Chapter 46: Shadows Below
ARIA POV
"Get down!" Kael shouted, tackling me to the ground as a blast of blue fire shot over our heads.
We were crouched behind a fallen tree at the edge of the sacred grove, the opening to the Moon Chamber somewhere ahead of us. Elder Malin’s news about the triplets being my cousins still echoed in my mind, but we’d had no time to process it.
"What was that?" I gasped, my heart beating against my ribs.
"Guardians," Lucien explained, peering carefully over our cover. "Spirit dogs. They protect the door."
Another blast of fire burned the ground nearby. Through the trees, I could make out glowing blue shapes moving between the old oaks.
"We need a distraction," Jaxon said, his golden eyes searching the area. "I can—"
"No more of your magic," Kael growled. "Your tampering is what got us into this mess."
Jaxon flinched but didn’t argue. After Elder Malin’s bombshell about our family ties, we’d forced Jaxon to confess everything. He’d used illegal magic to interfere with my mate bond, trying to make me choose him over his brothers. The spell had backfired, causing unpredictable surges in my power.
"I can fix this," Jaxon declared. "Trust me one more time."
"Why should we?" Kael asked.