Rosamunde trembled. She heard the screams of the women and the terrified shouts of the men as they failed to evacuate the building.
Through her pain, she lifted her gaze to Stone. What she saw there frightened her beyond words. His eyes were wide and his skin glowed with the elf-lord power. “Stone, you’re seeing the vision.”
He nodded. “All of it.”
Rosamunde squeezed his arms hard. “Don’t do it! Please, don’t contact your people. Can’t you feel that Margetta is focused on us right now, because of the vision? She’s doing this to get a fix on our location.”
He sneered. “You keep forgetting that I’m not like you. I can’t let these people die. I won’t and now I can prove to you how wrong you’ve been all these centuries.”
She tried one last time. “If you contact your center or any of your men, Margetta will come straight here, to us. Then she’ll have the two things she covets above everything else: She’ll have you and she’ll have access at last to the source of the elf-lord power.”
He gripped her arms in return as though locking her in battle. His hair began to writhe as the elf-lord power moved through him stronger than ever.
“You’re a coward, Rosamunde, and now you’re going to see what you?
??ve really done to the Nine Realms all this time.”
“Stone, please. Don’t do this!”
But Stone only smiled.
Chapter Fourteen
Stone felt … exultant. Victorious. He could now prove how wrong Rosamunde had been all these years then she could live in shame the rest of her life.
He didn’t know what it was, maybe being so close to the castle and to the elf-lord power, but he could feel the heavy vibrations all around him now. He knew then he could become a true conduit.
His muscles flexed and un-flexed. He moved slowly around the garden, savoring the feel of the elf-lord vibrations.
And Rosamunde was right. Margetta was with them; here, yet not here, like a sticky syrup clinging to the onslaught of the terrifying visions.
“It doesn’t matter if she’s intent on coming for me tonight. The only thing that matters is the safety of my people. I’ll battle the Ancient Fae to the death, if I have to.”
“Stone, it’s not that simple. I’m telling you, once she gets in, she’ll attach to the elf-lord power and we’ll lose the Nine Realms. Why won’t you believe me?”
He lifted a hand to her. “Enough! I’m not letting Margetta destroy my Communication Center.”
He closed his eyes and opened his telepathy. At the same moment, he brought Rosamunde into the pathing stream as he contacted Harris. Get all of our people out of the Com Center. Margetta intends to reduce it to rubble. Harris do you hear me?
But nothing returned and his heart rate doubled.
Harris. Talk to me.
Rosamunde remained silent, but she was trembling and tears flowed down her cheeks.
Harris?
But that’s as far as the communication got because the next moment, a golden light filled the entire garden and suddenly Margetta was right in front of him. Her stench filled the otherwise fragrant space, but she was beautiful in a scarlet velvet gown with her blond hair arranged in immaculate ringlets that hung to her waist.
He drew Rosamunde close to his side and kept moving her backward away from the Ancient Fae.
Once more, he tried to reach Harris. Are you there? Evacuate the Communication Center. Now!
Margetta’s violet eyes were enormous as she glanced between him and Rosamunde, then downward toward the earth.
Her eyes glittered like diamonds. He felt her begin to draw in the elf-lord power. She spread her arms wide and arched her neck. She gave a cry of sheer ecstasy. “The power of the elf-lords is everything I knew it would be. Isn’t it amazing, Mastyr Stone?”
When the first wave of power passed through her, she drew in a deep breath then focused all her attention on him, extending her arms in his direction. “I knew I could count on you to finally reveal the location of Ferrenden Peace. Rosamunde has been ridiculously stubborn for the past millennium. She was always such a good girl. But you and me, Stone, we’re alike and it’s time to join forces.