Silver at Midnight: A Paranormal Romance Urban Fantasy (The Keepers of Knowledge Series Book 5) by Bridgette O'Hare (best large ereader .TXT) 📕

“Arrow says it’s . . . in there.” He pointed into the darkness—the entry to the cavern.

“I hope ya brought a flashlight,” I quipped.

“We’ll do the best we can. Arrow can’t be wrong, and if that’s the way to the Kanna Stone, then that’s where we are going.” He pulled his phone from his pocket, tapped on the flashlight, and we started into the obscurity of the cavern.

“That ‘tis a sad flashlight,” I teased. But I meant it. We had no way of knowing if there was a drop off at the next step that would lead to broken bodies or worse. However, a few steps into the black void things got a little brighter. Literally.

“Umm . . . Why are ya glowing?” Cian asked.

I looked down and sure enough, it was me. More specifically, the Moon Orb in my pocket. “Because I’m a beacon of light an’ hope?” I reached in and brought the orb into view, half-draped in its velvet protective shield and still bright enough that it lit the cavern for as far as we could see. Jagged rock formations pierced down from above us. The light of the orb reflected on the water trickling down as it dripped into an iridescent pool beneath. “Now . . . that’s a flashlight.”

Cian chuckled, shutting his phone down and returning it to his pocket. “I like it. Let’s keep going.”

I’d been counting the number of turns and noting direction, but when we’d turned down our third corridor of rock the question hit me. “So . . . is this arrow goin’ t’ lead us back out of here? Because I haven’t been leavin’ breadcrumbs.”

“But you’ve been counting the turns.”

“How’d ya know that?”

“I heard ya.”

“Cian, I didn’t count out loud.”

He glanced over his shoulder at me with one eye squinted and his brow furrowed. “Are ya sure?”

My head bounced up and down rapidly. “Positive. You’re in my head again”

“Interesting.”

“Ya keep sayin’ that. Why’s it so interesting?”

Cian stopped and turned to face me; his tone took on an authoritative quality. “Because unless two beings are both of pure heavenly blood, this type of connection only happens when two souls bond—when they are a reflection of each other. And right now, you don’t trust me, much less want a soul bond with me. It’s not enough that I’m all in, well . . . it shouldn’t be. So, it’s a bit on the odd side that we can communicate that way.”

I didn’t know what to say. I wanted to trust Cian. I wanted more, but he had lied to me. “Why didn’t you just tell me the truth about Kage from the start?” I asked bluntly.

His shoulders fell. “I couldn’t. My mission had very specific boundaries. Ya were a bit of a wild card, Aish. And as much as I knew from the moment we met that I could trust ya with that information, I had orders and an objective I had t’ follow. Telling ya was an unknown factor. I need ya t’ understand. I never knew of Kage’s plan t’ kidnap ya until it was already done. I think he wanted t’ gauge my reaction and see where my loyalties were. I’m sorry I wasn’t there when ya needed me.” He stepped closer to me and his warmth began to curve around me. “If ya allow me the chance, it won’t happen again.”

Every fiber of my being wanted to give in to him . . . except that one stubborn fiber that told me to trust no one. But then he leaned in and pressed his lips softly on my forehead. And that’s when the vision struck me again. This time, the hand gripping the Tartaros Blade stood out. My body jerked back at the visual assault; I squeezed the orb tightly as my footing faltered. Cian wrapped his free arm around my waist and steadied me.

“Ya a’ight, lass?”

I gave one bob of my head.

“Ya sure have been losin’ your balance a bit today,” he teased.

“Yeah, well, isn’t that what our objective here is? Restore the balance?”

“Touché. I much prefer your version of doin’ so. But really . . . what happened jus’ now?”

“Maybe I jus’ got a little swoony.” Not entirely false, but not completely forthcoming either. I tried to rationalize not telling Cian everything; it really wasn’t much different than him lying to me. Only, I wasn’t on a mission from a higher authority. So, who was I to fault him for following orders? I’d have done the same thing in his position. “No. That’s not entirely true.”

He held his stare on me, waiting for me to finish.

“It was the vision again. Of the blade . . . and you.”

“Ah. Are ya okay?” he asked.

“I’ll be better if we can get our hands on this stone and the blade and put an end t’ this nonsense.”

“We will.”

“Well, we aren’t goin’ t’ make it happen standin’ here.” I pushed past him before I remembered he was the one with the magical little arrow in his hand and I stopped. “Got a lit’l carried away.” I waved my hand for him to go.

He snickered and took the lead.

Several minutes later, we emerged into a large open space with a catacomb of tunnels leading in different directions. At the center of the space stood a circular stone pillar with a bench-like ledge around the bottom. It was easily as wide as Cian was tall. Chiseled into the pillar were more of the glyphs I had seen on the altar and scattered throughout the ruins. After taking in the surroundings for a moment, I realized Cian was simply walking in circles around the room.

“What’s goin’ on? Ya seem perplexed.”

“The arrow is just spinnin’. It won’t stop and give me a direction. So, I don’t know which tunnel t’ take.” He raked a hand through his hair, clearly frustrated.

I started to step away from our entry point but then I considered how