Total pages in book: 125
Estimated words: 122030 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 610(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122030 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 610(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
I study this scene for a moment, trying to make sense of things. Because this is, what, the third time I’ve been in this winter forest? The third time I’ve seen this tree trunk?
The first time it was empty.
The second time it was Paul gazing down at a baby.
And now it’s the three of us. But the baby was here first, so there’s something to that. I’m just not sure what. Of course, the obvious answer is that it was the baby I will have if I stay with these bloodsuckers. Some abomination. A witch, or a vampire, or something even worse.
But I don’t think that’s it.
I’m missing a piece of this story.
“Syrsee.”
“What?”
“Sit down so we can chat.”
I blow out a long breath of air and then walk over to them and take my seat.
Paul is pleased with my compliance because he chuckles. “You have questions about the child. I can hear these questions in your head. And you are right. It’s not as simple as… well, us creating a little family together.”
“Gross.”
“I’m going to ignore that because you’re confused. Let me explain. This baby would be the new breed of Black witch, Syrsee. And trust me when I tell you this, the Guild will want her.”
I peek around Ryet so I can see Paul’s face, my hands slipping under the furs to feel Ryet’s cold, cold shoulder. “Her? So it will be a girl?”
Paul’s smile is soft, and charming, beautiful Paul is back. The one my grandma met when she was a little girl. “They will be girls. And there is a good reason to take them to the Guild. Because the Guild will do everything in their power to protect them from the Obscurati.” I make a face of confusion, so he adds, “My bosses. They will want you, as well. And once they realize that I have succeeded—that my punishment is now over and the Darkness and I have reconciled—oh, they will want us all, Syrsee. But if you take these girls to the Guild, they will be safe and so will you. And not only that, Syrsee, they will reward you for coming home to them and let you read the books.”
For a moment I’m stunned. Then I just want to laugh. Because it’s laughable, right?
Magic books? A baby witch? The Guild? Some vampire Illuminati?
What the actual fuck have I gotten myself tangled up in?
“No.” I shake my head. “No. That’s not how this ends.”
“Isn’t it? The Darkness has already chosen you, Syrsee. The Darkness let Josep feed, and then I fed on Josep, and then you fed on me, dear sweet. Don’t you see? You’re one of us now.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Didn’t I just spell it out for you?”
“What does it mean, asshole!”
“Mean? It means you are special, Syrsee. You have the Darkness inside you now. It’s flowing through your veins this very moment. It will stay there forever. You will feed it to Ryet, and I will take some every now and then, and…” He actually pauses to sigh. “And then it will propagate in this world through you now, love. You are the new mother of all demons. You are the dark now too, Syrsee. And from here… we rule the world.”
My mind is spinning through all that bullshit. The whole forest is spinning. And the purple—holy fuck, there is so much purple. Images begin flashing through my mind.
A clearing. A man and a baby. The fur, the snow, the tree. The Darkness, whatever that really is. The blood, the teeth, the claws, the wings.
The future.
And me. And so many, many babies.
Who are not really babies, but demons.
I almost snort out a laugh. And then I make a decision.
No. I say it out loud, just so I’m clear. “No.”
Lucia is in my head, whispering, “Now, Syrsee. Now.”
And the cloak, the soft, soft cloak of fur that Paul draped over Ryet’s shoulders, is already in my hands. I stand up and I throw it over top of Paul. He puts his hands up—maybe out of instinct, but then again, maybe he knows who I am and what I can do with the purple.
But it doesn’t matter. The cloak is my power because I made it my power.
Lucia is chuckling in the background, her words drifting through the misty, lavender forest. “That is very literal, darling.”
As soon as the fur cloak touches Paul’s hands, they disappear. When it covers him, he disappears too. And then, before I can even come to terms with what is happening, it’s just a fur, on a log, in the middle of a snowy forest.
Paul is trapped here now.
Can I find him again? Is this forever? Or is there a way to bring him back?
I don’t know. I don’t care.
Ryet is gone as well. But he wasn’t really here. That was Paul’s magic. He’s back on that bed and that’s where I need to be too.