Page 64 of Gift from the Nexus

“Where’s Codi been?”

“He’s been dealing with Franklin, keeping him knocked out for the most part. Why, Willow?”

“Will you send him in here? I don’t know how you allow him entry, but just do that for me, please,” I plead.

Their entire signature leaves the room and I know they’re probably fuming having to do that, but I have no doubt they’re standing right outside the panel, watching me.

My heart beats erratically because I don’t know if what I’m about to do is going to go good or bad as fuck. I saw both possibilities. So this is a toss-up, a gamble I’m willing to take.

“I’m about to give you something, Trex, but I don’t know if that’s a good thing or bad thing honestly, given your position.”

“What does that mean?” he asks as his eyes finally snap back up to mine, and I hold my breath.

“You summoned me, ma’am.” An excited Codi announces loudly as he enters the room not a second later and I cringe at everything that just came from his mouth.

“Eww, please don’t ever say summoned or ma’am to me again. Codi, this is Trex…”

His eyes narrow briefly as they slide to Trex, then widen.

The air is sucked out of the room as the two of them stare at one another. A single strand of pure, unfiltered magic shoots from the two of them in a spectrum of colors, like a rainbow pouring from their hearts. The collision of their power together ripples across my skin as the threads of magic tie themselves together in a knot, then fade between the two of them.

I’ve never witnessed a Nexus bond snap in place other than Draken’s awakening and Elementra didn’t show me the process. It’s emotional, deep, sacred. They’re a concoction of confusion, excitement, hope, but also apprehension as they begin to come out of the haze.

Stumbling back, Codi puts his hand to his chest, heaving hard as the realization of what truly just happened dawns on him. He bounces his eyes frantically between me and Trex, trying to figure out how this is possible. Turning my head slowly to Trex, his hands are trembling, and his face looks seconds away from crumbling, like he knows Codi is about to reject him.

“Willow…How did…No, this can’t be. You’re…you’re a traitor to the realm. My supposed brother is a traitor.” Codi gasps, staring at Trex with disbelieving eyes, backpedaling toward the doorway.

“Don’t go. I can explain. I’ll explain everything, I swear. Our brothers need us,” Trex shouts out, standing fast as Codi finally reaches a hand through the shimmering door.

“This is probably a good time for you all to come in now.”

No more than a millisecond passes as my men push in through the door, surrounding Codi in solidarity. When Tillman places his hand on Codi’s shoulder. He sags, looking completely defeated.

“Whatever you want to do, I support you. You tell me and I’ll make it work,” Tillman swears as Codi looks at him for direction.

“You’ll tell me, us, everything. Then…then I’ll figure this out,” Codi says, motioning his hand between him and Trex.

Trex’s heartbreak and hope hit me square in my chest. Hard enough I struggle to breathe for a second. It’s obvious to me now that Trex has his bonds with his other brothers, and Codi just solidified his missing piece. A moment that’s supposed to be one of the greatest the two of them will ever experience is tainted from the way it appears. They’re standing on two different sides of this war.

“I’ll tell you all everything I can, but Willow was right. There isn’t much I can say. The girl’s rune isn’t going to help me bypass the Summum-Master’s tie. I just won’t die quickly,” Trex says, agreeing easily to Codi’s term, although it may not even help us.

“Let’s move this to the larger interrogation room. Caspian, go get Ry and the others, tell them to meet us there,” Tillman declares as he walks over to Trex, standing him up and sealing his hands in stone.

Corentin comes to my side, holding his hand out for me to take while looking down at me with a small smile on his lips.

“You never cease to amaze me, princess.”

“I didn’t do much. The sight comes when it damn well feels like it. I hope I made the right decision.”

“Don’t doubt yourself, baby. This situation between the two of them may be shitty, but I promise you, all men want their Nexus brothers. Codi may be confused because of Trex’s role in this, but I think you were right about him. We’ll have to wait to hear what he says, but I do believe his brothers are the reason for his decisions. There isn’t much any of us wouldn’t be willing to do for our brothers. Especially if the bond is already in place.”

Nodding and smiling at him rather than replying, he and Draken lead me out of the room behind Tillman and Codi, who have Trex placed in the middle of them. Looking at the two of them from this angle, I hide a chuckle because they both continue to secretly glance at one another, then quickly turn away when the other notices.

I’m sure when this happens during late teens, young adult years, it’s not so awkward. You’ve been told about this moment your whole life and it’s just overwhelming excitement. These two, though, seem to be caught in an uncomfortable stance where they are trying to size each other up without making it obvious.

“What did you do, trouble?” Ry asks as soon as we all enter the interrogation room, earning himself an elbow to the gut from Oakly and a hushed shut up.

Snorting, I shake my head, sassing back with my hand on my hip, “Me? Who’s to say I did anything?”

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