Page 70 of Storm

“Well, out with it, boy,” Asmodeus grumbles, impatient as always. If only death were as impatient to meet him.

Catching his breath on a sharp intake, light stone eyes reach for mine, and I know what is about to leave his mouth before he says it. Call it my sixth sense when it comes to everything Storm.

“She’s gone.”

Two words.

That’s all it takes for my natural instincts to take over.

CHAPTER 21

HE HAS COME

Ican’t tell you how many hours we stay in the car. After finishing his cookies and dried fruits, Sunny passed out with his head on my stomach. He did question why it was taking so long to get to his papa, so I lied. It left a foul taste on my tongue. The adrenaline keeps me wide awake to any danger that might come our way. Our silent rescuer volunteered no conversation. Just an unnerving companionable silence.

With my head resting on the slick leather seat beside me, the car comes to a harsh stop, jerking us aggressively. I latch onto Sunny a little tighter. Adam doesn’t say why we’ve come to a halt. Evacuating the car, he leaves me to stew, imagining more killings taking place outside.

I don’t have to sit in my worst-case-scenario imaginations for long before my door opens a crack. Stretching upright, allowing my stiff muscles to finally move, the blanket falls off of us, Adam’s voice coming from behind. “We are ditching the car. Time to get out, human.”

There’s an unrestrained part of me that wants to scoff loudly at this fae. I’m stuck between two seats with a child on me and one inside me. Grumbling under my breath, I struggle to pull Sunny’s body off and relent, calling for the fae. “Can you carry him? He’s asleep.” There’s a shuffling of shoes from the rocky ground and squeaking of material colliding as he works his way skilfully onto the back seat and extracts the boy from under the blanket with tinted sage fingers, the colour hypnotising. “Thank you.” I breathe a sigh of relief as he cradles my son in his arms.

Being surrounded by grey walls, monochrome clothing, and lacklustre visual effects for so long makes this fae man stand out to my senses. Seeing real colour is an awakening of my sight. The different shades of green, brown, yellow-tinted gold. He’s a breath of fresh air. Adam reminds me of the trees in my forest—a safety. And he represents fullness, exotic and alluring.

Following him could be the biggest mistake of my life.

Or it could lead to my greatest happiness.

He has yet to show me harm. The fae have been nothing but docile creatures being fed upon by the hollows. I have to believe he’s found me for a reason. I have to believe he’s taking us to safety. Otherwise, what is the point?

I refuse to be a hollow.

Prying my numb bottom from the car floor is a balm to my stiff joints. I moan loudly, leaving Adam to give me serious side-eye. “Try being pregnant and cramped on the floor of a car for hours. It fucking sucks.”

He shakes his head, then proceeds to walk away with my son in his arms, nothing but an endless abyss of darkness awaiting us. The moon is the only light to our path.

“Hey, wait up,” I shout at his retreating body, sinking further and further into nothing. I quickly grab our bag of supplies and shuffle out of the car, using the leverage of the tight space to push myself up.

My feet hit barren, hard-packed dirt, and I stop.

“Adam?” I call. “Adam?” He freezes for a second, then turns around. “What is this place?”

He rubs at his temple, holding Sunny in one hand. “Female, do you want my help or not?”

“I-I just want to know what we’re walking into?” My hands tremble at my sides. A dark hole in the side of a mountain rises to greet us. It doesn’t reflect the moon like the rest of the inclined harsh surfaces. My heart beats in heated suspense. No civilization exists around us.

This is it. There’s truly no going back.

Stalking back towards me, he speaks. “This is the human answer to the utter chaos they have created in this once beautiful world.” A broad emerald palm is placed before me, darker at the fingertips. “Let’s go.”

That answered nothing. This fae is more confusing by the day. I continue forward regardless. If I’m walking into a trap… I’ll fight. I still remember everything Nix taught me. The thought is comforting but moot, considering my rounded lower half. This pregnancy may be easier than my first, but nevertheless, I can’t grow complacent.

Waring internally, I grip onto Adam’s hand and follow him into the night. Shaded rock and a circular void hover before us. Eerie and daunting.

The moment we step over the threshold where light and darkness meet, the scratching dirt under my shoes grows impossibly loud, and my skin crawls. Adam’s hand is the only anchor I have in this unknown territory. “I can’t see anything.”

His grip on my hand tightens in a reassuring gesture. “It’s okay. I can.”

Good for him. I huff loudly so he can hear.