Page 107 of Elemental Fae Academy: Book Three

“And unfortunately, that means Exos is her new target,” Cyrus added, narrowing his gaze at the Spirit King. “I gave you a day, brother.”

“And I said we would discuss it after the matings were done,” he gritted out through his teeth.

“We’re on a time clock here and—”

“Wait,” Claire interjected, cutting off Cyrus. “You set yourself up as bait?” Her voice broke on that last word. “And didn’t tell us?”

“I needed a way to guarantee she’d come here,” he said. “Now she has one.”

“Which would be great if we were better prepared to receive her attack,” Claire countered.

He didn’t appear at all fazed by her combative tone. “My choices were to shut down her access or allow her to continue feeding her dark energy, and the latter didn’t feel like a great option. So I did what was best for the Spirit Fae—what was best for all of us.”

“What do you mean by ‘feeding her dark energy’ with the death fields?” Vox asked, his dark brows furrowing.

“The Spirit Fae plague wasn’t a plague at all,” Exos explained. “It was a way for her to trap the souls of dead fae, to use as fuel—sacrifices—for her death magic.”

“You’re certain?” I asked.

He nodded. “And from what I can tell, it’s what she’s been doing to the Earth Fae. She’s been slowly stealing their lives and putting the remnants of their souls in the fields. Refusing to grant them access to the afterlife.”

Vox frowned. “As Spirit King, can’t you just release them all?”

Exos shook his head. “No. Not without undoing her magic. The best I could do was block her access to the souls by placing a spirit shield over the entry point.”

“Which will make her come after you.” Claire dampened her bottom lip, considering. Then sighed. “You still should have told us.”

“You’ve been a little preoccupied with your matings, princess,” he replied softly. “Which was more important to all of us.”

“But how am I supposed to mate Sol tonight with my mom being in a spirit-induced coma and the very real threat of Elana’s impending arrival?” She glanced up at me, her eyes filled with sadness. “It won’t be fair to mate you tonight with my mind preoccupied by everything else.”

I pressed a kiss to the crown of her head. “I understand, little flower.” It broke my heart not to complete the bond with Claire, especially when she needed my earth to fully ground her. But Claire was right; these distractions would damper our joining and ruin what should be a joyous experience. “We’ll postpone the mating until after things have cooled down.”

“But she needs to complete the circle,” Exos interjected. “It’ll strengthen her.”

She shivered in my grasp like a leaf about to tear itself from its tree, defying his words. “Not in this state,” I argued. “Mating tonight while all of this is weighing upon us will taint the bonding.”

Exos eyed us both, then blew out a long breath and shook his head. “Damn it.” He glanced at Cyrus.

“He’s right,” his brother said softly.

“I know,” Exos agreed, scrubbing a hand over his face. “I know.”

“We’ll figure this out,” Cyrus vowed. “All of us. But first, I suggest Claire spend tonight with Sol to at least absorb what she can through the bond.”

I nodded. “I’ll give her whatever she needs.”

“But you need your element, too.” She tugged on my shirt, demanding my attention. “You only give me what you can, Sol.”

“Okay.” I kissed her forehead. “But I have a lot of power.”

Her gaze narrowed. “Sol.”

“What? I do.” I lifted her up into my arms, loving the way her butterflies seemed to flutter around me in response. “I’ll prove it.”

“Yeah, go prove it,” Titus encouraged. “But try to get some rest with Sol. We’ll watch over your mother in case she wakes again.”

Vox, Exos, and Cyrus all nodded in agreement.

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