Page 32 of Wicked Warlock
“Sounds good.”
“You do have a room here, right?” She looked exhausted on her feet. Strands of her dark red hair fell in pieces around her face while the rest looked like a tangled mess. Even her clothing was torn and dirty from Unseelie and the underworld. Yes, she looked like she needed the rest.
I nodded. “Yeah. I’ll meet you there. Just gonna breathe for a minute.”
“Okay.”
“Come on, Astrid. I think I have some clothes that might fit you.” Ophelia motioned for her to follow her and Maze.
They all slowly began to drift from the courtyard toward the hallways that shot off them. I glanced around and sat at the edge of the fountain. I opened my hand, feeling my power flow through my veins. I let the blue smoke seep from my palm. I opened and closed my fist, counting the small, simple tasks on my list to complete. Just a few things and the world would be a better place. Things meant to be done a long time ago, things I was once too weak to do. But I was free now, free from the fear of becoming my father. Because I had become him in Unseelie, and I came out of it just fine. Five simple little tasks.
But no one else should suffer the way I did or have to work to let it go. No, there was one very easy, very simple solution that I should’ve seen earlier. My father had to die. There was only one problem. I didn’t know where he was.
But I know someone who does. There wasn’t time to waste. I didn’t need rest. I felt fine. I walked in the direction of the visitors’ rooms. This late at night, the castle was quiet and there wasn’t a student in sight. Sporadic torches lit the way down the long hallways. When I got to the end of the hall, I took the stairs two at a time to the second floor. The castle was a twisted maze that if you didn’t know where to go, you’d get easily lost. The dark stone hallways held the chill of winter that normally would’ve seeped into my bones cooling me off. But only determination coursed through my veins.
I approached the dorm room I needed. My magic seeped from my fingers, and I shot a portal onto the door. Blue power swirled around me as I stepped through into the dark dorm room. In one bed, Soto slept face down with one arm and leg hanging off the side. Her mouth was open and light snoring drifted from her.
In the other, Kylian lay on his back wide awake with his knee up and one arm resting behind his head. A beam of moonlight shined in from the window and hit his face, making his crystal eyes glow in the darkness.
“What do you want?”
I shrugged. “I need a tracker.”
Kylian didn’t move. “Why should I care?”
Five little things. “I need your help. I’m not gonna tell you what it is. We won’t talk about it again. But we’re gonna hurt some people.”
Kylian lurched to his feet and stretched his arms over his head. “This should be interesting.”
Chapter 13
Astrid
“You swear you’ll send Odin as soon as she wakes up.” I stood outside of the room Zinnia gave to Maze and Tilly. It was on the second floor in one of the corner towers of the school, which was closer to the infirmary, just in case.
Maze leaned against the door frame, giving me a full view of Tilly sleeping in the bed behind him. “I swear, if she wakes up, I will send Odin to get you.”
“And you won’t take your eyes off her?” I wrung my hands, twisting my fingers together. Tilly had been through so much lately, and I didn’t want her to have to deal with more. She was in this world because of me and nearly died… twice.
“I’m not the one who’s been to Unseelie, Hell, and back. I got this.” I nodded toward the hallway behind me. “Go get your boy and get some sleep.”
I hesitated, torn between wanting to watch Tilly and needing to get back to Beckett. Maze sighed. “She’s out cold. It’s creepy to watch her sleep.”
“You’re gonna watch her sleep?”
“I’m her soulmate… not so creepy when I do it. You on the other hand… creepy.” He glanced back at Tilly. “Besides, Beckett be acting weird.”
“Yeah, some shit went down.” I took a small step back, feeling more uneasy. “But you’re right. I should just go check on him.”
“Okay.”
“I’ll be back in a few hours.”
“Okay.”
“I’m just a little worried about him.”
“Okay.”
