" Fuck," Mason breathes, his breath billowing in the cold night, while Eric strides towards us all bundled up in his winter jacket.
" That is an understatement," I mutter under my breath, just as Eric stops in front of Mason.
" Miss Abernathy. Mason," Eric nods in greeting while Mason smirks and turns around to open the door to Zareen. Eric is annoyingly punctual. It gave Mason and I, a little under ten minutes to catch him up to the day's events.
The silence is suffocating as we walk the corridors of Zareen. The only sound filling the silence is the sound of our footsteps and my laboured breathing. This is nerve-wracking for me. Mason seems absolutely fine, and I sort of feel the need to kick him in the shin just to get some sort of reaction out of him.
We descend another level under Zareen, and we begin to disrobe, discarding the heavy winter wear. While Eric shoves his hands in his pockets and leans against the wall, looking around; the disinterest towards the building itself is more than evident in his expression, leaning towards revulsion.
I wonder why he has such strong feelings towards an inanimate structure.
Mason takes my hand in his to get my attention, " Are you ready?" He asks softly, giving my hand a squeeze for reassurance. His gaze slides over my shoulder, and smirks.
" Is it really necessary to touch?" Eric asks from behind me, and I wonder if I'm the only one thinking that this situation right here is absolutely ridiculous. Laughable, if not pathetic. I'm in my twenties, and Mason is skimming close to his thirties and yet, here we are being chaperoned.
" Yes," Mason answers firmly, " A point of contact is required if we are to move things along," Mason's eyes land on mine, giving me a nod. In spite of the vexatious situation I've managed to land myself in, I square my shoulders and try to ignore Eric's presence. I have to if I want to make any progress.
I need Micah dealt with yesterday and we are already behind schedule. I cannot, nor want to live my life wondering when will he strike next, and what damage will he do to us, and the people I love. It is only a matter of time before he will resort to alternative tactics and will start inflicting pain on those close to me, just to get me to cave. And I will, for them, I will willingly allow him to drag me to that forsaken temple and let him carve every inch of my skin as long as everyone else is safe.
" Focus," Mason says calmly," You're letting your mind wander, " He threads our fingers together and glances at my lips. I smirk in return because I know he would kiss me right about now to ground me and bring me back to the realm of the living.
" Whenever you're ready, Ca...Lily," Mason clears his throat and glances over my shoulder when Eric sighs deeply, loud enough to echo through the silent room.
" This is taking forever, " Eric complains and Mason bites down a smile.
" What did you think it would happen? I snap my fingers and poof all done. This requires patience and gentle guidance. Trust me I've tried it the other way, and it didn't end well, " Our eyes collide, and I can see in his traces of remorse over what happened three weeks ago. It wasn't intentional, but still, Mason is feeling guilty.
" Just get on with it. I'd like to get home before midnight," Eric grumbles back in a derisive tone that grates my nerves.
" You chose to be here and you are free to leave whenever you like. Your presence is not necessary," Mason bites back calmly but his tone is glacial. Although in spite of his external serenity, I can see the harshness in his gaze. Eric is getting to him.
" We should really leave all the petty bickering for another day," I say over my shoulder to Eric, who sneers back at me. Right, I'm not his favourite person at the moment. I get it, I really do. I've made things difficult.
" No, you haven't, " Mason says under his breath lightly tugging at my hand, " Focus on me," He slides his curled finger under my chin, forcing me to look him in the eyes, " No more talking," He says loud enough for Eric to hear. Of course, he scoffs. Derisive as ever.
Nodding, I lock my gaze onto him, he smiles back, his thumb lightly stroking the seam of my bottom lip teasingly. It is a very well-timed tempo, quite hypnotic. Because all I can see are the way his eyes light up, the little specks of silver and gold in the sea of blue, glittering in the dim light adding to his already suffocating charm. The feel of his trance-inducing thumb has me focused completely on his touch. Back and forth it goes, over and over again, and I feel my mind empty and open up to endless possibilities.
" Vidris asmerat," His words barely a whisper, and the room lights up with millions of filaments of light, coursing through me to Mason.
There's is a sharp intake of air from somewhere in the room, but I chose to ignore it. I can't lose my focus.
Mason smiles down at me and gives me a subtle nod. He doesn't speak, his gaze never leaving mine. His focus is unwavering. A practiced skill, mine is still a work in progress.
For the first time in weeks, I feel the power course through my veins very much like liquid fire, singing my skin, my bones. It flows freely through us, in a continuous flux. Mason takes a deep breath, his eyes flutter closed and then I see how he changes the flow of energy. Reversing it, with him taking it and me releasing it back. Although I'm stunned at his ability to adapt so easily, it doesn't come as a surprise that he has mastered it so quickly.
His ability to control it is mind-boggling and again I find myself amazed with this man.
" Steady, " He whispers and then the room lights up with a blinding light, but only for a brief second before it solidifies, and it cracks and breaks into a million pieces, suspended in the air around us in a state of inertia.
When he opens his eyes, he smiles crookedly and leans his forehead on mine," Ready?" He asks, and I nod. Although, I do have a minor inkling of what he is trying to do.
Nodding, we both take a deep breath in unison and somehow I can feel what his intentions are.
When we release the breath we are holding, the shards of solidified light hovering in the air begin to move around the room, catching the light and reflecting it all around us. It feels magical because it is.
Mason clenches his jaw and in that split second everything stills. The shards of light dance around us in a monotone rhythm, as if waiting for something. A command.
" Duck," Mason shouts and in the next second, the shards fly outwards, the sound of air being sliced at breakneck speed pierces the silence around, before lancing through walls, followed by a groan of pain. I'm not hurt, Mason smiles triumphantly like he has won something, so it must be Eric.