All six of them whirled around, flames bursting into sight within Aidan’s palms.
An elderly man with an auburn beard streaked with silver and matching chin-length hair appeared from the trees, a blue cloak billowing around him. “It seems the great elementals have finally come back. And you have brought an enemy to our shores.”
Chapter Fifty-Four
Isla
“Whoareyou?”Jadeasked sharply, vines twisting around her arms and out from the ground in front of the stranger.
“My name is Akir,” he said, bowing his head. “And you must be Jade. Our lookouts have never once seen a ship breach these wards, and now it has happened twice in a matter of weeks. Imagine my surprise when I saw that it was our long-lost elementals who washed upon the sands.” His tone was even and neutral, his light green eyes twinkling ever so slightly. “It appears you are not the only one.” Akir looked to the sea, and Isla turned to catch a glimpse of the Karstos ship towering in the waters.
It was closer than she’d thought.
“What do you mean, ‘we’?” Rynn asked, his voice wary.
“Ah, Master Rynn, there is much for you to learn. We are no longer the kingdom of your past. But first, we must discuss what’s to be done about this,” Akir said, inclining his head again to the approaching enemy.
Isla couldn’t explain it, but she liked the old man immediately. He had a calm, wise aura and wasn’t intimidated by the four immortal beings before him. In fact, he didn’t even seem phased. And while he remained solemn, the brightness of his green eyes made her think he was not always this somber.
Kai jumped in urgently. “You need to inform your king and queen that a powerful foreign enemy will be here within the hour and to prepare the army for a potential attack. Get the citizens to safety in case”—she glanced at her fellow elementals—“in case we are unsuccessful. I wish we could explain now, but that’ll have to wait.”
Akir chuckled softly. “We have no king and queen, great sea temptress.” The words held a hint of sarcasm, which made Isla hide a smile. “But I will heed your warning. We’ll make sure our people are safe and prepared for what may follow.”
The elementals were momentarily dumbfounded by the news that Iona had no monarchy, but something else took precedence in Isla’s mind. She quickly turned to Bri and said, “Go with him, Bri.”
Her best friend’s eyes almost popped out of her head. “You’re kidding, right? I’m not leaving you here! And we don’t even know this guy. No offense,” she shot back at the elderly man.
Isla never would have suggested sending her friend off with some stranger under normal circumstances, but she couldn’t risk Bri getting caught in any crossfire with Sebastian. And for some unfathomable reason, she trusted this Akir man. Or maybe she’d finally lost her senses.
Isla met the older man’s eyes, and he gave a slight smile and nodded his silent confirmation.
“Look, Bri, I can’t be worrying about you while trying to figure out how to get Papa and Arden back. And if things go wrong with using the dagger, or Sebastian gets hold of their power…I’m not going to risk you getting hurt.” Bri opened her mouth as if to argue, so Isla grasped her hands. “Brielle Harvish. You are my best friend. We—I—couldn’t have gotten this far without you. I need to make sure that you’ll be safe away from here, protected inside the wards.” Tears welled in Bri’s eyes, a drop catching in her long eyelashes before cascading down her cheek.
Isla pressed her forehead to Bri’s. “I can’t lose you, too. Please, just stay here. I’ll be back before you know it. When it’s over, we can go on as many adventures as you want. And I’ll even go dancing with you through every tavern on this island and eat cake while we drink bottles and bottles of wine,” she said, laughing through the sob swelling in her chest.
Bri gave a muffled snort. “I’m holding you to that.” She broke away and wiped the last of her tears aside. Rolling her shoulders and cracking her neck, she said, “I thought I’d have more time to show you this, but here we go. I’ve been reading a lot more of your family’s book on the ship.” She pulled the tome from inside the waistband of her pants, and Isla fought back a chuckle. Bri must have smuggled it under her loose shirt without anyone seeing it.
Jade interrupted. “You’ve just been carrying this around with you? It’s a rare, ancient artifact!”
“Oh, it’s fine,” Bri said, brushing the elemental’s concern aside with a wave of her hand. “Anyway, in the margins of one of the earliest entries, someone scribbled instructions on how to use the dagger. I’d ignored it at first because I saw it before we even knew that it was called the Dagger of Volnus and what it did, but it caught my eye again this morning.” She opened the leather book, the brittle pages shifting in the wind. “We already knew that you have to get the blood of the magical being onto the blade. That’ll take away their powers and hold them inside the knife. Then you have todrinkthe blood to take the power, otherwise, it’ll just stay locked up in the knife forever.”
Isla wrinkled her nose. She’d drunk Sebastian’s blood, but the idea still turned her stomach. “Bri, the plan is to use it on Sebastian. I won’t have to do any of this if—”
Bri held her hand up to stop her. “Do you want to be prepared for the worst, or not?”
Well, Isla couldn’t argue with that.
Bri finally found the page she was looking for, one with almost indecipherable cursive lettering crammed into the sides. Isla squinted to read it. “You also have to cut yourself with the dagger. Don’t forget about that. It says your blood has to mix with the other blood. Andthenyou drink it. From what I read, it doesn’t have to be a lot—a drop of each should do.”
“Sure, just a drop of everyone’s blood, no big deal,” Isla muttered, blanching.
Kai ushered Bri over to Akir. “You two need to get going.”
Akir dipped his head to Kai and held out his arm to Bri. “Of course, Miss…”
“Brielle. Nice to meet you. Please don’t kill me,” she said, taking his arm. “Do you have anything strong to drink on this secret island of yours?”
Akir’s eyes sparkled as the sides of his lips curved up slightly. Seeing the leather book in her other hand, his smile fell and he suddenly paled. “Is that from Iona?”
