Across the Vanishing Sky (Starlight Grove, #1)(100)

“Apology accepted,” Owen mumbled, but he still didn’t look completely convinced.

“Thank you,” I told Max’s mom.

She nodded, laying a hand on her son’s shoulder. Max cast a quick, panicked look at Dex. “You’ll tell Skylar I said sorry? I don’t want her to jump me again. She’s tiny, but she’s really freaking strong.”

Dex choked on a laugh. “I’ll tell her. As long as you’re nice to everyone at camp, I think you’re safe.”

Relief swept over Max’s features as he and his mom walked away.

Owen looked up at Dex in awe. “What did you and Sky do?”

Dex just grinned as he patted Owen’s shoulder. “We got your back. Always.”





41





BRAEDYN





I pulled the oversized sweatshirt over my head, burrowing into the softness. It didn’t matter that I’d turned the water to scalding hot. Or that, even though it was dark outside, the sunbaked earth was still hovering at about seventy degrees. I couldn’t get warm.

A shiver raced through me. “Get it together,” I whispered.

Skylar was fine. Home with her dad. Perfectly safe. Owen was, too. Dex had found a temporary fix for his glasses with superglue and a tool he used in building his computers. We were okay. For now.

But even as that thought entered my head, Vincent’s face flashed in my mind. His threats echoed in my ears. And that fear—fear I’d tamped down to focus on finding Skylar—started to swirl all over again. It was only compounded by the reminder that while we’d found Skylar safe and sound, Nova was still missing. And we were no closer to finding her.

Stepping out of my room, I padded down the hallway in my slippers toward the sounds of battle.

“No way, bruh. I’m gonna smash you,” Owen cheered.

“Prepare to eat ice sword,” Dex shot back.

A soft smile tipped my lips as I turned the corner to find them sitting on pillows in front of the TV. Dex had brought over his gaming system, and they were now both eight, apparently. Their bodies leaned one way and then another as they trash-talked. They threw everything into their attacks and defenses, their arms flailing as they punched buttons on their controllers.

The game took place in some sort of fantasy land. Dex’s character looked like a troll while Owen’s…I couldn’t identify. But the creature had wings and a thorny sword.

Suddenly, Owen’s character leapt into the air, executing a spin kick and then stabbing Dex’s troll through the heart.

“Yes!” Owen cheered as he jumped up, much the way his character had, minus the kick. “Victory is mine!” He raced around the room.

Yeti barked and darted after him, loving this sort of game.

Dex groaned, flopping back onto the floor, hands clutching his chest. “Downed by the winged beast in the prime of my troll life.”

Owen laughed, reaching out a hand to pull Dex to his feet. “I’d say there’s always next time, but I’m never gonna let you win.”

Dex moved fast, tugging Owen into a playful headlock and giving him a noogie. “What was that about never letting me win?”

Owen cackled with laughter as he struggled to get free. “I’ll never surrender.”

I watched from the entryway as they teased and tumbled, and realized Owen had never had this. The kind of male camaraderie with play-fighting and battling on the fields of imagination. I tried to meet Owen in his interests: Nerf battles, the occasional video game. But this was different. Another frequency. One I hadn’t been able to give him.

Dex lifted Owen into the air and threw him onto the couch in an exaggerated body slam. The move was so slow, I knew there was great care in it. But Owen howled with laughter, playing the part of demolished wrestler.

“Victory is mine!” Dex cheered, taking Owen’s earlier words.

“Watch your back, troll man. I’m coming for you,” Owen vowed.

Dex laughed, his gaze finally catching on me. “The princess has emerged. Or should I say the hellion?”

One corner of my mouth kicked up. “The hellion has come to take this bat boy to bed.”

“Aw, man,” Owen complained.

“Hey,” Dex said, drilling a finger into his side. “The sooner you sleep, the sooner we get a rematch.”

Owen considered that for a moment and then nodded, standing from the couch. “Gonna brush my teeth.”

I gaped at Dex, my jaw fully hanging open as Owen headed for the bathroom. “Did you seriously just get my kid to start his bedtime routine with only one protest?”

Dex’s lips twitched. “I’m getting that this isn’t usually the case.”

I let out an annoyed huff. “I get at least half a dozen battles. Sometimes, the full dozen. ‘I need a snack. One more story. I’m thirsty. I think I need to pee again. Does Yeti need to go out? She looks like she does.’”

A low chuckle left Dex’s mouth, and he crossed to me. He dragged a finger across my bottom lip, along my jaw, then down my neck to my pulse point. “All you need is the video game rematch method.”

My breath hitched as he stroked my pulse point. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Dex kept stroking my neck, circling the point that gave me away. “You’ve got shadows in your eyes, Hellion. The gold isn’t burning as bright.”