Guardians of the Boundary (Book 3 of The Conjurors Series)

Chapter 22

Valerie was examining Pathos in the garden the next day when a jumble of images from Chrome intruded on her scrutiny. She saw a flash of a battle overlaid with his excitement, an image of Jet, gray from being tortured by Reaper, that carried profound grief, and an image of a blue and green planet rushing closer. She tried to make sense of the overriding message of his thoughts.

"You're being sent to Earth?" Valerie asked when the wolf appeared at her side. She dropped to her knees beside him and tentatively placed her hand on his back.

Chrome stiffened, and then relaxed. Visions of the Grand Masters asking him to be the first to go to Earth tumbled through her mind as he shared what had happened. They thought his ability to trace magic trails would mean that they could find the Byway on Earth more quickly, and that his magic wouldn't disrupt Earth's rules enough to make him sick.

"But how can they be sure?" Valerie asked. She saw the answer in an instant—they couldn't be. She knew that Chrome would have accepted their proposal right away, embracing the potential for danger, maybe even hoping for it.

"I'll miss you," Valerie said, and she could hear that her voice sounded like a little girl's.

Over the past two years, Chrome had been by her side during some of her toughest battles. And when Jet had died in front of her and she hadn't been able to save him, he'd never blamed her. His presences had been a big comfort.

"What does Gideon think?" she asked.

But no more images passed through Valerie's mind. Whatever Gideon's response had been, Chrome wasn't sharing it. Instead his soulful eyes stared into hers for a long moment.

"I know I can't go with you to Earth in person, but I'm coming in spirit." There was no way she would let Chrome be the test case to see if the Conjurors could send someone safely to Earth without her being at his side.

"I'm coming, too," Henry said. He'd been standing at the door, listening. Henry's face twisted, and Valerie wondered if he was fighting back tears. As he walked over to join them, he said, "Chrome, will you look for my dad when you make it to Earth? Please. Reaper won't keep him alive much longer."

Chrome nuzzled his nose into Henry's leg, and an image of a pack of wolves around a fire appeared in Valerie's mind. She'd seen it once before—when Chrome and Jet had offered her protection after Sanguina had almost killed her. She was touched that Chrome would make the same gesture to her brother. She ran her hand gently along Chrome's flank and let her tears fall into his coat. When she finally pulled away, she saw that Chrome's eyes were wet, too.

Valerie and Henry followed Chrome to a guild that Valerie had never been inside before. The doors were solid stone, and etched into them was an image of two Conjurors shaking hands.

"This is the Relations Guild," Henry whispered to her.

Chrome nudged the door, and it opened to a bustling room filled with a diverse group. She saw fairies, People of the Woods, and several animals in addition to the usual variety of Conjurors roaming around Arden. Valerie remembered that the Guild managed the relationships between Arden and the other countries on the Globe, and that Skye was the Grand Master.

She followed Chrome down a hall with soft blue carpet and stopped at a large door. Before they knocked, Skye opened it and greeted them. Inside his office, the centaur seemed larger than life.

His office was in the shape of a diamond, and mirrors that were labeled with locations of cities around the Globe covered the walls. Valerie assumed that the mirrors were spelled so that he could speak to leaders from other countries.