freedom, and sending this conjure son of a bitch to his grave, where he belongs.” He cleared his throat uncomfortably, glancing at Arianna. “No offense.”
“None taken,” she replied, repeating his battle declaration aloud while raising her glass until every vampire in the house was shouting, chanting, echoing this mantra, causing the room’s wooden floors and the walls to shake. The vivacious energy was contagious, the charge in the air palpable and fierce. Slipping the Book of the Ancients into my watertight backpack and adjusting the straps tight over my shoulders, I made my way through the crowd toward Mr. Beginning-of-Things-to-Come and pressed my lips against his, drawing strength from his strength, and hope from the family that surrounded me. If I were destined to be some kind of firestarter in all this mess, it was time I reached way, way down, where the courage cowered beneath the terror, and be ready to light that match.
***
Holding Gavin’s hand as he led us all into the bayou, I couldn’t help but wonder how many of the faces behind me I’d see again after tonight. The fact that we had no magic on our side this time, and were about to face Gérard again, added to the horrific reality that I might also lose Gavin.
And that took the wind right out of me.
Stopping short, I inhaled deeply, the call to run tingling in my fingertips. But now wasn’t the time. The sun was drifting lower toward the earth, the crescent moon imminent.
Gavin stopped with me and gently held up a hand to gesture to everyone behind us to halt. Leaning close, he guided me forward against his chest by the small of my back. “Hey,” he whispered. “Don’t you dare worry about me.”
I lifted my chin to meet his gaze.
“It’s all over your face, baby. You don’t have to say it. But I need for you to not worry about what happens to me tonight, do you hear me?” Taking my chin between his fingers, he pressed his forehead to mine. “Don’t give me that look. If what Clea said is true, and this book is steering us the right way, we have nothing to fear. If she didn’t believe it would work, Vivienne wouldn’t have made it a priority to create a link to relay all this information to you. What have the witches been saying to us? It’s all written .”
Unable to deny that he had a point, I nodded, clutching his chest. “You’re right. It’s just … you heard what Clea said. All of this might be fate, but the outcome can change if we screw up. What if we fail?”
“Then we fail together. But we won’t.”
“You all might die, trying to get us through the portal,” I clutched his shirt tighter between my fingers. “What if you were in my shoes? Do you understand how painful it is for me to even consider the possibility?” Sneaking a glance behind us at Audrey and Gabe, my throat tightened. There they stood, our most precious human friends, with nothing more to protect them than a few measly silver knives and the scant hope in a prophetic book that some voodoo-hoodoo witches told us to follow.
It was all so crazy, and yet here we were. Again.
I felt his fingertips on my chin and he rotated my face to meet his. “I know it’s not what you want to hear, Cam, and damn if I hate saying it. But, if me … if that’s what it takes to get you to the other side, then that’s my role in all this. I’ve accepted that. Don’t you think I feel the same? Not long ago, you were a normal human girl going about your life. And now you’re like me, somehow branded to play a part in my mess, my mission. In the wildest dream I’ve ever had, I never would have guessed you’d be dragged in this deep. But for some reason beyond my understanding, it was written . You’re the one with the visions, the one Vivienne imparted the information about the wolves to. So you’re the one Samira will listen to, especially with Arianna by your side. This is the way it has to be. Just remember, the moment you step foot on the other side,
“None taken,” she replied, repeating his battle declaration aloud while raising her glass until every vampire in the house was shouting, chanting, echoing this mantra, causing the room’s wooden floors and the walls to shake. The vivacious energy was contagious, the charge in the air palpable and fierce. Slipping the Book of the Ancients into my watertight backpack and adjusting the straps tight over my shoulders, I made my way through the crowd toward Mr. Beginning-of-Things-to-Come and pressed my lips against his, drawing strength from his strength, and hope from the family that surrounded me. If I were destined to be some kind of firestarter in all this mess, it was time I reached way, way down, where the courage cowered beneath the terror, and be ready to light that match.
***
Holding Gavin’s hand as he led us all into the bayou, I couldn’t help but wonder how many of the faces behind me I’d see again after tonight. The fact that we had no magic on our side this time, and were about to face Gérard again, added to the horrific reality that I might also lose Gavin.
And that took the wind right out of me.
Stopping short, I inhaled deeply, the call to run tingling in my fingertips. But now wasn’t the time. The sun was drifting lower toward the earth, the crescent moon imminent.
Gavin stopped with me and gently held up a hand to gesture to everyone behind us to halt. Leaning close, he guided me forward against his chest by the small of my back. “Hey,” he whispered. “Don’t you dare worry about me.”
I lifted my chin to meet his gaze.
“It’s all over your face, baby. You don’t have to say it. But I need for you to not worry about what happens to me tonight, do you hear me?” Taking my chin between his fingers, he pressed his forehead to mine. “Don’t give me that look. If what Clea said is true, and this book is steering us the right way, we have nothing to fear. If she didn’t believe it would work, Vivienne wouldn’t have made it a priority to create a link to relay all this information to you. What have the witches been saying to us? It’s all written .”
Unable to deny that he had a point, I nodded, clutching his chest. “You’re right. It’s just … you heard what Clea said. All of this might be fate, but the outcome can change if we screw up. What if we fail?”
“Then we fail together. But we won’t.”
“You all might die, trying to get us through the portal,” I clutched his shirt tighter between my fingers. “What if you were in my shoes? Do you understand how painful it is for me to even consider the possibility?” Sneaking a glance behind us at Audrey and Gabe, my throat tightened. There they stood, our most precious human friends, with nothing more to protect them than a few measly silver knives and the scant hope in a prophetic book that some voodoo-hoodoo witches told us to follow.
It was all so crazy, and yet here we were. Again.
I felt his fingertips on my chin and he rotated my face to meet his. “I know it’s not what you want to hear, Cam, and damn if I hate saying it. But, if me … if that’s what it takes to get you to the other side, then that’s my role in all this. I’ve accepted that. Don’t you think I feel the same? Not long ago, you were a normal human girl going about your life. And now you’re like me, somehow branded to play a part in my mess, my mission. In the wildest dream I’ve ever had, I never would have guessed you’d be dragged in this deep. But for some reason beyond my understanding, it was written . You’re the one with the visions, the one Vivienne imparted the information about the wolves to. So you’re the one Samira will listen to, especially with Arianna by your side. This is the way it has to be. Just remember, the moment you step foot on the other side,
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