Page 176 of The Heart of Winter

My eyes flicked to Blue Lowen’s face. He was watching us in absolute silence.

He was… an odd omega. Very short—maybe 5’2". I towered over him by at least six inches. His dark blue hair had a sapphire sheen, and his eyes were an equally intense, bright sapphire blue. His features were delicate and pale. I guessed he had to be in his forties, but he didn’t look a day over twenty-six.

He had a fine, almost fragile-looking appearance, but there was something cold about him. Something unsettling. Was it hostility? Sharpness? Or maybe it just masked caution?

It would make sense. There had been countless assassination attempts against him. He was the indirect reason the plane crash had even happened. The bomb had been meant for him.

Silence settled over us.

Gabriel was staring at me. I saw something shift in his expression. He bit his lip, then suddenly turned to Blue.

"My cousin, Snow, he’s the one who sent me that text. The one warning me not to board that cursed flight."

I decided to speak up. "Yeah. Snow warned Winter too, but it didn’t work."

Gabriel hesitated. "So… Snow believes they’re alive?"

"Yes," I said decisively. "And so do we. I know Winter is alive. He survived. He’s on one of those islands."

"But the plane fell from cruising altitude," Gabriel whispered uncertainly.

"You don’t know what Summer can do," I countered. "He and Snow… they have something. Some kind of ability that made sure Winter didn’t hit the ground at full impact. They slowed him down, landed him safely—him and that other boy, Sariel."

Only then did I see a flicker in Blue’s expression.

His eyes… changed, a twinkle of light in them.

"Snow says Sariel is alive?" he asked, his voice sharp and surprisingly strong for someone of his small stature.

"Yes. Both of them are. I have no doubt about it. Snow and Summer confirmed it."

"Do they know which island?"

"They can narrow it down. There are a few small islands in the region. That’s where they landed them, but of course, they don’t know the exact name. The only major landmark they mentioned is a volcano at the center. Its heat is keeping them alive. Sadly, that’s not much help, since most of those islands have volcanoes. They’re volcanic in origin."

Blue was silent for a moment, frowning.

Then, suddenly, he said, "Come with me."

You could tell he was used to giving orders, his voice didn’t leave room for argument.

Without another word, he turned and walked toward the elevator. Stunned, we followed, and I exchanged glances with Aiden. He gave me a small, warm smile.

The elevator ride was silent. I watched Gabriel and Blue, wondering if there was any connection between them. But there was no way to tell. Either they maintained this professional front for the world, or they genuinely kept things strictly business."

The elevator stopped on one of the upper floors.

Jacob Lowen’s floor.

We stepped out, the door closing behind us, as we followed Blue.

He didn’t even knock.

Jacob’s assistant, seated in the adjacent room, sprang to his feet, startled. But when he saw Blue, he hesitated and said nothing. He obviously knew better than to mess with him.

We strode straight into Jacob’s office.

The man rose to his feet at the sight of us, his face flickering from surprise to irritation.

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