Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 108376 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 542(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108376 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 542(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
“Do you think he could save Vasilios and Sven from Oreylia?” I asked hopefully.
“I can’t say for certain but I do know he’s adept at interdimensional travel. Rita told me Roman was the one who taught her how to open portals between realms. I’m pretty sure he taught your mother, too.”
My eyebrows rose. I hadn’t known my mother could open portals. What if Carra and I tried to go to Oreylia and she followed us there before promptly escorting us home?
“Maybe I will contact Roman,” I said, then took a sip of tea.
The three of us talked some more before Grace and I hopped in my car and drove to my house. When we arrived the place appeared empty, which meant my parents must’ve taken Carra to the Guard headquarters for questioning. I hoped they weren’t too harsh with her. She’d clearly been through hell and still seemed very fragile.
Grace and I stepped into the entryway, hearing voices filtering through from the kitchen. It turned out somebody was home. I recognised Rebecca’s laughter but there was someone else, too, a voice I hadn’t heard before. Grace and I shared a look before we continued down the hallway.
We entered the kitchen and found Rebecca sitting at the table sharing coffee with a leanly built woman. She had short, dark hair and hazel eyes. I took in the vibes and immediately realised that this must be the one she’d gone on a date with back before my life was turned upside down by Belinda’s murder. She looked exactly like the other female members of the Guard; stoic, neatly dressed, slim but built in a way that let you know she could kick your arse. She was the type of woman I’d wanted to emulate for a long time, but now that I’d glimpsed my future I had no idea if joining the Guard was even still in cards for me.
“Darya, Grace,” Rebecca said, standing. “I wasn’t expecting you back.”
“We arranged for you to help me with my homework,” Grace said, her eyes narrowed as she glanced at the dark haired woman then brought her attention back to Rebecca. “Remember?”
“Oh, I thought we’d organised that for tomorrow. I’m so sorry. Can we take a rain check? Liberty and I are going to see a movie that starts in—” She glanced at her watch before continuing. “A half an hour, actually. We should get going.”
Grace looked annoyed so I gave her a nudge to school her expression and she straightened, effecting a neutral face. I stepped forward, smiling at Rebecca’s girlfriend.
“Hi, I’m Darya,” I said, introducing myself. “Rebecca’s sister. You must be Liberty.”
“Yes, it’s great to meet you,” she said, returning my smile as she shook my hand. Beside me I could still sense Grace’s irritation. “I’ve heard so much about you. You’re a bit of a legend down at the station right now. There’s been lots of talk about Sergeant Davis sending you undercover to the Prison of Thorns. And you got out in one piece. That’s impressive.”
“Yep, and she did it all without proper training like the rest of you get,” Grace added, her tone mildly snippy.
Liberty glanced at her, a hint of a knowing smile tugging at her lips. Oh, man. Was she aware that Grace liked Rebecca?
“You’re right. I’m certain not many of us would’ve gotten through such an ordeal as well as Darya. She’s clearly a natural.”
Grace rolled her eyes so I gave her a gentle kick in the ankle. She shot me a grumpy look and I brought my attention back to Liberty. “I didn’t realise the mission was common knowledge. I thought Sergeant Davis was supposed to keep the whole thing secret.”
“That’s correct, but now that you’re back we’ve all been briefed on what happened with the escaped prisoners. There’s a team currently trying to track down Cassian Sergesto.”
Her mention of Serg had my stomach in knots. I still didn’t know how to feel about him escaping. A part of me knew he needed to be caught and sent back to prison, but another part was rooting for him. Serg rescued me from being beaten to death by Mack’s goons that first day and I was still grateful to him for that.
“Right, well, I hope they find him,” I replied, even though I wasn’t sure I meant it.
“Mum and Dad should be back soon with Carra,” Rebecca said as she and Liberty grabbed their things. “Oh, and Rita’s coming over to look at Carra’s injuries in the morning, see if she can use a healing spell.”
I perked up at this, because the sooner Carra was healed the sooner we could journey to Oreylia. Unless…I recalled Uncle Gabriel’s suggestion about contacting Roman and wondered if Mum would be mad at me for bothering him.
Rebecca and Liberty left and Grace wandered over to the counter, her shoulders sagging as she sat down.