Ethereal

74 - Abyss

𝓓𝓸𝓶𝓲𝓷𝓲𝓬

I couldn't stand the waiting. It tugged and pulled on my sanity, tearing me along at the seams. Desperation hissed through my blood— a restless, hungry urge to do something.

But Kieran's presence stayed blurred and distant, and I could not find him until the shifters followed his scent trail to its end.

There was nothing to do but wait.

And, Gods, was it awful.

I paced and paced, every nerve in my body buzzing for action, for revenge. Until at last I snapped and rushed downstairs.

Right as I threw open the front door, ready to let chaos guide me, my father came stalking down the lane, absently adjusting the cuffs of his bloodstained shirt. That alone made me falter.

He looked as though he had simply left a business meeting, except for the shirt. He kept any panic locked away, the shutters firmly down behind his eyes. Not a strand of hair was out of place, and yet there was blood smeared on his hands.

"Dominic, son," he said, gesturing for me to follow him. "The traitor is dead. He had nothing for us— we are following the trail. Whatever we put him through, Lucien must've put him through worse."

I blew out a breath and nodded, keeping up with his pace. The forest around us was empty, as were the lanes we quickly left behind. All was quiet, except for the hesitant whistle of birds overhead.

"Where is everyone?"

A small quirk of my father's lips followed the question. "They are... retaliating, shall we say. Dania's leading the fight. I do believe we aren't the only ones frustrated with the rogues lurking beyond our borders."

Sure enough, as we raced on and shot through the barrier, the woods became alive with a symphony of chaos. Cries, howls, squawks, the thud of impact, trunks creaking and snapping with strain. The sharp, acrid stench of blood was a thick cloud in the air as people rushed from fight to fight; shifters, fae, witches, vampires all lost to their instincts and raining down on the rogues. I caught hissing flames rushing through the trees, the sharp, sweet scent of fuel, but I turned my back on it. I would let the world burn just to have Kieran safe in my arms again.

We raced past the chaos, devoted to our own cause, and caught up to Logan and Jake as they followed in the wake of my mother and the wolves.

It didn't take us long to find them— according to my mother, who hugged me tight whilst the shifters tried picking up the trail, their route was long-winded and random in an attempt to confuse and delay us.

By the Gods, how I hated them.

Logan stayed quiet, looking forlorn and subdued but determined all the same to find them. He would not meet my sharp gaze. I expected that some part of him longed for this all to be an elaborate, hasty plan Olivia concocted to trick the rogues. But even still, the very fact she had put my beloved in the firing line to achieve this made me furious. My beloved was not a pawn to be used and discarded in whatever game she was playing.

Our progress was uncomfortably slow. Hours passed, and the shifters went back and forth, back and forth, following the trail. Losing it in a gust of wind, scrambling to find it once more.

I was just barely managing to hold myself together. Every shred of my being wanted to go feral with rage, desperately longing for my beloved.

I felt the moment he woke. His fear — white hot in my veins — almost brought me to my knees. It was an effort to push through all the reassurance I could muster. It was all I could do to assure him we were coming; that I would not rest until I had him in my arms once more.