is corruption in Vanguard. We need to have a mass turnover of the guards again. It’s generally required every few hundred years, and is the most effective way to break the cycle.”
I rubbed at my nose. “So you’re saying the motherfuckers who tried to rape and torture me, along with the sorcerer who schemed and murdered other supes to frame my boys, are out there running around free. And this is because someone on the inside helped them a second time?” The sort of rage which quite frankly scared the shit out of me rose up through my body. My dragon and wolf were straining with the need to kill, fight, maim.
“They won’t be free for long, Jessa babe,” Jacob said, the fey’s voice less musical than usual. “As soon as we deal with this dragon mark thing and the rise of the king, we will make it our mission to hunt them down.”
Some of my red-hot rage subsided, Jacob’s words reminding me that I needed to focus on our current problems. Kristoff would just have to take a back seat. But I would not be forgetting. Giselda was going to be minus a father very soon, and if I found out that bitch had anything to do with his scheming, well, she would be in the shallow grave next to him.
Grace rose from where she’d been sitting in the corner of the room. “Why do I get the feeling that I’m the only one here missing a vital piece of evidence?” Clearly she’d had enough of being the quiet mouse in the corner. “Why am I even here, Louis?” She turned her delicate ire toward the sorcerer, who was hovering between the living room and the front door. “You said they would need a healer.”
Louis steadied himself. He’d been halfway out of the room, preparing for us to leave and unlock Mischa’s dragon mark. His purple eyes focused on her. “They will need a healer. I don’t see the future, but I sense paths that should be taken. I have an idea of what is to come.” He glided closer to her. “Your destiny is here, Grace, you just need to be patient.”
Grace’s eyes flicked to Tyson. It was one of the first times I’d seen her even glance in his direction since we’d boarded the plane from Stratford. The wizard lurched forward from his place against the wall. It was like the moment they locked gazes they were connected. He strode the five steps to reach her and she looked helpless, unable to tear herself away.
“What are you talking about, Louis?” asked Maximus.
His question wasn’t necessary. All of us could see and scent that something had shifted in the room. Tyson paused, his arm extended as if he was going to pull her toward him.
Grace’s face fell, and her eyes crinkled like she was about to cry. “Please don’t. I can’t take this from you anymore.”
She turned away, finally strong enough to tear her eyes from the handsome wizard. The energy between them shattered as she dashed from our apartment, disappearing out of the door. Tyson hesitated for a second, caught by surprise.
“Shit,” he finally cursed, before taking off along the same path.
I fought the urge to follow, I hated to see any members of my pack hurting, but I knew this was something they had to work out between themselves. Tyson and Grace’s fight had been a long time coming. Plus, we had bigger things to deal with. It was time to unlock Mischa’s mark.
I was consumed by many hectic thoughts as we crossed the town center heading toward the forest, so I wasn’t the first to notice the large gathering of mystics on the edge of the green tree line. Twelve of them. Which if I remembered correctly, was the entire bunch. They were cloaked, hoods up, and the feeling of something eerie, ominous even, was strong. I recognized Gerard and Quale, plus a few others whose names I didn’t know.
Earlier in the day Louis’ brother had informed us that he wouldn’t be around much. The mystics were balls deep in rituals and cleansings for the rise of the king. Brainless dickbags, couldn’t care less about the damage they might be causing.
“What do you want?”
Louis’ power laden voice was directed at the line of cloaked ones.
Quale, still near the middle, Gerard to his left. The majority were nameless, faceless members.
One of them spoke: “You need to train with us, the twins must learn of their mark powers.” There was the slightest hesitation before he continued. “And we have decided that if the quads want to continue residing in the sanctuary, they must join their powers together. Our people demand to know if they’re a threat.”
I bared my teeth. “We don’t have time for this. Plus, you have no jurisdiction over us.”
Quale stepped forward. “If you don’t have the basic instruction, the same as all the others who enter the sanctuary, then you will no longer be welcome here.”