“I’m coming back to you.”
“What did your father say?”
I let her go through my thoughts.
When she was done, I felt her withdrawal before she asked, “You think he’s telling the truth?”
I moved to her, prodding into her mind. I wanted access to what she was thinking. I could feel her fear and also her surprise that my father would be truthful.
“You think he’s telling you this because he’s your father?”
“I don’t know.”
“I can sense your worry, but we’ve battled other messengers before.”
I didn’t respond because this would be different. The prophecy had already been spoken. It would happen. This messenger was unlike the others. He had a mission, a quest. He would be committed. He would be brimming with power.
I could already feel the battle coming.
I would have to prepare Shay, but that wasn’t for now.
I needed a distraction. “Tell me about the holiday plans you have. I know you’ve been conspiring against me while I was gone.”
I sensed her smile as she relaxed, just a little. “I have!”
She told me while I traveled back to her.
Damien’s fraternity was having a party. Some of Shay’s college friends wanted to do a Christmas cocktail event on a rooftop of a building. It was going to be classy, so we needed to dress up. There would be caroling. And a hayride with eggnog.
And the worst one—
“I want to put a Christmas tree up in our house.”
IT’S MY TURN
SHAY
Kellan was scared.
That said everything.
I knew he was shielding parts of the prophecy. I could feel his walls, and I probed, but he didn’t want me to hear it all. I didn’t understand why, but I had to trust him. He was my soulmate. He wouldn’t keep it from me unless I wasn’t supposed to know. But I knew he was scared.
And now I was, too. Immediately, I felt his regret.
That’s why he didn’t want me to hear it all. He didn’t want this result.
I made a concerted effort to shove out my fear.
I replaced that with trust, love, and assurance.
Kellan could feel me doing this, and he knew why. It was my way of letting him know it was okay, the way he wanted to fight this prophecy. I would let him take the lead.
“I love you.”
He landed, and I heard him out loud, then felt him.
I whipped around, and there he was, turning into his corporeal self in the kitchen, right behind me.