Rhea (Book 7 of The Land of the Forgotten Series)

The smell of smoke was sharp in the air, pungent and almost overwhelming, burning her throat with every breath she took. It clung to her skin and hair, thick and suffocating, like it had weight, like it wanted to press her down and keep her there. Heat radiated from somewhere close. Her skin prickled, though she couldn’t see the source through the haze.

Screams filled the silence. High, raw sounds of terror that scraped against her nerves. They came from every direction, overlapping and frantic, each one more desperate than the last. Footsteps thundered past her, bodies rushing by in a blur of movement. People were running, some barefoot, some bleeding, some looking back over their shoulders as if expecting death to reach out and grab them at any second.

Running from something.

Or someone.

She stood there, rooted to the ground, watching them as they hurried by her, never once glancing in her direction. Not a single person collided with her. Not a single shoulder brushed hers. It was as though she didn’t exist at all, like she was nothing more than smoke herself, just an observer caught between moments.

Panic vibrated through the air, wild and contagious. Flames licked at the edges of buildings, chewing through wood and stone alike, embers floating upward into a sky gone dark with ash. The world felt fractured, as if reality itself were tearing at the seams. Everyone was just trying to save themselves. There was no order. No command. Just instinct and fear and the desperate need to survive.

Then the sound of breaking glass shattered through everything.

It was sharp and violent, the crash echoing too loudly and too clearly, and it grabbed her attention. She turned just in time to see a female standing outside a broken window, her silhouette stark against the moonlight. Before she could identify the woman, a male squeezed himself through the jagged opening, shards of glass falling around him as he climbed out.

He landed on the ground with a solid thud and straightened, every line of his body tense, coiled, and ready. Firelight danced across him, illuminating brown hair that was a bit long, tousled as if he’d been sleeping. He was nicely muscled, built for strength rather than vanity, and there was something fierce in the way he moved, like danger knew better than to approach him uninvited.

He looked around at the devastation, his expression tightening as he took in the chaos, the burning homes, and the fleeing people. And then his gaze lifted.

It landed on her.

Her breath caught painfully in her chest.

For one suspended, impossible moment, it was almost as though he could see her standing there. Like the space between them thinned, like the world held its breath. His brown eyes were striking and intense, filled with something raw and instinctual that reached straight into her chest and wrapped around her heart.

He was her mate.

She knew it beyond a shadow of a doubt. There was no hesitation, no question. The certainty settled into her bones, ancient and undeniable, and her pulse roared in her ears as she stared back into his beautiful face, unable to look away. Fate hummed between them, loud and insistent, even as the world burned around them.

Then his attention snapped away, breaking whatever fragile connection had formed.

He looked back at the other female. “Shit.” He grabbed her hand. “Come on. We’ve gotta run.” Then he took off towards the woods, dragging the female behind him.

Rhea Baudelaire’s eyes snapped open, and she jolted upright in bed, her breath coming in ragged pulls as if she’d been running. Her heart hammered painfully against her ribs, each beat echoing with the remnants of smoke, fire, and screams that still clung to her like a second skin. For a long moment, she just sat there, clutching the sheets beneath her fingers, forcing herself to remember where she was.

Safe. Home.

She’d had that dream way too many times now. So many that the images no longer felt distant or hazy. No, now they were vivid, sharp, and real in a way dreams shouldn’t be. And yet, no matter how often it came to her, she still had no idea what it meant. If it meant anything at all.

Rhea swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood, the floor cool underneath her as she began to pace the room. Her bare feet moved back and forth, her steps restless, her thoughts refusing to slow. Her mind dragged her right back into the dream, to the firelight, the chaos, and the gorgeous male whose face she could still see far too clearly.

Her mate.

She had no doubt about that. Not even a flicker of uncertainty. The bond had been immediate, instinctive, and undeniable. But that only made the questions worse. Where was he? Who was he? What was he? Fae? Shifter? Something else entirely?

She truly had no idea.

It drove her crazy that she could never catch his scent. The only thing she could ever smell in her dreams was the smoke. It seemed to overpower everything else.

The not knowing pressed down on her chest until it felt hard to breathe. If she had some idea of what he was, she might be able to find him. It would help her to narrow down his location.

But what if he were human?

The thought made her run both hands down over her face in annoyance. She didn’t have a problem with being mated to a human. She just knew that his being human would make him even harder to find.

Finally, unable to stay alone with her thoughts another second, she slipped out of her room and padded down the hall toward her brother’s suite. She didn’t bother knocking; she never did. Though when he finally mated someone, that would change.

The last thing she wanted to do was walk in on Rhys having sex. The thought was enough to gag her.

She moved quietly through the sitting room and into the bedroom, the familiar space easing something tight in her chest. Rhys was sprawled across the bed, relaxed and unguarded, his dark hair spread over the pillows, the steady rise and fall of his chest proof that he was deeply asleep.

Rhea crossed the room and sat on the edge of the bed, the mattress dipping beneath her weight.

His blue eyes snapped open instantly and found her. He didn’t even seem surprised that she was there. “Rhea?”

“Hey,” she whispered, suddenly unsure of herself. Was she really bothering him about this? Would he think she was crazy? Or would he just be annoyed that she’d woken him? “Can I...?” She gestured toward the bed, the words trailing off.

Maybe she didn’t have to tell him anything. But she wanted to.

“Yeah. Of course.” There wasn’t even a hint of hesitation. He shifted immediately, scooting over and lifting the blankets for her like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Rhea crawled into the bed and into Rhys’s arms, turning so that her back was to him. He wrapped around her without thinking, one arm settling securely over her waist, the other tucking beneath her pillow. His warmth soaked into her, steady and familiar, and she let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding.

Just like when they were children. Just like when the world felt too big.

He’d always been her protector, even when they were little. If she’d had a bad dream or just needed some comfort, he was always the first one she went to. Even over her mother.

The bond between them was very strong, more so than her bonds with her other siblings. She loved them all very much, but Rhys was always the first one she went to when she needed something.

Rhys pressed his forehead lightly against the back of her head, his voice low and still thick with sleep. “Bad dream?”

She nodded, even though he couldn’t see it. He would just know. “Yeah.”

“Was it a dream or were you seeing something?” he asked softly.

Her fingers curled into the sheets. She’d started being able to see things shortly after her seventeenth birthday. “I’ve had the same dream several times, Rhys. I’m pretty sure I’m seeing something that’s either going to happen or has already happened.”

“You’ve dreamed it before?” he asked.

“Yes. I’m not even sure how many times. It’s always the same. I wish it would go on longer, but it won’t.” She gave a small sigh. “I have so many questions about it.”

He tightened his hold just a fraction, a silent promise that he would always protect her. “You want to tell me about it?”

Rhea hesitated, staring into the darkness ahead of her, the image of burning buildings and familiar brown eyes flashing behind her lids. “Not yet,” she admitted quietly. “I just... needed you.”

“I’ve got you,” Rhys murmured without hesitation. “Always, Rhea...”

And for the first time since waking, her heartbeat finally began to slow.