Chapter 206

Sarah POV

Zane had wanted to come with me, but I assured him I would be fine on my own. The Luna Temple had become a familiar place, and besides, he was working with the police on Scott’s murder.

I still couldn’t believe it. Scott was just gone. Someone had murdered him.

“It makes no sense to kill Scott,” I’d told Zane last night as we lay together in his bed. “He was useful to whoever is attacking us. His money alone made him a valuable asset.”

“We know he was killed by someone he trusted, someone he let into his home and drank with. I’m thinking he’d either accomplished his objectives or had a falling out with his accomplice.”

“Did they find any other fingerprints besides Scott’s and Ella’s?”

“Dozens. Scott seems to have entertained frequently. Just going through his acquaintances is going to take days.”

I felt myself drifting off and reluctantly left Zane’s arms.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to go with you?”

“You can’t take all day waiting for me at the temple, and I can’t wait any longer.”

He sat up and kissed me. “Just follow their directions, and you’ll be fine.”

So I lay down on the marble slab in front of me and listened to the flute as the notes wafted around the room. Zane had warned me about the incense, and my eyes burned with it. I closed the tightly, and tears leaked out to run down the sides of my face.

The Oracles were standing around me joined by their white ribbons, and I began to feel the effects of it all.

“Sarah,” the head Oracle said. “You come here to find your enemies. Are they demons that you seek?”

“Whoever is threatening my family may as well be a demon to me,” which wasn’t something I had planned to say. I was starting to feel downright loopy.

“You seek to protect your family.”

“Yes, always.”

“You must be honest here, Sarah Astor. You must seek the truth today, not what will serve you best.”

“I understand.”

“Please open your eyes and sit up.”

I nodded and did what she said. Then came the goblet with the nasty-tasting tea. Zane hadn’t exaggerated about the smell.

“We call on the goddess to guide this woman to her truth,” she said as the priest passed the goblet to me. I gulped down a swallow and worked hard not to hurl.

The head Oracle drank next, and then I lay back down on the marble “bed” and took one end of a white ribbon while she held the other end. I closed my eyes again.

The flute music continued, and I felt myself drifting pleasantly. I was even getting used to the incense.

I found myself in a familiar forest. I had seen it in a dozen dreams, but now the details were sharper. I could smell the pine trees, and the leaves crunched loudly under my feet.

I saw a figure up ahead sitting on a tree stump. When I got close enough, Scott lifted his head and regarded me sadly.

“I’m dead, aren’t I?” he asked.

“Yes. Can you tell me who killed you?”

“No.” He looked around the forest. “It won’t let me.”

“It?”

“The darkness I embraced in life holds me captive still. I cannot see the end of my life.”

“Can you tell me more about this darkness?”

He looked at me again. “This place is pretty. It looks different from the forests in my dreams.”

Light from above washed over us, but I saw that it didn’t quite reach Scott, held back by a dim aura. I looked up to see the moon.

“You were my fated mate,” he said mournfully.

“You love to throw that term around. I’m not your fated anything. Tell me more about the darkness.”

“I cut myself off from a wolf’s source of strength. I grew weak. I lost my place in my own life.”

“Is the darkness a person?”

“You shouldn’t resist her,” Scott said. “Luna longs to join with you. Transform and run with me.”

I shook my head, backing away from him. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”

“Wise choice,” the head Oracle said from behind me. I turned to see her standing there glowing brightly in the moonlight. “Walk with me instead.”

“Gladly.” I smiled and saw a pathway stretched out behind her.

The other Oracles were standing along the pathway, all of them holding candles. Just as I was about to take a step, a hand grabbed my arm. Thinking it was Scott, I turned around angrily, but it was Zane, looking at me with alarm.

Two beautiful blond women stood beside him, and I knew they were Grace and Chloe.

“Don’t leave us,” Chloe said.

“Stay with us, Sarah,” Zane said.

“I’d never leave you. I love you all so much.”

“Release her,” the Oracle ordered. “She must walk this path.”

Zane let go of me as if I had burned his hand. I looked back at the Oracles, standing like glowing statues and looking at me through their hoods.

“Can’t they come with us?” I asked.

“No.”

I backed away from her and felt Zane behind me. “I won’t go with you without them.”

“You must come with us.” The Oracle sounded angry. I pressed back against Zane, and as I stood there, the moonlight turned to snowflakes.

The pathway darkened, and then I was standing alone in a snowbank. It was so cold, my knees were shaking, and I thought about lying down and never getting back up.

I awoke with a gasp. My head felt clear of that tea, though the incense still burned my eyes. I sat up to see the Oracle was sitting up on her own slab.

“Why would you not come with me? I had much to show you.”

“You wanted me to leave Zane and the girls.”

“Not forever. It is called a ‘spirit walk.’ You should have walked with me.”

“Why does it have to be in a dream? Can’t you just show me things in this world?”

She let go of the ribbon so that I was left holding one end. “If you feel that would be best. Yes, Sarah, come with us in the real world.”

I wasn’t sure why, but her words chilled me almost as deeply as the snow.