Bound by Stone

by Jenna Wolfhart

  This was the Fury’s plan, and I had to hand it to her. It was a good one if she wanted to torment me forever. If I stayed, I’d lose Eli and Jasper. If I went into the realm of the gods, I’d lose Marcus. There was no win-win in this situation, and there were many ways it could turn out lose-lose.

  “Maybe someone else could try to go through the veil,” a voice called out from the open door. We all turned to find Alaric standing in the doorway, his hands hanging heavily at his sides. “I’m happy to volunteer, if no one else is willing and able.”

  “Alaric, no,” I whispered. “I’m not going to let you sacrifice yourself, not when you’ve just broken free of your stone form.”

  “Let me?” He gave me a faux-stern look. “Come on, Rowena. Someone’s got to go, and unless you have a better idea, there’s nothing you can do to stop me.”

  “I don’t think it should be a gargoyle,” Kipling said quietly, hands still braced on the table. “Though I do thank you for your bravery, Alaric.”

  “If it’s not a gargoyle and it’s not a goddess, then what are you saying?” I asked. “You think a witch should go?” I shook my head. “None of them are ready for something like this, except for the Queen, and I don’t think she can leave now. If something happened to her, they wouldn’t have a leader, and that’s something they desperately need after everything that has happened.”

  “No.” Kipling loosed a breath. “I don’t mean a witch. I mean me.”

  Silence punctuated his words. We all stared. The corners of his eyes crinkled as he rubbed his jaw, shaking his head at a joke that only he could hear. No one knew quite what to say until everyone began speaking all at once.

  “Listen, I’ll go,” Alaric said just as the Queen icily commented that she’d consider it, just as long as no one stayed in her room if she was gone for several days. Even Sebastian chimed in. Deep down inside, I was certain he had a soft spot for the old man.

  After several moments of this, Kipling raised his hands and whistled. Everyone fell silent.

  “I’ve been thinking about this ever since I learned where the gargoyles were taken,” he said. “It makes the most sense. Rowena cannot go because magic would disappear from this realm. The Queen cannot go because her people need her right now. It’s possible the gargoyles could go unharmed, but this is untested, and I’m not willing to risk it. What happens if one of you loses your magic as soon as you step through the veil? You’ll turn to stone, and you’ll stuck.” He shook his head. “No, it must be me. I’m more than human, so I have enough power. I should be able to go through without any major issues.”

  “Should.” Sebastian braced his fists on the table. “There must be some other way, old man. I don’t think a single one of us here is okay with you sacrificing yourself.”

  “I’m not sacrificing myself.” His voice turned hard, determined. “I’m doing what needs to be done. Rowena might be the one who has a mating bond with them, but you gargoyles are my family. Someone has to go bring them back to us, and that someone might as well be me.”

  A lump formed in my throat, too large for me to swallow down. I hated that I couldn’t be the one to do this, and I hated that he felt as if there were no other choice. But the truth was, I couldn’t see a way around it. One of us had to go. And he was right. He was the best choice.

  We all trekked down to the caves when it was time for Kipling to travel to the realm of the gods. The Queen even joined, and I had a sneaking suspicion she was upset that Kipling was leaving. When we reached the cavern with its shimmering purples and golds, everyone paused for a moment to breathe in the heady aroma of pure magic, the power that spilled through from the realm of the gods.

  Kipling’s face was a mask of awe. Underneath, I knew he must be terrified. He might hold some strange form of magic that he’d never explained, but he’d told me once that he’d never even left the City of Wings. Now, he was only moments away from travelling into a different realm entirely. And we couldn’t be certain how long it would take him to return.

  Whispers echoed all around us, and I closed my eyes to tune my senses into the sound. Unlike last time, I couldn’t make out the words. The voices tripped over each other, melting their phrases into jumbled nothingness. I cocked my head and tried to pick out that singular voice from before. Hecate had betrayed me. She’d given the Fury the power to take my mates away from me, and I wanted to ask her why. She acted as though she had some master plan. Was ripping my heart to shreds part of it? Or was I so insignificant to her that she didn’t care at all?

  “Hecate.” I didn’t expect a response, and this time, I didn’t get one.

  “Any luck?” Kipling asked when I opened my eyes, but I merely shook my head.

  “It’s probably for the best,” I said. “If she’s given power to the Fury, then it’s a good thing she doesn’t know you’re coming. Otherwise, it might piss her off.”

  He winced. “Just what I need. An angry goddess.”

  Chapter 30

  Kipling stepped through the shimmering purple veil and disappeared in less than a blink of an eye. I held my breath and waited. What for? I wan’t sure. None of us knew quite how long this could take. Hours, maybe days. Longer? But I still felt on edge as I stared at the shimmer of gold and purple, as if something might happen at any given moment.

  “Right,” Sebastian said. “We’re going to need to keep watch by the veil until Kipling returns. We don’t know what’s going to happen when he comes back through, and we have no idea what might follow him. It could be a pissed off Fury or a pissed off god if we’re lucky.”

  “If we’re lucky,” the Queen said in a bitter laugh. “Surely you’re joking.”

  “If we’re unlucky,” he continued as though the Queen hadn’t said a thing, “then it’ll be more like several angry gods. Plus, they probably have a lot more Furies in there where that one came from. She might bring some friends back with her.”

  “You’re really putting me at ease here, Sebastian,” I said.

  “Anytime, princess.” He flashed me a grin. “So, with all that in mind, no one should take a shift watch on their own. Otherwise, they might end up in deep shit without back-up. We’ll take it in teams. Two at a time. Unfortunately, there aren’t that many of us, so we’re not going to be getting much sleep until our boys are back.”

  “A few of my witches should be up to the task,” the Queen said. “Tess and Rebecca. They’re strong fighters. Some of my girls aren’t, but I have a handful who can handle the job.”

  Sebastian gave the Queen a nod. They were surprisingly respectful toward each, given the gargoyle had once kidnapped the Queen in exchange for a hit of power from the magic hunters.

  “Alaric and I will take first watch.” Sebastian gave the gargoyle a pat on the back. “That alright with you?”

  “Happy to have something to do,” Alaric replied.

  I opened my mouth to argue, but Sebastian held up a hand to stop me. “You need to go and rest, princess. How much sleep have you had in the past few days? None? Yeah, that’s what I thought. Go sleep and come back in six hours for the changeover.”

  Back in the bedroom, it was impossible to sleep. Marcus held me against his chest, but I couldn’t stop thinking about how empty the room felt. This bed wasn’t made for two, and it swallowed us whole, amplifying the absence of two of my mates.

  I squeezed my eyes tight and tried to block out our surroundings, but it was impossible. Eli and Jasper were stuck in the realm of the gods, and I was trying to get some sleep? It didn’t seem right. I needed to be the one on the other side of the veil, plowing forward until I had them both back in my arms again.

  “You’re thinking too much, my love,” Marcus said softly. “Your breathing has gotten frantic. It almost reminds me of how you sound when we’re doing other things...”

  I loosed a breath and opened my eyes. “I can’t stop thinking that I should be the one looking for them. Not Kipling. What’s he going to do if the Fury attacks him?”
r />   “Kipling can take care of himself.” A pause. “The truth is, Rowena, you’re the only one of us who shouldn’t be in the realm of the gods.”

  “They’re my mates,” I said.

  “And they’re my fellow mates. My friends. My family, thanks to you,” he said. “We’ll always be bonded because of what we each share with you. You’re not the only one lying awake and beating herself up over whether or not she should be tracking them down.”

  “Is that really how you feel?” I asked, pushing up onto my elbow to stare down at him.

  He nodded.

  “Then, why weren’t you more insistent about going?”

  “Would you have been okay with me saying I would go?” He raised his eyebrows.

  “No,” I admitted. “I would have probably lost my damn mind.”

  He chuckled. “Exactly. That’s why I never even fancied the idea of going. I wouldn’t dream of leaving you here without any of your mates, knowing just how worried you are about Eli and Jasper.”

  My breath curled from my lips as I stared down at him, and something warm spread across my chest. “I don’t deserve you.”

  “And see, I feel the opposite.” He slid his hand around the back of my neck, dragging his fingers through my hair. “I’m the one who doesn’t deserve you. There is no one else in the world quite like you, my love. I would go to the ends of the earth to be with you, and I would stay right here, in this realm, no matter what, just to stand by your side.”

  “Kiss me,” I whispered. “Kiss me, please.”

  And so he did. He fingers tightened around my hair as he pulled my mouth to his. Hungrily, he dove his tongue between my lips, tasting, exploring. A light moan escaped from my throat, and my hand dipped underneath the covers to trace my fingernail along the ridges of his abs.

  But, as much as I wanted Marcus right now, we couldn’t go further than this. My mind wouldn’t let go of Jasper and Eli, knowing they were lost somewhere in the realm of the gods. It wouldn’t be right to have sex, not right now. It would be a betrayal to them, even though we were all mated together.

  We had to wait. We had to hope. We had to pray to the goddess who had betrayed us.

  I’d never felt so hopeless in my life.

  Chapter 31

  It was the fifth day, and there had been no word from inside the veil. We hadn’t left the cavern unattended for even a second since Kipling had disappeared into the realm of the gods. Like clockwork, we changed shifts every six hours, and there were only three teams keeping watch. Sebastian and Alaric, me and Marcus, Tess and Rebecca. My life consisted nothing of sitting and waiting, sleeping and waiting, or eating and waiting.

  And when I’d been worried before, that was nothing compared to how I felt now. It had been five days since Kipling had gone after my mates. He should have returned to us by now. Something had gone wrong, and there wasn’t a damn thing we could do about it.

  “Maybe I should try contacting Hecate again.” I paced from one end of the cavern to the next.

  “Is that a good idea?” Marcus asked. “I thought she was on the Fury’s side.”

  “Fury’s side or not, we might be able to get some answers.” I blew out a hot breath. “It would be better than sitting here and waiting. We have no idea what’s happened to them. We don’t even know if they’re still...”

  I couldn’t say the rest of the thought, but it was one I knew we’d all been having these past few days. Were they still alive? Had the Fury killed them? Could they even survive in the realm of the gods in the first place? They were questions and thoughts I’d fought hard to push aside, but it was becoming increasingly impossible to have a positive outlook.

  “Will it make you feel better if you try?” Marcus asked.

  “Yes. No. Maybe?” I shrugged. “I don’t know.”

  “Give it one last try,” he said. “And then come sit down next to me and try to relax. Pacing a hole into the cave floor isn’t going to solve anything.”

  Suddenly, a body tumbled through the shimmering golden veil. It fell with a crunch at my feet, I stumbled back with my mouth open wide in a silent scream, horror and revulsion pounding through me. There was blood pouring from a gaping wound and coating his skin. The white temples. The crinkles in the corners of his eyes. I choked out a cry and shook my head.

  “Kipling!” Marcus was on his feet within seconds. And then the old man was in his arms only seconds after that. Then, he was sprinting, the wings flapping heavily behind him as he rushed down the sunken passageways that would lead him out of the cave.

  He’d left me there staring at a puddle of blood. I knew he’d be back as soon as he’d handed Kipling to the others, but it didn’t stop a shiver of dread from creeping up my spine. Someone on the other side of the veil had been listening, and they had answered with a violence so terrible that I didn’t dare take another breath for fear they’d hear the whistle of the wind in my lungs.

  Blood roared in my ears. Could they hear that as well? If I made a step back from the blood, would they know what I’d done? Would they throw another body at my feet? This time, would it be one of my mates?

  The veil began to shimmer once again, and I clutched my shirt by my heart. A hazy form appeared before me. Not a bloody, broken body, but a powerful figure who stood tall. Wings rippled. Strong. Powerful. But as the figure stepped closer, it became clear that this wasn’t a gargoyle shifter. It was a woman with long blond hair that whispered at her waist and eyes the color of fire.

  “You,” I hissed when the Fury rose before me. “What did you do to Kipling? Where is Eli? Where is Jasper?”

  “Don’t you worry,” she said with a slight smile. “Eli and Jasper are somewhere that you cannot go.”

  “What have you done with them?” I pulled my sword from my scabbard and pointed it at her throat. “Give them to me now, or I swear I will slice you a hell of a lot harder than I did before.”

  “Careful,” she said. “If you kill me, you’ll never get them back.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “Where are they?”

  “Truly, I thought you’d figured it out. They’re on the other side of the veil, in the realm of the gods. Isn’t that why your strange little man came looking for them?”

  “What did you do to him? If he dies, I swear to god—”

  “Your emotional threats are becoming tedious.” She snapped her fingers and pointed at my sword. “Give me your weapon. If you do not, I’ll have my fellow Furies kill your mates.”

  Narrowing my eyes, I frowned, but I tossed the sword her way nonetheless. It wasn’t as if she knew the truth about its powers. “Fine. Take it. I don’t care.”

  A wide grin spread across the Fury’s lips as she surveyed the sword that glittered in her hands. “Well, that was much easier than I expected. I thought you’d at least put up a fight. Isn’t this the only weapon in the world that can kill you?”

  My heart skipped a beat, but I kept my face a mask of calm. “Don’t know what you’re talking about. No weapons can kill me.”

  She hissed and strode closer, pointing the end of the blade at my throat. “Why don’t we test it out and see?”

  “Sure, have at it.” I swallowed hard, even though I felt terror seeping into my bones. One slash with that blade, and I’d die. One slash, and all the magic in the world would vanish in a puff of smoke.

  Narrowing her eyes, she stepped back. “I can see this isn’t have the effect I’d intended.” Her eyes sparked, and that strange eerie smile lit her face once again. “I have a better idea. It’s time for you to choose, Rowena Mortensen. Either I’ll kill your last mate, or I’ll kill you.”

  “What?” I breathed, heart trembling at the mention of my mate.

  “That’s right. Marcus is coming back now. I can hear his footsteps echoing in the cavern halls.” Fire danced in her reddish eyes. “When he steps foot in this room, he won’t have time to turn to stone. I’ll shove the blade right in his heart.”

  I squeezed my eyes tight, the mask
of calm morphing into fear and pain. She couldn’t. She wouldn’t. Oh, but she would. The Fury relished in tormenting me, the one person in the world who had defeated her. She’d taken two of my mates from me, and now she was dying to take the last.

  “So, what will it be, Rowena?” the Fury asked. “Your life or his. Time to choose.”

  I swallowed hard. This was an impossible decision, and she knew it. That was the entire point. Nothing could make me choose Marcus to die, though the look on the Fury’s face made it seem as if she truly thought I would.

  The alternative was almost as terrible. If I sacrificed myself, Marcus would turn to stone. So would the others. The witches would lose their magic, making them more vulnerable than they’d been before. It was the perfect form of torture, but I knew what I had to do. Zoe’s words echoed in my ears. Nothing was permanent in our world. For every action, there was a reaction. For every curse, there was a cure.

  The only permanent thing in the world was death.

  I took a deep breath and stared at the Fury, determined to stand strong even through my last moments on this earth. “I choose me.”

  Surprise flickered through her eyes and she frowned. Clearly that was the wrong answer.

  “I’ve made my choice. Kill me and get it over with.”

  She hissed and swung the sword. Light and sound exploded all around us, and a sharp crack echoed against the rocky cavern walls. They Fury tumbled halfway across the room, and the sword clattered to the ground. She scrabbled forward, trying to push up to her feet, but an invisible force knocked her back down.

  She screeched, flailing against the ground. My eyes wide, I grabbed my sword and took slow and steady steps toward her. When I reached her side, I pointed the sword at her chest.

  “Where are my mates?” When she didn’t answer, I dug the blade into her skin. “Tell me where they are!”

  Suddenly, the shimmering golden veil began to ripple just above the Fury’s body. I stumbled back, my sword trembling in my hands. It was impossible to understand what happened next. Everything happened so quickly, and my mind blurred with the impossibility of it all.