Page 141 of Treasured
Marius shook his head. “It’s a good thing he’s—”
“Hi, Mar-Mar,” Luna interrupted. She released my hand, enveloping her brother in a hug. Their relationship was strong, and I hoped they would be able to nurture it for years to come.
“Hello.” He waved. “Phyrra was just telling me about her life as a spy.” Marius clutched his hands against his chest, and he sighed dramatically. “It sounds glorious.”
A chorus of chuckles filled the room.
“Does it?” Luna asked.
Marius nodded vigorously. “When I grow up, I’m going to be a spy just like her. I’ll be Mature, and then, I’m going to travel all over the Four Kingdoms. Maybe one day I’ll even go across the Indigo Ocean to the Obsidian Coast and meet the fae!”
There was so much youthful innocence in my brother-in-law’s words, so much hope and excitement in his voice, that I found myself smiling at him.
Reaching over, I ruffled his hair. “One day, when you go on all these adventures, I’d love to hear about them.”
He turned to me and smiled. “Really?”
I nodded. His mouth widened into a full-on grin, and he darted over, wrapping his arms around me. I startled, stiffening for a moment, before reaching over and patting him on the back.
He mumbled against my tunic, “You’re not so bad… for a vampire.”
I snorted. “Thank you, I think.”
Marius stepped back, and his gaze turned assessing as he looked between Luna and me. “This is it, isn’t it? The time you were telling me about?”
This child was far more intelligent than I was at that age. When I was ten, I wanted to do nothing more than play practical jokes on my older brothers.
Luna nodded. “Yes. Tomorrow night, the Blood Moon will rise. We will leave the moment the sun sets.”
“We?” Marius’s brows raised to his hairline.
I swallowed. Luna and I had discussed this, and I knew she’d told Odette what we were planning—the two of them were growing closer every day—but we hadn’t told Marius yet. “We,” I confirmed. “There is power when the three of us connect. It’s like sparks running beneath my skin.”
“I feel it, too,” Luna said. “Ever since you woke, Marius, there’s been a connection between us.”
“It’s powerful,” I added. One of the most powerful things I’d ever felt.
“Do you feel it?” Luna crouched, looking Marius in the eye. “A spark when the three of us touch?”
He frowned, chewing on the inside of his lip. “Sometimes, I thought… maybe.”
“We think you should come with us,” Luna said. His eyes widened, and she quickly added, “Not all the way, but… you’re the harbinger.”
She glanced over her shoulder at me, a cry for help in her eyes.
“We don’t want to endanger you, Marius.” Looking at Phyrra, I raised a brow. “We’re hoping to bring Marius to the Dead Forest, just outside the wards. And after…”
“I’ll make sure he’s safe, Bastian.” Phyrra put her fist over her heart and bowed her head. “You can depend on me.”
“And then you’re going to kill the queen,” Marius said confidently.
“We’re going to try,” was Luna’s response. “We’ll give it everything we have.”
“You will,” Marius said.
Was this childlike faith or something more? Had he Seen the future? Did he know what was to come?
Luna brushed a lock of hair off the halfling’s forehead and cupped his cheeks with both hands, pressing their foreheads together. “No matter what happens tomorrow, I love you.”