Page 102 of A Touch of Gold and Madness

River turned to Onyx. “You’re his Second. Find him. Now.”

Onyx disappeared before she finished her command. He took the stairs two at a time, somehow not tripping during his ascent.

Chapter 38

Gray

“Let’s find Orion,” River said, heading for the stairs. “But we need Chrome to secure the wards.”

The alcohol still buzzed through my system, but thankfully, none of us had drank to the point of no return. With a fuzzy yet clear enough mind, River, Blaize, and I followed Onyx up the stairs to seek Orion.

Once we hit the landing, I felt it. The presence Blaize had mentioned. It was distant—toodistant to detect it specifically—yet I could sense the familiar Kinetic aura.

“What is it?” River asked when I stopped abruptly. I scanned the area as if the intruder would pop out at any moment despite knowing they were too far away.

I stretched my awareness to locate and detect the source. It was like a word on the tip of my tongue. I knew it, but their identity wouldn’t come to my mortal brain.

Shoving my fingers through my hair, I growled, “I know who it is, but I…” I trailed off, still trying to place them. “They’re just too far away.” I ran my palm over my face. “Fuck.”

River’s violet eyes zeroed in on me before casting her keen stare out into the darkness beyond the wall windows on the top floor.

“I’m going to find them. You go find Orion,” I said and turned to head back down the steps.

River latched a tight grip on my wrist, snatching me to a halt. “No. You can’t go alone.”

“I’m fine. I can handle Kinetics,” I said because I could. I may not be Chrome Freyr, but they feared me for a reason.

Blaize shifted his weight back and forth, casting his flaming irises between his sister and me.

I shook my head. “Just go. Let me find them before they get too far.” I spun around, taking off down the stairs without looking back.

The night grew significantly quieter, as if nature knew there was an unwelcome guest in its midst.

The chill in the breeze bit my cheeks. I pulled my hood over my head and held my arms steady by my sides, ready to attack. The leaves crunched beneath my boots despite my best efforts to silence them. Closing my eyes, I scanned the area with my magic.

The energy waves of the intruding Kinetic retreated into the woods. I still couldn’t detect them, but the familiar essence clawed at my mind. Taunting me.

“You should be inside.” A deep, raw voice broke through the evening’s eerie calm.

I spun, summoning an electric ball ready in my palms. I relaxed upon seeing the feline-shaped eyes illuminated by the glow of my magic. “Holy shit. Don’t sneak up on me like that.”

“You really need to be more aware of your surroundings, little savage,” Chrome said. His tone was flat, deep, and unnervingly quiet. I could barely make out his words.

I lowered my hands and relaxed my stance. “Where’ve you been? There was a Kinetic here.”

“I know. I sensed them.” Chills trickled down my spine at the deadness in his tone, whereas his eyes were wild—manic.

“So,” I asked, with widened eyes. “We gotta do something. We can’t just—”

“I already handled it.” Chrome’s breaths were harsh as he cut me off. “They’re gone.”

“Gone?” I asked, skeptical.

“Yeah. They won’t be coming back.”

I tilted my head as I studied him in the faint light between us. Both of us exposed our full hybrid forms, mirror images of one another. But all I could see was his shaking shoulders. His teeth chattered while glistening beads of sweat trailed down his temples.

“What’s going on with you, Chrome?” I asked. The ominous feeling ratcheted up at the sight of him, reminding me of the night I discovered him spiraling in the abandoned house.

---