An Isle of Mirrors (A Shade of Vampire #88) - Bella Forrest Page 0,83

and families. Knowing that they were a deadly enemy didn’t take away from the fact that they’d been modeled after the people we loved most. I would’ve expected a more disturbing feeling to linger at seeing my grandparents or even Isabelle’s doppelganger get killed. At least a bit of nausea, some uneasiness while my brain processed the physical similarities. But there was nothing.

I wasn’t sure why it irked me. Maybe it was the violent nature of this situation that had forced me to push my feelings aside. All I knew was that the clones were bad, and they had to be captured or eliminated without hesitation, no matter whose appearance they’d stolen. On any other day, I might’ve said easier said than done, but here… it was strangely easier done.

“Dafne, wait up!” Jericho gasped as the ice dragon got closer to Thayen, who was maybe ten yards behind Claudia’s clone.

“You’re going to need to move a lot faster if you’re going to keep up with me,” Dafne shot back. I could’ve sworn she was smiling, though I couldn’t see her from this angle.

Claudia’s clone pulled something from her pocket as she kept running. She yanked the top off and threw it over her shoulder. By the time we saw it coming, it was too late. The canister hit the ground and exploded in a puff of black smoke. Thayen covered his mouth and nose with his arm, but Dafne and Soph weren’t as quick. They both took deep breaths, and I knew they wouldn’t be able to keep running unless we helped them.

Holding our breath, Jericho and I moved faster and caught up. Dafne’s grayish eyes were filled with tears, and she was seconds away from a heartfelt scream. Jericho scooped her up and threw her onto his back, firmly crossing her legs around his waist as he took off running. I didn’t have much strength left in me, but Soph needed my help.

I reached her just as she was about to collapse, my hands glowing pink as I cupped her face. Incandescent veins spidered across Soph’s cheeks. I pushed myself beyond my limits and healed as much of her broken mind as I could. It was the only thing I could think to do, considering I’d experienced enough of that black spray to understand that she needed emotional healing more than anything else. I had to move fast.

“Listen to my voice, Soph,” I said. She whimpered in my hold, tears streaming down her cheeks as I held her up. “Nothing you’re feeling right now is real. Listen to me!”

Finally, she found the strength to meet my gaze. “It hurts, Astra…”

“I know, and I don’t have the strength to fully heal you, so I need you to do some of the work for me. Just listen to my voice,” I said, fatigue taking over and turning my limbs into boiled spaghetti. “Listen to my voice and understand that you’re under the effect of foreign magic. You have to push through. Please.”

Soph nodded rapidly, her eyes widening as she took deep breaths, gradually coming out of the emotional hallucinations the black spray had inflicted upon her.

“We have to keep running. We have to stop Claudia’s clone from getting away,” I reminded her. “Can I count on you, Soph? Can I count on you to follow my lead on this?”

She nodded again. “Yes. I think so… yes…”

“Okay. Let’s go.”

I took her hand in mine and somehow found enough air in my lungs to suck in a breath and start running again. There were other clones following us—the mongrels must’ve slipped past Kelara’s crew, but they were still far enough away to not pose an immediate threat.

We caught up with Jericho and Dafne. The dragon fae was considerably slower with her on his back, but at least she was conscious and remarkably calm, considering the nightmare she’d inhaled. I imagined it had something to do with Jericho’s presence. She had her arms around his neck, her cheek pressed against his as she worked on controlling her breathing while he ran.

“You’re imagining it,” Jericho said to her. “Just focus on that. It’s a lie. It’s all a lie. You’re okay, and we’re going after Claudia’s clone.”

“It’s a lie,” Dafne repeated after him. “It’s all a lie.”

“Way to go, Jericho!” I exclaimed as the four of us sped down the widening forest path.

Thayen was about forty yards ahead now, still on Claudia’s clone’s heels. As long as we had her in our sights, there was