I rolled my eyes. “Would it kill you to say you’re welcome?”
She just grinned. If I wasn’t so stressed, her stoicism would be hilarious. Not.
As we walked toward the spirit pools, anxiety burst from its cocoon within my stomach, and I suddenly wished I’d not eaten dinner.
* * *
Reyna stayed outside the chamber,guarding the room and waiting to accompany me on this crazy quest thing. We agreed that once I had myvisionor whatever it was, we’d both go out and start the search for my soul stone, cloaked in the darkness of night. I slipped into the steaming water, clutching the crystal Gramps gave me, and closed my eyes.
Nothing.
Not only did I not relax, but my mind raced with thoughts.
Was Justice fully healed? Did Gramps really only have weeks left? What would Rage do about the blood mages?
Stop thinking!
I pictured a lake from my childhood, one Mack and I used to go to with his mom and my dad when we were growing up. The water was mountain runoff and as clear as air, but the lake was over a hundred feet deep and more than a mile wide. Sitting on the shore, I had enjoyed how the surface reflected the light of the sun, and it seemed endless, peaceful. I needed my mind to be still and silent like that lake.
Pushing the thoughts from my head, I closed my eyes and slowed my breathing. I let the mountain lake appear in my mind’s eye.
Calm.
Clear.
The only thing I needed to think about … was my soul stone.
No … I needed to relax.
My body floated on top of the steaming pool of water, the warm liquid leaching the tension from my muscles.
Relax…
I let my mind drift, and small ripples appeared on the lake in my mind’s eye, the water lapping at the rocky shore.
Relax…
My gaze rose to the expanse of blue sky above.
Relax…
The dense air, humid and warm, disappeared.
Opening my eyes, I discovered I now stood at the head of a hiking trail with dense trees around me—the evergreens much like the ones we had in Montana. At my side was a large brown wolf who looked a lot like Reyna’s wolf.
Huh…?
I squinted, studying her because all around her body was a bright fuchsia color like an aura. That was something I’d never seen before. Was this my vision?
Wolf-Reyna took off, and I followed her down a trail. Eventually, the trail ended on the shore of a pebbled beach, and Reyna skidded to a halt, her attention seeming to focus out at the clear lake in front of us.
There, in the center, was a deep blue glow.
My soul stone. I justknewit.
Looking at wolf-Reyna, I grinned. “It’s here!” Then, I spun to get my bearings. “Where are we?”
The she-wolf shook her head, backing up slowly.
