When The Grave Calls (The Veil Diaries #9) - B.L. Brunnemer Page 0,53
head. “From the quick look I took, it was mild scorching. Most of them will recover with no memory of what happened.”
“There probably wasn’t enough energy to blast them, not with the Veil open,” I said. “Energy is moving, it’s not just sitting around anymore.”
“Which probably means they’ll make their move soon.” Uma started down the hallway.
“You think they’ll attack?” Zeke asked as we followed her.
“For what we found, yes.” Uma reached the door of my bedroom and opened it.
We followed her inside to find Jade standing guard over a small figure in the bed.
The breath left my lungs. The girl couldn’t have been older than nine. Her blonde hair was a tangled, sopping mess, her face sallow and pale. Poor kid. Jade had her tucked into bed with the blankets up to her chin. Her small chest moved slowly and evenly. She was out cold. What the hell did they do to her?
“At least she’s safe now,” I commented.
Uma’s face was hard as she moved to the bedside.
“She is. Right?” Isaac asked. “And all I’m seeing is dull gray.”
“The girl is powerful,” Uma said, not taking her eyes off the small figure in the bed. “She blasted me into a wall when we opened her sensory deprivation tank. The only one she’d allow near her was Jade.”
“Jade?” I turned to the dragon who still hovered over the bed.
Uma turned to us. “Then she fell unconscious.”
“From what?” Ethan asked as he moved closer to the bed.
Jade shifted her weight.
Ethan began to twirl his rings.
The air between them practically crackled with tension.
I doubted anyone could forget the dragon in the room.
“What did they do to her?” Ethan asked again, his voice rough.
Uma turned to us with a frown. “I won’t know until I look at her memories.”
I shook my head as I looked at Ethan. “She’s the only one that survived Jadis’ experiments beside Ethan.”
“Strong kid,” Zeke said.
Uma nodded.
I turned back to her. “Tell me you got Jadis.”
“They ran for it.” Uma glanced at Jade. “Well, they tried after the first three people were charred to death.”
“I regret nothing,” Jade stated in a matter-of-fact manner. “They deserved it. The rest were clean and fast.”
Okay … “So, you killed all of them? Was Jadis one of them?”
Jade began cleaning her fingernails with a blade that just seemed to appear. “No, but once we find her, I’ll take care of her just as quickly.”
I didn’t have it in me to be sorry, but … “You’re sure of that?”
Jade raised her head and met my gaze with her piercing eyes. “It’s why Evelyn sent me. I’m your backup.” Her gaze went to the child in the bed. “Though, I think I need to guard her until the next fight.” Jade turned to Uma. “Find out what they did.”
Uma sat, facing the girl on the side of the bed. We watched as Uma wrote in the air in front of the girl’s head. The runes shimmered. She finished with a diamond that she put her hand through to touch the girl’s forehead.
The rest was simply waiting for several minutes. I stayed near Ethan, brushing my shoulder against his and waiting. His arm wrapped around my waist. Touch always comforted Ethan, and right now, I knew he needed it just as much as I did.
Uma’s face grew pale. Ethan went rigid beside me. That couldn’t be good.
Eventually, Uma pulled back from the girl and turned to us, sweat beading at her hairline. “My God …” She swallowed hard and shook her head. “They succeeded in blowing her channels wide open.”
“What does that mean?” I asked.
“It means they took a girl with natural talent and blew her mind apart.” Uma’s face was hard as she turned back to us.
“Blew her mind apart?” I asked.
“Her sense of reality is shattered. Like pieces of a glass smashed on the floor. She doesn’t know what’s real and what’s not anymore,” Uma explained.
Jade continued cleaning her nails, seemingly unfazed by the news.
“She knows what’s real.” A small voice had us all spinning around.
On the other side of the bed the girl stood. Only, she was still in the bed. I did a double take. Same hair. Same dark bags under haunted eyes, only now she was in full technicolor.
“She just doesn’t want to come back,” she whispered, her gaze on the body in the bed.