Colton stands up, grabbing the picture frame and stepping over to his mom to hand it to her.
“Well, this is swell,” Dom mutters, rolling his eyes and stepping away from the circle. “How do we get to it without being pummeled by Hurricane Lyle?”
“A valid point,” I say, nodding. “My dad’s too strong. If we go onto the property, his Lemure will attack. He nearly killed Wade. Hell, he nearly killed all of us.”
Dominic nods. “We can’t just go marching over there to collect his remains. That would be suicide. We need a better plan.”
Diana crosses her arms over her chest and quirks an eyebrow, clearly waiting for something.
Dominic makes a face. It’s like the two of them are communicating on a completely psychic level.
“Well, we do have a few people in our midst who can’t die,” Dominic mutters. “Maybe we can use that to our advantage?”
“So, you want to send in the immortals and hope they can clean up the mess? You know they can still get hurt, right?” Blake says, speaking up for the first time. His face is dark as he shakes his head indignantly.
“Hurt, but not dead,” Dominic says. He winks as he clicks his tongue and points his index finger at Blake.
Blake lets out an exasperated sigh and walks away from the group.
“What about Colton?” Wade says, tugging his eyebrows in.
“Yes, he’s immortal,” I say, wondering what he’s getting at. “But he can’t go alone—”
“No, that’s not what I mean.” Wade turns to me, taking my hands in his. “Hear me out, okay?”
I narrow my gaze, waiting.
Wade scrunches his face and exhales slowly. “What if Colton summons your dad’s remains?”
My mouth pops open, but I can’t find the words to refute him. There’s a certain amount of sense to the idea.
“After everything that went down last semester, you want to put Colt in the position to use his powers to make another revenant?” Cat says indignantly. “Do you know how hard he’s worked to put all of that behind him?”
“Yeah, well, at least this time, he could put the skill to some good. Don’t you think?” Wade fires back. “If any of us go onto the property, we’re as good as dead. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to see any of us die over this. Do you?”
Cat opens her mouth, but snaps it shut after a moment.
“He’s right, you know,” Diana whispers, speaking up for the first time in all of this.
Everyone turns to her, but no one says a word.
“Colton has powers he’s barely begun to explore. He needs to learn how to live with them. Unless he tests the waters, he won’t be able to find his center,” she says matter-of-factly.
Colton swallows hard, swapping his gaze from me to Diana.
She casts him a stern glance and tips her chin. “You got this, kiddo,” she whispers. “This is what you’ve been working so hard for.”
Straightening his shoulders, Colt exhales a slow burst of air. “All right, I’ll do it.”
Despite being the lesser of the evils, my pulse pounds loudly in my ears.
Even if we can reanimate his remains, which is cringeworthy on its own, we still have to find a way to get him into the catacombs and finish the interment. That means for sure Cat and I will have to get onto the property.
What if messing with his remains magickally just pisses him off even more? Or somehow gives him even more power? What else could he be capable of?
Chapter 27
Puppet Master
The eight of us form a circle on the grass, huddling together to come up with the best plan of action. Even if Colton is able to summon my dad’s remains, we still need to follow it up with Cat’s ability to direct her element of fire, and I’m the one who will have to help her find her way through the labyrinth of the catacombs.
I glance over at Colton. He looks as apprehensive as the rest of us, shifting his gaze to the ground and kicking at the dirt. It reminds me of the way he was when I first met him, but he’s still somehow very different.
“All right, so let me get this straight. Once Colton’s able to summon Lyle’s remains, he’ll go with Cat and Autumn to the catacombs as their protection?” Wade says, his face a blanket of seriousness as he looks to each of our faces.
I nod. “You didn’t see it, but what he did was incredible. He was able to put everything on hold, like he pressed the pause button.”
Wade’s shoulders relax a little bit. “All right. What about the rest of us?”
“There’s no reason for anyone else to put themselves in danger,” Diana says. “We all stay here, out of the way.”
“This is bullshit,” Dominic mutters under his breath.
Diana narrows her gaze on him, shaking her head. I swear I hear her mutter, kids.
“Dominic’s right, though. I don’t like the idea of standing back and letting Autumn head into that,” Wade says, shaking his head. “Even if she has Colton’s protection.”
Turning to him, I take his left hand in my right. “Wade, I can’t have you come with me. After what happened last time, I’d be so distracted, worrying about you and making sure you’re safe. I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you. Please, the best thing you can do is stay here. It will help me focus on what I need to do.”
His silver eyes bore into mine, trying to will me into submission. “But…” he begins.
I raise a hand to the side of his face, running it along his cheek. “There are no buts. I have to go because I’m the only one who can inter my father. The catacombs are meant for my family. This is my job.”
“I can enter the catacombs, remember? Besides, I know the way, too,” Wade says, his jaw hardening.
“I know. And if this were any
