Wrath

powerful and full of more passion than most people get to experience in a lifetime. I have other things to worry about, as do you.”

We reached the bottom of the steps to the jet, where the others congregated. Everyone who came to the Island with us had arrived, as well as Jax, except Bree. I opened my mouth to ask if she was coming when she appeared in front of us, all golden and shining in the night.

“I wondered if you were coming with us,” I said. “You’re the last to arrive.”

“Well, no, I’m not.” Her mouth stretched into a grin that lit up her inhumanly beautiful face, and although I was disappointed she wouldn’t be coming with us, I could see that whatever she’d be doing was good for her. “I’ll still be helping you, though, but in other ways. I get to return to the Otherworld!”

“Oh! That’s wonderful!” I threw myself at her in a hug.

“The Angels told Ms. Katerina I had served my duty here and performed it to their satisfaction. They’re allowing me back with full faerie privileges.”

I stepped away so Tristan could congratulate her and say his goodbyes. They didn’t have anything resembling a normal mother-son relationship, not after what they’d been through, but they held mutual respect and adoration for each other. Bree loved Tristan unconditionally as parents do, and I thought Tristan had grown to return that love once he came to know her as the person she really was, not the evil witch the Daemoni had made her out to be.

I had my own mother to say goodbye to, and it was a lot harder to do so than I’d thought it would be when we first arrived last night. I’d thought her uncaring and hard-hearted at the time, but that wasn’t the case at all.

“I wish you could come with us,” I said as I held onto her in a tight hug. “Why don’t you? You are a strong converter.”

“I wish I could, too, to be honest,” she said. “But I am needed here. Rina requires my assistance.”

We hadn’t even left yet, and my chest already tightened with longing. “I’ll miss you. I already do.”

“I miss you, too, honey. But you do what you need to do now. As soon as you get pregnant, you’ll be back here, and we’ll get sick of seeing each other so much.”

“I doubt it. You were always my best friend.” I gave her a tighter squeeze. “But for now, I must find Dorian.”

“Yes, you must. Go get our little boy, Alexis, and bring him home. This is where he belongs, at least for a few more years.”

A lump formed in my throat as we gave each other one last hug and said our “I love yous.” Why did I always feel when I left my mom that things would only be worse the next time I saw her?

Chapter 10

“You’re sure you’re up for this?” I asked as my team flew across the Atlantic Ocean at warlock speed once again. Jax sat across from me on the Amadis jet, decked out in new fighting leathers. Part of me couldn’t be happier about him being here, but I worried about him. “I know there’s a reason you stayed away from people all those years. Please don’t feel like you have to do this.”

He stroked his chin as he looked out the window, though the only way to distinguish the sky from the ocean below was the smattering of stars that showed every now and then when the clouds allowed us a glimpse.

“At some point in his life, a bloke’s gotta rock up and do what’s right. The Amadis are the closest I got to rellies, and it’s time for me to stop bein’ a piker and take care of ya.” He puffed up his chest as he gave me a smile. “I’m fit as a Mallee bull. No way could I hide in the bush when my mates need me. ’Specially you, princess. I’ll do whatever I can to help you find your lad, even if it’s just keepin’ you and your team of pretty sheilas safe.”

Tristan, who sat next to me, let out a low growl.

Jax gave him a mischievous grin. “Well, maybe you’re no sheila, but you are a beaut, too.”

Tristan growled louder. Jax threw his hands in the air in surrender.

“No worries, mate. I’ll behave.” Yet right after making that promise, his eyes slid over to Blossom who sat with Vanessa and Sheree.

Rina must have convinced everyone else of Vanessa’s trustworthiness because the three of them sat with their heads close together, in deep conversation. My grandmother hadn’t quite convinced me, though. With her assessment, I felt ninety-nine-point-nine percent sure Vanessa was good, and I hoped to strengthen our relationship. However, I would still hold onto that sliver of doubt, just in case. That suspicion would keep me alert if I turned out to be right about her being in on Owen’s plan for massive betrayal.

My anger bubbled up again at the thought of my former protector, creating an ache for the chance to zap him with a few billion volts of electricity. I looked out the window to see us zooming toward dark storm clouds and lightning, apropos for my mood. Sasha, who’d been sleeping on Tristan’s lap, sensed my ire and nuzzled her snout against my hand. Tristan noticed, too, and the arm he held around me tightened.

I pulled on his love to calm me, closed my eyes, and told myself to sleep while I could, because as soon as we landed, we’d be heading out on our mission. We’d already lost enough time. Everyone else had settled down and the cabin became quiet, though Jax let out a loud snore now and then. I was just about to doze off when the plane hit some turbulence.

“We’re headed for some rough weather near the coast,” the co-pilot’s voice said over the speakers. “We’re going to keep our speed, so hang on. It could get a little bumpy.”

A “little bumpy” turned out to be the understatement of the day. The jet bounced, rose, and plummeted like a roller coaster, making my stomach dip. Everyone woke up instantly. Tristan dropped Sasha into my lap, then leaned over to jab a button on the console, turning on the information screen that hung on one wall so we could see how close we were to Florida and how long we’d be flying in this weather. The image of our plane nearing the coast of South Carolina and Georgia flashed on the screen, and then it went blank. The entire cabin fell dark.

Lightning lit the sky outside and flashed through the windows. A burst of thunder shook the plane. My seat came out from underneath me as the jet lost hundreds of feet of altitude, and then I slammed back into it. Blossom screamed.

“This isn’t good,” Tristan said.

What’s going on? I asked the pilot.

“Mayday! Mayday!” came the only response as the pilot tried to call for help.

Another flash of light. The plane rocked sideways and downwards. My body banged against the seat and the wall, and Sasha fell off my lap. I grabbed for her and held on right before the plane rolled over and then upright again.

“Ms. Alexis, the storm tore through my shield! The Normans have spotted us and are firing at the plane,” the warlock co-pilot said to me.

What?!

“You must leave!”

The jet shuddered again as something slammed into the side of it.

And then it began to spin as we plunged toward the earth.

“Flash! You all need to get out of here,” the pilot yelled in my mind.

“We’ve been hit!” the co-pilot shouted. I hesitated for a fraction of a second, not believing what I heard. “Hurry! We’re going down!”

“We have to flash out of here,” I yelled over the thunder outside as I shoved Sasha into the front of my jacket. I lurched for the center of the cabin as the plane continued to rock side to side and back and forth.

Tristan’s hand wrapped around my wrist, and he tugged me closer to him. He reached his other arm out, and yelled, “Come to us, and I’ll lead us for the flash.”

Everyone’s movements looked disjointed and awkward in the lightning that lit up the cabin in strobe-like fashion. Charlotte lunged for Tristan, and Vanessa grabbed my hand and stretched for Sheree and Blossom, who reached for Jax, but the jet tilted again, throwing us off balance. I fell to the side, catching myself on a seat with my arm to protect the lykora in my coat, and pushed myself upright.