Page 68 of Midnight Reign
I nod, feeling a sense of clarity dawning. “My vampiric nature bridges life and death, mortal and immortal.”
“And I,” Zaiah says, his voice filled with wonder, “I’m meant to be the bridge itself. My djinn abilities allow me to create and manipulate pathways between realms, but I need our combined power to create it. Without it, I’ll fail.”
We all turn to Addy, who’s been quietly listening to our musings. She takes a deep breath. “And I’m the Nexus,” she sayssoftly. “The focal point through which all of this happens. The conduit for balancing and directing the energies of the realms.”
“With Crimson Shadow as the wild card,” I add, unable to keep the edge from my voice.
Addy nods, her expression troubled. “Yeah. She’s complicated. As Queen of the NetherRealm, she wants to go home, but how dangerous is that?”
We all fall silent, contemplating the enormity of what we’ve learned. It’s a lot to take in, a responsibility greater than anything we could have imagined when we first came to MistHallow.
“So,” Zephyr says after a moment, “I’m thinking that we do this as soon as possible. I hate waiting. It pisses me off.”
“Yeah, same. Action over inaction. We do this at nightfall.”
Adelaide draws in a deep breath. “At nightfall.”
“Do we know anything else about the ritual?” I ask Zephyr.
“Blood and sex,” he answers with a wicked grin.
“Sounds like a good time,” I say with a laugh, but I catch Addy’s eye. She is nervous, and rightly so. Everything hinges on her being able to separate from Crimson and force her through to the NetherRealm while staying alive and not destroying any realm while she’s at it. No pressure.
29
ZAIAH
“Have you got this?”Corvus asks me intently.
I nod slowly. “I think so. The texts describe a ritual that will allow me to open a pathway between realms. It requires all of us to channel our energies through Adelaide as the focal point.”
“And what about Crimson?” Ignatius asks.
“That’s the tricky part,” I admit. “We need to separate her essence from Addy’s without destroying either of them. It’s going to take incredibly precise control.”
Adelaide takes a shaky breath and clutches my hand. “And if we can’t separate us?”
I meet her gaze, wishing I had better news. “Then there’s a risk you could both be pulled into the NetherRealm. Or worse, torn apart in the process.”
The room falls silent as we all absorb the gravity of the situation.
“We won’t let that happen,” Zephyr says firmly, placing a hand on Addy’s shoulder.
You’d better not, Pinocchio.
“Oh, shut the fuck up,” I groan as Adelaide says the same. We laugh, lightening the grim mood that has dropped around us.
“She is a pest, I tell you.”
“I dread to think what she’s like out and about in the world.”
“Let’s hope we don’t have to find out and she just goes on her merry way back to hell, or wherever. Right, Crimson? No funny business. We are doing you a favour.”
I blink as there is no response. “I don’t like that silence.”
“Me either,” Addy says and removes her hand from mine. Her face goes blank, as if she is trying desperately not to show us what she is thinking. Or rather, what Crimson is telling her right now. She catches me watching her, and she forces a smile.
Deciding I have to trust her and hope she isn’t keeping secrets that could make all of this go on a sideways skid straight to Hades and back, I turn back to the ancient texts, scanning for any additional details that might help. “The ritual needs to be performed at the stone circle, as we said. We’ll need to draw specific runes and channel our energies in a precise sequence.”
