For me, those moments weren’t going anywhere.
I opened my eyes, and found my vampire with a hard-on.
He offered a devilish smile, but no apologies, and I couldn’t help but laugh.
“I see wewerethinking about the same thing,” I said.
“I’ve been thinking about it every day since it came back to me, love. Dreaming about it, reliving it, replaying it. In fact, I’m considering commissioning Asher to make some sketches for me.”
“Great,” Haley said, and I flinched. I’d almost forgotten there were other people in the room. “Judging from the state of Darius’s pants and the crimson flush on Gray’s cheeks, I’m giving you both an A for that part of the assignment. Moving on.”
Verona had given us several large crystals to help keep our magic contained and protect us from any potential visitors from beyond, and now Haley placed them in the corners of the room and on the windowsill—black tourmaline, labradorite, black obsidian. Next, she set the six red candles in a circle around us, standing a Tarot card against each one. They were all cards I’d consciously selected earlier from the deck Emilio had given me, hoping to draw on their particular energies for the ritual:
Six of Cups, for nostalgia and good memories, and a childlike faith that our blood spell would work as intended.
Judgment, symbolizing the rebirth of Darius as a whole being, memories restored and intact.
Three of Cups, a card of friendship and sisterhood, for the deep bond and gratitude I felt toward Haley.
Queen of Swords, to aid Darius with mental clarity.
The Lovers, representing our eternal bond, blood and heart and—though it was an odd choice of words considering Darius was a vampire—soul.
And finally, The Star. I’d drawn it on the day Emilio and I had first been intimate together. The day Reva had turned up at the RCPD. It’d brought me a sense of calm and peace and hope, and I was channeling all those feelings again now, bringing them into the ritual that would bring my vampire back to me.
As Liam lit the surrounding candles, Haley knelt inside the circle next to me and Darius and unsheathed her athame, a slim silver dagger with a handle fashioned from raw quartz. She passed it through the sage smoke and whispered a few incantations in Latin, then used it to slice Darius’s fingertip.
“Place a single drop of blood on Gray’s tongue,” she said. “No more, no less.”
Darius did as she instructed, and I closed my eyes, letting the blood soak in like it had in the Shadowrealm. Again, I tasted the richness of it, smooth and slightly bitter, like dark chocolate without a grain of sugar.
A flood of images cascaded through my mind’s eye, I gasped.
“Tell me what you see,” Haley said.
“I can see Darius!” I said. “You… you’re in London, meeting with clients in an old-fashioned looking office, with ornately carved furniture and shelves full of books and scrolls.”
“Yes,” he said softly, “I suppose that was where I practiced law.”
“Now I see you at Black Ruby… You’re filling out a liquor order. Wait, now you’re unpacking blood from the deliveries. And now you’re… Oh.” My cheeks flamed again as I watched an image of myself through Darius’s eyes. He’d just taken my blood, sealing our bond, and though he’d teased me with more sultry innuendo than I could handle, I sensed from the memory that he was practically on fire inside. I felt the strength of our connection surge through me, both in his memory of that moment and in my own mind, right now.
The movie reel spun onward from there, forward and back, showing me glimpses of his past I could only guess at. Centuries, cities, faces, feelings, all of it spinning into a blur.
I opened my eyes, my heart threatening to burst from my chest. I couldn’t process it all.
“His memories are still there, locked away in his blood,” I said. “Or connected to it or… something. I don’t know. There was so much… I’m sorry.” My eyes filled with tears, my body suddenly overwhelmed with emotion.
Darius reached for my face, silently wiping a tear with his thumb. His own eyes were intense, his gaze heavy. I sensed a hundred thoughts forming in his mind, in his heart, yet he seemed unable to find the words to voice a single one.
Instead, he smiled, and I let out a breath, steadying myself again. Reminding myself that we were in this together. That this was absolutely going to work.
“No, that’s a good thing, Gray,” Haley said. “That means your theory actually holds water, and with a little luck and a whole lot of magic, we might be able to kickstart Darius’s own recall abilities.”
She held up her athame again, instructing us to hold out our hands, palms up.
“Essentially,” she continued, “we need to recreate the blood bond, connecting you both in an unbroken circle. The idea is that your blood, your magic, and the magic of your existing bond will flow from one heart into the other, into the other, into the other, continuously, until there is no longer a separation between the two. Magically speaking, of course.”
“If we need to recreate the bond,” I said, “shouldn’t Darius drink from me? That’s how we did it initially.” Memories of that moment in Black Ruby rushed back, stirring me up inside.
