Midnight Truth (Shifter Island #4) - Leia Stone Page 0,96
and then looked up at my elders. “Now what?”
Zia pointed to Honor. ‘Have him chew the root to help him relax. We want him in a calm and trancelike state.’ Her attention jumped to Julian’s body. ‘And pull the dagger out and pour healing elixir all over that wound, but save about half the bottle. He’ll need it as soon as his body and soul merge.’
I gave Honor the root, and he gobbled it down as I took care of Julian’s body. As the elixir hit the open wound, the flesh sealed up like there’d been no blade.
Than crouched beside me. ‘Good job. Now, lay the selenite wand over the chest of the dead boy.’
I winced. “His name is Julian. Er, it was.”
Zia waved her hand. ‘Now isn’t the time for political correctness, dear. Time is ticking.’
I lay the wand on Julian’s chest and looked at Zia.
‘Now, let your spirit slip free and scan Honor for his spirit. Tell me when you see it,’ she instructed.
I gulped. I was tired, I wanted to cry, and shower, and eat, and sleep, but now was not the time for a breakdown.
Taking in a deep breath, I let my soul slip free and glided over to Honor. Staring at him, I zoned in on my other sight. There, within the body of the wolf, was his soul. I gasped. It looked like a human man folded into a ball.
‘She sees it,’ Than offered.
‘Now what?’ Soul-me asked.
My ancestors all slowly crept forward as if they were going to gang up on Honor, stalking him like a lion stalks prey. ‘Now have your soul grasp his and yank it out of the wolf while your human self pins the wolf-him down.’
My eyes widened. ‘I can’t do that, not without telling him.’
‘Tell him?’ Lucia cackled. ‘That’d be a rookie mistake, Nai! He’ll clench up, and it’ll take you an hour to tease them apart, at least. No, a quick attack is best.’
Oh mage!
Honor was going to kill me.
Human-body me looked down at Honor and smiled, and then spirit-me attacked. I leapt on his wolf’s back like a lunatic, and spirit-me reached inside of him and grabbed at his soul. ‘Hold still!’
Honor froze, eyes wide. ‘It’s cold. I feel weird.’
I laughed nervously.
“What’s going on?” Rage asked.
“Nothing,” I said too quickly and then leapt for Honor with my human body. Wrapping my legs around him, I pinned his wolf to my chest as soul-me ripped soul-Honor clean out of his wolf’s body.
Honor let loose with an ear-splitting howl, and then the wolf body went limp in my arms.
Crap!
I looked up at Zia with wide eyes.
‘Normal.’ She waved it off. ‘Now, use your spirit magic to place his soul in the dead boy’s body; then lay the wolf on top of the selenite wand, and his soul will naturally call to the wolf’s form, and they will all merge.’
“What the hell, Nai!” Justice stepped forward, but Rage pulled him back.
“Just. Trust. Me,” I grunted, and heaved the limp wolf closer to Julian’s body. Soul me was having the same struggle dragging Honor’s soul across the space and to the body.
‘You could have warned me, Nai!’ Honor’s soul scowled at me.
I took him talking as a good sign. ‘Sorry!’ I shrugged, offering my lame apology. ‘Just doing as I’m told.’
Soul-me grunted and heaved, and then I began to lay Honor’s soul over Julian’s body with spirit magic. I felt the pull to join my spirit, and it was so weird to see me outside of me. Power flowed through my human form and then into my soul so that I could lay it over Honor and weave him into his new body. Finally, when spirit-me was done, I sat back, panting, and looked at human-me expectantly.
With a final groan, I lay Honor’s limp wolf on top of the selenite wand on Julian’s dead body.
“What now?” I asked out loud, looking at Zia.
She shrugged. ‘Now, we wait.’
Spirit-me joined with my body as I sat beside Julian, er, Honor, waiting with the half-filled bottle of healing elixir.
“Come on,” I said.
“They both look dead,” Justice said flatly.
“They’re not,” I shot back. Then for good measure, I looked at my ancestors. ‘Right?’
Lucia shrugged. ‘Technically, a little, but—’
Julian’s chest rose with a sharp, beautiful intake of breath, and I froze.
Everyone froze.
The entire world seemed to hold its breath … not even the trees moved. We all just stood, watching the rise and fall of previously-dead Julian’s chest with the wolf on top.