“What?” I asked, trepidation worming through me.
He winced. “The blessing is … powerful, and if you aren’t … well, it could be dangerous.”
Of course. But there was no way I’d let Kian and the others raise the dead or take my grandfather’s power. “There aren’t any other options, right? And you think I’m our best hope at stopping crazy-Kian and his cohorts, so … I’ve got this. Let’s do it.”
He patted my shoulder. “I think you’ll be fine.” Then he turned, and it sounded like he said, “I hope.”
Great.
Without another word, he pushed open the double doors.
Steam billowed out into the stone hallway, the dense moisture temporarily hiding the contents of the room. What the…?
As the vapor cleared, I peered into the space … and gasped.
I don’t know what I expected to see. A gym room with a training mat and punching bag maybe, or dummy targets for knives, but not this.
The room, if it could be called such, was almost cave-like, except the walls and ceiling were all a hazy glass like a greenhouse. The floor was uneven stone, and a path wove through the cavern toward where the source of the billowing haze originated. I followed Grandpa into the space, kicking several gray pebbles from the path. Little patches of green moss were scattered over the stone. It was like we had stepped outside, but we were still in the house.
In the center of the room were two small pools of water, one beside the other. Moonlight bled through frosted windows, casting shafts of illumination through the condensation and across the water, which bubbled and steamed.
“Whoa.”
Gramps smiled. “Our estate was built around this hot spring. The water is magic as you’ll soon see.”
Right then I didn’t care if there were piranhas in there. I wanted to slip into that water and let the heat leach the tension from my body.
My grandfather pointed to a shoulder-high wall of rock that served as a privacy area. “You’ll find a couple swimsuits hanging on pegs on the other side. Reyna uses them if she needs to accompany me. Hopefully, they fit.”
“Okay, be right back.” I wandered toward the changing area while reaching for the zipper on my dress. I dropped my shoes and pulled the zipper down the back of my dress as I circled the corner.
There were two one-piece swimsuits and a pair of boardshorts. I pulled on the nearest one piece and then the shorts, cinching the waist as tight as it would go. The dark red suit was so not my jam, but it was better than my white push-up bra and undies.
The warm, moist air kissed my skin as I adjusted myself to make sure everything was covered.
The water beckoned me, and I wound my way back to the pools.
Still wearing his spirit master robe, Grandpa Geoff pulled out a palm-size black bag with several small lumps inside. “You’ll need these at first to contact your ancestors,” he said, holding it out to me; the lumps clicked against one another like stones or glass. “Tuck it into a pocket, or tie it on to your suit. You need to have it on your person.”
Then he pointed to the larger of the two pools. “There’s a ledge of stone on one side that will act like a bench.”
Reaching out, I took the black pouch from him, trying to ignore the nerves in my stomach.
Okay. Magic rocks on my person. I shoved them in the back pocket of the shorts. Check.
“Are you going to be joining me?” I looked at his robe, wondering if he was going to change as well.
“Not this time,” he said, smiling at me with a hint of sadness. “But I’ll be right outside the pool to make sure you’re safe.”
That was nice. I dipped my foot into the water and then slid inside fully, securing the small pouch inside a zippered pocket on my boardshorts. As soon as I was submerged, the heat wrapped me in its embrace, and I sank onto the ledge with a sigh and then wiggled to move the bag of rocks so I wasn’t sitting on any of them.
“Are you comfortable?” Grandpa asked.
“Mmm-hmm.” I rested my head against the paver stone behind me and closed my eyes. “If I were any more comfortable, I’d be asleep.”
“Excellent. Now. Take a deep breath, Nai, and let go.”
Okay. Maybe he was going to lead me in guided mediation or something. Mother Mage knew I needed therapy. Probably a lot of it.
Exhaling, I opened my eyes and stared up at the night sky through the glass windowpanes. My body lifted from the bench and floated to the surface of the pool. My ears filled with water, muting the sounds around me.
Then my mind started to spin.
What would Rage be doing right now? Probably looking for me. Guilt bubbled up with the thought. Was Honor okay with Reyna? Kaja was going to freak out when she found out I’d disappeared—
‘Once you’re relaxed, think of your favorite place,’ Geoff said, speaking into my mind.
I tried … really I did. But now that my mind was churning, I couldn’t seem to make it stop, let alone imagine a beach or mountain cabin or anything else serene. ‘I’m having a tough time focusing.’
‘I was afraid that might happen,’ he said. ‘Don’t worry, I came prepared.’
‘Prepared with what?’ I asked. Unwilling to have any more surprises, I glanced toward him, but he was fumbling in his robe, not looking at me.
And he didn’t answer.
Of course.
I pulled myself upright just in time to see Grandpa Geoff toss something … at me, or rather the pool I was in. A beam of moonlight reflected off the object—
The crystal from his office!
I lunged forward to catch it, but the water slowed my movement, and with a soft splash, the crystal disappeared beneath the surface of the hot spring.
Frustration bubbled up in my chest, and I wanted to mutter “nice throw,” but I reined in my emotions once more. Yelling at Gramps wouldn’t help … but I was tired and not in the mood to dive under really hot water and hunt for a crystal.
I blinked, and the heavy mist in the room cleared—there and then gone.
What the Mage?
The smell of sunbaked sand filled my next breath. Warm air lifted the ends of my hair—my dry hair, and I stared out over the expanse of turquoise water to where the sun kissed the horizon, leaving the clouds above me pink and violet.
What the mage?
I did a full spin, totally caught off guard by my instant transportation to another world. Note to self: that was one powerful magic crystal.
Waves lapped at the beach, soothing my frayed nerves, and a gull cawed above. I glanced to my right and then my left, but the beach was empty except for me.
The area seemed vaguely familiar, but I had no idea where this beach was. It wasn’t anywhere I’d been on Alpha Island or the beach near the ferry…
I rotated in a circle again, shaking my head. Well, I was no longer in the pool of water and no longer in the strange cavern-like room attached to the castle. In fact, I was sure I wasn’t even on High Mage Island anymore.
A cacophony of voices suddenly exploded to my right as five people popped into existence, not even ten paces away from me. They all looked to be in their mid-thirties, and they all appeared to have the same silvery blond hair as me—even the one wearing a head-to-toe black ninja costume straight out of a Halloween catalogue. He had silvery wisps sticking out from under the fabric covering his head.