“Good.”
“He can connect with me through one of thosethings?” I was unable to keep the higher pitch from my voice when I asked the question.
“You have connected with me at times,” Kobal replied. “He’s more skillful at using his ability and a lot older than you.”
Bale’s eyebrows shot up and Corson nearly tripped over his own feet when Kobal revealed I’d connected with him. Morax and Verin exchanged pointed looks before she smiled in an ‘I told you so’ way. Shax looked as if someone had punched him in the stomach as his gaze shot back and forth between us. I could feel the questions burning in all of them, but they remained quiet, probably waiting until I wasn’t around before interrogating Kobal further.
“They’ll know where she is,” Verin said.
“No, not if there was no connection between them,” Kobal replied.
“But if they sent the revenirs—”
“The revenirs could be anywhere in the world; it only takes one to infect others. Lucifer most likely split them up and one of them got lucky enough to stumble across that town. They can rise up from any dead who remain above the earth, but Lucifer will have no way of knowing the exact location of this rising,” Kobal interrupted Verin.
“What exactlyarethey?” I croaked out.
“They’re a perversion of some of the souls who were never allowed to leave Hell because of their actions on Earth. They drain the life from their victims and turn them to their side. They can also infect the dead, which is most likely part of the reason you humans burn or bury your dead. Someone at some point in time must have glimpsed a revenir through the veil. They get no life from the dead, but their kiss can turn the bones into one of them. My first ancestor locked them behind the first seal over two hundred thousand years ago to protect against every demon in Hell becoming like them. It has been the duty of the hounds and the gate keepers to make sure the seals stay in place ever since.”
“So they’re kind of like zombies?” I asked.
“They’re leeches,” Corson said.
“They’re worse than that, and we can’t allow them to spread past the wall,” Kobal said.
Corson ran a hand through his dark hair. “We should leave soon.”
“We’re staying with the plan,” Kobal replied brusquely. “We’re not ready to leave yet, and after what the humans witnessed from me today, I’m not sure what to expect from them. I’m probably going to have to work on regaining their trust.”
“You saved their lives; they’ll get over it,” Bale snorted and looked toward me questioningly.
I shrugged and held my hands up before me. “I only shoot small fireballs, and they don’t like me; he just torched a hundred of those things. Why didn’t you tell them what you could do before today?” I asked Kobal.
“They know what they need to know. We have to ensure we keep ourselves protected. We may be far stronger than humans, but they still outnumber us,” Kobal replied.
I refrained from asking what else they could all do; I knew they wouldn’t tell me. I was a full-blown one-of-a-kind oddity no one trusted. I had a feeling I’d get the same treatment from the angels, if I ever encountered one of them in my newly formed, messed up life.
“That’s not going to help you with gaining their trust,” I said.
His eyes were still amber in color when they landed on me. “You’restill walking with us.”
A bitter laugh escaped me. “I’m more of an oddity than any of you. I’m not exactly welcome anywhere.”
His fingers dug into my waist before rubbing over my flesh in a way that made all of my exhaustion fade away. More heat than the flames he’d shot from his hands spread through me. I couldn’t stop myself from resting my hand against his chiseled abs. The carved muscles bunched and flexed beneath my palm as he moved. His skin was completely smooth; his body hairless other than his eyebrows and head. From my dreams, I knew he was hairless below too.
A blush colored my cheeks at the memory of those dreams and the feel of him against my body now.Totally not the time, River!
Yet, I could not stop the volatile response of my body to his. Seeming to sense my growing desire, his hand flattened against my side before slipping up to stroke over my ribcage. I nearly jumped out of my skin and ducked my head before I could see if anyone else had noticed my reaction to him.
Relief filled me when the tents came into view. A shower and bed sounded like a little bit of heaven to me right now.
CHAPTER 34
Kobal
I stood in the bedroom of the house where River showered, listening to the water beating down from the shower in the adjoining bathroom. Beating down onher. Earlier, I’d left Bale outside of her room while I’d showered in the small bathroom downstairs. Stepping into the shower stall had instantly reminded me of why I hated the human bathrooms. I’d nearly broken the showerhead off when I’d banged my head against it. I’d barely been able to turn sideways within the tiled walls.
Despite my dislike of the small space, I couldn’t be far from River right now, and I’d needed to wash the filth of battle from me. I did have to admit the warm water had felt good beating down on the healing wounds the revenirs had inflicted. Wounds that were already completely closed.
