“He was going to hurt you,” Cal manages to bite out, his tone guttural and nearly unrecognizable. “He wants to kill you.”
“But he didn’t.” I take a tentative step closer, but before I can touch him, Barret wraps an arm around my waist and drags me behind him. “What the hell?”
“He’s not sane right now, Violet,” Barret whispers urgently. “He’s dark.”
“What the fuck do you mean?”
“Fairies can be either light or dark,” he continues, forcing me backwards with each step he takes. “Cal was light…and now he’s dark.”
“And?” I struggle futilely, but it’s like fighting with a brick wall. Barret is apparently hewn completely from stone.
“And a dark fairy is dangerous. It’s a curse, Violet. He’s obsessed with blood and vengeance. He’s not the Cal we once knew.” His voice breaks on those final words, but I’m already vehemently shaking my head in denial.
“No, you’re alive. Once he sees that you’re alive and well, he’ll snap out of it.”
Barret continues to move us until we’re nearly out the door.
“It doesn’t work like that, Cheese Curd.” The arm around me tightens as he walks us backwards. “Maybe if he was a normal fairy, yes, but he’s not. He’s also part incubus.”
“If he kills that man, he’ll be arrested for murder.” There’s no graver sin than a monster killing another monster. Sure, the council will look the other way if the victim is a vampire, but a man like Alex’s father? I don’t need a brain to know that he holds some sway over the ruling government. His death will warrant a manhunt and execution.
Desperate, I scream, “Cal, Barret’s alive. He’s here. Look behind you. He’s right here. With me. We’re both safe.”
A familiar dagger appears in Cal’s hand, the blade glinting in the artificial lighting. The copper handle fits perfectly in his clasped fingers as he brandishes it back and forth.
A god-blessed dagger.
“Cal!” I beg. “Cal, don’t do this. This isn’t you.”
When he spins around to face us, I don’t see the man I care about. His teeth are elongated, more beast than human, and his glowing red eyes burn like the fires of hell themselves are trapped in those tiny orbs. A snarl distorts his mouth even further as his eyes flicker from Barret to me.
“This is what they wanted!” he hisses, the noise nothing like his usual melodic voice. “I’ll do what I need to do to protect you. I’ll become an even bigger monster than the one they thought they created.”
Fear creeps down my spine and roots my feet to the ground. Not even Barret can pull me away, though he for sure tries.
Cal turns once more towards his victim and raises the dagger. And then, with one fatal swoop, he plunges it into the necromancer’s heart.
Black lines erupt from around his eyes like dark, gossamer spider webs. His lips part in a silent cry as blood forms around the corners of his mouth. Those dark, dark eyes—spinning with the secrets of the universe—fixate on me with pure hatred and venom. A sinister smile curls up his lips as more and more blood drips down his chin.
Despite dying at Cal’s hand, his words are addressed to me and me alone. “This isn’t over, vampire slut.” With that, his eyes close and his body goes limp.
Dead.
Dead.
Dead.
He’s dead.
That one thought plays on repeat in my head as I stare at his fallen body and then at Cal’s crouched form. His chest heaves with each breath he takes. As I watch, horrified, black lines—similar to the ones I saw on Alex’s father’s face—clamor up and down Cal’s wings, bleeding into the enticing red.
Barret freezes, similarly stunned, as he stares at his best friend.
“What did you do?” he whispers.
Slowly, Cal unfolds himself from his crouched position and rises to his feet. With one foot on the body, he removes the dagger from the man’s chest and caresses the silver blade.
“I did what had to be done,” he whispers, those pure red eyes training on me behind Barret’s shoulder. At his attention, Barret continues to move us out the door, his body a shield against the avenging angel.
“I would never hurt her,” Cal hisses.
“But you’re scaring her,” Barret counters immediately.
Ignoring them both, I glance anxiously in both directions. At the moment, the hall appears to be empty, but I know it won’t remain as such. Especially if this is a hotspot for orgies, as the closets displayed.
“We need to go. Now.” Ignoring Barret’s cry of protest, I brush past him and grab Cal’s hand. Immediately, the red in his eyes begins to recede and his fangs shrink back into his mouth. Confusion dances in his eyes as he stares from me to Barret and then to the body we left behind. “Barret?” he whispers, sounding young and small, like a forlorn child. “You’re alive?”
“We need to go,” I repeat, extending my other hand towards Barret, which he accepts. I tug them forward until both men stand on either side of me, a protective wall of muscle that no one will be able to breach.
“What happened?” Cal whispers. “What did I do? How are you alive?” He addresses the last question at Barret. “Am I dead?”
“You’re not dead,” I huff as I storm through the crowd of sweaty dancers. Fortunately, no one gets near enough to touch me with Cupid and the Boogeyman at my sides. The monsters might not know who they are, but the power they emanate is almost palpable. No doubt, they recognize an apex predator when they see one. “At least, not yet. But we’re all going to be if we don’t get the hell out of here.”
Cal appears momentarily struck speechless, but he allows me to drag him through the club and to Jack’s car parked illegally on the curb.
“You’re alive,” Cal repeats as he climbs into the backseat. Barret, surprisingly, takes the passenger one. “Violet…” I finish buckling my seatbelt and glance at him through the rearview mirror. “Did I hurt you?”
“No,” I say immediately, ignoring
