“Is there a reason you wear the paint on your face?” I ask.
Vrath instinctually lifts his hand, hovering gloved fingers over his cheekbone.
“Yes, there is a reason.”
We wait for him to explain, but he merely stares at us blankly.
I try again. “You said I left a door open?”
Part of me is cautious of picking this man’s brain. He doesn’t seem mentally stable. His eyes twitch and go empty. His thought process is warped and choppy. But I don’t have a choice. We need to get home, and right now, he’s the only person alive who might be able to help.
Vrath nods so slowly, I wonder if he’s having a stroke. “You leave footprints through time. They scream into the darkness. I heard them from a thousand years away.”
“Can you control where you come and go?”
“And travel on command?” Niklaus adds.
“Somewhat.”
“How do you do it?”
Vrath pinches his lips in frustration. “Did you use your mother’s blood? Yes, or no?”
“I seriously don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say.
“I do not like liars.”
“Use my mother’s blood for what? To travel? I wasn’t even within a three-mile radius of my mother. I just did it!”
“You just did it.” That monotone slithers under my skin.
“We were attacked, and it happened. I don’t know anything other than that.”
“Are you certain that is all you know? Or are you a liar?” he presses.
“Liar?! We’re trying to get your help because all we want is to go home! If you know how I traveled, please tell me! I’m all ears!” My temper flares to the surface, smoldering in my chest like a wildfire.
Vrath adjust his stance, uneasy as he locks eyes with me.
“I made eye contact with your father once. In the Vexamen Prison.”
My temper swims away, though still warm to the touch.
“He was on stage with your mother, being whipped to accept another inmate’s fate. Your father broke free to stop the boy from bludgeoning your mother. And he looked up at me.”
Those wide-set eyes zone out, getting lost through a confusing string of memories that aren’t really his.
“It’s the same look you just gave me. You may have different colored eyes unlike him, but your fury is his. It’s uncanny.”
“How long have you been watching my parents?” I ask.
“Too long to put a number on.”
I sigh. “Look, I don’t care to know your fascination with them. I just want to control this thing so I can return home. Can you please help us?”
Though I know the answer, I still have to try.
“I want to know what else you can do,” Vrath says with that disturbing tone that has no inflection or cadence.
