“He’s your familiar?” Mammon questions, finally calming down from being his judgey self.
“Yes. He saved me once we entered the Bloodlands.” I scratch Namir behind the ears, causing him to lean down and push into me. I push back, walking over to refill my cup. I need an entire pot to deal with all the maleness in the room.
A gasp comes from the hall, and I turn to see the vampire. She’s tall and thin. Blonde hair cascades down her back. Blue eyes stare at Namir like he’s the worst thing she’s ever seen. I hate her instantly.
“Vita, this is Anima,” Mammon introduces us. She rakes her gaze up and down my body before landing on my face.
“Pleasure,” she says. The disdain in her voice has my hackles rising. This bitch will not live long if she keeps this up.
“Have you fed Torque?” Uriel asks, trying to defuse the tension in the room.
“Yes. He’s not suckling, but that’s to be expected. His life force is so low. I don’t know what you did to him, but he’s barely hanging on,” she spits, sauntering over to an empty chair as if it’s a throne.
A low sound comes out of my mouth, and I try hard not to chuck the coffee at her head. It would be bad to kill the vampire before Torque is healed.
“Do you think more of my magic will help? Or if I use the orb? It worked when I saved Mammon,” I say, turning to Uriel. My voice is hopeful, but his face is not.
“I don’t know. I’ve never healed a demon before. Our magic rarely works on them. But you’re a tri-bred. It may help.”
“She’s not to touch him. He’s mine to look after. She’s the one who put him in this state. Stay away,” Vita spits.
The hairs on the back of my neck rise, and my scalp tingles. I place the cup on the counter. My smoke comes out in tendrils, engulfing my hands in seconds. Sigils light up, and if I could see them, I know my eyes would be bright with their silver.
“Anima,” Nox says, trying to stand in front of me, but I blast him away. My magic pins him to the ground. Caymn and Mammon are next, my smoke holding them against the wall. Uriel snickers behind me, wanting to see the show.
“Get up from the chair. When I end you, I want you to be on your feet.”
“You can’t kill me. I’m the only thing helping Torque.”
My smoke snaps out to wrap around her throat. I lift her from the chair, holding her in front of me. My sigils glow brighter and snake down my smoke. They light up the smoke, making it purple. It becomes solid, and she chokes.
“As much as I’d love to see this continue, please let go of the vampire.”
I spin around to find Torque gripping the doorframe. His skin is ashen, and his eyes sunken in. A tremble comes from his hands. I rush over and grab onto his waist before he falls to the floor.
“Stupid demon. Should have stayed in bed,” I say, with a smile.
“I couldn’t let you kill her. She’s a valuable blood source,” he retorts, returning my smile. Even half-dead, he makes my body light up.
I snort and lead him into the other room. When I suck the power back into myself, I hear the two demons fall to the floor. They both grumble obscenities, but I now turn all my attention toward Torque. I didn’t know how much I missed him until they almost took him from me.
Once he’s back on the bed, I sit at his legs and brush a lock of hair off his face. “How are you feeling?”
“Like I was poisoned and brought back to life.” He closes his eyes for a moment, wincing in pain.
“I don’t know if my magic made it worse or not.” I can’t meet his eyes. If I’m the reason he was out for so long, I don’t think I could forgive myself.
He grabs my hand, then presses it to his lips. “You are not the reason. I don’t think I would have held out so long without your healing. Vita was just the food I needed.”
His candor takes me back. I thought they considered vampires sacred. I’d love to find out what happened, but now isn’t the time. Getting him back to health is.
“Nox demanded we bring the orb. I’m not sure if that was the right thing to do. I don’t exactly know why.”
“He wants you to train with it. It’s what I would do. You have to get better control of your powers. What you did out there was impressive, holding three demons and a vampire. You controlled that room, but you also almost killed them. That wasn’t your intention.”
He’s right; I wanted them to stay where they were, not end their lives. Well, maybe Vita. I’d like to take her out. She doesn’t deserve Torque.
Being around the orb is doing something to me. My magic feels changed in a way that scares and excites me at the same time. It’s a variable we can’t afford to have.
“I don’t know where we go from here, Torque. There is so much that needs to happen before we take on Rahna. I’m not sure having Nox’s power will be enough.”
“This isn’t the place for us to create a stronghold. If I know my brother, he will not stop until we are all dead. He’s threatened for the first time in thirty years, and he’s not one to back down from a fight.”
I lace my hands through his fingers. I want so much to give in to this bond. I’d love to wrap up with his arms around me for a night, sharing something I’ve never given another, my heart.
It’s a fantasy. It could never work between us. Some things aren’t meant to
