Page 60 of A Sun Scorched Bloom

Let that love set the world aflame

And if you ever question who you are

There are answers in your name

Winds swiftly blow, rain always falls

And lies often dress as truths

But one thing you can surely know

Is I’ll always be with you

Should you ever be afraid, my girl

Find your courage, hidden deep

And if you grow weary in your soul

Let my song carry you to sleep

And if you grow weary in your soul

Let my song carry you to sleep

Her father’s chin trembled as he sang the final words, his hands slightly forward, palms in the air as if offering himself to her in his sorrow.

Tears dripped from Lea’s chin, watering the ground where the moonflowers grew.

"If you are my father," Lea’s knees shook so violently she thought they might collapse, "then why did you disappear?" A sob burst from her throat. "Why did you leave me?" Lea dropped to her knees as her father rushed forward, cradling her like a baby against his chest.

He’d gone gray at the temples since she had seen him last, and his usually clean-shaven face had become scruffy. But as Lea took shuddering breaths, trying to calm herself, she couldn’t mistake the scent of cedar and tanned leather. She squeezed him tighter, hardly believing he was really here.

"Oh, Bug," Lea cringed at the sorrow in her father’s voice. "I might not have been home, but I promise I never left you. Not for a moment. You were in my heart, in my thoughts and dreams."

Lea wiped her eyes, swallowing down her anger and hurt. "Then where were you?" she demanded, sitting up straight to put some space between them.

"Let’s go inside," her father stood, offering a hand to pull her up. "We have a lot to talk about."

Chapter 40

Gray

Grayhadneverfeltso enraged, so completely out of control of his emotions. The fact that he was unable to find his mate made his heart pound in a way he’d never experienced before. He had felt fury. He’d experienced all consuming fear. But this? It made his body physically vibrate and his shadows yearn to rip the light from the world and consume it whole.

Somewhere deep inside him, so buried away he could hardly feel it, Gray knew that he should be grateful that some of his fallen soldiers had followed Lea. He should be thankful they’d felt loyal enough, even in death, to lead him where she’d been taken. If they hadn’t agreed to help them navigate through the Wicked Wood, it was entirely possible that he would have been unable to find her until it was too late. The thought made his jaw clench, and he bit down so hard he tasted blood. Hewouldfind her. He would rip every tree from the ground, search every inch of this gods forsaken forest, the world, if he had to.

Thunder boomed as Gray’s anger built. It was taking too long! Gray bit back his plea for Emma to hurry, trying to stay patient with her. But dammit, they needed to move faster. She was certainly doing her best, but the fact that he was unable to see the dead himself, to demand they move with more urgency—it made him want to murder everyone around him.

His mate.Gone. Gray still couldn’t figure out how she’d been taken from the safety of his arms. Since Erik, Janelle, Noah, and Emma had found them, Gray had started enchanting their resting spots in a different way. Rather than hiding them completely, he’d made it so nothing and no one that wished them harm would be able to sense them when they were within those shimmering walls he created. It had seemed wise at the time to do this in case of another emergency, in case Thomas or Vincent or Elise had needed to find them.

Through their blood oath, Vincent would be able to track him, if necessary. Gray had thought it was the wise decision, thesafedecision. So how had he fucked it up so badly? How had he made such a grave mistake? Or had Lea truly known the person who took her, like the dead had said? Gray sparred against his own nature as he tried to control his shadows and storms. Holding the lightning inside him was almost painful as it begged to be released, but he wouldn’t allow anything to make it more difficult for them to see where they were going. His raging storm would have to wait.

Commanding the shadows of the forest, Gray pulled them behind him as they raced forward as fast as the dead could run. Gray scoured the bond constantly, hoping to find any flicker of Azalea’s presence. If he could just catch a glimpse of her, feel her for a single moment, he was certain that he’d be strong enough to latch onto that feeling and follow the invisible string to wherever she’d been taken.

Taken. The electricity inside Gray grew even wilder as his fury pounded against his ribs. She was captive somewhere. His mate. His magic flared, burning inside him, but he refused the urge to siphon out some of his power to control the chaos inside him. He would not waste a drop, planned on using every bit he could generate to destroy whoever had taken Lea.

Whatever bastard stole her did not have long left to live, and Gray felt a sliver of joy at the idea of ripping the arms that carried Lea away from him off the pathetic creature who had made such a poor decision. To take someone away from their mate? It was unforgivable, a grave error, and the last one whoever had taken her would make.

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