Clarissa felt like a woman whose husband had gone off to war. She stared at the book that was in her hands, but it might as well have been upside down for how many words she’d read. Beside her, Avery chewed the side of her nail while she blinked absently at the egg toasting happily in the fire. On the other side of the room, Maiara was whittling a piece of wood that Tempest had procured for her. It was turning into a carving of a horse that she said was for Li’l Puff when he or she joined the world. Nick had gone for a run on the grounds to burn off some steam.
But it was the tall redhead who paced the room that made Clarissa truly nervous.
Sabrina had arrived just after Nathaniel and the others had left. She’d gone to the London flat and then used her resources to track them back to the crossroads outside Mistwood. Then she’d caused such a fuss that Tempest had noticed her, realized who she was, and let her in.
Sabrina was Tobias’s mate and she was a vampire. Clarissa had never met a more intimidating woman in all her years, and that included many pop stars and divas. The vampire’s green eyes seemed to burn into her whenever she looked in her direction, and she hadn’t sat down once since she’d arrived.
“How long have they been gone?” she asked, pausing her pacing by the fire and crossing her arms.
“About twenty-four hours,” Clarissa said. “But our time does not line up to their time in Paragon. For them, I have no idea how long it’s been.”
Sabrina started pacing again. “Tobias told me something of the sort. Perhaps we should try to help. I can bring a team of vampires.”
“There’s no way to open a portal without one of their rings,” Clarissa said.
Sabrina planted her hands on her hips. “One of them should have stayed behind in case there was trouble. Now we can’t help if something goes wrong.”
“Nathaniel is extremely powerful. I’m sure he’ll succeed.” Clarissa closed the book. It was futile to try to read with her stomach in knots like this.
“Tobias is extremely powerful,” Sabrina murmured to no one in particular.
Out of the corner of her eye, Clarissa saw the shadow mail candle blaze to life. She’d kept it beside her constantly since the moment Nathaniel had left, but it had never ignited.
She raised one hand in excitement. “It’s a message from Nathaniel.”
Clarissa grabbed a pen and flipped to the last page of the book she was holding. All the women gathered around. The flame flickered, the shadows dancing and coiling. She copied the letters one by one.
“Use Warwick’s blood,” she read aloud. The candle flickered out. There on the nightstand was a strand of black hair.
“Is that…?” Avery stared, looking slightly sick. “Why would Nathaniel send back a strand of Raven’s hair? You don’t think she’s dead, do you?”
“If she was, he wouldn’t be suggesting I have Warwick rebind us together.” She reached for her phone and dialed the old man’s number. It rang and rang again.
“Where do I find this Warwick?” Sabrina said. “I will bring you his blood.”
Clarissa looked up at her and whispered, “Chill. You are super scary right now.”
The vampire crossed her arms and backed toward the fire. “Sorry. I miss my mate.”
Warwick’s greeting finally came in her ear. “If you’re calling me yourself, it must be an emergency.”
“It is. Nathaniel sent me a message from Paragon. I need your help.”