An Isle of Mirrors (A Shade of Vampire #88) - Bella Forrest Page 0,14

out that we’d found the warded edge of the village. “It’s an invisible shield,” Unending murmured, analyzing it carefully.

“We found it, then.”

“Which means we must pay extra attention to anything and everything from now on,” she replied, slowly reaching out a hand to touch the transparent membrane. The surface shimmered ever so slightly, barely bothered by the physical contact. I had a feeling it wouldn’t be easy to breach. Beyond it, the soul fae were probably going about their lives, unseen and unheard by the outer world. Joy was likely patrolling the area which, judging by the wide arch of our side of the membrane, was probably at least a few miles wide.

In there, somewhere, was the Mixer. Our first trial had begun, and I couldn’t see myself turning away from it now. We’d made it this far. Unending’s expression spoke of confidence and wise concern. I squeezed her hand and gave her a wink.

“We’ve got this. Right?”

She smiled. “Hopefully, yes.”

I was fine with a hopeful yes. It was better than a no or a maybe. We just had to figure out a way in. It seemed doable in theory, but without a full understanding of the death magic that had been keeping the village safe for so long, I doubted we’d succeed. But I was with Unending, one of the brightest of her kind. That had to count for something.

Thayen

Astra and I remained outside “Isabelle’s” room for a while. We’d agreed I’d give myself a longer break before trying to glamor the clone again. I needed time to recover. Kailani had taken the others to the nearby terrace to eat. They’d all been so worried and focused on these strange events that nourishment had been the last thing on their minds.

Kelara and the ghouls had joined Lumi and the living, though she had no need for food. But our people required comfort and kindness, company and reassurance more than anything, and the Reaper had understood that. Besides, Stan and Ollie could do with a chunk of fresh meat, as well. Isabelle’s clone didn’t need this much attention from us, anyway, and I doubted it did Serena or Draven any good to stick around and watch her. Especially when their daughter was still missing. Isabelle’s clone was a mean and unforgiving creature. She’d mess with their heads given the chance, so I was more than happy to see them leave with the others.

Soul, on the other hand, had gone to do a sweep around the hospital perimeter, just in case there might be a portal opening nearby. It was a long shot, but I knew he just didn’t have the patience to stay in one place for too long.

Meanwhile, Astra and I struggled to figure out our next steps. We didn’t have much to go on, which made any action risky without all the data. At least Isabelle’s clone was still sleeping, her head resting on the table. My glamor push had done quite the number on her, apparently. I was already looking forward to trying again, having acquired a taste of my ability’s growing strength, and I wanted to make myself truly useful. Soon enough, I thought, dealing with a certain lingering feebleness—a sign that I had absolutely overexerted myself earlier.

“You’ll dig deeper when she wakes up,” Astra said, as if reading my mind. “I wonder if there have been any more portal sightings since Richard’s clone escaped.”

I shook my head. “I doubt it. Our people are constantly combing The Shade and the redwoods, but they haven’t seen anything.”

“I wish I could sense the portals from afar, but alas… I cannot.”

“It’s not like you can wander through the forest day and night on the off chance one will pop open,” I replied. “You need a break.”

“And you need to rest, too,” Astra said. “Stop stressing over the doppelganger.”

“How do you know I’m stressing?” I shot back with a faint grin.

“I can tell,” she grumbled. “Your spiritual energy is a mess, though I’m barely able to read it. The weight of the world should not be on your shoulders.”

“I just want to sort this out before it gets worse. We’ve all agreed there’s a chance more clones will show up at some point,” I said. “And the more I can do with my glamoring, the better for everyone. If I can train myself to be able to make them tell us everything, then we’ll have an undeniable advantage. Don’t you think?”

Astra sighed. “That nosebleed was a symptom, Thayen. You cannot