Blood trickled down Kalliah’s scalp and Lana shouted, charging forward. A shake of the ground reverberated through the cavern, tilting us sideways.
Another round of rocks fell, thankfully smaller this time, but Lana wasn’t paying attention, and I had to grip her around the waist to pull her away from Kalliah.
Jax jerked his head up, making eye contact with me, then Lana. “I’ve got her,” he shouted, above the growing noise of chaos. “Lana, you’ve got to move. Go.”
“Listen to him,” I begged her. A whisper of my shadows sparked in desperation, despite their depleted state.
Storm shouted our names.
“Over here,” I responded. “Where’s Lucien?”
A light flared from the far side of the chamber.
“The little beast is with Ian, Raya and me,” he answered.
We didn’t have long. Another quake in the ground threw me into motion. “Jax will need help,” Lana argued.
I turned my head, looking behind me, and saw Jax lifting Kalliah.
He looked at us, frustration etching his face. “I swear on my life we’re right behind you, but you need to go,” Jax insisted.
“He’s got her.”
I dragged Lana away, considering throwing her over my shoulder as panic welled at the sight in front of me. Rocks fell faster—we had mere moments until this place was rubble.
Thankfully, she stopped fighting me as I laced our fingers together. We jumped into the colorful portal just as crashing rock landed behind us.
Lucien’s bark sounded as if the pugron was angry at our near-death escape. I wrapped myself around Lana’s body as we traveled through the swirling portal, and I took the brunt of the fall as we landed on a stone floor.
Beside me, Jax and Kalliah appeared, then Lucien, who seemed frazzled, tipping over as soon as the portal closed behind him.
I listened for Lana’s breathing, letting it calm me, knowing we were safe.
“Are you okay?” I asked her as we unraveled ourselves from the ground.
She sat up and pushed the hair out of her face, nodding before shoving herself off me. “Kalliah.” Her voice cracked, and she crawled toward where Jax was holding her in his lap. She rested her hand on her friend’s arm, eyes wide.
Jax’s face scrunched up, and I saw the blood streaming down the side of his own face. Something had hit him too, but there was no sign he had any awareness of it. His full attention was on Kalliah.
“Come on, wildcat,” he said, rocking her. “Wake up.” He raised his head. “Someone get a healer!”
Footsteps echoed down a corridor, and I looked around, seeing that Lucien had portaled us to the foyer of the palace. “Kalliah.” Leif ran to us, gaze completely focused on her lying inJax’s arms. Vivienne appeared close behind him. Leif skidded to a halt before Kalliah, kneeling in front of her and Jax.
“What happened?”
“She was hit as the volcano collapsed,” Jax said, his eyes glassy. Vivienne slowly approached. “I lifted her up, I don’t know if something else is wrong, I just had to get her out.”
“You did well,” Vivienne cooed, turning to look over her shoulder. “We’ll get a healer.”
I cautiously reached for Lana. “Give them some space,” I whispered, taking her hand and holding on. A shiver ran over my spine, and I held on to her tightly. Right now, touching her was best, selfishly. I couldn’t let go of her hand, lacing our fingers together to reassure me that she was here. ThatIwas here.
“Is Cassandra back?” Lana asked, only to be met with Vivienne’s concerned stare as she shook her head.
The doors burst open not a second later as Cassandra ran through them. Dirt covered her body, sticks and grass protruding from her disheveled hair. Her clothing was torn and in shambles, a stark contrast to her usually put-together look. She stopped in front of us, reaching for me, and I grabbed her arm to steady her.
“Glad to see you alive and well, my boy,” she panted. Her eyes, initially warm, shifted almost instantly, turning cold.
“Cassandra?” I asked. Worry sat like ice in my veins.
