Finally.
Dante is here.
His red eyes blaze, full of hostility. “We meet again,” Dante says, his voice colder than I’ve ever heard it, his presence suffocating as the masked man comes to a halt, his eyes fixed on Dante.
Jayce and Dad step back just slightly, both breathing hard.
“We didn’t expect you. What a pleasant surprise, Dante Alejandro Rossi,” the man drawls, his voice eerily calm beneath the mask.
Dante’s wolves circle him slowly, the earth responding to their movement. “I’ve got this. Handle the witches,” he says to us without taking his eyes off the bastard. “Who are you? Do you have a name?”
“Or does Dumb Cunt work?” I add.
The man’s gaze glints from behind the mask, glancing at me as if I’m the dirt beneath his fucking feet. “You can call me Enzo. Or as my people know me, Il Messia.”
The Messiah.
I scoff quietly and turn away, leaving Enzo to Dante, because whatever happens when those two clash is going to look less like a fight and more like gods testing the limits of the world itself.
What’s everyone’s position?Dad’s voice cuts through the chaos.
I track Jayce as he moves toward Sienna, who’s locked in combat with Velasara. But what freaking stops me in my path is the huge, shadowy form surrounding Sienna. Her power – like Calindra’s, has taken a form… I can see the horns on its head, the wings that mirror Sienna’s own; it’s like her aura has become a fucking giant demon.
The fuck…
Jayce, two o’clock, head toward our future Luna-
Shut it, Theo,Jayce snaps back.
Mom? Where are you?Renji asks.
Assisting the vulnerable to the bunkers. I’m ok, you all take care of yourselves, and our people,Ma replies.
Stay safe,Dad says quietly as a manananggal barrels toward us.
You too, Blue-Eyes,Ma answers.
Has anyone seen Katara? Please take her to safety. She had two children with her,Dad asks through the mind-link.
I’ll find her,Carter says.
Dad glances at me.Theo, go to her.
He motions towards Heaven, a faint smile tugging at his lips. I lift an eyebrow in return, disbelief flickering through me. Of all people,henoticed? Are we really that obvious?
I give him a curt nod, energy whipping around me as I glance skyward, spotting Aunty Delsanra joining Heaven, and that settles it. They’ve got this.
Heaven will be fine. She’s Heaven-freaking-Somers.
But I don’t miss the subtle signal Calindra gives someone down below, and I scan the trees. What did that mean?
Why are they here? Is it the tomes again?
I slice through an oncoming manananggal just as Dante and Enzo collide.
Lightning and shadow explode, fire and ice spiralling into the sky as the ground cracks beneath their feet.
The shockwave throws me against a tree as I watch them. It’s like watching something of an entirely different calibre.
