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I wasn’t certain that made me feel a lot better. Afterall, it wasn’t Keir’s response that concerned me. It was the wyvern on the other end.

“Listen, if this thing goes sideways, I want you to get out. You’re not a member of the council and⁠—”

“And you want me to leave you behind.” I wasn’t a fool. There was absolutely no way Martin would leave Keir, and it had nothing to do with romantic feelings and everything to do with loyalty.

“My birth dirt is here,” Martin answered, his deep brown eyes pleading. “Even if I wanted to leave, I couldn’t. I won’t survive without my dirt, and if the wyvern attack, my earth will either be scorched or buried underneath so much rubble my roots won’t be able to reach it.”

My fingers wrapped around Martin’s forearm, pulling him close. Words clustered inside my head, begging for release, but they were too jumbled, all of them rushing forward and crowding the exit. In the end, I simply sat there, squeezing Martin’s arm as arguments filled my mind. Would I leave Martin and the others to their fate? Could I truly do that? And if I stayed, what did I think I could do to help?

The short answer was a big, fat nothing. I was a will-o’-the-wisp. We were finders, not warriors. I would simply be another casualty, another individual Keir thought he needed to defend.

I felt sick as I sat there, waiting. Little twigs and branches erupted from Martin’s ears and fingers, letting me know his anxiety was just as bad, if not worse than mine. It felt like we waited an eternity, but in reality, I doubt Keir’s conversation with Lazarus lasted no longer than five, maybe seven minutes. In all that time, Keir’s tone never rose. There was no yelling or audible discord. Keir’s muscular back grew taut and his shoulders were stiff. I imagined the grip he had on his phone was close to shattering it.

At last, Keir lowered his arm, the phone tightly gripped between his thick fingers. When he turned, Keir’s stoic expression gave nothing away. His footsteps were measured as he walked to his chair and sat, phone still in hand.

Martin could take it no more and asked, “What did he say?”

Keir swallowed hard, his eyes downcast and focused on the eggs. “Not much. Three words, really.”

“And those were?” I asked, my ass barely sitting on the loveseat as I scooted closer, as if that would make Keir’s words better.

Finally looking up, Keir’s gaze captured Martin’s before settling on me. “Expect me soon.”

Martin jerked back, looking to me as if I could parse out that cryptic meaning. All I could do was shrug. “Nothing else?” Martin desperately asked.

“No,” Keir answered with a head shake.

“What was his tone?” I asked. “Maybe we can figure it out using that.”

Keir didn’t appear convinced. “Flat. There was no inflection at all.”

“None?” I followed. “There had to be something. I mean⁠—”

“If there was, I couldn’t tell.” Keir cut me off.

Silence filled the room. Martin finally broke it by asking, “Do you have an idea regarding what soon means?”

Keir’s laughter sent shivers racing up and down my spine. Finally releasing his phone, Keir used both hands to rub his face, scrubbing his cheeks before dropping his arms, allowing his body to go limp. “I don’t know that either. He might be flying here as we speak.”

I spread my arms and made an idiotic flapping motion. “You mean fly-fly?” Martin stared at me as if I’d lost my senses. “What? I’m just asking if Keir means he’s going to hop on his private jet or if he’s flying au naturel.”

“Au naturel? Really?” Martin’s raised eyebrows fell, pinching his eyes before he dropped his head, shaking it back and forth. “Gaia, I shouldn’t be laughing right now but you look ridiculous.”

I huffed, crossing my arms over my chest. “I’m glad I could provide the comic relief.” I was being a bit of a brat, but deep down I was glad I’d been able to add a little levity, no matter how unplanned it had been.

When I looked up, Keir didn’t appear to share in our humor. “I’m not certain which option Lazarus will opt for. I hate to say this, Grayson, but it’s possible you’re going to be out of a job soon. If this goes poorly, finding the buzzweeds will be the least of our worries.”

“As much as I hate their song, I’d much rather hang around and find them than the alternative.”

“Thank you,” Keir answered with a soft smile.

You’re welcome didn’t sound like the right thing to say in response. Honestly, I had no idea what to say and so once again, I closed my mouth and kept my silence. Martin must have felt the same. Quiet reigned, heavy and oppressive. And all the while, the wyvern eggs sat there, shimmering in the nearby firelight, little gems of potential destruction.

Eighteen

Martin

It seemed wrong to feel this level of contentment knowing our demise could soon be at hand. I’d helped Keir inform the remaining members of the Magical Usage Council, urging anyone that wanted to leave to do so immediately. From what I understood, our little ghost town had dwindled further. Only Henry, Tabitha, Elvira, Jima, Gray, and I remained. Along with Keir, of course. We all hoped our actions were premature and would prove unnecessary. We’d all lost too much to take any further chances with anyone’s life.