Midnight Truth (Shifter Island #4) - Leia Stone Page 0,46

pool water trickled down the black armor around my waist in rivulets.

When I stepped out of the spirit pool room, Reyna looked at me curiously.

“That was fast,” she said. “Did you find it?”

I frowned. “Yeah, you helped me. Did you … I dunno, have a vision too?”

Reyna looked at me like I’d grown a second head. “Do I look like I have visions?”

Shaking my head, I nevertheless bit my tongue. Pretty much, this spirit power made me question my sanity sometimes.

“Where is it?” Reyna asked.

I took in a deep breath before releasing it. “Vision-Reyna said it was in Kian’s private lake.”

Reyna let several curse words fly. And then a few more. Finally, she huffed and faced me. “Well, come on, we better do this before it gets too late.”

Yeah, sneaking onto my archnemesis’ castle grounds at night was not my idea of fun, but we had no problems getting past the gate, probably because Kian didn’t have any guard dogs. Halle-frickin’-leujah.

It was a good ten-minute hike down to his private lake with a white pebble beach just like the one from my vision. Only, this time, I didn’t see the blue glowing in the middle.

I looked at Reyna and shrugged. “I think I need to go into the water.”

She inclined her head. “Then go. I’ve got your back.”

Was I blindly about to jump into a lake in Kian’s backyard because I thought my soul stone was there? Yes … yes I was. RIP, Nai Crescent. Died trying to steal her own soul stone.

Without another thought, I stepped into the cool water, letting it kiss my feet, and stared at the myriad rocks on the shore. Maybe my soul stone was here somewhere. My gaze skimmed over the pebbles, and I shook my head. None of these were it. It wouldn’t be here … where it could be trodden underfoot. It was in the center of the lake where the blue had glowed in my vision. But … why couldn’t anything be easy?

Raising my chin, I looked out over the glassy surface of the lake, steeling myself. Reyna had my back, so I waded out into the water until it was waist-deep and then dove in. Taking long strokes, I swam out toward the center, cutting through the surface like a knife with the aid of my special armor. I fell into a rhythm. Stroke, stroke, stroke, breathe. Stroke, stroke, stroke, breathe.

Treading water, I looked down at the bottom and … wow.

Vibrant colors danced on the bottom of the lake. Rich amethyst. Citrine the color of sunshine. Emeralds the color of spring grass, and blood-red rubies. But the one that drew my eye was really tiny, like the size of my pinky nail and the color of a deep blue sapphire. The water rippled, and…

I sucked in a deep breath and then dove down, pulling myself closer and closer to the breathtaking stone.

My chest burned, but I kicked harder, ignoring the pressure building in my ears and all around me. As I drew nearer the stone, the light reflected the edges, and I saw that it wasn’t just a tiny cluster of blue but, instead, a clear quartz with a blue inclusion.

I continued to hold my breath, but I was running out of air. I needed to get my soul stone and get out of here. I kicked my legs and pulled down with my arms, desperately trying to get to the bottom.

Finally!

Reaching the bottom, I grabbed for the point. As soon as my fingers brushed the surface of the stone, something changed. The crystal-clear water went murky. The pressure on my body increased, and my lungs screamed for air.

Magic.

Oh mage! Did Kian somehow know I was here?

I tugged on the stone, but for some strange reason, it wouldn’t come free.

Attracted like a magnet my butt! This thing was glued in.

Grabbing the crystal with both hands, I yanked and tried pushing off the bottom of the lake with both feet. Pain sliced across my fingers, and the brackish water tinged red.

But the stone was free in my hands!

I kicked toward what I hoped was the surface, each frantic beat of my heart carrying with it the desperation for a breath.

Something bumped into me, and I screamed.

Another bump…

Mother Mage!

I needed air!

A dark shadow passed me on my left, a creature at least six feet long. Another shadow—or was it the same one?—passed me on my right, and then something bumped me from behind.

All I could think was sharks, but sharks didn’t live