Page 7 of Gift from the Source
“No,” I say, cutting Tillman off softly, knowing he’s about to tell those two to go handle everyone inside. “All you men, go round up the fifteen people. There’s a foyer on this first floor large enough for you all to gather in. Ry, are there any bodies on the third floor?” I ask.
He hesitates for a moment due to the scowl he’s receiving from Tillman, but one quick elbow from Oakly takes care of that. “No. First and second.”
“What are you thinking, little warrior? You’re not separating from us.”
“I am. The girls and I will be on the third floor briefly, going through Franklin’s study. You all round the fifteen up. The ones in the Mastery, do as you please, but I’m almost certain there are nonmagical beings here as well. We’ll decide what to do with them after you go through everyone’s mind and figure out what you can about what’s being hidden under the house.”
The argument is on the tip of every man’s tongue, but Oakly and Aria don’t skip a beat stepping up beside me, eyeing their Nexuses like they dare them to say otherwise.
It’s a brutal standoff that I’d surely die laughing at any other time, but right now, it’s what needs to be done. It’s what I need to do.
“Fine, but we’re going in first. Cas, sweep the third floor,” Tillman orders, and before I can open my mouth to argue I can do that on my own, Caspian disappears.
“Isn’t it strange there’re no wards or anything around the house?” Nikoli asks with his nose in the air, attempting to sniff out a trace of something.
“Franklin was cocky and very confident in himself. I’m sure in his mind, there was no one other than his father, who was stronger than him or who could come and go from Elementra. So there’d be no need for him to waste his power on wards,” I say before turning back to the cloud of smoke solidifying beside us.
“It’s clear. Bodies are gathered in the foyer like youcommanded, Primary,” Caspian says sarcastically with a devilish smirk, and I just sigh as the others grumble at him about taking all the fun.
I believe that little stunt warrants a punishment later for the stubborn ghost.
All eyes turn to Tillman when a random laugh tumbles from his mouth, and he coughs to smother the sound. He shoots me a sly wink before fixing his face back into a stern glare and orders everyone inside.
Cas takes it upon himself to kick the door in rather than just turn the knob like a sane person, and both he and Draken fall into a fit of laughter, giving me the barest of kisses as they pass me by.
“No trouble, princess. To the third floor and that’s it,” Corentin commands, turning me to face him as the girls and I take a step in the direction of the stairs.
“No trouble at all. We’re going to go through his things and see if we can find anything he may have had on the Mastery or the Summum-Master.” I swear.
With a nod, he gives me a quick kiss, followed by Tillman, leaving Oakly, Aria, and me watching as all the men walk away.
“Let’s get to it then. This place is beautiful, but it’s giving me the creeps,” Oakly says, lacing our fingers together.
“It’s probably all the unrest from the souls,” Aria says nonchalantly, and we both turn to glare at her.
“Excuse me?” I ask.
“A lot of people have died in here. Some good and some not very good people. Oakly’s probably feeling their negative energy.”
We both stare at her in horrified fascination.
Admittedly, I sometimes forget the extent of her Ethereal ability, especially this nifty little trick she can do. Seeing souls.
No, thank you.
Wordlessly, we take the stairs two at a time, not mentioning the fact we’re surrounded by possibly evil spirits and the dark trauma of my past in the air.
Each step up these familiar stairs is like stepping into the shadow of a long-buried memory. One that isn’t nearly as frightening as I thought it was going to be.
It’s like I’m seeing this stairwell for the very first time. It’s a new image created from the countless times I dreaded this walk, merging with the memory of my mom raging her way up here in her wolf form.
I used to hold my breath and bite my lip painfully every time I stepped on a stair that creaked. It would give away my location to anyone in the house that could hear it, but now I smirk at the sound.
I no longer fear the feelings trapped in these walls.
The walls and everyone within them who has any ill intentions should fear me.
I pause at the top of the stairs and glare down the familiar hallway. Nothing has changed. Not a picture frame, not the paint. There’s not a speck of dust that I can see.
