A Baron of Bonds (Conduit of Light #2)

6. Rev

Chapter 6

Rev

I walked into chaos.

Pompeii was shouting at Moira, who was desperately attempting to open the heavy doors to Felgren. Clairannia and Figuerah were speaking hurriedly to the channelers, and Lia, our resident cook, was pacing in front of the dining hall doors, wringing her hands on her apron.

“ Where is she ?”

At the tone of my voice that vibrated off the stone hall, everyone turned and one look from Pompeii had me riddled with fear.

He stepped forward and placed a hand on my shoulder. “We don’t know. She has not returned since this morning.”

“She was supposed to meet me and Lia to bake cinnamon buns before lunch.” Moira stopped her attempt to open doors of wood and iron and flew in circles around our heads. “When I came to the kitchens, Lia had not seen her since breakfast.”

“ Fuck. ” It was all I could say as I brushed Pompeii’s hand from my shoulder, throwing open the doors and doing my best to subdue utter panic.

“Parvus and Rauca are missing, too!” Figuerah shouted behind me as she and Clairannia followed while Moira raced ahead. “We were just at the den with the channelers—there was no sign of them.” She placed two fingers in her mouth and a high-pitched whistle pierced through the downpour of rain.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

Karus must be hurt. She must be unable to get back to the Fortress or send the lumens ahead of her. She wouldn’t leave willingly—that I knew.

Figuerah’s call and iumenta magic had three lumens racing toward us. We had no time for saddles. We had no time to waste.

I pulled myself onto a lumen, pure black, with eyes glinting silver in the gray light. “Moira, lead us to the field you and Karus explored yesterday. She mentioned a field of clover.”

With the faerie ahead and two conduits behind, we raced through the trees, each of us fearing the worst.