Blood Seeker (Immortal Curse #7) - Lexi C. Foss Page 0,11
before him, his expression giving nothing away.
What are you playing at? Sethios wanted to ask him, his defensive instincts firing as power rippled over his skin. It caused every hair on his arms to rise. He recognized the compulsion yet couldn’t determine the purpose.
A ringing sound broke the suffocating silence.
None of them moved.
It continued until Osiris sighed, “Answer it.” Persuasion underlined that statement, forcing Gabriel into action.
He pulled the mobile from his pocket and pressed it to his ear. “Yes?” His eyes widened a fraction at whatever was said, his light eyes landing on Sethios. A hint of alarm met his features, confirming an unexpected change. One that couldn’t be good.
“What have you done?” Sethios demanded, the invisible strands of power seeming to slink backward into Osiris. Each cord brushed Sethios’s body on another plane of existence, reminding him of just who had provided him life.
Your power is my power, it whispered across his senses. I own you.
“I’ve offered my version of a gift,” Osiris explained, the electricity fizzling out around them as he absorbed it all into his system. “It also happens to serve as a practical course, considering you need the guidance more than I do right now.”
A practical course? Sethios repeated to himself, the air cooling around him. He slowly began to relax, the electricity humming over his skin subsiding.
His father gently rolled his neck, a slight shudder passing over him from harnessing all that energy.
Gabriel still hadn’t spoken a word, but surprise radiated off of him.
“I had hoped we would have more time, but I can feel the tide shifting.” Osiris looked up at the sky, releasing a sigh. “That’s the problem with being as old as I am. I miscalculate in terms of centuries, not minutes. Alas, here we are. I’ve provided all the tools. It’s up to you to use them.”
Sethios nearly snorted. The only “tools” his father had provided were via lessons on physical and mental torment.
“You released Skye of your compulsion,” Gabriel said, causing Sethios’s eyebrows to hit his hairline. “While a worthwhile gift, I believe Astasiya would look more favorably on having her mother back.”
Holy shit, Sethios thought, stunned by Gabriel’s announcement. Gabriel’s suggestion actually worked.
The prophecies surrounding Astasiya all depicted her as powerful and a force that would destroy all in her path. Sethios wasn’t naive; he knew why his father wanted her. But he had no idea that Osiris would go to such lengths to secure her allegiance.
Clearly, Gabriel had guessed just how far his father would go to ally with her. And he’d used that notion brilliantly to his advantage.
Sethios’s respect for the man intensified greatly in that moment.
Osiris slowly lowered his face to meet the young Seraphim’s gaze. “That’s not within my control.”
“You could tell us where you left her,” Gabriel suggested.
“I could.” He looked out at the ocean. “But it won’t help you.” He canted his head. “She’s no longer there.”
Gabriel and Sethios shared a glance, both of them trying to decipher the evil man’s words.
“My offer for Astasiya’s protection remains,” his father said softly. “She’s going to need it.” His feathers appeared around him half a beat later. “I’ll be awaiting your call.”
Osiris vanished.
Sethios said nothing for a long moment, his gaze on Gabriel. The Seraphim studied him right back. “Caro’s not underwater.”
“What?” How had he gleaned that information?
“Osiris said the vision was an eighteen-year-old memory. Then he commented on her mental state, which I thought was a reflection of her dying over and over again. However, he just said she’s no longer here. He also implied that he doesn’t know where she is, which means someone found her before we could.”
Sethios considered the evidence, recalling every word his father had said. Osiris thrived on strategy, his decisions and words always uttered with his own best interest in mind.
It was possible that he’d meant to send them on a fool’s errand while he crafted a trap to take them all. Yet he hadn’t provided enough information to truly give them anything.
“Who else would have been looking for her?” Sethios wondered out loud, thinking through Gabriel’s comment suggesting someone had already saved her from the ocean floor.
“That’s not what worries me,” the Seraphim replied. “It’s who had the ability to find her that is a greater concern.”
Sethios stared at him as a conversation from the past filtered through his mind. One that had occurred shortly after Astasiya’s birth. Caro’s bloodline made her untraceable. He frowned. “She said you could track her.”
“Yes,” he agreed. “I should be