Page 23 of Lethal Souls

I don’t say anything, but again I feel that prickling sensation around my brain. Korah peers over her shoulder, scanning me with lavender eyes. It’s her turn to read me.

“Can you just tell me why I’m here?” I demand. “You come to me in the middle of the night and take me away from my mate. If something is lurking about, then I assume we’re in danger, which means I don’t want to leave Willow out there without my protection any longer than necessary.”

Hassha clears her throat and stands, walking toward the hearth. With a flick of the wrist, a fire erupts and the flames crackle over chunks of wood that weren’t previously there. The heat of it rushes my way and smothers the right half of my face.

“You’re here because we are out of options for Warren,” Hassha says. “Korah and I entered his mind a few weeks ago, and what we saw—who we saw—was not at all what we expected. I knew he was troubled, that there was dark energy within him. I didn’t realize the extent of it because she was hiding those parts of him. She does that. Hides. Blends in. She’s always been good at it.”

I frown. “Who are you talking about?”

Her eyes flicker to mine, and a grave look takes over. “Selah.”

FIFTEEN

CAZ

I can’t help but blink with confusion. “Selah?” I repeat.

“She is the reason Warren has become what he is, and I’m afraid she’s gotten too deep within his soul for him to come back. His tether no longer remains. It’s been vanquished because she’s absorbed it.”

“What? So where is Danica?” I ask, looking between Hassha and Korah.

“She fled.” Korah crosses her arms. “Shortly after we placed him in the cage.”

“The only way Selah was able to draw from him is because Warren was around you.”

“Me?” I scoff. “What are you talking about?”

“It is your energy Selah needs to awaken. Your blood. She worked her way through Decius and allowed him to work his way into Warren.” Hassha sighs and pushes a braid behind her ear. “Warren was around you for some time, and he’s a direct link to your mate. They’re twins, born from the same womb, and that bond along with Willow’s tether to you is enough to fuel Selah.

“She’s been drawing from him as an energy source day by day. Only a little is all she needs to start her whispers, to get into people’s heads. We’ve tried to keep Warren contained and to keep his mind in peace, but I’m afraid he’s gone. Though he has eyes like ours, he no longer lives inside that creature.”

“What are you saying about Selah?” I shift in my chair. “That she’s trying to hurt people? Trying to kill us?”

Hassha presses her lips briefly, glancing at her sister. Korah keeps her back to us, but I notice her chin drop a notch.

I push to a stand. “Please stop beating around the bush with me, Hassha! I’m done with your vague bullshit. If my mate is in danger, I need to know. Now!”

“It’s not your mate who is in danger here, Caspian. It’s you,” Hassha snaps back. “It is your energy she’s hungry for. If she gets that, everyone in Vakeeli is as good as dead.”

“Why does she want me? I have nothing to offer her.”

Hassha studies me a moment, as if she’s looking for a secret I may be hiding. I stare right back, proving that I’m not hiding a damn thing.

Finally, she relents and walks away from the fire, running her fingers along the top of a nearby chair.

“Have you ever heard of the god Kronos?”

The name sounds familiar. I’ve seen it before in my mother’s studies. She used to carry a book around with her about gods from other realms that were never believed to be real.

Greek gods, celestials, Norse—they all sounded like a load of shit just like The Regals did. Yet here they are standing in the same room as I am.

“Possibly,” I answer.

“There was a time before Vakeeli was created when The Regals reigned with the gods on Earth,” she says. “We were created by Gaea and made from her tears when the wars amongst Uranus and his children were erupting. She saw the havoc happening on Earth and wanted to create a new world—one of peace and order—so after Uranus was defeated by Kronos and we’d left the war unscathed, she sent Korah, Selah, and myself to Vakeeli. The history of Vakeeli will tell you that there were only three Regals. But in actuality, there were four.”

I shift on my feet, waiting for her to continue.

“The fourth of us was named Yuri. He was the only male Regal and the most powerful.” Hassha lowers her eyes to the fire, losing herself in the confession. “There was supposed to be peace in Vakeeli. It was all we wanted—an escape from the madness and the rage. After seeing so much bloodshed and pain happening on Earth, we ached for something new—something fresh and exhilarating.

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