Vindicate (8 page)

I smirked. “Well, it was just a nod . I t ’
s late fall ; snow could be expected at anyti me. Marc didn’t mean any harm. Neither did I. E
ven if they consider it a slap in the face , it’s how Drake planned to rule , with or without me.”

She nodded and smiled humbly. “Marc knew exactly what he was doing when he made that gesture. W
hether you realize it or not , those brothers are very in tune with each other. T
hey don’t need words , or even a past.
Marc did exactly what Drake would have done if he were placed in that position.”

My eyes gazed down at the scroll and the endless notes on the table as my dream raced through my thoughts.
Landen was trying to tell me something.
E
xplain why he had to leave me here. “Where is August?” I asked , wanting more than ev er to turn back time. T
o stop us from going into that dimension. T
o find a way to avoid this hell I was in.

“He and Stella were with the looking glass , last I heard. Olivia and Chrispin have returned. I believe they are resting.” Perodine nodded to the cart of food by the table. “Food has been prepared for you.”

“Not hungry , ” I said under my breath.

“When was the last time you ate?” she asked in a concerned motherly tone.

I knew it ha d been long before this trial. S
ince before I was trapped in that dream , but I didn’t want to point that out. “When was the last time they ate?” I asked , glancing at Landen and Drake , knowing it had been just as long for them.

She didn’t bother to argue with me. She just let out a deep breath and gazed at me.

“What else have you figured out? Did Olivia find out anything?”

“Whatever she knows , she plans to tell you and only you. I’m still unraveling the complexity of this trial.”

“Did you not see that it was going to be in another realm ? T
hat it would take both of them?”

“I couldn’t have seen another realm because a realm is shared consciousness. A thought – a community of energy. I saw the three of you there , just as I do with each trial.
I saw others , too.
The twin males.”

“Anyone else?” I mumbled at the mention of the word ‘
twin .
’

She reached for my hand. “Yes.”

I looked up hopefully. “Several.
I see a Libra . A Taurus helping you.”

“Who ’
s a Libra?” I asked , knowing Clarissa was a Taurus.

“You ’re not curious about the Taurus twins ?
”

“What?”

“All of the signs I see coming into your life are from a new source.”

“More people. G
reat , ” I said absentmindedly . “I have enough peopl e telling me they feel called, and they fall back on whatever P
e lh a n and Aora told them. T
hat the y would lead us through the tria ls.” I sighed. “Y
ou know August knew that last trial would involve Clarissa because it was E
arth , and that ’
s Taurus.”

“I don’t agree with that , ”
s he said respectfully.

“With Pelhan or August?”

“With how Pelhan’s words were understood. I’m sure when he spoke those words , he had the intent of ass uring them that they did h ave a role in your twisted fate, but at the same time , you must understand that Pelhan never speaks a word that he has not carefully thought out, and every word he speaks has more than one meaning.”

“Have you met him?” I asked , knowing without a doubt that she ’
d pegged his personality with perfection.

“Only in my dreams . I n medi t ation.”

“So what was the double meaning?” I asked grudgingly .

“I believe they all have a purpose entangled with yours , but I do not think their purpose can be linked with something as simple as a sun sign. Y
our last tr ia l proved that.”

“But i t involved Clarissa.”

“To a degree . S
he had a broken heart, although it more so in volved Olivi a –Chrispin – Landen and Drake, and most defin i t e ly Dane .
”

“True.”

She reached for a stack of papers to her left. “I started to map out each of their charts…to see if I could read the web of fates. I’m not surprised to see Brady sleeping soundly over there.”

I glanced to where he was. As the dimming light of the fire danced off his complexion , I felt my breath leave me. For a moment , my eyes fooled my heart. T
hey saw Landen. Then his words in my dream echoed in my thoughts : ‘
F
ind them , Willow ...
they can see everything .
’ How could I find them if I couldn ’
t leave this world ?
I felt hopeless.

I reached for my chest , remembering that flower , wondering if it was real…wondering if I could whether the pain of the string without it. “Why is that?” I mumbled.

“His sun is Aquarius . H
e can perceive every part of the one weapon you have found against this woman : m usic . H
is Mars is in Scorpio.”

I moved my head from side to side , thinking of all the times he ’
d teased me about having such a fierce sun sign. “Does he know that?” I asked in a sly tone.

“He does. He asked me days ago if the trial of Mars would involve him because of that placement in his chart.”

“Why would he think that?”

“Mars rules Scorpio . H
e said he felt it coming. H
e wanted to be ready for it – he spent days with Alamos , trying to understand the power you had . H
e knew he would have to overcome you , or at least match your will if he was going to help you through this . H
e never quite grasped Alamos’ short lessons –but…all Pelhan had t o do was say one thing to him, and he finally got it. Just in time , too.
I doubt this city could have survived that storm much longer.”

“What did he say to him?” I asked , craving some kind of hidden message.

Perodine’s eyes moved to Brady’s sleeping body. “He never told me , ”
s he said in a slightly curious tone.

“Can I hope that he told him to go home and take care of his daughter?”

She laughed humbly under her breath as her eyes caught mine. “Child , that is what he is doing – by taking care of you , he is protecting her.”

“Chain reaction,” I mumbled as my dream echoed in my thoughts and I felt a warm hum in my chest where I imagined the flower to be. I felt this urge to run, but not away ; toward what I n eeded to do to solve this trial.
I kept seeing Preston running through th at string – his carefree laugh. T
he gray haze .
‘This way , Willow.’

“Where are you?” Perodine asked , leaning closer to me.

“I was thinking of Landen…he told me he didn’t come back because if Drake died , we died. C
hain reaction.”

She furrowed her brow as her eyes cascaded over my solemn expression. She knew he ’d said more , but she didn’t want to push me.

“I dreamed of him. S
aw where they were.”

“
Well…Landen has always been a wise soul. H
is words are very true.” She raised her eyebrows. “You should listen to him.”

Silence took over for a mom ent as we stared at each other.
I almost felt like she was telling me to run. T
o fight no matter what. I felt lightheaded and dizzy. I couldn’t hold one thought long enough to figure out what to do .
I had a plan before , cho o se Landen – always cho o se Landen ; there would be no trial because there would never be a choice. W
e were going to work together and bring color to this dimension, but now – I had no plan.

“How did we get here?” I asked , looking up at her. “What happened to ‘
Willow’s heart needs to ch o ose ’
?”

She looked down at her hands. “I have come to the conclusion that prophecy was one that Alamos and I both played into.
Donalt had us so focused on you loving the man we thought was best for you that we never saw the entire path before you. We weren’t ready for this. I f I had to guess , I would think that the darkness plotted for the thr ee of you to destroy yourself, and the reason he plotted to do just that is because it will take the three of you to end this.”

“So if one of us dies , we all die , ” I clarified.

“I don’t think you ’re going to die. E
very planet has the thr ee of your signatures on them.
I do think that this is a turning point. T
hat none of you will be the same after this trial.”

“If the re was no fear of death before that would have saved a lot of worry.”

“What is death, Willow ? N
othing but a doorway to another form of energy . O
ne way or another , the energy of the three of you will be together until the end.”

“Only three.” I stated bleakly .
It wasn’t fair for Drake to be lying there alone.
I cared about him. I did. But not having Landen with me right now was agonizing. He was my balance. I knew deep down this was test. The universe was telling me that I had to find my own strength. But right now I was too stubborn and dizzy to own up to that challenge.

“There are others. T
hey are waiting on you. Your paths will weave together. Y
our fates are complex an d incomplete without each other, but like I said before – the three of you began this and will end this in one form or another.”

“What are you saying? W
e’re going to be ghost at the end of this?” I asked , not caring one way o r another.

“I hope with all hope that is not the case. C
hild , your path is complicated. Never take anything I , or anyone else , says to o seriously…
or to o lightly.”

“Never have,” I mumbled a s I pushed back my chair.

“Where are you going?” she asked .

“On a walk , ” I said , trying to hide how lightheaded I felt. H
ow weak I felt.

“Stay in this wing , child. W
e are not alone in the palace anymore , ”
s he warned me.

I nodded once as I glanced at Landen and Drake’s bodies and turned to leave the room.

I wanted to find Stella and August , t o figure out this looking glass.
I planned to stay on the h allways I knew in this palace.
I wasn’t sure how I would know when one wing of the palace began and another ended , and I didn’t want to cross paths with anyone outside of Perodine’s trust.

I’d yet to explore every corner of this palace ; in fact , the hall I was on and the front entryway were all I’d seen. In truth , I doubted the rest of the place looked much different. The hallways were wide. Oil paintings lined the walls, with narrow couches and tables here and there. Some rooms opened to luxurious settings , others vast bedrooms.

I didn’t let the emotion of fear come over me when I stepped into the last room I’d seen Donalt alive in. W
hen I saw his wheelchair still sitting in the same place as before. When I walked down the tunnel that led to the looking glass , I didn’t let the images of that girl that had tempted Landen haunt me. I’d passed that point. I had bigger issues.

When I reached the stone room with pool of water and the looking glass , I saw Stella standing in front of it. The water was glowing. I t brought more light than I’d ever seen in this room. There were other doorways; one s that I doubte d had bookcases blocking them. O
ne was to the right of the pool; the other was to the left. I could feel August close by , but he was not in sight. W
herever he was, he was asleep. There were other souls close by , too. A ll carrying the signature peace the citizens of Chara had in their soul.

Stella , from the back , almost looked like a priest. She had a long black robe with a deep hood on. Her hair was pulled tightly back into a French twist. She didn’t turn to me as I walked to her side.

“Well , ” I said , gazing at her. I couldn ’
t help but notice how the innocen ce had vanished from her image. She looked sure of herself. L
ike someone who had commanded this looking glass for centuries.

She broke her stare with the glowing water and looked at me. “You look weak.”

“Do I?” I asked hoarsely , knowing I felt that way.

She nodded once , then looked back to the water. “Do you see what I see?”

I followed her gaze , and in the pool, in the center of the moving rings , I saw images . I t was like watching a movie through water. There was what looked like a chapel , and men in black cloaks filed in the room , swinging incense lanterns. On the alt a r , there were candles , and who I hoped was Drake , but knew was Marc , was standing there , wearing a black cloak lined with gold. The hood was pulled down so low that you could barely see his strong jawline.

“Where is this ?
Marc was sleeping a moment ago .
”