Page 38 of I Am the Night

"What did you find?" I finally ask, once we are completely alone.

"This," he says, holding out a Memory Catcher.

My heart nearly stops in my chest. "What does it show?" I ask.

"The murder," he says.

"Holy shit. How?"

He runs a hand through his hair, and I realize how disheveled he appears. He normally looks like he just stepped off the cover of GQ but this morning his hair is a mess, he's got a day old stubble covering his chin and his clothes are dusty and torn in places.

"I've been up all night hunting," he says. "Looking for animals that might have seen what happened. I must have caught the memories of every wildlife in the area until it occurred to me to try the fish in the pond where she was found."

He looks exasperated with himself for not thinking of that one sooner, and I let our water magic connect, giving him a little boost of love and confidence. His gaze lands on mine and he grins just a little as acknowledgement.

"Don't keep us in suspense, brother. Who killed her? If it was Dath'Racul I'll ring his neck myself," Liam says.

Derek frowns. "It wasn't the Fire Dragon."

He lays the crystal down and activates it.

I hold my breath as the holographic image starts to play and we see Lyx standing near the pool of water talking to someone, though we can't see who it is.

She looks happy. Excited. Probably about the work that's being done for her people. We were just about to move some families into their new homes that day.

Then there's a blur.

Lyx screams.

And a monstrous creature appears, reflected oddly through the water. It's golden and black, with malformed wings, a body covered in boils, a head that is misshapen with eyes too small and too wide apart, and a mouth too big. But what stands out the most is the protrusion coming from the side of its head. It's the exact size and shape of a unicorn horn, though it doesn't much resemble one in color and form.

The creatures wings expand and it crashes into Lyx, impaling her with its horn and shoving her into the water, where she falls.

Then the memory ends.

"The fish swam away when Lyx fell into the lake."

We all sit in stunned silence. "So, Racul is wrong, it wasn't his mother. It wasn't any of the dragons. But… whatisthat creature?" I look around the table hoping one of the brothers can shed some light on this.

Derek shrugs. "I've never seen or heard about anything like this in my life."

Well, shit. That's not good. "Elijah?"

"I've never come across anything like it in life or in my books. It's… a bit curious. We have lived in both worlds for many lifetimes and represented and come across many beings of all kinds. It seems unlikely there would be one we have never at least heard of." He hesitates a moment before saying, "perhaps you can find something about it in the Ancient Library, if you're able to get in."

"Can I take that with me to show Racul?" I ask Derek.

None of them look thrilled at the idea but I persist. "He's a dragon. He might know something you don't. At the very least, it will show him it wasn't his mother. And if that's true, then maybe I don't have to find a way of fighting and defeating the Mother of Dragons in order to save this world."

"That is the good news," Sebastian agrees. "But Elijah, you should continue to research just in case. I still don't trust her. And if we have to go up against her, we need to be prepared."

"Agreed," Elijah says.

There's a knock at the door, and I stand. "I think my ride is here. Wish me luck."

I can tell none of them want to let me go, but we all know I have no choice.

Racul greets me when I open the door. "Have I arrived too early?" he asks.