Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 147891 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 739(@200wpm)___ 592(@250wpm)___ 493(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 147891 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 739(@200wpm)___ 592(@250wpm)___ 493(@300wpm)
“We can do that today,” Caz murmurs in my ear. He’s standing behind me, the heat of his body pressed to mine. He circles his arms around the upper half of my body, and I melt in his arms.
“Blackwater is beautiful. I didn’t realize there was so much more to it,” I admit.
“Oh, there’s lots to be discovered,” he says on the shell of my ear. His warm breath sends a spiral of heat through me, creating a puddle between my legs. “We can discover it together.”
My eyes shift to Danica and Warren. Warren is facing the waterfall, zoned out, while Danica claims the space next to him, her sword in hand.
“How long must we wait?” Danica asks, wiping the sword with a handkerchief.
“There’s no wait at all.” A voice rises behind us, and Caz pulls himself away from me to spin around. In the depths of the cave, I spot lustrous blue eyes. They move closer, along with soft, damp footsteps, until Hassha appears. She stands several paces away, dressed in a sleeveless tan top and matching skirt. Her crown is rooted to her head, her white hair braided into singles down her back. She smiles at me and Caz, then her eyes shift to Danica and Warren, who are staring at her in complete shock. Danica plants the tip of her sword in the ground, dropping to one knee and bowing her head.
“My Regal, Hassha. I am so grateful to be in your presence,” Danica says. “I never thought this day would come.”
“Rise,” Hassha commands, and Danica immediately stands upright again, but not without staring at Hassha with glistening eyes.
“All the Cold Tethered children in one area. I’ve not been a witness to this for centuries.” The glow of her eyes fades, and two women step up behind her—Milandra and another built woman with blonde hair. Warriors who are all business and no smiles, unlike their leader.
“Hassha, thank you so much for doing this.” I move closer, wanting badly to take her hands and hold them, but I know better not to. Milandra is already looking at us like she seeks a challenge.
“Come.” Hassha holds her arms out to me, and I hesitate before stepping into them. She holds me close, hugging tight, and her warriors tense, gripping the handles of their spears tighter. “Such wonderful energy.” Pulling away, Hassha clasps my face in her hands and presses her forehead to mine. She closes her eyes to breathe a moment, eyeballs moving behind her lids, then she opens them again.
“I’ve seen what has happened since you returned to Blackwater. Decius is gone. That is good.” Her gaze shifts to Warren and Danica. “Come,” she insists, waving her hands for them to approach.
They make their way toward her, Warren a lot more wary than Danica. When they’re close enough, Hassha takes Warren’s hand and wraps hers around it. Her eyes shut again, those eyeballs swiveling behind the lids, until she hitches a breath and her eyes pop open, glowing fiercely now. She releases Warren’s hand and takes a minor step back.
“I felt the dark energy seeping out of him from a distance, but it’s much worse than I thought,” Hassha states.
“How do you mean?” Danica asks rapidly.
“Though you can’t remember, I saw exactly how Decius used your energies to get by. Warren’s is much stronger than yours, Danica, so he used him twice as much. I believe he was using Warren to tap into Earth as well, hence the nightmares Willow previously had, as well as the snake attack and the attack from our prisoner. Warren was his only link to Earth.”
Garrett. I put up my mind’s wall because I know Caz is going to flip if he even hears me thinking about Garrett’s well-being. I don’t know why I care. I shouldn’t at all, and he deserves to rot, but I’m too damn empathetic sometimes. I still don’t think he deserves to die. Tortured? Sure. But death? No. Still, Caz is tense next to me, and the back of his hand brushes mine, a mutual understanding.
“So, what are you saying? That there’s nothing we can do?” Danica inquires.
“No, no. There are things we can do. The only issue is that it’ll require a lot of time. I suggest you two come to Kessel, remain in Wellness Bay until we can piece his mind back together and rid him of any lingering energy from Decius. We do that, and his memories with you should be restored and his heart will be clear. I would also like to run other tests, just to make sure”
“Why is it that I know who Danica is, but I can’t remember anything I did with her?” Warren asks. “It’s strange because I feel like I’ve developed some form of amnesia about our bond, yet I trust her and still care about her very much.”