Once my weapons had been safely put away inside my treasure trove, releasing the evil wasn’t any easier than it had been before. I had been hoping it would be, praying it was some type of game, or even spell, that Jacob Angel had been playing on me. But instead I knelt on the ground, forehead to the carpet, and gripped my hair as I screamed bloody murder. Tiny black insects of madness were bubbling under and directly over my skin, trying to keep control.
“Get the One,” Roselle ordered someone. “She’s too young to handle that much.”
“No!” I shouted, my voice sounding demented. I slammed my hands onto the ground and shook my head, lifting on my hands and knees to stare blindly at the floor. “I can do this.”
Roselle squatted directly in front of me, lifting my chin. I ground my teeth together to keep from attacking her, and she stated softly, “The fact you’re able to control it at your age is a remarkable feat, Ms Jules, but you won’t be able to process as much as you took in.”
“Walk. Me. Through. It.” I leaned my forehead again on the ground, my body trembling as my Core pulsed erratically. “I can do this. Just walk me through it.”
She sighed then leaned down. “Try pulling it through your Core in smaller doses. Concentrate on one part of your body instead of the entire mass. Start with your arm or your leg, rope it in, and ease it through your Core…slowly…gradually.”
Focusing was a feat in itself. I aimed at my arm, working through the darkness there and dragging it through my body like it weighed a ton. I screamed, unable to hold it in. The pain of fighting the evil was building up inside me like a bomb wanting to explode. But I pulled the darkness through my Core, even as I heard multiple masculine voices shouting from inside the protection. And I exhaled. Stars escaped past my lips onto the carpet. It was a purity being released, the equal and opposite of the evil that had run rampant throughout the world.
“There you go,” Roselle murmured, petting my head softly. “Try it again with another body part.”
I did, over and over again, the agony excruciating.
But I still did it.
I fell onto my side, my body trembling in exhaustion and remembered pain.
My body was soaked with sweat, and my tears were only just starting to dry on my face.
Roselle continued crooning softly to me, wiping hair out of my face. She stated loudly to the enraged group behind the protection, “You won’t understand this, but what she just did is amazing. It’s something you should be proud of her for.” A gentle smile down at me. “And you should be proud of yourself, Ms Jules.”
My voice was a mere croak. “I am.”
She flicked a hand at the cursing group. “You can come out now.” Her gaze went to Reese. “Don’t bother trying to make them forget. The One already told me half of them have protection against it, and I saw Elder Farrar a half-hour ago adding the protection to the rest.”
Sin was rapidly scooping me into his strong hold, crushing me against his chest. “Are you all right, love?”
“Hurts…tired…” I mumbled, letting my head roll to rest against his shoulder.
King Collins’s right hand was on my forehead, running gentle fingers through my sweaty hair, but his contained fury was barely masked. He barked at Roselle, “Can a Mage help her with any of the lingering pain?”
Roselle stated simply, “She is very young to have done what she just did, but what she’s experiencing will fade in time.”
King Collins’s eyes glowed down on me. “It’s possible you should have taken the help.”
I blinked blurrily. “I wouldn’t have known if I could protect you all, if I were alone in the future, without attempting what I just did.” I closed my eyes. “Sin…bed…”
“Okay, love,” Sin whispered, hefting me closer against him.
“I’ll inform the One what’s happened,” Reese stated, before a flash of white light erupted behind my closed eyes.
A soft afghan was draped over my body, and efficient hands were tucking it in around my body inside Sin’s hold. Directly next to me, King Collins mumbled gruffly, “Keep her warm.” More tucking. “And maybe make her some soup if she starts to feel too ill.”
Sin’s words were dry. “I know what to do, seeing as I’ve been taking care of her for the past twenty-three years.”
“Just remember the damn soup,” King Collins muttered. I started to doze, sleep taking me under as shivers racked my body. But I still heard him as he pulled the blanket up close to my neck. “And if she gets worse, tell me immediately.” A snap of fingers accompanied by clipped words. “And don’t forget the damn spirit guards, since she’s not able to protect herself.” More snaps. “Frost. Farley. Get your asses over here before they leave.”
“I think he’s got it,” King Zeller stated calmly. “Let’s go have a drink, Jack.”
King Collins added, “Wait, one more thing—”
“Yes, it’s time for that drink,” King Zeller interrupted, his voice sounding slurred as I went under, unable to stay conscious a second longer.
I was down and out for five days. It was embarrassing as hell. I just laid in bed, my entire body aching like an elderly Com’s. My joints were inflamed. My muscles throbbed like they were torn. Even my short fingernails hurt.
And I had a headache to end all fucking hangovers.