“Is that what you think?” He shakes his head, eyes glazing. “For all our long years, the four of us have walked side by side with death. We’ve spilled rivers of blood, broken enough bones to build a full-sized replica of the city, and fought eachotherenough it’s a wonder we never destroyed the manor. But if I’d ever lost any of you—truly lost you—fucking hell, Draegan. It would’ve gutted me. Do you understand? Westlyn… she’s not the only one who… who loves…” He trails off and turns away, sucking in another drag. “Think whatever you want. Butno, you won’t be sauntering about Wintermoon tonight like some lone wolf with a score to settle. Westlyn might not be able to stop you on her own, but there are two gargoyles in this tavern who can still draw blood, not to mention a bevy of witches who I’m sure would be more than happy to practice some of those sparkly attack spells on your cocky arse.”
“Oh, all right. For fuck’s sake.” I laugh again, though whether it’s from the witchweed or something else, I can’t discern. “What’s your plan then? Frankly, I’m all out of ideas.”
“Tonight? We drink the rest of that wine. We sleep. We take turns keeping watch over each other and that Codex. We take care of Rook in whatever way we can. And most of all, we protect our girl, becauseshe’sthe only reason we’ve got a fighting chance in this life at all. Agreed?”
She’s the only reason we’ve got a fighting chance in this life…
I know Jude’s not talking about her magic, her unwavering determination to break our curse.
He’s talking about what she’s brought back to us—the humanity we lost. The bonds of family we’d taken for granted with each other for so long before her arrival.
Love, in all its forms.
I shake my head, still shocked by the miracle of it. Just when we were ready to finally succumb to the darkness, in walked Westlyn Avery, shining a light so bright we couldn’t help but follow it.
Jude’s right. Westlyn’s right. We all need a breather tonight. A chance to shore up our defenses and come up with a plan better than ‘fly out the window and hope for the best.’
And most importantly, we need to stick together.
“Agreed,” I finally respond. “But one night, Jude. Just one night. We rest and regroup. And tomorrow, we—”
“Tomorrow, brother…” Jude sucks down the last of his cigarette, then grins, sharp fangs glinting through the smoky haze. “Tomorrow, we’re out for fuckingblood.”
Chapter Fifteen
ROOK
We’ve lived with the threat of a dark-fae curse hanging over our heads for fifteen centuries. Plenty of time to brood about it, to plumb every dark part of our worst nightmares for ideas on how it would eventually claim us.
I thought I’d covered all the bases. An endlessly wandering soul, never to find peace. The fear of eternal damnation. The particular torture of being trapped in stone for eons upon eons, conscious but unable to move. The incredible sense of loss for a life lived on someone else’s terms.
Verrick’sterms.
But even with all my dark imaginings,nothingcould’ve prepared me for how it feels to be locked in a stone prison when the woman I love is out there worried sick over it. Her every tear is a knife through my heart, and her determination to find a way to set me free only makes me ache for her all the more.
This is not how she should be spending the prime of her life. Fending off dark curses, chasing a monstrous father through a deadly realm. Fighting battles that never should’ve been hers to begin with.
This is worse than a death sentence.
My witch is sitting with the other witches on the floor before the fire, right at my feet, yet I can’t reach out and touch her.
I can’t hold her and stroke her hair and promise her we’ll find the answers.
I can’t pore over book after book by her side, answering her questions, watching her eyes light up with new discoveries.
I can’t kiss away her pain or make her laugh or flirt with her until she’s begging for a kiss that could set us both ablaze.
And worst of all, I can’t fucking protect her. Not from the agony of losing her gargoyles. Not from more of Verrick’s twisted magical attacks. Not from whatever new threats lurk just beyond the tavern doors.
And it’s driving me absolutely mad.
Right now, the only thing keeping me even marginally sane is the fact that the others are still able to take care of her, and we’re no longer alone in this fight. Tatiana and the witches are with us, doing everything they can to find a way to defeat Verrick and the demons and get us all back home.
As for Westlyn… My wild witch may be down, but she’s certainly not out.
Even after facing down Verrick twice tonight, she’s still ready to fight. I could no more convince her to stop searching for a key to unlock my stone prison than she could convince me to stop loving her.
Now, while the guys clear away the dinner mess and do an inventory of the food, weapons, and supplies at the inn, West and the witches are hard at work too, poring over the Codex for clues about the Spell of Unmaking, the elder witches helping West learn to channel and control her magic.
