Ahead of me, my sisters drop flat to the ground, their hands over their ears as the air fills with screaming. Adriel lands a final punch to Jareth’s face before the ripple of my fear sends them both crashing into the nearest tree.
Only my demon wolves remain standing, their eyes blazing violet, and Ruby’s eyes are even brighter, her head held high.
Above me, the sky has finally turned black. My fear has consumed the moonlight. But even as relief floods me, I know the darkness won’t last long against the energy of this world.
My power is now drained.
Adriel roars through the storm that remains. His back is pressed to the enormous trunk of a tree within paces of my wolves. His arm is wrapped around Jareth’s neck, and he struggles to constrain my father. “Angelus Lux!” he shouts. “Use it now!”
Malia responds to Adriel’s cry faster than I do. She runs toward me, scoops Angelus Lux up from the ground, and without hesitation, spins the clasp to the rune that Roman had chosen before. It lights up aqua, the energy of Earth.
But then she hesitates, and I understand why.
This final blast of light could kill us.
All of us… except Malia, Adriel, and possibly, Jareth.
My voice is scratchy. Barely more than a whisper. I speak to Malia, but I hope Adriel can hear me, too. “Haldi wasn’t completely wrong. If Koda and I don’t make it, the Elimination will be over. Esta will win.” I try to smile. “The Balance will be restored, and life can go on, at least for a time. You will have battles ahead, but the first will be when you get to Earth. You have to protect everyone from Jareth. You have to reunite him with Mom.”
Malia shakes her head, tears flowing down her cheeks, her hands trembling so hard that the weapon rattles between her palms. “Nova, I can’t do this without you.”
My arms have fallen to my sides. Koda is unconscious beside me. Roman’s breathing is so shallow that I’m filled with fear that he’s dying in my arms. I don’t have the strength to turn the stone, but I know that’s not what Malia’s talking about. She’s talking about the life that comes after.
I whisper, “With Adriel’s help, you can.”
Tears burn behind my eyes, but they don’t flow. I have nothing left. Not even for tears.
I blasted the angels far enough away that they won’t be caught in the weapon’s light and be transported with us, but it won’t be long before they return.
Still, Malia hesitates, and it breaks my heart.
“Do it!” I scream. “I’m commanding you as your alpha! Do it!”
She jolts. Her hand moves across the stone.
It swivels into place with aclick.
I drop to Roman’s side, reaching for him as the air turns white.
CHAPTERTHIRTY-TWO
Ihit the ground to the sound of screaming, but I can’t tell if it’s my own voice crying out with pain.
Agony shoots down my spine. I’m sure my bones would have broken except that Roman lies beneath me, his broad chest cushioning my fall.
“Nova.” His murmur is a faint rumble against my ear where I’m pressed to him, my head nestled on his shoulder.
His eyes are half-closed, his arms wrapped around me. I gasp to see how burned his skin appears—damage that I couldn’t see when we were bathed in moonlight. I’m shocked to discover that my own skin is blistered along my arms, and the skin on my cheeks is burning, my lips cracked and pulling when I try to speak.
I attempt to raise my head farther, suddenly aware that my left hand is planted on red earth.
Beautiful canyon dirt.
I inhale my first clear breath for days and my eyes burn with tears to discover that the air is dry. It carries the creosote bush’s rainy scent. The scent of home.Earth.
A vast expanse of rock comes into view as I struggle to lift myself up. It looks like we’ve landed in the oval-shaped area right in front of Athella’s cabin within the eagles’ territory—an expansive space that stretches left and right. Buildings and homes are nestled into the rock faces, and the first rays of dawn glint off the dark earth.
But the screams I heard when we landed were not my own.
