It’s not easy to have to acknowledge that this is who I am in any capacity, but I know deep in my soul that it has to be enough, even if that means I can't find the answers that we need.
“I’m a monster to this world. I don'tfeellike a monster, whether that's how they brand me or not. I'm a scythe, and I'm determined to find this book if it's the last thing I do. I just don’t know how the hell that’s going to happen.” I don’t know where the words are coming from, but they fuel me.
Focusing my gaze on everybody else in the room, the random vampire gone, I bask in thecloseness of my friends and more, each nodding in acknowledgement, like they're silently vowing to be with me every step of the way.
But as I tilt my head up, a shimmer catches my attention, and I watch in slow motion as a piece of paper flutters down from the ceiling, landing on my lap.
14
ELODIE
Iread the words once, twice, a thousand times, my mind racing with every pass of my eyes.
But even as the words try to sink in, my thoughts drift back to the riddle that brought me here; sopping wet in the basement of Institute One.
Only those who drink without thirst may find me. Where the water meets the shore, the darkness you shall see. Four elements circle as one. But in your eyes shall they be gone. Look deep inside, and the book shall no longer defy.
It was always about me, a scythe.
Only those who drink without thirst may find me.
It’s not a vampire, it’s a scythe drinking someone else’s energy. But the rest, I’m still not quite there. A slip of paper falling into my lap is not the Fractured Book of Souls.
Regardless, this is progress. Now I can see it more clearly than ever. I can react to the new riddle before me with more certainty. Although, is it even a riddle, or just some ridiculous equation I don’t have the ability to figure out?
Home is where the heart is, but your origin is where you breathe.
Come find us, descendent. Find your true home, and breathe again.
Begin at forty-nine, and step back one seventh, then simply let one hundred thirty-four thousandths fade away. Now you’re half way there.
Restart at two and a half, and step back one sixth, then let five thousandths disappear to know you are near.
“Elodie,” Rion murmurs, breaking the silence that envelops each of us, and it finally snaps my attention from the piece of paper in my hand.
He nods at it and I offer it toward him, certain the words are cemented in my mind, but before he can grab it, Thorne beats him to it, swooping in at the last second, earning a withering look from the wolf in question.
“They’re coordinates,” Thorne murmurs, his gaze cutting back to mine, and I gulp, blinking at him in disbelief as he solves it so effortlessly.
Before I can find the words to understand, everythingbecomes a blur around me. Rion inches closer, slipping one hand under my knees while circling the other around my back as he cradles me against his chest, despite how wet I am. My hands instinctively wrap around his neck as I suck in a breath when Thorne explains further.
“We’re looking at coordinates of forty-eight point eight-six-four-two-six, and two point three-two-seven-seven-zero,” he explains, like that makes any sense at all, but I repeat them over and over again in my mind in fear of forgetting.
“Then let’s get the fuck out of here,” Rion declares, and nausea burns in the pit of my stomach a moment later as Rion pins me against his chest while using his speed to get me back to Institute Thirteen in no time.
Despite the fact that I’m still drenched, he places me on the edge of his bed the second we arrive back at their room. A telltale breeze ghosts across my skin as he disappears, but before I can think too much of it, he reappears with a towel in his hand.
He drapes the fluffiness around my shoulders before the door clicks shut, the lock turning in place, and less than a moment later, Rion reappears before me. Understanding quickly settles in mystomach as I see him with a fresh pile of my clothes from his closet.
Without a word, he tugs me to my feet, stripping me of my damp clothes before drying me off and redressing me. As a strong, defiant, and independent woman, it blows my mind that his tenderness leaves me so weak.
When he’s satisfied that I’m warm and dry, he cups my cheek, crowding my space as he peers down at me. “Are you ready to find your way home, Petal?” he asks, and despite the lump in my throat, I nod, just as a knock comes from his bedroom door.
He reaches for my hand first, pressing a delicate kiss against my knuckles before answering it, revealing Ocean on the other side.
“Ready?” she asks, eyes wide as she stares at me expectantly, and I nod, slowly coming to realize that they’re right by my side, ready to take action.
My mind swirls over the fact there’s no pause, they’re just ready to help, regardless.
