Chapter 1584

The light from the pillar stretched out in six lines, forming a star across the cracked stone. At each point, a groove opened wide enough for a body to lie in. Jude looked to Lucy, then to Elian, Mira, Kira, Coren, and finally back to Rose.

"It's us again," he said.

Rose smiled, stepping into one of the grooves and reclining as though it were a lover's arms. "Yes."

They took their places.

Jude in the center.

Lucy curled beside him.

Mira across from her.

Kira to his left.

Coren to his right.

Elian at his feet.

As soon as they were settled, the light flared and rose above them, forming a dome of golden-blue shimmer. The others circled the outside - Sophie, Zoey, Stella, Emma, Grace, Scarlet - watching, waiting, breathless.

The ground warmed beneath Jude's back.

Then hands.

Not his own.

Not Lucy's.

Not anyone's he could see.

But the touch was real.