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  “He is, apparently, Thames’s half-brother, and is also being controlled by him. I believe it’s how Rosabel was able to take him.”

  “If you bring Rosabel and your husband to me, I will try to break the hold over him.”

  Hope flared to life in her chest. “You can do that?”

  “I can try.”

  “How do I get back here?”

  “You don’t. You journey to where you did yesterday, and we will find you.”

  “Yesterday? I’ve been gone an entire day?”

  “Yes.” The woman headed back toward the wall of water. “I hope you can swim, Sorceress.” She snapped her fingers and icy water crashed down on top of them.

  33

  Terrenia

  Elizabeth

  Elizabeth stood, overlooking Terrenia, while those behind her slept soundly. Stars glittered tonight despite the fact that her entire world had fallen apart in an instant. Dakota was gone, Anastasia hated her, and as it turned out, her eldest son was still alive and seeking revenge against his bloodline.

  She turned her head up to the sky and closed her eyes. Never would she have imagined her past would come back to her like this. She’d thought that part of her life was over, and would stay buried like those she’d loved so long ago.

  “Hello, Mother.”

  Elizabeth looked over and saw Dakota standing beside the entrance to the cave, Rosabel right behind him.

  Hope flared, but died as quickly as it came once she got a look at his silver-threaded eyes.

  “Thames, I’m guessing?”

  “Yes, I hadn’t thought you’d remember me.” He took a step closer, and Elizabeth folded her arms.

  “How could I forget? You slaughtered our world,” she retorted dryly.

  “Slaughtered? How little you must think of me, Mother. I freed them, removed the bindings of mortality.”

  “What little I saw before your father sent me away was not freeing, Thames. It was bloody, it was violent, and it was an end to all life.”

  He laughed, and although it was Dakota’s voice, it sounded nothing like him. “You are wrong, Mother.”

  “Why did you take him?”

  Dakota tapped his fist against his chest. “He’s my brother, perhaps I wanted to get to know him.”

  “Larynt was your brother, tell me, what happened to him?”

  He smiled, and shook his head. “Larynt was weak.”

  “You were always jealous of him, from the time he took his first breath.”

  “Our power should have been mine!”

  “You couldn’t have handled it.”

  “Lizzie, what’s—”

  Elizabeth turned as a wall of water shot up to encase the cave. Tony stood on the other side, wide-eyed. He tried to push through, but the water wall only thickened, and he was forced to step back.

  “Please don’t, Thames,” Elizabeth pleaded.

  “So, this is the man you replaced my father with? Or rather, I suppose this one’s father.” He gestured to himself—or rather, Dakota.

  “I loved your father, and I loved Dakota’s father.”

  “Bad luck with love, huh, mother dear? How about we continue that streak?”

  Rosabel stepped forward and toward the wall.

  “No,” she pleaded, “Thames, please don’t.”

  Thames laughed. “I’m surprised you’re here. You never had much of a stomach for violence.”

  “Why are you here?” Her eyes were full of tears that she refused to shed, but her voice cracked with emotion regardless.

  “I wanted to see you, and to warn you.” He lifted a strand of her shoulder-length hair.

  “Warn me about what, exactly?”

  “You have my son. I want him back.”

  “I think you have that backward, Thames.”

  “Perhaps. Either way, you have something of mine, and I have something of yours.”

  “And just who is your son?”

  “The boy you call Vinny.”

  Elizabeth folded her arms. “He’s Vincent’s son.”

  Thames laughed. “It may have been Vincent’s body that he came from, but he is my son.”

  “I’m not turning over an innocent boy.”

  “Then I will kill this one.”

  Elizabeth’s eyes widened. “No.”

  “You don’t have a say in this, Mother. Give me the boy or your precious Larynt will die.”

  “Why do you want him?”

  “Because he is my son, and unlike some parents, I choose to be there for him.”

  A bright blue portal opened behind Thames, and he turned just in time to be blasted by a ball of light.

  “Didn’t see that one coming, did you, asshole?” Anastasia said and stepped from the portal.

  Thames straightened and laughed. “Have to say, Sorceress, didn’t think you’d hurt this one.” He touched the blood on Dakota’s chest, and wiped it on the black T-shirt he wore.

  Rosabel stepped around him, but he put a hand up to stop her.

  “Hey, fishy bitch, your mom says hi.”

  From where she stood, Elizabeth couldn’t see Rosabel’s reaction, but based on the grin of satisfaction on Anastasia’s, it had been what she’d been going for.

  “Is that why you’re soaking wet?” Thames laughed. “The Sirens are a waste of time; they don’t dabble in matters of other worlds.”

  “Yes, I know.” Anastasia folded her arms.

  Elizabeth stepped around Thames and Rosabel, to stand beside Anastasia.

  “You good?” Anastasia asked without looking at her.

  “Yes.”

  Anastasia turned her attention back to Thames. “So, why are you here? Don’t you have better things to do?”

  “Not particularly, nothing is more important than my son.”

  “You aren’t getting the kid.”

  “Then I’m afraid I’ll have to end this one’s life.”

  “No, you won’t. You need him.”

  Thames scoffed. “Need him for what, exactly?”

  “Not sure yet, but otherwise, you would have already killed him.”

  Thames stepped toward them, and Elizabeth swallowed hard. He had no magic, so Anastasia could put him down now if she needed, but it would destroy Dakota if she did.

  Dakota’s body jerked, the color draining from his eyes. “Ana?” he choked out.

  “Dakota?” Anastasia took a step closer, but Rosabel cut her off.

  Dakota’s head shook, and the silver returned. He laughed. “Seems seeing you is a bit more difficult for my brother than I’d originally anticipated. Apparently, he loves you quite a lot.”

  “You son of a bitch,” Anastasia growled.

  Dakota looked to Elizabeth. “Ouch. Am I right, Mother?”

  “I may be your blood, but I do not consider you a son,” she shot back at him.

  “No, you don’t, do you? You prefer this weak half-human.” Dakota’s face contorted in disgust as he looked down at his hands.

  “Dakota is not weak,” Anastasia said, her fingertips sparking with blue light.

  “You really think challenging me is such a good idea?”

  “I think I’m really fucking tired of you and your mermaid girlfriend.” Anastasia conjured a ball of light and threw it at Dakota.

  “No! You’ll kill him!” Elizabeth screamed and shoved him out of the way. The light went through Rosabel and into the night sky behind them before it disintegrated. The crashing of water sounded behind, and before she knew it, Elizabeth was being pulled to her feet by Rosabel.

  “See you soon, Sorceress,” Dakota said, and stepped into a portal of water behind Rosabel.

  “Let me go!” Elizabeth screamed, pulling at where he held her arm.

  He tossed her onto the floor, and Elizabeth stared wide-eyed at the place that had been her home ten thousand years ago.

  “Now, to get into something a little more comfortable.” Thames snapped his fingers, and Dakota fell to the ground.

  Eliz
abeth crawled over to him. “Dakota? Please, wake up!” She touched his face gently.

  “Takes him a while to come around once Thames has used him,” Rosabel said softly.

  Elizabeth said nothing, not wanting to encourage any further conversation.

  “Soon, he will be mine; Thames has promised.”

  “He will never be yours,” Elizabeth growled.

  Dakota’s eyes fluttered open. “Mom?”

  “Dakota! Thank God.”

  He sat up, and Elizabeth wrapped her arms around him.

  “Why are you here?” he asked.

  “They brought me through when I pushed you out of the way.”

  “Out of the way of what?”

  “Anastasia.”

  “What about her? Is she okay?”

  “Your Anastasia tried to kill you,” Thames said, coming around the corner and into the room.

  For the first time in forever, Elizabeth sat face to face with her eldest son, and it terrified her.

  34

  Terrenia

  Anastasia

  “Fuck!” Anastasia screamed once the water portal closed.

  “What the hell just happened?” Tony asked, running to her side. “Where’s Elizabeth?”

  “She saved Thames, and he took her home, that’s what the hell just happened.” She turned and fought the urge to slam her fist into the nearest surface. Probably a good thing since it would have been solid rock and probably resulted in the bones of her hand shattering.

  “She’s gone?”

  Anastasia nodded.

  “What do you mean she saved him? That was Dakota, not Thames.”

  “Thames is possessing Dakota. Using him for who knows what.”

  “And you tried to kill him?”

  She glared at him. “Of fucking course not, Tony. I was going to stun him so I could take Dakota and the fish bitch back to her mother—who is queen of the Sirens, by the way—so she could heal him.”

  “So, now that bastard has Lizzie and Dakota. Isn’t that just fucking wonderful.”

  “One big family reunion,” Anastasia said dryly.

  She’d barely used enough magic to scratch Dakota’s body when she’d blasted Thames the first time. If she’d been able to hit him a second, it would have knocked him out cold, and hopefully, she could have lured fish breath back home.

  Now, that hope was gone. Extinguished before she’d had a chance to come up with a Plan B.

  Anastasia turned, facing a grouping of Terrenians watching them from the mouth of the cave.

  “I need to talk to you,” Anastasia told Tony before turning toward the narrow path that ran up the side of the mountain.

  Tony followed behind her silently as they walked. Once out of earshot of the others, Anastasia stopped.

  “Vincent, now would be a great fucking time to show yourself.”

  “What are we doing?” Tony asked, and Anastasia held up a hand.

  “I’m not even mildly joking, Vincent. Either you show up now or I’ll hand your son over in exchange for Dakota and Elizabeth.”

  Seconds passed before Vincent finally appeared right behind Tony.

  “You rang?” he asked.

  Anastasia pushed past Tony, stopping only inches from Vincent’s face. “You’re damn well right I rang. How about you tell me what you were really doing for Thames?”

  “I told you.” He folded his arms. “I don’t remember all of it.”

  “Murdering a Siren? Searching for ultimate power beneath Terrenia? Any of this ringing a fucking bell?”

  “Ultimate power?” Tony asked curiously. “Here?”

  Anastasia nodded. “Apparently. And apparently, this dick knows how to kill Sirens.”

  “I promise you, Anastasia. I don’t know how to kill them. I would tell you if I had that knowledge.”

  “I have a hard time believing that. If you did, we wouldn’t need you anymore, right?”

  Vincent’s mouth flattened into a tight line. “I don’t remember a lot of what happened. Killing that Siren just so happens to be one of the parts I can’t recall.”

  “How am I supposed to know if you’re lying or not? How can I believe anything you say?” Anastasia folded her arms. “Fine, let’s assume—and I use that lightly—that you honestly don’t know how to kill the bitch. What about the ultimate power that’s supposedly beneath Terrenia?”

  Vincent gaped at her. “Ultimate power?”

  “Apparently, you had quite a bit to say about it to the queen.”

  He looked away, tense, and Anastasia watched him carefully, searching for any sign of the lie that was surely going to come out of his mouth. Finally, he looked back up at her. “I’ve heard rumors. Terrenia’s life core is supposed to contain more magic than any of the other worlds—combined. It’s why the Sorceress is almost always born of our people.”

  “Terrenia’s life core?” Anastasia pressed.

  “It’s what makes Terrenia function, what gives us life in this world.”

  “Don’t all worlds have that?” Tony asked.

  Vincent shot him an annoyed look. “Hardly. Other worlds may have something similar, but it’s nothing compared to what Terrenia supposedly holds. Whomever possesses the magic of the life core would be unstoppable.”

  “Awesome,” Anastasia retorted. “So, Thames wants to get his hands on ultimate power that would make him unstoppable. How much time do we have?”

  Vincent shrugged. “I don’t know. Unfortunately, that is not something he shared with me—or at least not something I remember.”

  “We have to assume he’s damn close,” Tony said. “He’s been ten steps ahead of us since who knows when—probably since he convinced this asshole to be his puppet.” Tony gestured to Vincent.

  “We have to get Dakota and Elizabeth the hell out of Luxe.” Anastasia waved her hand. When no portal appeared, she tried again, frustrated. “Why the hell is my magic not working?”

  “Try somewhere other than Luxe,” Vincent suggested.

  Glaring at him but unable to argue, Anastasia conjured a portal to the Sorceress’s old world. The blue light flared to life, and she snuffed it out.

  “Thames has Luxe blocked,” Vincent said. “I’m willing to bet Rosabel is the only one who can get in and out.”

  “Fuck!” Anastasia screamed.

  “That’s a lot of cussing coming from a young lady,” Vincent said pointedly.

  Anastasia turned toward him, eyes narrowed. “Excuse me?”

  Vincent raised his hands and leaned against the side of the mountain.

  Anastasia considered their options. There was no telling when Thames would show his face, and Rosabel had been practically nonexistent since Terrenia shut its gates. “What if I draw Rosabel out? Maybe I can get her to take me to them.”

  Vincent laughed. “How the hell are you going to do that? It’s not like you two are best friends.”

  “I really hate to jump on any opinion that bastard has, but this time, he’s not wrong,” Tony said.

  “She hates me, though, doesn’t she? If I can make myself vulnerable, maybe she’ll come to me.”

  “And if she doesn’t?” Tony asked.

  Anastasia met his gaze. “Then we’re screwed, because I don’t see another plan.”

  “What about the life core? You just going to risk Thames getting his hands on it?” Vincent asked, irritation tightening his tone.

  “Thames has always used someone to do his bidding, right? We never considered the possibility that if we can’t get to him, maybe he can’t leave either.”

  “Interesting hypothesis.” Vincent straightened and folded his arms. “Are you willing to bet the lives of every world in existence on this guess?”

  She glared at him. Who the hell was he to question her? Everything she’d done had been for the other worlds, right down to sacrificing her desire to have children. “This time, I am. Dakota and Elizabeth come first, then I’ll search high and low for the fucking life core. Happy?”


  “Not even slightly,” he responded. “I think you’re wasting time on sentiment when there’s a bigger problem.”

  “I don’t need a cricket on my shoulder, Uncle.”

  “More like a devil,” Tony added.

  “If you do this, you might as well hand him the damn power.” Vincent disappeared, fading into the sky around them.

  “Think he’s telling the truth about everything?”

  Anastasia sighed. “We don’t have a choice but to believe him. Now,”—she turned to him—“any ideas on how to lure a Siren?”

  35

  Luxe World

  Dakota

  Dakota pushed to his feet, steadying himself on the wall. Every time Thames possessed him, it took Dakota hours to get back to his normal strength. He pressed a hand to his chest, then withdrew his hand quickly. Looking down, he frowned. Blood coated his palm. What the hell happened?

  “You hear that, my love?” Rosabel said softly. “She tried to kill you. I would never do something like that.”

  “No, but you’d hand me over to the highest bidder,” he responded dryly.

  “What do you want, Thames?” his mother asked, her hand still on Dakota’s shoulder.

  “What I’ve always wanted, Mother. I will be revered for who I am and the power I possess.” Thames raised his scepter into the air.

  “What happened to you? What did I do to make you believe this was the only answer?”

  Thames studied her with disgust. “You always were a weak one, Mother. All of you.” He gestured to Dakota. “Even this half-human is stronger than you all were.”

  “Half-human? I think you’ve got that mixed up,” Dakota growled.

  Thames grinned at him. “Perhaps you are more dense than I originally gave you credit for. Our mother is not human,” Thames explained. “She comes from this world, and is of my species.”

  Dakota gaped at his mother, who stared guiltily at him. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered.

  “Lovely.” This day just keeps getting better and better. Dakota pushed himself away from the wall. “Whatever you have planned, it won’t succeed.” He needed to focus on the immediate problem, there would be plenty of time to focus on the craziness of the bomb his supposed brother just dropped on him.