Page 86 of Wraithwound

“Henry. He was my brother,” Lena said.

“That’s not possible,” Taya said, shaking her head.

Lena didn’t deign to look at her.

“We’re going to meet in the study in an hour. See you then. All of you,” Leonid said. With one last look at Cross, The Collector headed back down the corridor, and Taya stalked off after him.

“Are you all right?” Cross asked. The heat of his body let her know how close he stood.

“Fine,” she said, pulling the pack out of his hands and heading towards her room.

He followed close enough to make his presence known but also give her space. When they reached her quarters, he stood at the threshold, almost as if he couldn’t let himself enter her space. She knew she should thank him for saving Taya’s life. It was best he’d stepped in when he did or else Lena might have eaten the soul of only Seer in The Whispers. Despite it all, the nagging question about why Cross continued to stay danced on her tongue.

A young man’s voice came from the corridor, breathless and urgent. “Sir, you’re needed back on the surface. Right now. Uh, please, sir.”

“What is it?” Cross asked, refusing to take his gaze off Lena.

“Two tahorites, sir, likely after the raberdin corpses,” he said.

“Lena—” Cross started.

“It’s all right, go,” she said.

Cross exhaled through his nose forcefully and gave Lena one last look, his eyes searching her face before shutting the door reluctantly. Lena flinched at the click of the lock. Would she spend the rest of her life locked away? Because even if she did somehow manage to stop the infection and free Henry, she would still be a wraith. Anything short of a cure meant she would always be a threat to others.

Lena shook her head, willing the tears that had welled up in her eyes to clear. It seemed like everybody had some sort of preoccupation with Henry’s medallion. She pulled it out of her pack and ran her thumb over the back, just like Taya had done. Nothing happened. It had been both incredible and heart wrenching to see him as a boy again. With a sigh, she set the necklace aside. As she was clearing out the interior pockets of the pack, she found a tear in the lining. Lena had never noticed that before and reached inside.

Her fingers grazed a small item, and she pulled out a small velvet pouch. It was a deep purple, the beautiful iridescent stitches flashing with every color of the rainbow as it caught the light. Lena pulled the flap open and inside was a worn piece of paper. She unfolded it to find a small drawing that fit in the palm of her hand.

Taya.

She looked several years younger in the drawing, but the likeness was unmistakable. Hanging out of the pouch was a thin, silver chain. Lena pulled on it to find a medallion. Lena gaped at it. It looked exactly like Henry’s. And finally, tucked into the bottom, was a ribbon now yellowed with age. Lena stared at the three objects on her bed.

Memories of Eduard approaching her in the dark, a small pouch in his hand, flashed before her. He had put this pouch into her pack, probably tearing the lining as he fell onto her. Had he been trying to help her find the Seer?

With that memory so vivid in her mind, the anger Lena felt was doused by grief and then extinguished completely by a sadness so heavy it made it hard to breathe.

A knock on the door had Lena reaching for the items and tucking them back into the velvet pouch.

It was Jade’s cheery voice that sounded from the other side of the door. “Are you ready?”

Chapter

Forty-Nine

The study was already full of people. Riley stood by the hearth and gazed into the fire, but she looked up and smiled at Lena when she entered. Taya stepped closer to Riley, placing a hand on her shoulder. Lena noted the protective gesture and stopped near the entrance. Leonid stood near the head of the table where he quietly conversed with one of the guards. Seated to the right was Dauen, a fresh notebook open before him, ink pen in hand. Jade perched bright-eyed on the arm of an oversized armchair that matched her namesake.

Lena took a seat closer to the door, wondering where the eleuth might be. As if she’d summoned it with a single thought, she heard scratching and chittering at the door.

Lena smiled at this and got up to open it, but before she could, Cross pulled the door open, letting the creature scamper in. He was covered in dark splatters, and although the edge he appeared to have been riding earlier seemed to have dulled, he held a rigid posture.

The eleuth hopped onto the table in front of her, placing itself between Lena and the others before it lay down. Half the room shifted uncomfortably at the animal, its bright orange eyes scanning the space. Dauen, on the other hand, seemed fascinated by the creature while Jade looked like she was fighting the urge to pet it.

Cross walked over to stand behind her, just visible in her periphery.

“Let’s get started. Lena, you’ve agreed to help us in return for having the crystals on your mother’s diary cast. We can help each other,” Leonid said.

“If what you tell us helps save lives, I will agree to cast your mother’s crystals,” Taya corrected, taking a seat next to Dauen.