Valentine found his mate where she was talking with Elise and Chrissy, her hand resting on Elise's stomach. She hadn't announced anything to the wider fae community yet, but the family now all knew. Yelena looked so happy that his heart did the weird, bursting feeling that he was still getting used to.
"She loves a challenge," was all Valentine said to his brothers.
They all grinned the Greatdrakes smile at him.
Apollo bumped his shoulder against his. "A good thing, too." He raised his glass of wine and pouted when he saw it was empty. "Damn it. I'll have to go to the cellar for another bottle."
"Let me. I need some quiet time for a few seconds," Valentine said, patting him on the back.
"Okay, but you better not do a disappearing act because Quinn is going to sing too," Apollo replied.
Valentine cocked a brow. "You think I would leave my mate alone with you miscreants? Unlikely." He hurried across the lawn and through the back kitchen door before he could get stopped again.
The silence of the cellar enfolded Valentine, and he took a moment to shut his eyes and let it calm him.
"Who are you and what in Minerva's name are you doing in my house?" a woman's voice said, startling Valentine and making his magic flare to protect him.
He looked around the dimly lit shelves. "Hello?"
The ghostly outline of a woman was glaring at him. Her curly, dark hair was piled up on top of her head, and she wore black, moth-eaten clothes.
"You aren't Cosimo," she said, fear coming into her eyes.
"I'm not. I'm his son Valentine." He stepped closer and reached out to touch her shoulder. There was nothing there. "Are you a ghost?"
"What? No! I'm… No. It'll take too much time, and I don't know how long this spell will hold. Tell Cosimo to find Maria," she said as she began to fade. "Cazzo! It's wearing off. Tell him to follow my trail and watch out for strega."
"I will…" Valentine began, but he was alone. "What the fuck was that?"
He forgot all about the wine as he bolted up the stairs into the kitchen and crashed into his father.
"Val! Are you okay? You look white as a ghost," Cosimo said, holding him upright.
"Dad… Dad… I saw her!" Valentine stammered, holding his father by the shoulders. "I saw Auntie Maria in the cellar."
"I felt a magical disturbance in the house. It's why I came in," Cosimo replied, and his face went serious. "What happened? Oh, gods, she's not a ghost, is she?"
Valentine shook his head. "She said she wasn't, but she was like an apparition. I think it was a vision? I didn't have time to figure out the magic. She said to tell you that you need to find her."
Cosimo threw up his hands. "I've beentryingto find her for nearly thirty years!"
"She said that you need to follow her trail," Valentine said.
"Tried that too, but she was so secretive about what she was up to at that time. Probably because it was dangerous, and I would have tried to stop her," Cosimo huffed. "Anything else?"
"She said to watch out for strega," Valentine replied. "That was the whole message."
Cosimo groaned. "Fuck. I told her to stay the fuck away from the witches! Now, I have to go and talk to them and find out where the fuck she is."
"No. Wedo," Valentine corrected him. "Dad, we are Greatdrakes. We stick together, especially when it comes to rescuing family."
"I don't like it, but you are right." Cosimo sat down on one of the kitchen stools. "I don't understand. I've tried to find out what happened to her over the years. I've scryed and done tracking spells too many times to count."
Valentine crossed his arms, and the answer came to him like a smack in the face. "Her dragon. Dad, she has a dragon waking up inside of her, and she has no idea. Maybe it is what has given her the power to reach out from wherever she is."
Cosimo's eyes widened. "Gods, you are right."
"He usually is. It is very annoying," Yelena said, coming into the kitchen. She slipped an arm around Valentine's waist. "What did I miss? What is wrong?"
