Page 75 of A Surrender Of Hope

“Did you see his face!? You’re lucky to be alive right now,” Creed mutters, and Valen nods in agreement, chuckling as he brings his monster horse closer to us and wiggles his fingers, signaling that he wants me to sit with him. I lean forward, ignoring Nox’s growl of disapproval as I let Valen pull me from Nox’s arms and into his.

“It’s nice to see you guys getting along,” Valen tells Nox as he tucks me in front of him, then tips my head up, so he can place a soft kiss on my lips.

“We’ll see if it’ll last,” Nox sighs, readjusting in his saddle as he watches me. “I kind of hope it does. It’s nice not having to watch my back when he’s around anymore. Maybe after all this is over, I can figure out how to co-exist with him. Jesthren has always had a good sense of people and politics, something I personally hate. It would be nice to have someone I trust to help where that’s concerned.”

“He would be the best option,” Valen agrees, urging his horse forward a few steps.

“Two minutes,” Creed whispers, and Nox smirks.

“Shall we see just how fast our big brother is?” he asks, delight filling his expression as he digs his heels into his Nuckelavee. “Try not to fall off,” he adds, nodding at Theo as he suddenly takes off with a click of his tongue. I gasp and cling to Valen’s arm as he follows, the rush of air making my hair a mess as I hear Theo shout in fear behind us.

I try to look over my shoulder to ensure he didn't get tossed off Jesthren’s monster horse, but I can't see anything. “Don't worry. Creed’s watching the Drakos boy,” Valen whispers against my ear, his warm breath making me shiver in his arms as we race across the open field, leaving the heavily forested area behind. Our horses run up the hill I remember crashing onto and rolling down, and I frown, making a mental note to shove Razar off the nearest high surface the moment the opportunity presents itself.

Once we crest the hill, I watch as Nox yanks his Nuckelavee to a stop right next to a glowing white light that hovers on the other side of the hill. I can make out Jesthren and Razar’s forms as Nox dismounts his horse and turns, waiting for Valen and me to reach him.

“Come on, we have to hurry,” he whispers, hands grabbing under my arms and pulling me from Valen’s horse as Creed and Theo gallop up the hill, the latter looking like he’s about to passout as Jesthren’s Nuckelavee pulls to a sudden stop and sends my friend toppling forward, making him lose his balance and go sprawling on the ground with a surprised shout.

“Very graceful dismount,” Jesthren says with a laugh, walking over, grabbing Theo by the back of the shirt, and yanking him to his feet. “We’ll work on it the next time you ride.”

“There will be no next time,” Theo hisses, batting at Jesthren’s hands before cracking his neck to the side and trying to compose himself. “Fucking evil dragon horse things are as bad as the Demons are,” he grumbles, walking over to me, his eyes landing wearily on the glow of light in front of us. “Uhh, is this going to be like the first trip?”

“Yep,” Creed says cheerfully, taking way too much glee from Theo's pale and angry-looking face.

“Great,” I groan, turning to look for Razar and blinking in surprise when I find him standing right next to me, no longer in his Beastia form, with his cloak pulled low over his face. I step back, then nod at him to go first.

“There’s nothing to push you off. Stop freaking out,” he clips out, sounding annoyed at my hesitation to be next to him.

“Yeah, well, you’re creative and would figure something out,” I point out.

“I want Valen and Creed to go first, take Ranger Drakos with you. Elaine should be on the other side of the rift, meaning the area should be clear of Beastia. Razar and Jesthren follow Meyer and me when we cross,” Nox commands, grabbing my hand and nodding to me as he steps us closer to the light. “Jes, I want you to close the Veil behind us.”

“Sure,” Jesthren agrees, grabbing some things from his horse's pack, before patting it and shooing it away. “I have the General coming to grab them and have spelled the area to keep their scents hidden from predators. Vega should only be an hour or so behind us.”

“Thank you,” Nox mutters as I step even closer to the magic, loving the feel of it on my skin. The red mark on my wrist lights up and I glare at it, hating that I have no control over it or whatever magic is inside me.

Jesthren’s magic rushes around us all, the same odd feeling washing over me like a warm hug, and I can’t help but wonder what it is about his magic that makes me feel that way. It's nothing like the way I feel around my guys, but it's nice all the same.

“Deep breath in, Little Demon. This will be just like before only we’re moving up, instead of falling down. It helps if you can hold your breath through the initial ascent,” he says, leaning down and studying my face for a moment, looking a little worried. “Are you feeling alright?” he asks, and I nod. I’m tired, sure, but nothing a good night's rest won’t fix. “Hmm, okay. Hold my hand, and don’t let it go. The pressure will be worse if I hold you, so I’m just going to keep you close, alright?”

“We need to go; I can hear something getting close,” Razar’s deep voice startles me as I look away from the glowing magic and up into his black-green eyes.

“Go,” Nox instructs, and I watch as Valen grabs Theo, and the three of them step into the white magic. The glow brightens for a moment before returning to normal. “Are you ready?” I swallow hard and nod.

“Yep,” I whisper, sounding more confident than I feel as Nox stops us right before the warm magic.

“Deep breath,” he reminds me, and I inhale, filling my lungs with as much air as I can. Nox propels us forward, and the white magic wraps around us, the dark night fading into a blinding light as I’m suddenly yanked off my feet.

Green and white magic encompass me before the world around me slows until I’m floating in a soft glow of brilliant white light. I can feel Nox’s hand tighten around mine just asintense pressure hits me, like it's trying to shove the air from my lungs.

Shit, this sucks!

One moment, we’re frozen in the air; the next, we jerk forward with renewed speed, the soft light moving into a dark blue color as glimmering white light strikes past me like shooting stars. The sight is the same as before, only I frown as something swirls with dark magic in front of us just as the pressure releases in my chest, and I feel like I can breathe again.

“What the fuck,” I hear Nox snarl, his hand pulling me to him as the darkness grows, snuffing out the shooting stars as it expands. I reach out and cling to Nox with both hands, eyes locked on the black hole in front of us as my ears pop, and I can feel a cold rush of frigid mountain air on my face.

“Nox?” I rasp, a thrill of excitement racing down my spine just as a familiar sense of dread pools in my belly. Nox curses as something shoots from the darkness, coming at us so fast we have no time to prepare for the brutal hit that yanks me from Lennox’s arms. My head snaps back with the force of the hit, and I see more than just stars spinning around me as I try to regain my slowly darkening vision.

“No!” I hear Nox roar, his magic springing toward me just as several Wraiths circle around him, blocking me from his sight. My hands heat, and I see red sparks forming at my fingertips.

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