“Lies, Sally,” Rachel said into the girl’s mind. “Reject the lies that so easily entangle. You are precious and loved. You have suffered a horrible injustice, but you are no more tainted than a child who has been abused. You are the victim, and I know that is a horrible label to have to bear, but it does not mean you are tainted. Fight back, Sally. Don’t let this steal your joy and the life you can have.”
Rachel tried over and over again to reach Sally’s mind but couldn’t get past the darkness. She didn’t even know if Sally could hear her in her mind. After several more minutes, she pulled her hand back. Tears streamed down her face as she stood and took a step back from the bed. Rachel wanted to turn and run, to get as far from whatever evil had latched itself to Sally as she could. But she wouldn’t do that to someone she’d grown to care for. Sally needed help. The young healer needed the support and love of them all.
When she finally left the room, Rachel was going over the things in her mind that she’d seen and heard inside of Sally, and trying to determine a way to tell her two best friends. She didn’t want to come across as hopeless, but that’s how Rachel felt, as though nothing would ever be okay again. Everything was falling apart and…
“Rachel?”
Her thoughts were cut off abruptly when Jacque placed a hand on her arm.
“Are you okay?”
“I…” she began but then stopped. Was she okay? She didn’t think so. But what wasn’t okay about her? “Sally’s mind is wrapped in darkness. I’m not sure if it’s magic or her own self-loathing. It’s cloaking her mind. I tried to speak to her, but I don’t know if she heard me.” Rachel took several cleansing breaths before she spoke again. “It was whispering to her. Ugly, horrible things. Almost like it was alive.”
Alina placed a hand on Rachel’s arm. The healer looked down. She hadn’t realized she’d been rubbing her arm. “It feels like my skin is crawling,” she said. “The … darkness, or whatever it is, feels like it tried to crawl into my own mind.”
“What sort of magic was it?” Alina asked.
Rachel thought about the question for a moment and then shrugged. “I honestly can’t say that I could tell. There was just so much malice in it.”
Alina turned to Lilly. “Are you getting any weird vibes about Sally and Costin traveling?”
Lilly raised a brow at the Alpha female. “That’s not how it works. I can’t just make the visions happen. I do have an uneasy feeling, but I don’t think it’s because of Sally or Costin being in danger if they travel.”
Jen walked over and looked at Rachel. “I heard a little of what you said. We’ve decided that Sally and Costin need to take a trip to her parents. Maybe it will help her work through whatever pain and lies she’s beginning to believe.”
Rachel nodded. “I think that’s a good idea.” She was about to say something else when she heard her mate’s voice bellow down the hallway.
“Rachel,” Gavril said for the second time, only this time he didn’t yell. “What is wrong? I could feel you. Something is not right.”
“Sally’s being consumed by darkness. She is self-destructing, and your mate went into her mind to verify it. That’s all. Geez, you males can be so dramatic,” Jen bit out.
Gavril’s eyes widened. “What darkness?” he asked Rachel.
“I’m not sure, my love,” she told him. “I couldn’t tell if it was magic or her own psyche.”
“Where is Sally now?” Gavril asked.
Five female hands were immediately in the air, pointing to the door of Sally’s suite. “She’s sleeping,” Jen told him.
He nodded. “It is late. Perhaps we all should follow her example and get some rest.”
Rachel let him lead her away, but she glanced over her shoulder, and her eyes locked on Lilly’s. The warlock king’s mate was hiding something. She’d heard it in the lie the woman had told Peri. Lilly had felt something about Sally and Costin. She knew that Lilly loved Sally like a daughter, so she couldn’t imagine that she would keep something to herself that could put the girl in danger. So what was it the queen was hiding and why?
Decebel stopped when he felt his mate stirring in his mind. “Is everything alright, Jennifer?”
“As alright as it can be,” she answered, sounding very tired and worried. “I booked Costin and Sally plane tickets to Coldspring. They leave tomorrow afternoon. Lilly has called and informed Sally’s parents of their imminent return.”
“Imminent return?” he asked, unable to keep the humor from his voice. “Since when did you start using words like imminent?”
“Since my life became a super-long battle against one evil after another. Saying that Lilly told them they were coming home just doesn’t reflect the gravity of the situation. And I’ve been reading a lot lately. Let me bask in my growing vocabulary, B.”
“As you wish,” he told her. “You are done meeting with the other females?”
“Yep. Going to check on our rug rat in the flesh. I’ve had the baby monitor connected to my phone, and she hasn’t stirred. Then I’ll see if I can get some rest. Make Costin get his arse home, please. I don’t like Sally being in her bed alone. And as much as you wolves grumble about your mates being by your sides, he needs to practice what he preaches.”
Decebel could feel the frustration rolling off her in waves. She was angry with Costin for leaving Sally, and he couldn’t say he disagreed with her. The males of his race were possessive and protective. It wasn’t right for Costin to demand that Sally stay close to him and then bail on her when things got tough.
“I’ll take care of him and be back to warm our bed as quickly as I can. Behave,” he added before he felt her pull back from his mind, not closing it, rather remaining just in the background.
He began to run again with Fane close at his side. Decebel stuck his nose in the air and breathed in deep. There, to the left, he could smell Costin’s faint trail. Decebel veered that direction and picked up his pace. As they descended a steep slope, both he and Fane had to dig their paws into the ground to bring themselves to a stop. There, next to a small stream, sat Costin. He was in his human form, pulling up grass from the ground and shredding it.
Decebel phased, as did Fane. There were no clothes to don, but only males were present, and they weren’t bothered by the lack of covering. They walked over to where Costin sat and took seats on the plush grass across from him.
“Talk to us,” Decebel said after several minutes of silence.
Costin’s lip curled up in a silent snarl. “This an intervention?” His voice was harsh and bitter. He glanced up at them, and Decebel saw his eyes were glowing bright. His wolf was in control.
Decebel called on his own wolf and let the power that came with being an Alpha flow over him. He knew the minute it hit Fane and Costin because they both bowed their heads instinctively.