She took my hands and squeezed them. “Safe travels,” she whispered, just as she had the night of Samhain.
I nodded and gave her a closed-lipped smile. “I’ll give ’em hell.”
Andre headed back to his room—their room—looking for that damn iPod. He’d uploaded it with all of Celeste’s songs just so his mate could know the voice of the woman who loved her first.
He’d meant to give it to her earlier, but the damn thing had grown legs and disappeared, and it wasn’t until last night that he’d found it sitting in its package in the library as though it hadn’t been moved in the first place. Had the iPod been in any other room, Andre might’ve worried.
He’d headed out to greet the guests this evening without the device, and he nearly made a fool of himself only moments ago. Had the fairy not shown up, he would’ve swept Gabrielle up in his arms, then reached into his coat pocket to procure a gift that wasn’t there.
He reached the door to their room and slipped inside. Instead of finding the iPod, he found a letter, carefully folded on the bed. He could smell her scent on it. A corner of his mouth quirked. She’d written him a note. Just when he was convinced she was a child of this century, she went and did something like this.
He could see his name scrawled along the front, partially obscured by a drop of ink. The sight made him grin.
He opened the letter up. The smile immediately left his face.
Andre,
If you are reading this, then I am dead. There are things you need to know, things that I’ve kept from you, but things that might now give you hope …
Chapter 29
“A string quartet? A string quartet?” Oliver eyed the group of musicians gathered in the corner with obvious disdain. “You’ve got to be kidding me. And blood? Where’s the J?ger and the strobe lights? The nearly-naked men and the drugs? This fairy wants to do body shots, then roll!”
“Oliver, this is a celebration, not a rager—” My heart shuddered then skipped a beat.
Damn. It was happening again.
I leaned a heavy arm on Oliver’s shoulder.
“Sweets?” He sobered in an instant.
Next to him Leanne watched me, the whites of her eyes visible.
“Give me—a second.”
The pain burning through my chest abated somewhat, and I straightened. I backed up, bumping into a nearby vampire.
Oliver reached out. “Gabrielle!” He never used my actual name, which meant he was legitimately worried.
“I’ll be back—with your J?ger and half-clad men.” The joke fell flat.
He dropped his hand. “Don’t forget the drugs.” His joke fell flat too.
I shoved my way through the crowd. My eyes scanned for the nearest escape. They landed on the door to the guest bathroom. Wasting no time, I made a beeline for it.
Once I slipped inside the restroom, I leaned against the wall, gasping out a sob as the pain rolled through me. My stomach spasmed. Organs were shutting down. The whole production was coming to a close. I drew in a shaky breath and pushed away from the door.
I whispered a prayer under my breath, a series of strange, broken words strung together that begged for any other fate save this one. But if deliverance was coming, it wouldn’t be tonight.
I leaned over the counter and took several deep breaths. I couldn’t seem to get enough air through my lungs.
I lifted my head and stared at my reflection. My haunted blue eyes glittered amongst pale skin, my lips a bright red slash against the creamy flesh. And surrounding it all was my dark, dark hair. I had my own shadowy halo, just like the devil.
Promised to two men. Was that all us sirens were? Beautiful, treacherous objects to be given or taken?
The tales were true. We ripped men’s hearts out and shredded them without thinking. Even to those we loved. Like Andre.
My mind drifted. Back at Bran Castle, Morta had mentioned something then. Something that I’d never forgotten and something that Jericho had reminded me of.
I would come back. I didn’t know when and I didn’t know how, but I’d be topside again. In fact, if what Morta had said was true, I’d become a creature that could traverse both earth and hell. Maybe all wasn’t lost.
And maybe I was grasping at straws.
My hands slid off the cool marble countertop just as the door to the bathroom squeaked open.
Crap, I’d forgotten to lock it. I swiveled around, only to come face-to-face with Caleb.
“Caleb?” Hope and horror filled my voice. “What are you doing here?” I took in his tux, noting absently that he wore it well.
He didn’t answer right away. I smelled his sweat and fear. His pulse hammered in his chest.
My gaze moved to his face. It was somewhat puffy, the skin around his eyes tinged red. He hardly looked better than me.
“Hey, are you okay?” Before I could think twice about it, I reached out for him.
Caleb stepped back. “Don’t touch me. Please, Gabrielle, don’t.” His throat worked.
I let my hand fall and suppressed my hurt.
He scrubbed his face.
“It’s okay. Whatever it is, it’s okay,” I said soothingly. And it was. When your fate was to die and reign hell alongside the devil, other things sort of became insignificant by comparison.
He shook his head. “It’s not.”
From down the hall, I felt my connection with Andre surge. And then he was moving rapidly towards me.
I swore. He’d found my note too soon. I was sure of it.
“Gabrielle!” he bellowed.
Yep. He definitely found the note.
While I stared off, listening to my soulmate stalk ever closer to me, I heard a click. My gaze snapped back to Caleb in time to see his hand move away from the door’s lock. That was when I understood.
Caleb wasn’t here to visit me, he was here to end me.
“Soulmate!” Andre shouted from somewhere in the distance. My gaze moved to the direction his voice was coming from. “I swear I will tie you to the bed this time, you hear me? You are not to sacrifice yourself for anyone!”