chapter 35
Grabbing a knife, Stubbs sliced his palm and used his blood to smear a small symbol on the floor. He passed it to Eva and she did the same. They looked at Tanner expectantly as she passed the knife to him. He reluctantly took it and complied.
When it was Addy’s turn, she didn’t even reach out to take the knife as Tanner tried to hand it to her. “I can’t.” She shook her head at him. “Do it for me—please.” She held out her arm to him.
“You’re pushing the limits of our friendship, girlie.” He stepped in front of her, pulling her arm under his so she was behind him and unable to look at what he was doing.
The pain from the knife piercing her skin sent a jolt through her and she instantly became lightheaded. She grabbed Tanner’s shoulder with her other hand to steady herself. He lowered her hand to the floor and helped her make the same symbol the other three had already created.
Eva directed Tanner to stand on the symbol Stubbs made and Stubbs stood on Tanner’s. She moved over to stand on the one Tanner helped Addy make and Eva pointed to hers for Addy. The wet blood was slippery under her bare feet and oozed between her toes. Stubbs carefully placed the Overseer’s Stone in the center.
Eva said a few words. A swirling wind like when they trapped her in the bloody symbol surrounded them. Blue rays of light came from every direction. The symbols on the stone shined brightly. They grabbed each other’s hands to stay in place as the wind whipped around them.
Realizing what was going on, Jax threw himself at the group trying to stop what was happening. Juliette scrambled to stop him. They were both pulled into the center of the circling blue light, unable to move.
Time seemed to pass slowly and Addy struggled to keep her watering eyes open in the bright light. The scene played like a movie in slow motion. Akori were rematerializing outside of the circle by the dozens. Her eyes burned as she scanned the growing crowd.
Addy caught sight of Matt and Renee hugging their uncle Josh to her right. Their parents would be back too. The fighting had stopped and everyone was either staring at them in shock, or had realized what was happening and started seeking out someone they knew who’d Scattered.
She was about to give up when she finally spotted Gage pushing his way through the sea of Akori in front of them. A wave of heat rushed through her body and the blue light got even brighter. He froze in place when he saw her.
Addy’s heart was pounding and it was a struggle to stay rooted where she was. Gage looked exactly the same as he did the day he Scattered. His face showed too many emotions to figure out what he was feeling and she wanted to run to him more than anything she’d ever wanted in her life.
The swirling wind was too loud for her to hear him, but Addy could tell he was calling her name. Suddenly he began to rush toward her. Glancing down at Jax and Juliette pinned in the center of the circle, she tried to yell at him to wait, but no words would form.
She screamed in her mind for someone to stop him, and as if they heard her, she watched Will and Bernard grab Gage, pulling him back. He kicked and fought to free himself the same way she’d fought to get away from Tanner the day Gage Scattered.
Addy couldn’t wait for the ritual to be over so she could go to him. Matt and Josh ran over to help restrain him. He was fighting so hard to get to her and she wished she could tell him to calm down and pay attention—that it would be fine.
Tanner’s hand tightened, snapping her attention away from Gage. An intense pulling started to draw them into the center of the swirling circle.
Blazing blue light swallowed them, forcing her to squeeze her eyes closed tightly. Addy felt overwhelmed by the amount of power flowing around them.
Nausea swept over her when she realized she could no longer feel Andrew’s hand. The feeling she was going to faint continuously came and went. Tanner’s fingers were still wrapped around her hand and every time she seemed close to blacking out he shook her arm or squeezed her hand tightly to bring her back to attention. It seemed as though they’d been standing for hours and her body ached to drop to the floor.
Even though her eyes were closed, she could tell when the blue light was finally fading away. Once her vision adjusted, she was relieved to find Tanner standing in front of her. Jax and Juliette were on the ground beside them, but Eva and Andrew were gone.
The air was fresh and sweet, almost intoxicating. The ground under her bare, blood crusted feet was soft green grass. The sky was clear blue and the sun was blazing high overhead.
Jax and Juliette got to their feet and stood beside them. Addy still had a firm grip on Tanner’s hand with no intention of letting go. The four of them stared down from a hilltop at an ancient city below.
“Oh, hell.” Juliette took a few steps forward and turned around to face them. “We’re home.”