“Yes,” Lucas agrees but doesn’t sound excited. I look up and realize why. “That means the curse settled more than we thought.”
“I’m going to break it,” I assure him but feel the panic start to rise. This healing balm only works on the living, and having Lucas be alive again sounds good on paper but will be the death of him.
For real.
And there won’t be any coming back.Chapter 8Bright sunlight shines through the window, and I sit up just enough to telekinetically shut the curtains. I lie back down, rolling over so I can look at Lucas’s handsome face.
It’s only eight a.m. and I’m still tired. Lucas tossed and turned a bit in his sleep and woke up feeling uncomfortably hot. He kicked off the blankets and then was cold.
If the situation weren’t so dire, I’d laugh. It’s been so long since he’s been alive, he’s forgotten how to handle those small daily annoyances. I turned the heat down on the electric blanket, took the comforter off, and covered him back up. It took a bit more adjusting before he was able to get comfortable, but then he fell back asleep.
His arms are around me now, and I wish I could settle back into his embrace and have everything be okay. I’d even take demons coming after me—again—if it meant Lucas was okay.
Maybe I relied on him too much. Took his strength and immortality for granted. I’ve always been aware that neither of us are impervious to death completely, but I took comfort in the fact that Lucas has made it this far with no issues and is an excellent fighter.
Which makes me think what Abby said has to be the truth.
Physically murdering Lucas would be damn near impossible for a human. It would be just as hard for an ordinary witch. He’s too strong. Too fast. He’s had sixteen hundred years to perfect how to hunt, how to kill, and how to evade those after him.
And a silver-tipped stake through the heart is a quick death and is painless for the most part. Slowly withering away while I’m forced to watch…I grit my teeth, and the ceiling fan above us starts to rattle.
As far as we know, all the spells used to try to bring vampires back to life were destroyed. It was too painful and gruesome to attempt again, and more importantly, it didn’t work. Did the necromancers find an old spell? Or did they come up with one specifically for tormenting my love?
I close my eyes, let out a breath, and hook my leg over Lucas’s. He pulls me closer to him in his sleep, and I relax a bit more. Pandora jumps off the bed, letting me know she’s going to patrol the house so I have nothing to worry about.
Binx and Freya join her, and I know if anything is lurking about, they’ll find it.
I let my eyes fall shut and am asleep again within minutes. I sleep peacefully for a good hour and then start to have a nightmare. In my dream, I wake up right where I am and turn to wake Lucas only to discover he’s a pile of smoking blood and bone.
I wake with a start, so upset tears are filling my eyes.
“What’s wrong, my love?” Lucas asks, wrapping me in his arms.
“I had a bad dream.”
“A prophetic bad dream?”
“No,” I say firmly. I won’t let it come to that. “Just a regular one. You died.” My voice cracks, and Lucas pulls me on top of him. I watch, waiting to see him wince, but his gaze remains steady, looking right into my eyes.
“I died years ago.”
“You know what I mean.” My throat tightens. “I can’t lose you, Lucas. And I can’t help but think this is all my fault somehow. That bad things happen just because I love you so much.”
“That doesn’t make sense,” he soothes. “You didn’t curse me, so this isn’t your fault. If you didn’t love me so much, then I probably would have died of the flu already or something.”
“You heard what Abby said?”
“No, but I know how things work, Callie. And I can feel it.” He brings his hand up, tapping his chest. “It feels wrong.”
“It is wrong. But it won’t be forever.” I blink away my tears, and a few fall on Lucas’s chest.
“I’m not going to leave you, Callie. Not now, not ever.” He lifts his head off the mattress and kisses me. With that one kiss, everything disappears.
All I can think about is Lucas.
His lips on mine.
His body pressing against me.
About how much I love him.
How much I want him.
Moving fast, Lucas flips us over and puts himself between my legs. “I love you, Callie Anne King. And I will always love you.”
A tear rolls down the side of my face, and I bend my legs up, curling them around him.