A soft, mocking laugh drifted from where Amabel was bound.
“He’s seeing everything he fears most,” she taunted. “Over and over and over. What do you think that might be? Any guesses?”
The blood in my veins turned to fire.
I didn’t need to guess. I didn’t need to be told. I didn’t need to look through the magi-goggles. I knewexactlywhat Cas feared the most.
My hands clenched into fists, and my breathing turned sharp, ragged, like I couldn’t draw in enough air.
Shedid this. Reducedmy brotherto this broken, trembling shell.
My vision tunneled, red-hot fury consuming everything else. Before I fully registered moving, I was already on her, my grip tangling in her hair as I slammed her face into the marble floor.Hard. Her head bounced off the stone with a sickening crack, her body going limp as she let out a ragged groan.
Not enough.
I yanked her back up, letting her see the pure, murderous intent in my eyes before slamming her down again,harder. To hell with questioning her. She’d made her choice. Death was all she had to look forward to now, anyway.
“Ko, leave that bitch for now,” Zane called.
Chest heaving, I fought to hold back the tide of red, and it was only the knowledge that my brothers needed me that allowed me to run back and drop to my knees on Cas’ other side. Stripping off my gloves, I did the same with his, then took one of his hands between my palms, surprised by how cold it felt. My brother, always so dominant, so vital, so prepared for everything, was now this. The wrongness of it scraped against my soul like rusted metal.
“I’m going to lead him back.” Zane took off the magi-goggles, but wouldn’t give them to me when I held out my hand. “You don’t need to see what he’s seeing.”
“Why? You are.”
“And regretting it,” Z muttered. “Just wait here.”
Then he closed his eyes, his face going slack, and I scowled with worry. Trying to navigate another’s mind during a magical hallucination was like walking blindfolded through a minefield, and the last thing we needed right now was for him to suffer aftershocks from another deep dive again.
“Be careful,” I said even though I knew he was already beyond hearing me. Not knowing what else to do, I clutched Cas’ hand tighter, as if it could help. “Come back to us, brother. Seri’s waiting. We’re all waiting.”
Zane began to hum, soft, melodic, hardly noticeable at first, but growing steadily in volume and complexity. Swan song wove through the air like liquid silver, the notes shimmering with power. I’d never seen him use his gifts in combination against an illusion specifically designed to trap and torture one’s mind. If Cas were awake, he’d be having a fit about not following protocols: Emergencies were not the time to try new techniques.
But this wasCasimir, our big brother, and Z was going to pull out all the stops, protocol be damned, to save him.
Sweat beaded on Zane’s forehead and his hands started to shake as the song built in intensity, notes layering upon each other in patterns too complex for human ears to fully comprehend. It reminded me of starlight in winter, of frost patterns on glass windows, of mathematical formulas translated into pure sound.
I held my breath, afraid to even move. Time stretched into what felt like hours, although my internal clock told me it was barely two minutes.
When drops of red fell from Zane’s nose onto Cas’ cheek, I dug in pockets until I found cotton wads, then packed it in his nose. And still Z didn’t stop, just shifted the song until it became something almost painful to hear. Diving into darker places, maybe, following Cas into whatever hell Amabel’s illusion had created for him.
Then, abruptly, Zane went silent, falling back onto his heels, eyes flying open as he severed the connection. At the same moment, Cas’ body jerked upright, eyes wild, a hoarse cry tearing from his throat.
“Seri! No, no, no—”
“Cas, it’s okay.” I framed his face in my palms, thumbs smearing Zane’s blood across death-pale skin. “You’re home. You’re safe. It was an illusion.”
His eyes found mine, but there was no recognition in them, only a terrible, hollow grief that chilled me to the bone. They wereempty, glazed over with the remnants of what he’d been forced to witness.
“Where’s Seri?” His voice was a broken thing, not even recognizable as belonging to my stoic brother.
“She’s still in the SUV.” Zane dropped back on his ass, hanging his head between his knees to fight the dizziness. “Right where we left her. Safe and sound, bro.”
Cas nodded mechanically, but his eyes… His eyes said it all. Dead. Cold. Unbelieving. He couldn’t shake what he’d seen, couldn’t believe that it wasn’t real. The illusion had burrowed too far, taken too firm a hold on his mind.
“Cas, we’re all alive,” I said gently as Zane fell backward with a groan, spread-eagle on the floor. “You weren’t too late. No one died.”
“Youdid. Youare.” He shook his head once in sharp denial. “You’re … You’re not real. You’redead!”
