“One is not enough,” Nuriya replied. “The magic of the portal lock exceeds the magic of a single stone—it must be equally weighted if this is to work.”
“So we go to the In-Between,” Mona announced.
“And face an entire planet of stones like the one that just sent Corrine into total crazy-space?” Aisha retorted. “That doesn’t seem very smart.”
“We don’t really have a choice,” I reminded her.
Aisha exchanged a glance with her husband Horatio, then frowned, staring wearily at my backpack. I understood the woman’s misgivings—I shared them, but for the first time since we’d found the portal I also felt hopeful. If a bunch of stones were the key to unlocking the portal, then I would stop at nothing to get my hands on them. I also desperately wanted to know what kind of creature was so dangerous to the jinn that rather than killing them, they locked them in eternal stone prisons. Could they even be killed? If those were the creatures waiting on the other side of the portal, then my kids were in more danger than I could even contemplate.
“Caleb,” I breathed. My chest had suddenly tightened, and I felt the back of my neck breaking out in perspiration. This was not good.
“Don’t jump to conclusions,” he replied firmly.
“Caleb’s right,” Corrine replied. “We don’t know anything yet—just that there’s a distinct possibility that someone on the other side of the portal wants us to get in.”
I nodded.
Please be one of the kids.
Maybe it was a message? Both Hazel and Benedict knew about the story of Mona, Kiev and the rest of Matteo’s crew being released from a stiff portal by Benjamin and Abby. If they realized that the portal out of their dimension was blocked, then they would know what to do.
I tried to force myself to calm down and then addressed the group.
“Let’s head back to the port and call the others. Then we’re taking a trip to the In-Between.”
Hazel
His body lay in the sand, his face ghostly pale and everything about him looking crumpled and broken.
How did this happen?
How did I let this happen?
I couldn’t even touch him without causing him more pain. Ruby turned him over gently till he lay on his back. She leaned forward, pressing the side of her face to his chest. Julian sat on the sand, clutching at the hand of his friend.
“I can feel a heartbeat,” she whispered. “It’s faint, but it’s there.”
I nodded, feeling dizzy with relief. I was grateful that Ruby was here, being the responsible sister when I was incapable of anything other than overwhelming hunger. I focused on doing what I could - hastily removing my robe and placing it around Benedict.
“We need to move him,” I muttered. “He needs to get away from this place.”
“I’ll take him back with Ragnhild.”
“Let me get Tejus—we should all go back together,” I replied, looking around for both him and the lieutenant. I couldn’t see them anywhere. “Where’s—”
As soon the words were out of my mouth, Tejus barked my name. “Hazel, the temple,” he called out, his voice echoing from the hollows of the earth.
I hesitated, looking down at Benedict.
“Go. I’ll look after him,” Ruby replied. “If we don’t discover more about the entity, soon, we’re all in trouble.”
I nodded, staggered to my feet and ran down to the temple. The door had remained open after Benedict emerged, and the eerie green light still spewed from its depths.
Ragnhild and Tejus were both peering over the stone table block in the center, where the light was strongest. Flickering within the green light, the brightly multi-colored stones from the Hellswan locks danced erratically in their settings.
“All the grooves are filled,” Tejus muttered as I walked over to stand at the opposite side of the table. As soon as I’d entered the temple, hunger had kicked in—I could feel my throat constricting, and a dull hollowness in my stomach. I still didn’t truly understand why the effects of mind hunger felt so physical, like my body was in the throes of starvation.
Doing my best to ignore it, and mentally block Tejus, I looked down at the surface of the table. All the grooves were filled but one.
“Do you think that’s the stone that Benedict just threw in the water?” I asked, placing my finger over the empty groove. It felt warm.
Tejus nodded. I looked up at him—waiting for answers.
What does this mean? How much danger are we in?
His mouth was set in a line, his dark brows furrowed. The light that emanated from the runes in the table and the stones cast part of his face in a green glow, while the rest remained shadowed. The effect made the stark planes of his face sharper and more prominent. I’d been about as intimate as anyone could get with this man, but as I stared at him, hoping for words of reassurance or hope, I felt like I was looking at a stranger.