Argent Eye IV

50

The next day, Ronan and I walked down to see Stella- mainly to check on how she was doing, but also to catch her up on the last couple of weeks.

We were just walking up her long driveway when I felt the darkness begin to stir. Ronan and I were walking and talking, but in that moment, I had to stop. It was one of those moments when you suddenly realise something, and panic starts to set in, however I wasn't even sure what it was I'd realised.

"Millie?" Ronan asked.

I turned and looked at him, and then frowned. I looked back at Stella's house- it looked pretty ordinary. Didn't look any different from the last time I'd been there. It was eerily quiet, though. No bird song. Not even a breeze, which I was sure there had been when we'd walked down the hill to get here.

"Something doesn't feel right." I said quietly.

Ronan looked a little concerned. "In what way?"

"The darkness." I said. "I can feel it."

Ronan then looked back at the house. "You want me to take us in there?"

I nodded. "I think that would be wise." I said. "Maybe to one of the bedrooms upstairs? Just in case."

Ronan nodded, and took my hand, before our feet left the floor.

We landed lightly in one of the spare bedrooms- it was the one Stella had let me borrow when Haydn had stabbed me with the metal just a couple of years ago. The one where Jacob, her son, had healed me.

We could both hear voices downstairs, however they were a little muffled, so we crept out of the room and towards the top of the stairs.

"Look, I haven't seen Millie." I heard Stella say. She sounded stressed. "She's still in London."

"No, she isn't." Another voice said- I was pretty sure it was Haydn. Of course, his voice was slightly different to what it used to be, what with the different host body, but I was sure I recognised it from our more recent encounters.

Shit.

I shot Ronan a worried look, and he did likewise.

"I can sense her nearby." Haydn added. "And this is her home village, correct?"

"Yes." Stella said.

"Then you will tell me where her childhood home is." Haydn demanded. "Where her family live."

"Never." Stella said, although I could tell her voice was on the brink of breaking. At the mention of my parents' house, I started to worry. Haydn could quite easily ask other people in the village about where they lived, as they were pretty well known in the area. He could easily charm his way to get what he wanted, or if not, I had no doubt that he'd threaten.

"And you were the one she turned to." Haydn tutted. "The earth Heir. Not even pure Argent." He practically spat the words.

Ronan leaned in closer to me. "Can you fuse? With the air?"

I frowned. "I don't know." I whispered.

"You must try." He said. "Then you can go down there and catch him off guard."

I nodded, and decided it was worth a try. I'd fused with the air just the other day, when Haydn had nearly sliced me in half. It seemed like a natural reflex at the time, and I wasn't entirely sure how I could do it on command.

But I had to. It could be the only way to reach Haydn undetected. Even if Ronan teleported down there, it was unlikely he could do it without triggering Haydn. If Haydn had Stella at knife point, then we had to account for that. What if he was prepared to kill her with any sudden movement, including the sudden appearance of Ronan?