Page 39 of Fractured Souls
It probably would have been smart to leave someone above on watch, but I had a feeling that if we did find texts, we were going to need all the hands and help we could get. Plus, what were the chances of convincing any of these men to not go down here with me?
After a while, I began to wonder if this was a complete bust, but then we finally reached our destination. Not for the first time I stood in mild surprise, looking around at the massive underground structure. The torches on the wall lit up one by one, showcasing the cavernous room which was completely empty with the exception of two three-story doors on each side—four in total. Four families. That couldn’t be a coincidence.
The sound of water trickled loudly as it rolled down the walls from an unknown source and into shallow gutters that ran along each side of the room before disappearing underground. Above us on the ceiling of the cavern were crystals that looked like stars. It was clearly representative of water and the cosmos, and I couldn’t help but find it absolutely beautiful.
“Darklace,” I murmured, reminding everyone of the family we were looking for. Allowing my magic to lead me, I walked to the farthest door to the right. Each door bore slight differences, only noticeable if you were looking closely. This one was stained darker than the others, and the iron nailheads and bands glinted dangerously, though there was no handle.
“I’m not sure it’s a good idea to open these things,” Rhett admitted, looking around. I winced because he probably wasn’t wrong. I also knew we were going to do it anyway.
“I think it’ll be easy,” I assured him, turning to meet all of their gazes. “I’m going to touch the door—expect a reaction with my magic. If I feel anything goes wrong, I’ll pull back.”
“Or we’ll pull you back,” Desmond said. I nodded in agreement. I hoped it wouldn’t come to that, but it was always comforting to have backup.
Rolling my shoulders back and inhaling, I approached the door and threw my hand onto the wood…and at first felt nothing.
Well…maybe not ‘nothing’—I could feel power resting on the other side of the wood, but nothing rushed out to greet me. I frowned in confusion, my magic still attached to the door, trying desperately to bang it open to reconnect to…something. But it was like nothing was home.
I should have known better than to get my hopes up.
A small cry of surprise left my lips as a power surge came out of nowhere and my hand was sucked halfway through the door. A pained sound left my throat as wind rushed the room, and I trembled with the force of power, phantom screams filling the air. It was so intense, and my heart was beating so fast that I knew I was going to black out before my eyes even closed—
I knew immediately that I was in a memory. I’d star traveled, had visited dreams, present moments, memories… Each had a very distinct flavor, so to speak. This one was older, and as I looked around in confusion, I found myself in a living room…or maybe a playroom?
It was small, decorated with childlike artwork and soft stuffed animals. The couch and all the furniture were adult size though, so I had to assume it was the living room of someone with kids.
“Mom, I know.” A woman appeared out of nowhere with another following behind her, her voice filled with hushed panic. “I’m going as fast as I can.”
“It’s not safe here any longer, especially for them,” the second woman said. She looked extremely familiar…
I blinked in surprise. This was Beryl Darklace. Not a woman that sort of looked like her—her.
Except instead of wearing a medieval dress, she was wearing a sweater and jeans. Her hair was pulled back, giving me a clear view of her face which, while youthful on the surface, betrayed her age in small ways, like the darkness in her gaze.
“I know, I know.” The other woman’s voice caught on a sob as she looked into two small bassinets that I hadn’t noticed by the window. I moved across the space as she continued, “I told Lucas I would wait until he got back.”
“They’re coming now. You’ll all be dead if you don’t leave, Elizabeth.”
The woman near the bassinets turned sharply, causing me to stop dead in my tracks. This…this was my mom. I had never been so damn sure of anything in my life.
Her face was mine but slightly older, and her hair, while it had lavender tips, was the same shade blonde as mine. Her eyes were the same seafoam green…reflected in the baby’s cooing in the crib.
My knees nearly broke, and I had to put a hand on the wall to keep myself from completely collapsing.
This was Cormac and me. This was my mother, Elizabeth, and my grandmother, Beryl.
This was insane, but it also made sense. Complete sense.
“Take them, get them somewhere safe. I won’t let him come back here and be slaughtered,” Elizabeth begged. “Take the two of them to the safe house. Please, Mom.”
Beryl’s gaze darkened as she approached her daughter, wrapping her arms around her and kissing her cheek. “I understand, Elizabeth, I do. But your children need you. I’ll take them if you want me to, but you should come with us. Your father is already at your cousins’ estate on Earth realm—”
“No.” She growled, shaking her head at the suggestion. “No, I will not leave him to be killed. He would never do that to me.”
“Okay.” My grandmother swallowed, a knowing look in her eyes. She peered into the bassinets, her expression filling with a sweet affection tinted with sadness. “I’ll take them—”
The door was busted in, wood splintering and shouts filling the space.
A scream left my throat as I fell to my knees and watched as a group of individuals, unmarked and dressed in dark armament, stormed the apartment. Beryl scooped up Cormac and me before disappearing in the blink of an eye.
