He shook his head quickly. “No. Kimba explained what Stonehenge really is—a soul-bonded prison. All of us have to work together to activate it, or the spell won’t hold. We’re going to trap Viscious there when I ‘deliver’ Aurora. But it’ll take every last one of us. If even one couple falters–” He didn’t finish the sentence. He didn’t have to.

  Fern’s mouth dropped open. “You’re going to trick him into stepping into a cage?”

  He nodded. “That’s the only way. And we don’t have long. Viscious is too clever by half—if he has time to think, he’ll see through it. I need you both to get Aurora and Cordelia ready. Tell them . . . tell them this is it. We’re out of time.” He looked at Fern and made another promise. “I give you my word that no harm will come to your daughter.”

  “Ra—” Penny started, but he held up a hand to stop her.

  “No. She deserves that.” He continued to hold Fern’s gaze. “I do not break my word.”

  Fern’s lips tightened as she seemed to measure his words, but then she nodded. “Okay. I will trust you with her.” She let out a shaky breath as if it took all of her strength to give him that, and perhaps it did.

  Penny took a deep breath, her shoulders straightening with resolve. “Right. We’ll get them. You—” she pointed a finger at Ra, fierce as any lioness, “you come back to us. All of you. I wouldn’t want to face Shelly’s wrath if you didn’t. And besides, I kind of think you’ve grown on me. Like a fungus.”

  Ra’s lips quirked into a crooked smile, gratitude and dread mingling in his gut. “I’ll do my best.”

  He turned away, pulling out his phone—because no matter how much Viscious liked to play with the blood-bond oath, Ra refused to give him that kind of access to his mind unless he had no other choice. Shelly was the only one he wanted in his mind. He hit speed dial, heart thudding as the call connected.

  “Ra.” Viscious’s voice slid down the line, all silk and poison. “Really? A phone, baby king? You’re coming across as weak.”

  Ra rolled his eyes, letting just a hint of exasperation bleed into his tone. “Just meet me. Ashtree Forest. Ten minutes.” He’d decided on one of the known ruins of the dark fire king in the fire realm because it would make Viscious more comfortable to be on his own turf. That, and he wasn’t about to let the dark fire king taint his childhood home again but suggesting they meet there.

  A pause. “Impatient, aren’t we? Fine. Don’t keep me waiting.”

  Ra hung up, jaw set, and strode from the library, not letting himself look back.

  The burning forest was a graveyard of charred trunks and embers, a fitting meeting ground for the likes of gods and monsters–not that Viscious was a god, but he no doubt fancied himself one. Ra felt the heat before he saw the flames, the air thick with smoke and the bitter tang of ash. The portal opened to blackened earth, and for a moment, Ra just breathed—steady, measured–letting the inferno’s chaos soak into his bones. He had to look torn. He had to look afraid.

  Because he was. The plan could fail. Nothing was a hundred percent no matter how well you planned. And this wasn’t exactly planned down to the detail. It was something new, something unpracticed, something Elias would call a “Hail Mary”. This was something Osiris and Kimba were betting on their power to be able to handle. Ra hoped with everything inside him that they were right.

  Viscious appeared out of the haze, a dark silhouette against the unnatural glow, eyes catching the firelight with a predator’s gleam. He didn’t walk so much as glide, the flames bowing away from him, shadows bending to his will. The bond between them—the one Ra hated, the one he’d never wanted—throbbed in his chest, a warning bell and a leash all at once.

  “Right on time, Ra,” Viscious said, voice low and pleasant, like a snake coiled in the grass. “I’m surprised. You took so long in contacting me that I was starting to think you’d lost your nerve.”

  Ra forced his shoulders back, made his voice rough with conflict. “I needed time. This isn’t easy. You know that.”

  Viscious smiled, a flash of white teeth. “It’s never easy, betraying your family. Or your friends. Or the young girl who trusts you. But sacrifice is what separates kings from cowards, isn’t it?”

  Ra bit back the urge to rise to the bait. He wouldn’t give Viscious the satisfaction. “Enough with pointing out the obvious, dark king. Let’s get on with it. I have a place for us to meet, for me to give you Aurora." It took everything in him not to trip over his words.

  Viscious circled him, boots crunching on the brittle earth. “Why should I let you choose the location?”

  “Because I’m not letting you taint any other places in my life. This isn’t a damn game. I’m keeping my promise. I’m handing the girl over. I don’t think it’s too much to ask to pick the location.”

  Viscious stared at him for a few heartbeats and then finally nodded. “Fine. I’ll humor you. Where?”

  Ra kept his expression carefully neutral. “Stonehenge. In ten minutes.”

  Viscious stopped, head tilting, doubt flickering in those inhuman eyes. “Stonehenge? That old heap of rocks? Why there?”

  Ra met his gaze, letting anxiety leak into his voice just enough. “I had a witch spell the place. I’m covering all my bases, so to speak. The circle will keep anyone else out—no one can interfere, not even your rivals. Once Aurora and I are inside, it’s just us. You’ll get what you want, without any of the other royal elementals trying to snatch her from you or start a war. It’s safe. For both of us.”

  Viscious narrowed his eyes, clearly weighing Ra’s words. The bond between them surged—images, doubts, flashes of Ra’s guilt. Ra locked it down, thinking only of the truth: he was afraid. He was worried. He hated every second of this.

  “And I suppose you expect me to take your word for it? No tricks?” Viscious asked, voice slick with disbelief. “You’re a better liar than that, Ra. But you’re also desperate. I can smell it on you.”

  Ra let his jaw tighten, let his eyes flick away for just a second. “You want the girl, or not? The spell won’t hold forever. If you want her, you meet me there in ten minutes.”

  There was a long, silent pause. The trees crackled, the flames danced, and a blackened crow screamed overhead.

  Viscious stepped closer, lowering his voice. “You know this is the end for you, right? Once you hand her over, there’ll be nothing left. You’ll be hated by everyone who ever loved you. That’s the price of survival, Ra. That’s the price of keeping your pathetic soul out of hell.”

  Ra swallowed, let his fists clench at his sides, but he refused to react. He knew what Viscious was doing—digging in the knife, looking for weakness. He’d seen enough manipulation to recognize it for what it was.

  “Just be there,” Ra said, voice flat.

  Viscious’s eyes glittered with amusement, suspicion, and a flicker of something like respect. “I’ll be there. But know, if you try anything—anything at all—there won’t be enough left of you to even damn to the underworld.”

  He watched Ra, clearly hoping for a repsonse—a flinch, a protest, some sign of fear or reluctance. Ra gave him nothing. He simply inclined his head, every muscle in his body taut with tension.

  “Agreed. Ten minutes.” And with that, Ra spun on his heel, opened a portal, and stepped through before the flames could swallow his resolve.

  Blackhorn’s cool, familiar shadows closed around him. He let out a shaky breath and forced his hands to stop trembling. Penny, Fern, Cordelia, and Aurora were waiting, their faces a mix of fear, hope, and grim determination.

  “It’s time,” Ra said, voice steady, betraying none of the storm raging inside. “We leave for Stonehenge. Now.”

  He opened the portal, and together, they stepped through.

  Rory’s fingers grazed the timeworn surface of a Stonehenge pillar, the lichen rough, cool, and wet beneath her skin, grounding her to the present, to this moment that felt both ancient and terrifyingly new. The air crackled—sharp and bright, tasting of ozone and old secrets. It filled her lungs with a bite that was half fear, half exhilaration, making her heart pound so hard she wondered if anyone else could hear it. Rain pelted her face as she breathed in, and the world offered her the scent of rain-soaked grass, earth, and the spectral sweetness of wildflowers blooming where no one had planted them—a ghost of hope among the old stones.

  Above, clouds boiled in the bruised sky, purples and grays swirling as a storm brewed and the last streaks of sunlight barely clung to the horizon. Wind snatched at the ends of her braid, slapped cold against her burning cheeks, and set every hair on her arms standing to attention. She shivered, but not just from the cold; anticipation and dread made her bones feel hollow, as if she was just a vessel for whatever was about to happen.

  All around her, the soul-bonded pairs fell into their places, boots splashing through puddles and sucking into the mud. Kimba’s voice sliced through the building storm—smooth, commanding, the kind of voice that made you believe you could walk through fire and come out whole. “Positions, now! Gabby and Liam, northeast. Riggs, Lark—northwest. Lawson and Cara, southeast. Crey and Tinley, southwest. Rush and Brianna, straight north with Osiris and me. Shelly, you’re at the southern stone—Ra will join you there. Rory, I want you and Aston with Shelly to boost her strength until her mate can get there.”

  Osiris looked at Rory, his sharp eyes narrowing on her. “Remember, once Aurora is out, you can’t break the circle until we say.

  Rory nodded. “I know, devil man. I got this.”

  Gabby threw Rory a wink as she strode past, her hand welded to Liam’s like they were two halves of the same wild thing. “Heads up, Rory. Your sister’s about to realize she’s not the only one in the family with a flair for the dramatic. And if Viscious tries anything, I’m aiming for the kneecaps first.”

  Liam grinned over his shoulder, his voice carrying just enough for Rory to hear, “Five bucks says she does more than aim for the kneecaps.”

  “At least make the bet worth her while, Babe,” Gabby shot back, pulling a sucker from her pocket, unwrapping it, and popping it in her mouth. Where the hell she’d gotten a sucker, Rory had no clue. Perhaps Osiris had some devil magic left that allowed him to conjure sweets–probably to get Gabby on his good side. Rory was still holding a grudge. Mainly because he’d stolen her dragon bonded. Sort of.

  “He didn’t steal me,” Kimba’s voice filled Rory’s mind. “There’s enough of me for both of you.”

  “That’s true,” Rory agreed. “Considering you’re a big-ass dragon . . . with literally a big ass.”

  She practically felt Kimba’s eye roll. “Don’t think I won’t scorch your ass just because you’re about to meet your sister.”

  Rory felt herself relax a bit at their comfortable banter. And then she relaxed even more when she felt Aston’s arm wrap around her waist. He pressed a kiss to her neck and murmured, “If you lose your cool and go all dragonrider badass on Viscious, I might be distracted and not be able to help. Just a heads’ up.”

  “Why would you be distracted?” she asked, glancing over her shoulder at him.

  “Because you’re hot as hell when you go all dragonrider badass.”

  Rory laughed and gave him a playful shove. “I’ll remember that for roleplaying time.”

  Aston’s eyes smoldered as he leaned closer to her. “Seriously not the time to mention bedroom activities, Vixen.”

  “You started it,” she teased as she looked back at the circle and the people getting into place.

  Nearby, Riggs and Lark paused, their heads close. Lark’s hair whipped around her as Riggs settled his palm over her heart, their bond a visible thread of light between them.

  “If this goes sideways,” Riggs murmured, “remind me why we didn’t take up knitting.”

  Lark’s eyes sparkled. “Because knitting never saved the world, Love.”

  As she and Aston made their way to the Southern point, she saw that Shelly stood alone —except, Shelly alone was still a force of nature. Her fists were clenched, her stance wide, as if she was daring the universe to come at her. Lightening streaked across the sky, its sharp clap enough to cut through the thickening magic in the air, and Shelly glanced up, her eyes appearing to glow briefly. She lowered her head and met Rory’s gaze. Her face was fierce. In that moment she looked more like a hardened warrior than a young adult woman just beginning her life. She gave Rory a slight chin lift, acknowledging her as if they were old comrades meeting at a battlefield.

  Outside of the Stonehenge circle, the kings and queens of the elements were invisible to the eye but not to the senses. Rory could feel their presence—Nasima and Beval, the air monarchs, their magic swirling around her, no doubt affecting the gathering storm; Kairi and Ecthelion, water’s royalty, cold and deep as the ocean’s heart; Aviur and Agni, fire incarnate, their heat prickling under Rory’s skin; and Dhara and Beaumont, earth’s sovereigns, pressing down with the weight of mountains, grounding her even as her soul wanted to soar or shatter.

  As they reached Shelly and turned to stand beside her, staring at the currently empty center, Aston took Rory’s hand, his thumb making slow, steady circles across her knuckles. He dipped his head, his breath a whisper against her ear. “She’s coming, Rory. You’re going to be reunited with your sister. That’s freaking amazing. And I wouldn’t doubt if she remembered you. You’re a little hard to forget, you know.”

  She managed a watery laugh. “First of all, she was a freaking infant when our parents died. I don’t think the long-term memory is developed yet. And you say that like me being unforgettable is a good thing.” Rory thought about all the things she’d done that she was ashamed of that contributed to her being unforgettable. She didn’t want to be remembered, at least not by the people who’d seen her at her worst. Unfortunately, that included Aston. But she was too selfish to give him up.

  He squeezed her hand. “I wouldn’t change a thing about you, or our past, Sweets. We wouldn’t be who we are without it. And I think what we have is pretty damn special.”

  Rory didn’t have the chance to respond as Osiris’s deep baritone rolled out, echoing off the stones and through her chest. “Stonehenge is a net, woven by those who came before us. Each pair, each bond, is a thread. When Ra and Aurora step inside, you’ll feel the circle draw tight. Latch on to your element, your bond, and hold. The kings and queens will amplify your strength, but you must not break focus. Not for pain. Not for fear. Not for anything.”

  Kimba swept past, her energy sparking and popping. “Some of you know what it’s like to face darkness—the Devil’s Heart Forest taught you that. The rest of you, trust your bond. The evil coming tonight is ancient, and it wants to tear us apart. We stand together, or we fall. That’s the truth. And if anyone hears me say ‘duck,’ just do it, don’t ask questions.”

  “Will it be distracting if I yell ‘goose’?” Liam asked, his stupidly handsome face lit up in a grin that had Gabby blushing on a regular basis.

  Osiris pinched the bridge of his nose as he sighed. “If you do, I make no promises that I won’t burn your ass later.”

  Gabby grinned, bouncing on her toes. “You burn him, I burn you. Fair is fair, devil man. Now, if you two are done dicking around, let’s show the dark royals what happens when they try to mess with us. Spoiler alert: it’s not pretty.” Her last three words sounded like a song as she practically danced in place.

  Rory had to admit that the redhead had a wicked Harley Quinn thing going on. It was a little disturbing.

  “I’m seriously glad she’s on our team,” she told Aston.

  She heard his chuckle in her mind. “Agreed. She’s a tad twisted.”

  Liam’s mouth twitched. “Watch out boys and girls, my woman’s about to turn ass-kicking into an Olympic sport.”

  Gabby nudged him. “You going to give me a gold medal?”

  Liam leaned over and kissed her cheek and said in a deep, sexy voice, “You got to earn it, Baby.”

  Lark, adjusting her stance beside Riggs, called out, “If anyone needs a pep talk, now’s the time. Otherwise, someone’s going to have to hold my earrings. I’m with Gabby, let’s get bloody.”

  “Holy crap,” Rory whispered. “I think soul-bonded elementalists might be even crazier than the witches.”

  Riggs just grinned, eyes fixed on Lark like she was the only thing standing between him and chaos. “I’ll hold your earrings, your shoes, and your integrity, Babe.”

  “Good, because I plan to lose at least one of those tonight,” Lark shot back. “Anyone who wants to corrupt a child deserves to be destroyed in the most ruthless way possible.”

  “Damn, you’re sexy when you go into vigilante mode,” Riggs said, rubbing his hands together as if he couldn’t wait to get it on with her.

  “Kimba, is there something in the soul bonded that makes everyone horny?” Rory asked as she looked around the circle at the males who all couldn’t seem to take their eyes off their mates. Even Aston was pressing closer to her.

  Kimba laughed. “With this many of us together, and the royal elementals lending their own power, it’s making the guys a little high on the soul-bonded magic–which, I know each of you has experienced the strength of.”

  Rory felt her face blush and noticed Tara’s did as well. “Okay. Thank you. That’s enough of that. Moving on to that pep-talk about killing Viscious.”

  “Good idea,” Kimba said as she took Osiris’s hand, and the two of them reached out with their free hands in the direction of the couples on either side of them.

  The others followed suit, ready for action.

  The ground hummed, a vibration that started at Rory’s feet and climbed her spine. She heard the wind hissing through stone, the distant caw of crows, the nervous, uneven breathing of her friends, and the sizzle of magic growing thick and tangible in the air. The world shrank to the ancient circle and the people she loved. Then it shrank even more to the spot where she hoped her sister would soon appear.