Page 141 of Blood Feast

“Cassia!” he called her again.

She tried to answer, but she couldn’t get air into her chest. Couldn’t push words through the agony in her throat.

His Will cut through the stones and the pain. The Collector’s hold on her shattered. She felt Lio’s arms around her as the vision of the breached door—and the next portal behind it—shredded into nothing.

Cassia came out ofthe Slumber all at once, heaving at the air. Lio held her shuddering body tightly against him.

“It’s not real.” His voice, potent with thelemancy, oriented her. “It was a day terror. I pulled you out of it as soon as I could.”

Not real. She dug inside herself, scrambling to feel her magic.

Her power welled up from within her, lush and verdant. Dark and eternal. Her plant magic, but more than that. She felt her mouth, and when she cut her finger on one of her fangs, she sobbed with relief.

“You are whole.” Lio rocked her in his arms. “You are powerful, my immortal. He can never do that to you again.”

Her Grace’s presence flowed through their Union, immersing her in his closeness. Together, they traced the arcane paths in her veins, reassuring her that her magic thrived. He held her until her weeping calmed, and she could breathe again.

She sat up in the luxurious bed of the Changing Queen, which they had claimed as their own. The fading glow of twilight came in through the window. “You pulled me out of the Dawn Slumber early?”

Lio sat up beside her. “That’s the first time I’ve ever cast a Night Call. I’m thankful it worked.”

“So am I.” She wrapped her arms around herself.

He stroked her bare back. “I tried to be gentle, but I’m afraid having another Hesperine use magic to yank you out of your sleep is never pleasant.”

“I’ve heard the stories of an elder jolting a youngblood awake with a shout that feels like a blizzard in your veins.”

“That’s how my uncle does it.”

She caressed Lio’s face. “Your Night Call was nothing like that. You sounded like…rescue. Thank you.”

That power echoed in Lio’s aura still. “I will make him pay for that dream.”

Cassia swallowed. “I’m not sure it was a dream.”

He pulled her close again. “Talk to me about it.”

She described what she had seen, their hearts racing faster together as the realization sank in.

“Was it a premonition?” Lio asked tightly. “A warning from the Lustra about what he has yet to do? Or…”

“Or a vision of what he’s already done.” Cassia spoke their greatest fear aloud. “I don’t know. I only know he has the power to open the first door. Because he took it from me.”

“We have to stop him before the next door falls.”

“We’re not ready.” Lyrosleaned both hands on the table in the dining hall.

“I know.” Cassia glanced over their scrolls and maps in the wavering light of the hearth. She saw only their questions, not any of the answers they were searching for. “You know I would rather train more before we go to Castra Roborra. But I can’t tell from the dream how much time we have left.”

“We can’t afford to wait any longer,” Lio said. “We must face Miranda and do the best we can.”

Mak put his hand over Lyros’s. “We still have one advantage. Surprise. As long as the Collector believes we were last seen in Patria, he’ll think we’re focusing on the war. The longer we wait, the more time he has to realize we’re not there—and that we’re racing him to the doors.”

Lyros bowed his head, his brow furrowed in thought. Then he straightened. “Right. We don’t have a choice. We’ll make thebest of it. Let’s adhere to the strategy we agreed on, even though we didn’t have time to finish practicing. We’ll work together to wear Miranda down enough to capture her, then bring her back here for questioning. Are all of you clear on your roles?”

Mak nodded. “While you focus on defensive wards, I’ll cast Blood Shackles on her to prevent her from traversing away.”

“I have something that might help.” Lio set down a pair of heavy iron cuffs linked with a chain. “Mak, can you tell us if these are still in working condition?”

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