It is possible this woman is not your sister, Tiberiu, Sandu said. I could be wrong. I could have brought you false hope. It was a guess on my part.
We have to hurry, Adalasia said. I feel the demons pushing at the portal. It’s bowing in toward us. They’re determined to break through, and there is much weakness here.
Begin to seal it, Adalasia, Sandu ordered. Tiberiu, tell her the time is now or never. I am reaching out to Liona now. She is not on the other side of the portal. I feel her. But she isn’t there.
Adalasia didn’t wait. She hurried to thicken the seals on the portal, pouring in the strongest of the ancient woods and old magic it was originally built with but weaving in webs of more modern material that demons might not understand the composition of: titanium. She added the safeguards against demons taught to her from the time she was a child into every weave. The strongest. She was patient, taking her time.
The demons knew she was working against them, and they struck at her, trying to come up under her, but it was impossible without the portal. The lethal demons clawed at the cracks, doing their best to emerge from the one crack she left open in order to give Tiberiu’s sister a way out if she wanted to take it. The demons growled and snarled at her, hissing their hatred, glaring with yellow eyes as they shoved their heads through the opening. The moment they reached for her, Sandu lopped off the arm and incinerated the claw as it scuttered across the floor toward Adalasia.
She continued to work, not allowing anything to stop her from sealing the portal. She was aware of the guardians and Sandu in the background of her mind as they kept her from harm, but every word, every stroke, had to be flawless. She handed the sword to Sandu. The demons and Nera knew she was there. She could use both hands, both arms, as well as her voice, to seal the portal, and she did, making the work easier.
Seal it, Tiberiu ordered softly. Gaia will not abandon Justice. I cannot persuade her.
Adalasia felt Tiberiu’s heavy sorrow, although she knew he did not. She didn’t hesitate but kept working. Sandu worked tirelessly to protect Adalasia while he reached out to his sister on their private family path, calling to her continuously. Over and over. Hoping she was alive. Finally, he fell silent and held the sword aloft, spreading the light through the cave while Adalasia worked to strengthen and seal the portal so that the army of demons couldn’t slip through.
There was a gentle movement in the cave, the slightest of breezes, carrying the scent of fresh oranges. “Ek?m?” The voice trembled. “Sandu? Have I lost my mind? Is this truly you?”
Sandu spun around, the air leaving his lungs in a long exhale of pure shock. Liona alive. Tall. So beautiful she hurt his eyes. His sister. Every memory of her came rushing back, swamping him, so many crowding together until they were a jumble in his mind.
“Liona.” He whispered her name.
Benedek took the sword from him, and Nicu took up guardianship at Adalasia’s side while she finished sealing the portal so he could go to his sister. Liona stood just inside the chamber, one hand on the wall to hold herself up, shaking, her skin pale, her blond hair tumbling in a thick wild fall to her waist, her blue eyes enormous.
“Is it really you, Sandu? I had given up all hope. I thought you were long gone from this world.” She looked as though she wanted to take a step toward him, but she didn’t have the strength.
He wasn’t certain he was any steadier. Adalasia. She is alive.
Yes, my love.
Joy burst through him at the confirmation. He wasn’t hallucinating. The demons weren’t playing tricks. Liona was really standing right there in front of him. He crossed the chamber and gathered her to him, pressing her slender frame against his, needing to feel her.
“I could not get to you,” he whispered. “Until Adalasia, I could not find you.” He pressed kisses on top of her head the way he had when she was a child. He realized his hands shook. “You have guarded the gate all these centuries. So alone, and yet you have lived with honor, Liona.” There was pride in his voice, pride welling up. Awe.
“Not entirely alone. I have friends. We support one another.” She pulled back, tilting her head to look up at him. “Who is Adalasia?”
Sandu turned to face his lifemate. She staggered, and both Nicu and Benedek reached to steady her. She was very pale but triumphant.
“The portal is sealed and stronger, I think, than before.” She flashed a smile at Liona.
“Adalasia, my sister, Liona. Liona, my lifemate, Adalasia, who is in need of blood.” He held his free arm out to her while still retaining possession of Liona.