“I don’t understand.”
“Then let me speak plainly.” A muscle twitched in his jaw. “If I kill the Demon. You and Cassius will both die. I wipe out their race, and you will cease to exist, dust to dust. Is that plain enough for you?”
My eyes widened, “But, the war—”
“To keep their numbers down, for they’re a gossiping sort. They horde together, make plans, but up until now they have been silent. They’ve been silent for a thousand years. And now, they are at it again, and it will be your job to squelch the uprising before it is too late.”
My mind finally caught up with what he was saying.
“Why would we die… if the Demon race was annihilated?”
Sariel’s eyes were sad, but he said nothing.
Instead, he reached out and touched my face with his fingertips.
And disappeared.
Was it seconds? Minutes? Or hours? I had no idea how much time I spent staring off into space, wondering what my next course of action should be. All I knew was that I had a suspicion Cassius was in the dark just as much as I was, and that maybe, maybe it was time for someone to do something.
Cassius’s self-deprecating thoughts had always affected me, made me afraid of what I had inside, afraid of the darkness, afraid of what would happen if I lost control. It was a juxtaposition, being told not to be afraid yet seeing what we were capable of if we did fall off that cliff.
How was I supposed to stay strong when every fiber of my being told me I should be leery? When I saw thousands of years of war, when I witnessed firsthand the way he was conceived into this world.
Air brushed past my cheek.
Had my relationship to Cassius come to this? Me keeping secrets while he watched and waited for me to snap?
Waited for me to kill him?
The vision of the knife in his chest while he fell to the ground seared through my memory.
Why would I do that?
Why would I hurt him purposely?
The answer came swifter than I thought.
Because as strong as I was—Cassius would always be stronger. He would eventually hunt me, track me, find me. I couldn’t keep my walls up forever.
But injured?
I shivered.
And knew, as the wind picked up and swirled like madness around me, what I had to do.
Oddly, as I took those first steps toward the house it wasn’t Darkness rejoicing, it wasn’t warmth I felt, but a deep sense of cold, and that was the most comforting thought at all, as I grabbed the knife I knew Ethan kept in the hall closet right along with a few guns—not that he’d ever used them.
I thumbed the blade.
Not the twist I thought our fairy tale would take.
Not at all.
Cassius
THE THOUGHT THAT I didn’t still have my immortality never crossed my mind, and frankly, I didn’t want to take any chances. I would call upon Sariel once Stephanie returned.
If she returned.
She would return.
The last few hours had been a painful reminder of the way she’d blocked me from her consciousness, her thoughts, her feelings, everything. All I saw was a shield every time I tried to communicate with her.
The front door opened and closed.
Her scent hit me first.
Another door opened.
Curious, I waited, it was closed faster, more abrupt, as if she had thought about slamming it but decided against it.
Footsteps followed.
And then Stephanie was standing in front of me. Slowly, I lifted my head, unsure of what I’d find. Would her eyes be black? Was Darkness finally having the last laugh? Or was it truly a simple walk?
Genesis had gone to bed hours ago.
Leaving me by the fire.
Though it did nothing to aid the cold seeping throughout my body.
“I saw Timber,” Stephanie whispered. Her eyes were a clear blue. “He said some… things.”
“Timber likes to talk.” My eyes narrowed. “What the hell would he want with you?”
Stephanie crossed her arms in front of her chest, taking a protective stance against me, not only was I dealing with mental walls but physical too. “He hinted at something… and then Sariel…”
“Sariel.” I said his name. “Was he helpful?”
“He said—” She bit down on her lower lip, opened her mouth, then shut it. “You know what? I’m tired… why don’t we go to bed?”
The air filled with bitterness.
A chasm opened up between us, separating me from her, her heart from mine. My soul screamed in outrage.
Lies were like little walls shoved between someone you loved, eventually, you’d have so much separation, so much mistrust, that you’d become strangers.
Why push me away?
When all I wanted was to hold her close?
Was her connection to me different? I could hardly go five seconds without wanting to kiss her, make love to her, simply hold her in my arms and calm her racing heart.
“I love you.” Stephanie’s eyes filled with tears. “You know that right?”
I stood and pulled her into my arms. “I love you too.”
“So you also know that…” She sniffled. “Sometimes, when you love someone, you make sacrifices.”