Their Light

Chapter 26

Hadley

"What happened?!" Maddie's voice screeched across the phone. I winced and held the phone away from my ear.

I had slept for hours, far longer than I meant to. It felt amazing to sleep again. I fingered the purple pendant around my neck. I trusted Winny's magic. Shivers traveled up my spine at the thought of another nightmare like that.

Kent and Finn were out on patrol. Ryder and Zeke were currently on guard at the front and back of the house. Peter, Caspian, and Isaac were sleeping. I was a bit worried about Peter. The others assured me he would be fine after sleeping, but I couldn't help but worry.

In the meantime, I decided to call Madeline. We had talked a couple of times since her visit. I really liked her. She never failed to entertain. I was trying to fill her in on everything that had happened recently.

"Tenebris attacked me while I was sleeping," I explained again. Silence filled the line. "Maddie, are you still there?"

"Yes, I'm still freaking here," she shouted. "Why were you sleeping outside of the Statio?"

"I wasn't," I answered, reaching down to pet Joe. "I was sleeping in my bedroom upstairs."

"B-but the wards!"

"It got through the wards, apparently."

"That's not possible," she stated. Her voice was thin and tight. I couldn't sense emotions over the phone, but I didn't need my powers to know she was scared.

"It is now," I said. "The guys were also very concerned about it. We pulled an all-nighter, and they had Zeke's mom come in the morning and make a protective charm for me."

"Wait, wait, wait," she pleaded. "First, you pulled an all-nighter? That can't have been fun."

"It actually was," I explained. "We played games all night. It was difficult in the morning, but everyone is or has rested now."

"You played... games? All night?" she asked. "Wait, is that a euphemism for something? Were you guys playing games?"

"No! Get your mind out of the gutter. We played board games."

"Aw, you're no fun," she teased. I rolled my eyes. Her tone reminded me of Isaac. I wondered if everyone in their family was like this. "Second, Zeke's mother is there? Winvera Hawthorne?"

"Yeah, you know her?" She snorted.

"I know of her. We do not run in the same social circles, though. Not at all," she emphasized her last words.

"She seems nice. She was a bit weird at first, but after that she warmed up," I said, thinking about to her icy demeanor when we first met.

"Weird how?"

"Very formal," I tried to explain. "I started cooking breakfast, and she freaked."

Maddie laughed. "Oh, honey, you have no idea. Domu is going to be a trip for you. Probus aren't supposed to do such menial work as cooking. Kustos are expected to do that sort of thing, especially in protection orders of higher status like Winerva's."

"I don't understand that," I snapped, my anger at the subject burning bright. "Something seems to be very off in your society when it comes to Probus and Kustos."

There was a pause, and for a moment, I worried I had pushed too far. Her quiet voice responded just moments later, repeating her earlier words. "You have no idea."

"What do you mean by higher status?" I asked, changing the subject. I decided to let it go for now, but I made a mental note to grill her about it later. Maddie seemed like the type of person who would be honest with me.