Libra Ascending: An Epic Urban Fantasy Romance (Zodiac Guardians Book 1) by Tamar Sloan (adult books to read .TXT) 📗

Tristan was kind of hoping that she’d stop at the okay. “No heroics, okay?”

Brielle narrows her eyes at him. “Has Zarius ever said that to you?”

Turning away, Tristan starts the truck. That’s exactly what Zarius has said to him in the past, but it’s the fact that Brielle is intuitive enough to pick that up that had Tristan thinking they were soulmates in the first place.

And right now, that word isn’t one he wants in his head.

They haven’t gone far down the road when Brielle speaks up again. “What’s your power, Tristan?”

He flicks a look her way. “I have visions of the future. Always two though, and only one of them is the truth.”

Brielle’s mouth forms a silent O. “And there’s no way of telling which one is the future that’s going to happen?”

“Nope.”

Tristan’s tried to see if he can tell. What’s the point of seeing two alternate realities and not knowing which one will come to pass? He’s spent hours looking back on all the dual visions he’s had. Is it the first one? Is one vision longer than the other? More vivid?

But he’s always come up empty handed. Nothing differentiates them apart from the ending. There’s no rhyme or reason as to which vision turns out to be the future he’ll live.

Like the two visions he had when he first arrived in Mirror Point. Cassandra, battered and bruised. Tristan refuses to think she’s dead. And Brielle…One vision with a pool of blood.

Death is undeniable in that one.

Tristan’s hands tighten on the wheel. At least there’s no Cassandra where they’re going. They have enough going on right now. And, when he has to face that reality, he’ll just have to make sure it’s the second vision that’s the true one.

Right now, he needs to focus on Zarius and Tess.

The drive to the warehouse is a quiet and tense one. Tristan knows Brielle’s not ready to face this. She’s only seen a sample of what the Skins are capable of. But her powers could be the difference between freeing Zarius and Tess or…losing them.

Plus, Tristan doubts Brielle would’ve let him leave her behind. There’s a tough streak in her that he’s not sure even she knew existed.

They reach the bottom of the hill where he parked when he was here with Tess. “We’ll walk to the top and scope the place out,” he tells Brielle.

She nods, her face tight. “Makes sense.”

Lying on their bellies, they peer over the rise. The warehouse looks exactly the same as last time. Big. Square. Unassuming.

Tristan watches closely, not surprised that nothing’s moving. “The Skins would be invisible,” he explains to Brielle. “Who knows how many are patrolling.”

“There’s going to be a lot of them, isn’t there?”

“Like I said. They want us walking in, but not walking out. They’ve learned that’s not as easy as they’d like it to be.”

Especially now that they have their suits.

Brielle lets out a slow breath. “I suppose there’s only one way to find out.”

Tristan’s about to reach out and squeeze her hand but he stops himself. Brielle’s obviously scared, but she’s not backing down. That, he can respect.

But she’s not his soulmate and he needs to stop acting like she is.

Tristan turns and scampers down the hill a bit, then stands up. “I’ll go in first and clean some of them up. Count to ten and then join me.”

Brielle frowns. “What if there’s a lot of them?”

Tristan grins for the first time since he found the basement trashed. “Ten seconds is enough.”

He grips his stone as he looks at Brielle, waiting for her to do the same. Her shoulders squaring resolutely, her hand comes up, wrapping around the tourmaline that is her birthright.

They say the word simultaneously. “Akash.”

This time, Tristan knows what’s coming. As a purple just a shade away from midnight wraps around him, he welcomes it. He revels in the rightness of it.

He draws strength from it.

Looking at Brielle, he takes in her deep metallic pink as she faces him, legs slightly parted. She’s sleek and kinda sexy and…Tristan looks away. Not his soulmate.

And right now, his parents need him.

Knowing the Skins are expecting him anyway, Tristan doesn’t bother with sneaking up like he did last time. With a quick nod at Brielle, he leaps into the air.

Just as he suspected, it’s like gravity’s been dialed down. He arches high and streaks forward. As he surges toward the warehouse, he realizes he can hear the wind rushing past him, but he can’t feel it. That he’s not cold or hot or unsteady despite being several feet off the ground. He can’t wait to take this baby for a spin.

He hits the ground several yards away. Another leap and he lands beside the water tank in a crouch.

He holds himself there, his breathing even as he listens for movement. A leaf skitters over the ground. A beetle scrapes its body over a pebble. But apart from that, there’s nothing.

He’s just done a quick lap around the warehouse when he stops. He’s not alone like he thought he was.

Brielle is standing in the place he just left.

Tristan shakes his head. “That wasn’t ten seconds,” he mutters quietly.

She shrugs. “I wanted to be here if you needed help.”

Tristan blinks behind his mask. Brielle’s voice sounded as if she was talking directly into his ear. It seems they can talk directly to each other with these suits.

Brielle looks around. “They’re all inside, aren’t they?”

Tristan nods, trying to shake the foreboding that’s swelling in his gut. “They knew we were coming, so they’ve concentrated their fighting power in one location.”

Inside the warehouse.

Making this trap as inescapable as possible.

Tristan pauses. “Do you want—”

“I want to use my powers to help, Tristan.”

Tristan nods, acknowledging the determination in Brielle’s voice. “We’ll go in carefully, then. Use any element of surprise we can.”

Brielle doesn’t answer, instead moving around to stand behind Tristan. “I’m ready.”

The slightest tremble tells Tristan that despite the resolve, Brielle’s scared. He’s glad. It means she has some idea of what they’re about