Wren POV
Even though Onyx is a Gray Creature, I know without a doubt she is Destin's daughter. The slope of her nose and the way she holds her wings behind her back tell me all I need to know. She is grotesque and beautiful. I can only guess how beautiful her mother was.
Her thin gray arms are crossed over her chest, and she is staring down at Destin. Her black lips are pursed together, and her foot is tapping on the floor. "You should never have removed him from the Immortal Realm."
"You are being dramatic," Edward groans. "Just fix this."
Onyx cuts her dark eyes at him, and he shrinks back behind Macy. Winston is laughing behind his hand, but I am not finding any of this funny.
"Can he be woken?" I ask her softly.
Her gaze softens when she looks at me. I think I might have misjudged her feelings toward Destin. "He will waken on his own. The magic of the Immortal Realm will do it. Gray Creature magic is only unstable in the Human Realm."
It is my turn to glare at Edward. "Did you not think to ask her before you carted him home?"
"She disappeared," Edward defends himself. "How was I supposed to know he needed the magic of this realm?"
I scratch my left arm uncomfortably. I purposely covered the bond runes. How am I supposed to bring this up? Charlie nudges me with his elbow, and I scoot forward. He has been dying to ask the magic since we entered this room.
"Speaking of the magic of this realm." I lift up my sleeve. "It solves the problems of the mate bonds."
The room goes silent. No one seems to know what to say. Macy frowns as she runs her fingers over the runes on my skin. "We can't bring them all here. The creatures of the Immortal Realm would never allow it."
"No," I say quickly. "That is not what I am asking. We just need to figure out how to make this magic in the Human Realm."
I turn my head back to Onyx, and she is staring at the ground. Her cheeks are flushed dark, and she is trying to back away.
"You can do it, right?" I stop her. "Please say you can do it."
"She will not," Destin groans from the bed. "It is against the laws of this realm. Just like everything else in that book."
I want to be excited that he is awake, but I am also very irritated with him. "It can save the werewolf world," I plead with him. "Besides. It isn't up to you. It is up to Macy. She is the Queen."
Macy has gone silent. She is sitting in the corner, flipping through the pages of the book. Her lips are pressed into a hard line, and I know I am about to be disappointed.
"This is very dark magic," she mutters, not looking up from the book. "Forbidden magic."
"I get it," I sigh. "We will find another way."
As much as I am angry, I sit beside Destin and take his hand in mine. He exhales and squeezes my hand. "I thought you would be mad at me."
"I am," I roll my eyes. "But I also missed you."
He rolls up my sleeves and looks at my arms. There is a weak smile on his face. "I am glad this happened."
He tries to pull me close for a kiss, but I resist him. "You need your rest."
Destin tugs on my arm, and I fall on top of him. "I will be the judge of how much rest I need."
"And that is our cue to leave," Edward moans.
He stomps from the room, and Winston follows him, but Macy and Onyx stay behind. They are speaking silently. Destin clears his throat. "If you would kindly leave, I would like to spend time with my mate and her mate."
Onyx eyes are focused on Destin. I think this might be the second time she has ever seen him. I pull my bottom lip between my teeth. "Maybe I should give you two a few moments together."
Destin wrinkles his eyebrows, but he lets me pull away from him. "Don't go far," he makes me promise.
"I will be right outside," I assure him.
Macy tries to leave, but Onyx grips her hand. "He won't hurt you," Macy whispers. "Destin is kind."
Onyx nods her head and lets Macy leave. She drops the book on the bed beside Destin. He props himself up in the bed and gestures for Onyx to sit with him. She inches toward the bed, but doesn't sit down.
"I will be right outside," I say again.
However, I can't manage to move my feet. My eyes are darting from Onyx to Destin and the book lying on the bed. Before Charlie has to drag me from the room, I grab the book from the bed. When the door slams behind me, I sink into Charlie's arms and bury my head in his chest. "It will all be okay," he whispers.
Macy clears her throat. "I have an idea."
I spin to look at her.
"Well, it was Onyx's idea," she continues. "The portal remains open, just a little, so time can pass equally between the realms. It isn't something that Roland would have allowed because magic from this realm can seep into the Human Realm."
Macy pauses, and I interrupt her. "If that were the case, the runes would have shown up before we got here."
"I don't think so," she continues. "The Gravestone Pack isn't close enough to the portal. If there was a celebration near the portal…"
"It would be possible for there to be enough magic to make the bonds appear," Charlie finishes her thought.
"I thought the location of the portal was supposed to be secret," I ruin the moment.
"I can mask it," she smiles. "Well, Onyx can. She is very powerful."
I think about how much pain Stephanie was in that night at the bar. She deserves to find her fated mate. Every werewolf deserves to find their fated mate, just like I found mine. But I worry about the safety of the Immortal Realm.
"Are you sure it is safe?" I whisper. "I don't want to put the Immortal Realm in danger."
"I don't know," she sighs. "But I want to help. The war with the Moon Goddess feels like my fault. Werewolves don't have mates because of deals that I made."
"Selene is unhinged," I groan. "It is not your fault, but I can't risk the Immortal Realm. We will figure this out on our own."
I clutch the book to my chest and decide to go looking for my own witch.