Page 156 of The Crown of Nyx

My stomach sank. “What sort of plan?”

He briefly met my stare before straightening. “Blythe knows it. And if any of us return home, but I’m not amongst you, you’ll need to find her.”

“Why?” I asked, though I had a feeling he thought, with the potential bomb in his head and his father being here, he wasn’t likely to survive.

“During my first year at the academy, I decided to set up an escape plan. I was finally being brought into the folds of Hyperion’s schemes, and I knew we would need a place to escape to if anything happened. So, I took control of one of the islands.”

There was a heavy silence that followed his words, the air between us thick with uncertainty.

“You mean, one of the islands off the western coast?” Rowan clarified.

Orion nodded, running a hand through his thick silver-blond hair. “Protected by the sirens and mermaids of the Abyss Court, but heavily fortified by me.” His eyes fell to the witch stones. “I wasn’t sure if I should say anything, because really, it was never meant to be a place to escape to in case of war. It was meant to be a place for us to…to go to when we wanted peace.”

I sucked in a shuddering breath, my throat thickening with emotion. Everyone was quiet now. I knew the wheels were turning in Maeve’s head as she considered all thepossible safety and protective measures in place at one of those islands. I already knew they were meant to be pretty secure, because Adrian’s other brother, Griffon and his two mates, had an island off the same coast, and that was where Thea and my sisters were hiding until it was all over.

“It has a manor. Sometimes, I was able to sneak away for a few days. Hyperion didn’t care unless it interfered with one of hismissions. Whoever had been on the island before left it to rot, but I was able to secure the building and the land itself. The island is also shielded with a glamour, so if anyone were to look at it, they would see a barren, small island with only sand and not the rest of it. The only one I trusted with its location and the spell needed to get through was Blythe.” He looked up from the witch stones, meeting my stare again. Through the bond, I felt his hope, his honesty that what he was saying—and what he meant—was real. “I was fixing it up for you, Ivy.”

Any response I could have possibly had died on my tongue. He’d found anislandfor me, was rebuilding the housefor me. He had secured it and hidden it so no one else could find it just in case.

I didn’t want this to be the end of everything. In a few hours, we were going to war against Dante and his army.

I wanted a chance to see the island for what it was, for the peace he’d promised. I wanted a chance to figure shit out with Hawk, lay our conflict to rest. I wanted the chance to get to know the Primal male better, to know more about who he was—other than the creature he could shift into. I wanted to be able to give Damon his soul back, to know that he was going to be okay. And I wanted a future with my bonded mates.

I didn’t want this to be the end of everything I knew and loved.

But that dark, unsettling feeling didn’t go away.

63

Hawk

Irose silently, eyeing the others as I stepped away from the rest of theteam. My heart pounded, mind racing as I moved to the edge of the forest, where I could see into the blue-lit darkness and take in the bobbing orbs.Souls.Arms crossed, I kept an eye on either end of the road. Even though we were hidden here, it still felt like we were exposed.

I couldn’t get her words out of my head.Leave her if anything happens. Rage boiled deep within me, rage I knew I had no right to. Not when I’d done everything to keep her away, to stop myself from getting close. Back when there was the academy and boundaries, I’d been able to hold her at a distance. But here, there was nothing but me getting in the way of doing what I knew I had to.

And that was part of the problem.

I shook my head, though my eyes darted to her. She sat with her knees to her chest, arms wrapped around her legs, and head resting on her forearms. It didn’t look comfortable at all, but she’d shrugged off all offers of being held by the others. I could tell the weight of her words, her demand, suffocated not only her—but everyone else.

As if feeling my stare, Ivy looked up, her eyes finding mine. A frown played at her lips; lips I wished I could taste at least once. But that wouldn’t be fair to either of us. She didn’t deserve to be played with, to have her heart broken when I inevitably walked away.

I fully intended on getting her the crown. The skull. The entire fucking world if I had to. But I still couldn’t bring myself to give her the one thing she really needed.

Ivy’s shoulders slumped as she looked between me and the others. I had a feeling they weren’t asleep, either. Not like anyone could really rest, except for Kingsley. He looked like shit, and I was pretty sure the only thing getting him through this was the few hours of sleep he managed to steal.

But I watched, breath catching in my throat, as Ivy rose. There was no hesitance in the way she rolled her shoulders back and stalked towards me. I already had a feeling I knew where this conversation would go, and I mentally prepared myself to disappoint her again. To prove exactly why I wasn’t worthy of her.

Why the only times I saw her were in my dreams, where I couldn’t see the hurt in her eyes, where I didn’t risk breaking her heart over and over again.

I was a weak fucking male. She made me want to fall to my knees. Made me want to pull her further down the creepy fucking road to give her exactly what she wanted. Claim her with not just my magic, but brand her like a demon, and share my power with her.

But as soon as the thought entered my mind, she came to a stop in front of me, and the desire to claim her quickly vanished. Her dark eyes lifted to meet mine. For the first time in a while, she hid her emotions from me.

“We need to talk before anything goes down,” she murmured, throat bobbing. Even if I couldn’t read her emotions, I already knew where this conversation was headed.

I cocked my head, keeping my arms crossed. “No need, Princess,” I replied. “You’re going to ask me about the bond, I’m just going to give you some vague answer about not wanting it, and then you’re going to get mad and walk away.”

Her cheeks bloomed with anger as her eyes narrowed on me. There were a whole lot of other reasons why I wanted to see her cheeks pink, and it wasn’t because she was mad at me.

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